CIS511 — Spring 2014 Texas A&M University Central Texas CIS 511-125 Managing Information Systems S 8 Am to Noon 1/25, 2/8, 3/1, 3/22, 4/12, and 5/3/2014 Instructor: Office: Phone: Email: Office Hours: Dr. Timothy G. Woodcock 323G - Founders Hall 254-519-5783 WoodcockTG@ct.tamus.edu TR – Noon - 3:00 PM and W – Noon – 5:30 PM and by appointment. Student-instructor interaction: I will be checking and responding to student emails during office hours. Additionally, I will check emails at least once on Mondays and Fridays. I will return phone calls during office hours. COURSE INFORMATION Course Overview and description: Studies the management and use of information and technology as a resource to create competitive businesses, manage global operations, provide useful products and quality services to customers, whether public or private. Topics examine information systems management, intellectual property, privacy, organizational and societal impact, legal issues, ethics, security issues, decision making, strategic information systems, and organizational support systems. Course Objectives: Upon the completion of the course, students should be able to 1. Demonstrate knowledge of the key terms, concepts and various technology architectures on which information systems are built. 2. Understand the strategic role played by information technology in organizations to help deliver business value. 3. Describe management roles and responsibilities for managing information resources and security successfully. 4. Understand some of the increased demands placed upon the IS dept and management because of telecommunication systems and the Internet. 5. Discuss some of the effects of E-business and E-commerce upon the organization. 6. Identify and evaluate the causes of information systems success and failure. 7. Analyze the critical ethical, social and political issues in information systems. CIS511 — Spring 2014 Required Reading and Textbook(s): Required Texts: Management Information Systems – Managing the Digital Firm, 12th ed.; Laudon & Laudon; Prentice Hall; 2007. Note: A student of this institution is not under any obligation to purchase a textbook from a university-affiliated bookstore. The same textbook may also be available from an independent retailer, including an online retailer. Course Requirements : There will be two exams given this semester, a midterm and a final exam. Each will be worth 100 points. These exams will be given online. Online Activities Because this class is a hybrid, half lecture class, and half online class, there will be online activities worth 200 points. There will be approximately one activity a week. These activities must be done during the week they are assigned and will not be available once the time is up. Many of these activities will be discussion board questions. Some will be research questions where you will be required to research a topic and report your findings. All of the activities will require your active participation. There is no makeup for missing an activity. Team Project There will be one Team Project, worth 400 points, where student teams will work as a team to research and complete a MIS solution to a business problem. Students can self select their teams using the Blackboard team tool. Students must choose their team before the end of the first week of class (January 17th). Otherwise, students will be assigned to teams. Each team must go find a business with a problem. The team will then propose two MIS solutions to the business problem. Examples of appropriate MIS solutions would be customer management systems, e-commerce systems, knowledge management systems, and decision support systems. However, other kinds of systems exist and may be used with prior approval of the professor. (Please note that solutions in the category of fix the network, or hire new workers, etc., that might be acceptable solutions in a real environment, are not in the spirit of this class and are thus unacceptable as solutions for the business. These solutions will be rejected with an appropriate reduction in points.) Each team must present a progress to the class at every live class. Written progress reports are due after each presentation. The written report is a complete status report. The report should start with a summary of the projects progress thus far (as the semester progresses, this section should become larger). The summary will be followed by a detailed report of what was done during this last time period. This should be a detailed report of the progress. I expect this section will be large and will show that you have been making progress on the proposed MIS solutions. I expect a discussion of all decisions made and why alternative options were rejected. The report will include a plan for what will be done in the next time period. This should include a schedule and a list of tasks with task owners clearly identified. Lastly, the report should have as an appendix, a copy of meeting minutes from every meeting of two or more group members, including phone conversations and texts. CIS511 — Spring 2014 Progress report 1 will also include submitting your group charter. The charter is a document communicating how the group will work together. The project charter should include a description of each team member, what strengths the member brings to the group, the role assigned to the group member and a list of responsibilities for that team member. The charter should also include a statement of how the group will complete the group objectives. The charter should clearly indicate who the group leader is. The charter should also address how the group will communicate with each other, how changes to the project or to the charter will be handled, and how disagreements or other problems (like noncommunication or failure to achieve deadlines) will be handled. All team members must agree to the charter, and will be graded on how well they abide by the charter. As a minimum, changes to the charter must be presented to me by the group leader. Progress Reports Progress report 1 = Describe business with a problem. Clearly identify the problem. Describe the organizational structure of the business. Agree with the group charter. Progress report 2 = Summary of the two proposed MIS solutions to business problem. Discuss all ethical and social issues your solutions need to address. Progress report 3 = Describe how each solution will give the company a competitive advantage. Describe how each solution fits into the business value chain. Progress report 4 = Describe the technology that your MIS solutions will use. Describe any risks these technologies pose to the company or to project success. Discuss the database or databases your solutions will need. Progress report 5 = Identify all the sensitive information contained in your MIS system and how you will protect this information. Discuss the security vulnerabilities of your solutions. How you would address these issues? Also present the cost of implementing this MIS solution, include both onetime costs like buying hardware, and ongoing costs like having a dedicated DBA or other personnel. Final Group Presentation = Show each solution with its strengths and weaknesses and show which solution you would choose. Your written report should show in detail how each system solves the business problem and why one is better than another. There is also an individual assignment in the group project. You will be given a private Project Journal in Blackboard. You are to record your observations of the group project during the semester. Your journal should include your personal notes, thoughts, reflections and comments on project events. It should be complete, detailed and accurate. You should make notes on the project for every event that occurs (good or bad). In many cases this means daily entries at a minimum there should be several entries per week. The Project Journal will be graded at the end of the semester but you may receive feedback throughout the semester. CIS511 — Spring 2014 Group Project Grading Rubric Progress Report #1 Describe business with a problem. Clearly identify the problem. Describe the organizational structure of the business. Have a problem free charter. Met the criteria Partially met the criteria Problem or business not clearly identified. Business structure unclear. Problems with the charter. (Note: Charter problems must be fixed, but will not result in a grade change.) Did not meet criteria Not clear. Missing. 50 points Progress Report #2 Summary of the two proposed MIS system solutions to business problem. 50 points Detailed summary and analysis of proposed solutions to business problem 10-45 points Analysis not complete or fewer than two solutions considered or solutions not an MIS solution. 0 points No solutions 50 points Progress Report #3 Describe how each solution will give the company a competitive advantage. Describe how each solution fits into the business value chain. 50 points Competitive advantage clearly defined. Detailed description of business value chain. 5 - 45 points Unclear competitive advantage or business value chain. 0 points No competitive advantage or business value chain. 50 points Progress Report #4 Describe the technology that your MIS solutions will use. Describe any risks these technologies pose to the company or to project success. Discuss the database or databases your solutions will need. 50 points Detailed description of the technology, risks, and databases. 5-45 points Incomplete description of the technology or the risks or the databases. 0 points No description of the technology or the risks or the databases. 50 points 50 points 5 - 45 points 0 points Problem clearly identified. Detailed description of the business. Business structure described. No problems with the charter. CIS511 — Spring 2014 Group Project Grading Rubric Progress Report #5 Identify all the sensitive information contained in your MIS system and how you will protect this information. Discuss the security vulnerabilities of your solutions. Met the criteria Demonstrated understanding of the sensitive data in MIS systems Clear and well organized plan to protect this data Clear understanding of vulnerabilities. Partially met the criteria Unable to demonstrate understanding of sensitive data Or incomplete plan to protect the data Or incomplete understanding of vulnerabilities Did not meet criteria Unable to identify sensitive data No plan to protect sensitive data No vulnerabilities identified No cost analysis Good cost analysis Incomplete cost analysis 50 points Good demonstration of differences in the systems 5 - 45 points Not clear what the MIS solution differences are. No reasons for a clear winner. 0 points. No differences between MIS solutions shown. 50 points Complete, thoughtful, record of the events of the project. 5 – 45 points Incomplete record of project events. Failure to record events or long spells with no entries. 0 points Journal entries that do not demonstrate that you had any input or impact on the project. 100 points Satisfactory level of participation -0 points 10 – 90 points Group members unhappy with your level of participation -40 to -100 points 0 points No participation -200 points Present costs. 50 points Final Group Presentation Compare and contrast each system and select the best. 50 points Individual Private Project Journal Your journal of the projects events 100 points Team Peer review Term Papers There will be a Research Paper worth 200 points each. Each student is required to write a major paper on a topic from the course that is of interest to you. The topic for paper one must be approved by the professor by the end of the first live class. You will be expected to research the topic, show the current state of the art, make a hypothesis, and draw a conclusion in your paper. CIS511 — Spring 2014 This paper must be 10 to 15 pages in length (type written and double-spaced, 12-point font with 1 inch margins) excluding bibliography, table of contents, graphics, tabular or illustrative material. References should include current sources and must conform to IEEE style. (For IEEE style manual see: http://www.ieee.org/documents/stylemanual.pdf.) The paper is expected to meet graduate-level standards and be suitable for publication in a professional journal. References must be from peer reviewed journals only. Use of Wikipedia or the class text as a reference will cause a serious loss of points. References must include the published journal name and information, NOT just a URL where you found the paper. Papers without citations will receive zero points. Term Paper Grading Rubric Paper topic approved before second class meeting. 15 points Suitable for publication in an IEEE journal Met the criteria Partially met the criteria Late 7 points Did not meet criteria Not approved/submitted 0 points In IEEE style 50 points Incomplete or incorrect 10 to 40 points Not in IEEE style 0 points Some references from peer reviewed journals or conferences 45 points No issues 25 points Only website references 10 to 35 points No references or use of Wikipedia or class text. Only URL’s in reference. 0 points More than 10 grammar or spelling issues. 0 points Very unclear. 0 points. On time. 15 points In IEEE style 50 points Sufficient references 45 points Spelling and grammar 25 points Writing style and page length. 65 points Clear and well organized. 65 points Using passive voice or minor grammar issues 20 to 5 points Ideas not well expressed or paper poorly organized. 50 to 10 points Unless prior arrangements have been made, all late assignments will lose 30% of the available points before being graded. CIS511 — Spring 2014 Grading Computation Item Midterm Exam Final Exam Team project Research Paper Online Activities Percentage 100 100 400 200 200 Complete Course Calendar Date Content Assignment Due 1/13/2014 Chapter 1 Introduce yourselves 1/20/2014 Chapter 2 Complete Activity 1 1/25/2014 1st live class 1/27/2014 Chapter 3 Progress report 1 - Describe the business with a problem Complete Activity 2 2/3/2014 Chapter 4 Complete Activity 3 2/8/2014 2nd live class 2/10/2014 Chapter 5 Progress report 2 - Two proposals Complete Activity 4 2/17/2014 Chapter 6 Complete Activity 5 2/24/2014 Chapter 7 Complete Activity 6 3/1/2014 3rd live class 3/3/2014 Midterm Exam Progress report 3 Competitive advantage Midterm Exam online 3/10/2014 Spring Break 3/17/2014 Chapter 8 3/22/2014 4th live class 3/24/2014 Chapter 9 Term Paper Due - Complete Activity 7 Progress report 4 Technology Complete Activity 8 3/31/2014 Chapter 10 Complete Activity 9 4/7/2014 Chapter 11 Complete Activity 10 4/12/2014 5th live class 4/14/2014 Chapter 12 Progress report 5 - Sensitive Info Complete Activity 11 4/21/2014 Chapter 13 Complete Activity 12 4/28/2014 Final Exam Final Exam online 5/3/2014 Final Group Presentation GRADE A: B: C: D: F: TOTAL WEIGHT 90-100% 80-89.9% 70-79.9% 60-69.9% below 60% CIS511 — Spring 2014 COURSE AND UNIVERSITY PROCEDURES AND POLICIES Drop Policy If you discover that you need to drop this class, you must go to the Records Office and ask for the necessary paperwork. Professors cannot drop students; this is always the responsibility of the student. The record’s office will provide a deadline for which the form must be returned, completed and signed. Once you return the signed form to the records office and wait 24 hours, you must go into Duck Trax and confirm that you are no longer enrolled. If you are still enrolled, FOLLOW-UP with the records office immediately. You are to attend class until the procedure is complete to avoid penalty for absence. Should you miss the deadline or fail to follow the procedure, you will receive an F in the course. Academic Integrity Texas A&M University - Central Texas expects all students to maintain high standards of personal and scholarly conduct. Students found responsible of academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary action. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating on an examination or other academic work, plagiarism, collusion, and the abuse of resource materials. The faculty member is responsible for initiating action for each case of academic dishonesty and report the incident to the Associate Director of Student Conduct. More information can be found at http://www.tamuct.edu/departments/studentconduct/facultyresources.php. Disability Support Services If you have or believe you have a disability and wish to self-identify, you can do so by providing documentation to the Disability Support Coordinator. Students are encouraged to seek information about accommodations to help assure success in their courses. Please contact Vanessa Snyder at (254) 501-5836 or visit Founder's Hall 114. Additional information can be found at http://www.tamuct.edu/departments/disabilitysupport/index.php. Tutoring Tutoring is available to all TAMUCT students, both on-campus and online. Subjects tutored include Accounting, Finance, Statistics, Mathematics, and Writing (APA). Tutors are available at the Tutoring Center in Founder's Hall, Room 204, and also in the Library in the North Building. Visit www.ct.tamus.edu/AcademicSupport and click "Tutoring Support" for tutor schedules and contact info. If you have questions, need to schedule a tutoring session, or if you're interested in becoming a tutor, contact Academic Support Programs at 254-501-5830 or by emailing cecilia.morales@ct.tamus.edu. Chat live with a tutor 24/7 for almost any subject on your computer! Tutor.com is an online tutoring platform that enables TAMU-CT students to log-in and receive FREE online tutoring and writing support. This tool provides tutoring in Mathematics, Writing, Career Writing, Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Spanish, Calculus, and Statistics. To access Tutor.com, click on www.tutor.com/tamuct. CIS511 — Spring 2014 Library Services INFORMATION LITERACY focuses on research skills, which prepare individuals to live and work in an information-centered society. Librarians will work with students in the development of critical reasoning, ethical use of information, and the appropriate use of secondary research techniques. Help may include, yet is not limited to: exploration of information resources such as library collections and services, identification of subject databases and scholarly journals, and execution of effective search strategies. Library Resources are outlined and accessed at. http://www.tarleton.edu/centraltexas/departments/library/ UNILERT Emergency Warning System for Texas A&M University – Central Texas UNILERT is an emergency notification service that gives Texas A&M University-Central Texas the ability to communicate health and safety emergency information quickly via email and text message. By enrolling in UNILERT, university officials can quickly pass on safety-related information, regardless of your location. Please enroll today at http://TAMUCT.org/UNILERT INSTRUCTOR POLICIES Students should come to class prepared, ready to ask questions and participate in discussions. While in other classes, the direct quoting of other authors is considered acceptable; in this class, it is not acceptable. You may not directly quote any other published paper, web site, or textbook in any writing assignment, including papers, homework, discussion boards, PowerPoint presentations, or any other written assignments. The simple reason for this is that copying (quoting) is a lower level skill. However, reading, understanding, and then communicating the ideas in your own words is a high level skill. Paraphrasing is a skill that I want you to develop. Dr. Woodcock reserves the right to modify this syllabus during the semester. Instructor Information Dr. Woodcock has a PhD in Computer Science from Florida Atlantic University. He has over 25 years of real world experience working for IBM and Sony-Ericsson. Dr. Woodcock believes that you will learn best by being engaged in class, asking questions, participating in discussion, and doing the hands on exercises. This class will be a lot of work, but it will also be fun.