Information Technology
for Business
An Introduction to Information
Systems in Organizations
Key Resources in a Business
1. P
2. I
3. T
(a set of
used to work with information)
All three working together can help a company achieve a
competitive advantage
Information systems are
businesses operate



the way that
New ways to perform old tasks (new way of doing things)
Do things that were never done before.
Businesses are forced to rethink how they do business.
A
of business are affected by
Information Technology. You are preparing to
be a Knowledge Worker.
Knowledge Workers work with and
INFORMATION AS A NEW
BUSINESS RESOURCE
Information is a key business resource, but what is
information?
DATA - is any
describe a particular phenomenon.
that
- is simply data that has a
particular meaning within a specific context.
Information is data that has been
Information ?????
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For information to be truly valuable, it must appear in the
INFORMATION IS A KEY RESOURCE
Information is good to have, but that is not what
businesses want. They want………..
B
(BI) – knowledge about
customers, competitors, suppliers, business partners, the
competitive environment you are operating in, and your
own internal operations, etc..
Combined forms of information to create real knowledge
Encompasses
Helps you make
BI involves gathering enough of the right information in a
timely manner and usable form and analyzing it to have a
positive impact on business strategy, tactics or operations.
Dimensions of Information
Time: having access to
Location: having access to your information
(but it still must
be
).
Form: it has to be in a form
that you can use and it must
also be
Granularity: info becomes more
as it moves
the
organization, and more
PEOPLE AS A KEY RESOURCE
The single most important resource in any organization is its
. Your greatest asset is your brain/mind (your
ability
).
Information technology (IT) is simply a
Technology Literate Knowledge workers know
technology.
Information Literate Knowledge workers ……….
D
what information is needed.
Know
Understand information
Act appropriately based on information.
When working with information, you can never forget your
Computer-Based Information Systems
Hardware: computer
Software:
Databases: organized
Telecommunications:
of communications
signals.
P
involved
with the system.
Procedures for using
the system.
that run the computer.
and info
Business Information Systems
 Electronic Commerce Systems
E
T
between parties
Systems (TPS)
 Systems that handle day-to-day business-related exchanges
 Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP)
 An
consisting of integrated applications with a
common database which coordinates business activities and
(Examples include
PeopleSoft, Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains Dynamics)
D
Systems (DBMS)
 Database: Most common information repository in use today
 Decision Making Tools/Systems
D
(DSS) : An interactive decision-making tool that
provides support for non-routine decisions or problems where
A
(AI): A decision-making tool where all of the
decision-making expertise is
because the system can
simulate human thinking and/or behavior.
IT (
)
in Support of Business
Businesses use IT to give themselves a
: customers value their product or service
more than the competition’s product or service.
IT helps aid
doing things right, in the least amount of time
with the
& optimizing the use of resources.
Transaction processing systems, customer self-service systems,
databases and database management systems
IT supports
Helps you
a situation and
Decision support systems and artificial intelligence
IT in Support of Business
IT can be used to support
C
Management systems use info. about
customers to gain insights about them in order to better meet their needs.
S
Management systems automate the tracking of
inventory & information among business processes & across companies.
Sales Force Automation systems
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, such as SAP,
Oracle, PeopleSoft, Microsoft Business Solutions/Great Plains
K
Systems to capture, organize, and disseminate
knowledge (organizational memory and expertise) throughout an
organization.
IT can be used for
:
using technology to
evolve and transform itself into new modes of operation, market segments,
and so on.
IT in Support of Business
IT can be used to
Reach new customer segments, offer new products and
services, offer complimentary products
IT can be used to
Optimize manufacturing processes, decrease transportation
costs, reduce the costs of human capital, minimize errors, do
things more efficiently.
Telecommunications enables
Databases and database management system software
can be used to
IT systems can be used to support decision making by
and sometimes
Pervasive Computing (aka Ubiquitous Computing)
P
computing – computing and
technology support anytime, anywhere, with
access to any needed information
1. D
2. S
3. M
computing
information
computing
Pervasive Computing
Decentralized computing –
Distributes
to
knowledge workers by
placing the processing
power on their desktops
and within the functional
areas.
Shared information – allows anyone access to needed
information because the information resides in a
Mobile computing – your ability to use technology to
to and use centrally located information
and/or application software.
The slides that follow this slide
provide more detailed information
regarding topics found in this
presentation and/or chapter.
They will not be covered in class, but
reviewing these slides would be
beneficial because they help provide a
deeper understanding of the topics
covered in this presentation.
Electronic Commerce Systems
Electronically executing business transactions
between
parties
Business
to
Consumer
Business
to
Business
Transaction Processing Systems
Process business exchanges
Maintain records about the exchanges
Handle routine, yet critical, tasks
Perform simple calculations
Enterprise Resource Planning Systems
An ERP system is a set of integrated programs that
is capable of managing the operations of a business
spread across multiple sites. All business
functions built into
one integrated software
package.
Integrated manufacturing,
accounting/financial,
marketing and human
resources system.
SAP, Oracle, PeopleSoft,
Microsoft Business
Solutions/Great Plains Dynamics
ERP
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
A decision-making tool where all of the decisionmaking expertise is programmed into the system
because the system can simulate human thinking and/or
behavior. The system makes the decision for you.
The primary types of artificial intelligence we will see
in this class include:
Expert Systems
Neural Networks
Genetic algorithms
Intelligent Agents (many kinds of these)
Robotics
Decision Support Systems (DSS)
Interactive support for non-routine decisions or
problems where there may be several answers that
work.
Must directly interact with the system to build and/or
select the most appropriate model to solve the problem.
You use the tool and make the ultimate decision, as
opposed to artificial intelligence where the system
makes the decision and tells you what to do.