Azerbaijan University
Master of Business Administration
MBA 8125: Information Technology Management
Spring, 2012
Instructor: Mammadov Samir
Class time: See Class Schedule
Office hour: by appointment
AZ 1102, Baku, R.Safarov 17
Cell: 051 9051007
E: mail: mamedoff_samir@libero.it
1. Course General Description
This course addresses using information technology to position company operations to
be effective, efficient and adaptable in the rapidly changing global economy while
appropriately handing the challenges, ethical concerns, and risks. Issues and various
approaches involved in defining, developing or acquiring, and deploying information
systems are studied within both strategic and support roles. Students will examine
how information technology can be used as an enabler for business process
improvement and service innovation, how to recognize business processes and assess
their information-related needs, and how to develop organizational agility through
business process innovations enabled by information technology.
2. Learning Objectives
Upon completion of the course, each student will be able to:
 Articulate how information systems provide business value.
 Assess the ethical, privacy, and security issues involved in the use of information
systems.
 Distinguish the different types of systems that are used to support business processes.
 Analyze the ways in which information systems can be acquired.
 Select among emerging trends in information technology to create business value.
 Utilize the fundamentals of business process innovation and appreciate the
importance of these efforts for contemporary business.
 Recommend how to organize and manage business process innovation initiatives.
 Evaluate how alternative process configurations impact business agility.
 Demonstrate an understanding of the role played by information technology as a
source of business process innovation.
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
Identify the enablers and barriers of process implementation and the key tactics
for achieving successful implementation
3. Credit Hours: 3.0 credits
4. Course Pre-Requisites
Basics of informatics, Introduction to Computers.
5. Required Computer Skills Prerequisites
Base Knowledge of Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Office
6. Books:
Required text book:
1. “Beginning SharePoint® 2010 Administration™: Microsoft® SharePoint®
Foundation 2010 and Microsoft® SharePoint® Server 2010” Wiley 2010 ISBN:
978-0-470-59712-5
2. “Management Information Sysytems: Managing The Digital Firm” Pearson 2010
ISBN-13: 978-0-13-609368-8
7. Course Description
Part
Class 1
Class 2
Class 3
Class 4
Class 5
Course Material
Information Systems and Business Processes
1. The role of information systems in business today
2. How information systems are transforming
business
3. What’s new in management information systems?
4. Globalization challenges
5. Digital firm
Global E-Business
1. Business processes and information systems
2. Types of business information systems
3. Transaction processing systems
4. Decision-support systems
Information Systems and Corporate Strategy
1. Organizations and information systems
2. Economic impacts
3. Porter’s competitive forces model
Ethical and Social Issues in Information Systems
1. Understanding ethical and social issues
2. Ethics in an information society
3. The moral dimensions of information systems
IT Infrastructure and Emerging Technologies
Resources
2/ch 1
2/ch 2
2/ch 3
2/ch 4
2/ch 5
2
Class 6
Class 7
Class 8
Class 9
Class
10
Class
11
Class
12
Class
13
Class
1. IT infrastructure and its components
2. Computer hardware platforms
3. Mobile digital platform
Foundations of Business Intelligence
1. File organization concepts
2. Database management systems
3. Data warehouses
Telecommunications and network
1. Telecommunications and networking in today’s
business world
2. Networking and communication trends
3. The global Internet
Information Systems Security
1. Security basics
2. Business value of security and control
3. Risk assessment
4. Tools for protecting information resources
Enterprise Applications
1. Enterprise systems
2. Supply chain management systems
3. Customer relationship management systems
4. Next generation enterprise applications
Introduction to E-Commerce
1. E-commerce today
2. Internet business models
3. Types of electronic payment systems
4. M-commerce
Knowledge Management and Collaboration
1. The knowledge management overview
2. Enterprise-wide knowledge management
systems
3. Managing with Web 2.0
4. Intelligent technics
Enhancing Decision Making
1. Decision making and information systems
2. Systems for decision support
3. Data visualization and geographic information
systems
4. Management decision problems
Building Information Systems
1. Business process reengineering
2. System analysis
3. Alternative systems-building approaches
Project Management
2/ch 6
2/ch 7
2/ch 8
2/ch 9
2/ch 10
2/ch 11
2/ch 12
2/ch 13
2/ch 14
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1. The importance of project management
2. Selecting projects
3. Managing project risks
Global Systems Management
Class
15
1. The growth of international information
systems
2/ch 15
2. Organizing international information systems
3. Managing global systems
8. Instruction Evaluation

You are required to complete an Instructor Evaluation Form for this course (you
may also choose not to complete the evaluation, but you must indicate so.)

If you need to discuss grade-related issues after the final exam/test, please
contact me only after AU has published your course grades (timing when the
evaluation is still in the progress).
9. Grading Policy and Evaluation
Essays
10 points
Team Project
10 points
Mid-term exam
20 points
Final exam
30 points
Activity
20 points
Attendance
10 points
Course total:
100 points
10. Letter Grade Policy
Total points
Letter grade
A+
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
C-
97-100
93-96.9
90-92.9
87-89.9
83-86.9
80-82.9
77-79.9
73-76.9
70-72.9
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D
F
60-69.9
Below 60
11. Exams (mid-term and final):
The tests will be based on the assigned readings as well as the contented presented
by me and discussed with students during classes. If need for review sessions before
both of exams is identified, I will organize a half class session to review the material
involving students. In general, review questions help students to clarify issues that
they could not completely clarify during classes or own their own.
12. Method of Instruction:
Various method of teaching will be employed to encourage proactive involvement
of students and make learning process successful. Mostly employed methods and
techniques to expect are discussions, lectures, written and video case-studies. I also
expect students to actively ask questions and discuss the class materials with their
other student colleagues.
13. Projects:
Projects are to be completed by students to demonstrate their competency and
understanding of key concepts using real life data and presenting its findings in the
class. Students are encouraged to work in a group of two to three students. I am
always available to discuss the topics that a group of students chooses for their
projects. It is important that students approach me before brief project statement is
due. I expect students to present their own work and students will be penalized for
copying other’s works without properly citing them. Project topics should be consistent
with course description. Project include creating server based network environment
using virtual machines, installing and troubleshooting server and client operating
systems and network infrastructure, access network resources using mobile devices
and gadgets, protect your network resources from internal and external attacks,
organize stream video translations using Internet and intranet. The students are
obliged to prepare projects on a certain company or firm case. It could be where
he/she works or he/she chooses without any working precondition. Final projects
version should be submitted in three steps, i) determining and distribution of project
topics, ii) submitting of draft version, and iii) submitting of final version. The
schedule will be strictly followed by instructor.
14. Essays:
Instructor will assign one home-essays covering topics related to the class material.
Parallel to this rule student’s suggestions are welcomed. As the essay is a reduced
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statement of the scientific article or the monograph with the basic actual conclusions
and generalizations, topics should be defined from this perspective. The essay theme
is defined in the beginning of academic year. Each of those essays must be
completed either independently by students or together with other student-fellow.
Students are encouraged to form group discussions to analyze home-essays but are
expected to honestly turn in their individual home-essays. Home-essays are
expected to be turned in as hard copies, faxes and emails. The deadlines of
submitting essays are before completion of course or review.
15. Activity
To evaluate student activity instructor will look at three criteria, i) quiz results, ii)
participation in discussions, iii) level of chasing deadlines. Instructor will assign
three quizzes during semester. It will be very short and focus to analyze the level of
student’s lessons understanding. The lessons will be studied in interactive regime,
so there will be opportunities for students to show his/her participation. It is very
important that, student follow the deadlines for submitting of projects and essays. If
they are not submitted in time, it then impedes instructor to do correct evaluation.
16. E-mail: mamedoff_samir@libero.it
Students can contact me for arranging meetings and asking urgent questions by email. But I encourage them to contact me in person to discuss substantive matters
such as a class absence, exams, or grade assignments.
17. Policy on Class Attendance
a. Students are expected to attend all scheduled classes and take all tests. I
will also grade attendance to ensure the discipline in the class.
b. If the student misses a class, the student is still responsible for catching up
on the material covered in the absence of that student before coming to
the next class session. Therefore, it is responsibility of the student to
arrange with student colleagues to obtain notes if he or she misses a class
or classes.
c. Excessive absence: Four or more classes. Depending on the circumstances,
the instructor may initiate some kind of penalty with dean’s office.
18. Policy on Make-Ups

Mid-term and final: do not miss them. There are no exceptions for those.

Home-essays and project presentations are due on the dates announced and
late submission means no grade for that home-essays and presentations.
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
Requests for make-ups may be granted only under exceptional circumstances.

Avoid requests for reasons of personal convenience;

Any make-up exams, if granted, must be taken prior to the next meeting of
the class.

If you miss a test without prior notice or arrangement, no grade (zero grades)
is automatically assigned to the missed test.
19. Class discipline
a. Please arrive on time to the class. Being late to class without a reason is no
respect to the instructor and student colleagues as it interprets the session.
b. Do not eat food in class: please use lounge or other related areas.
c. Cell phones, e-mails, and any possible other electronic devices must be
turned OFF while in class and during the test.
d. Students are expected to talk about class topics and no other topics are
expected to be discussed.
20. Academic dishonesty
Azerbaijan University has no tolerance for acts of academic dishonesty. The
responsibilities of both students and faculty with regard to academic dishonesty are
defined by education policy of Azerbaijan University. By teaching this course, I have
agreed to observe the entire faculty responsibilities described in that document. By
enrolling in this class, you have agreed to observe the entire student responsibilities
described in that document. Academic dishonesty in this course includes copying or
collaborating during an exam, discussing or divulging the contents of an exam with
another student who will take the test, and use of homework solutions from another
students.
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