Chapter 1
Introduction to
Information
Systems
PowerPoint Presentation
by Charlie Cook
Copyright © 2004 South-Western.
All rights reserved.
Learning Objectives
• To describe an information system’s integration
with business processes and the organization
• To describe the business professional’s role in
the current information technology-driven
environment
• To illustrate the attributes of information and the
importance of data quality
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Three Themes of the Text
• Enterprise systems
• Electronic business (E-Business)
• Information technology
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1–3
Enterprise Systems
• Integrated software packages designed to
provide complete integration of an organization’s
information processing systems and all related
data
• Modules:
 Logistics
 Accounting
 Manufacturing
 Human resources
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E-Business
• Application of electronic networks (including the
Internet) to undertake business processes
between individuals and organizations
• Interaction between front-office and back-office
processes
• Electronic networks include:
 The Internet
 Electronic data interchange (EDI)
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1–5
Information Technology
• Any hardware, software or communications
technology that might be adopted by an
organization to:
 Support or control a business process
 Enable management decisions
 Provide a competitive advantage.
• IT may be used to support enterprise systems
and e-business applications.
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Elements in the Study of Information Systems
FIGURE 1.1
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What Is an Information System?
• System
 A set of interdependent elements that together
accomplish specific objectives
• Subsystem
 A component part of a system that, together with
other interrelated components, is integrated into a
system structure.
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Systems and
Subsystems
FIGURE 1.2
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Functional Model of an Information System
NOTE:
System outputs result in user actions.
Some actions (i.e., feedback) in turn
become subsequent system inputs.
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FIGURE 1.3
1–10
Data Activities
• Business event data stores
 Capturing and converting input data

Machine-readable form
• Master stores updating of standing data
 Information processing
 Data maintenance
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Business Process Components
• Information process
 The use of IS in coordinating all of the business
processes of an organization
• Operations process
 The system that accomplishes the work of the
organization
• Management process
 The system that management uses to plan and
control the organization
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A Logical Model of
a Business Process
for Ordering Books
Online
FIGURE 1.4
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Information System Output Flow and Users
Because Figure 1.5 depicts
data from business events,
the vertical information
flows upward. Other data,
such as budgets, would
flow downward.
FIGURE 1.5
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Data versus Information
• Information
 Data presented in a form that is useful in a decisionmaking activity
 Reduces uncertainty and increases knowledge
• Data
 Facts and figures in raw form
 Measurements or observations of objects or events
The basic function of an information system
is to transform data into useful information.
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Qualities of Information
Effectiveness
Efficiency
Confidentiality
Integrity
Availability
Compliance
Reliability of information
Source: Reprinted with permission from COBIT: Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology—
Framework, 3rd ed. (Rolling Meadows, IL: The Information Systems Audit and Control Foundation, 2000): 14.
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EXHIBIT 1.1
1–16
A Hierarchy of Information Qualities
FIGURE 1.6
Source: Adapted from Statement of
Financial Accounting Concepts No. 2:
Qualitative Characteristics of Accounting
Information, Financial Accounting
Standards Board (FASB), May 1980, p. 15.
Copyright by Financial Accounting
Standards Board, 401 Merritt 7, P.O. Box
5116, Norwalk, CT 06856-5116. Reprinted
with permission. Copies of complete
document are available from the FASB.
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Questions to Ask About an IS
• What will be recorded as a business event?
• What data stores will be used to record the event?
• When will the event be recorded: before or after
occurrence?
• What controls will be necessary to provide valid,
accurate, and complete records; to protect assets; and to
ensure that the IS can be audited?
• What reports will be produced, and when will they be
produced?
• How much detail will the reports include?
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