INTRODUCTION TO MIS…
WHAT IS INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY?
Information technology refers to the variety of
items and abilities that are used in
the creation,
storage, and
dispersal of information.
INTRODUCTION TO MIS…
Information technology is divided into three
primary components:
computers,
communications networks and
know-how
INTRODUCTION TO MIS…
Computers:
An electronic system that can be instructed to
accept,
process,
store and
present data and information.
Computers come in four different sizes:
Microcomputers/pc,
midrange/minicomputers,
mainframes, and
supercomputers.
INTRODUCTION TO MIS…
Communication Networks:
A communication network is the interconnection
of stations at different locations through a medium
that enables people to send and receive data and
information.
Telephone wires and cables are common
communications media.
INTRODUCTION TO MIS…
Know How:
It means to do something well.
Know how includes:
Familiarity with the tools of IT;
The skills needed to use these tools;
Understanding when to use IT to solve a problem or
capitalize on an opportunity.
INTRODUCTION TO MIS…
THE PRINCIPLES OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
The most important principle of information technology describes
the purpose of IT.
The purpose of information technology is to
solve problems,
to unlock creativity and
to make people more effective than they would be if they did not
involve IT in their activities.
An equally important principle of information technology, states
that
the more you rely on advanced technology, like information
technology, the more important it is to consider the “high-touch”
aspects of the matter --- that is, “the people side.”
A related principle stresses that:
we should always fit information technology to people, rather than
ask people to adjust to information technology.
INTRODUCTION TO MIS…
THE FUNCTIONS OF INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
What exactly can IT do?
IT performs six information handling functions:
capture,
processing,
generation,
storage,
retrieval, and
transmission.
INTRODUCTION TO MIS…
THE BENEFITS OF INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
Computers and communication systems
collectively offer four benefits to users:
speed,
consistency,
precision, and
reliability
INTRODUCTION TO MIS…
ROLE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN OUR LIVES
Assignment: How are the following affected by IT?
The home
Shipping
Paperwork
Money and Investments
Agriculture
Taxation and Accounting
Education
Training
Travel
Health and Medicine
Manufacturing
Journalism
Energy
INTRODUCTION TO MIS…
THE CAREER SIDE OF INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AS A CAREER
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AS AN AID TO
YOUR CAREER
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS
MIS is a concept that combine
Management,
Information and
System
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
1. Management
For the purpose of this course, management may be defined as
the processes or activities that describe what managers do in
the operation of their organization with regards to planning,
organizing, initiating, and controlling these operations.
They plan by setting strategies and goals, and selecting the best
course of action to achieve the plan.
They organize the tasks necessary for the operational plan,
Set these tasks up into homogeneous groups, and assign authority
delegation.
They control the performance of the work by setting performance
standards and avoiding deviations from standard.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
Informed decision making plays a vital role in
each of these activities. And hence the need for
MIS.
The job of MIS is to facilitate decisions necessary
for
Planning
Organizing and
Controlling the work and functions of the business
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
To understand the role played by MIS, it helps to
understand the process of decision making in an
organization.
Classification of decision making by organizational level
provides:-
Strategic decision making
Determines the objectives, resources, and policies of the
organization
Management control decision making
Primarily concerned with how efficiently and effectively resources
are used and how well operational units are performing.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
Operational control decision making
Determines how to carry out the specific tasks set forth by
strategic and middle management decision makers.
Knowledge-level decision making
Deals with new ideas for products and services, ways to
communicate new knowledge, and ways to distribute
information through out the organization.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
Each of the above types of decision making can further be
classified into:-
Structured decision
Unstructured decision
Structured decision are repetitive and routine and involve a
definite procedure for handling them so that they do not have to
be treated each time as if they were new.
Unstructured decisions are those in which the decision maker
must provide judgment, evaluation, and insights into the problem
definition. There is no well-understood or agreed upon procedure
for making these decisions.
There are information systems which are developed to support
each of these types of decisions.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
Four stages in decision making (Simon 1960)
Intelligence
consists of identifying and understanding the problems occurring
in the organization
Design
the decision maker designs alternative solutions to the problems
Choice
choosing among alternative solutions
Implementation
Putting the decision into effect
How does MIS support each of these stages in decision
making?
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
Decision making models
Individual models for decision making
Based on the assumption that human beings are in some
sense rational
Organizational models for decision making
Takes into account the structural and political
characteristics of the organization
Bureaucratic, political, garbage can models are used to
describe how decision is reached in organizations.
Assignment
Describe each of the models
Bureaucratic,
Political and,
garbage can
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
To satisfy the requirements of decision making at the various levels,
information systems should have the following characteristics:-
Be flexible and provide many options for handling data and evaluating
information.
Be capable of supporting a variety of styles, skills and knowledge.
Be powerful in the sense of having multiple analytical and intuitive models for
the evaluation of data and the ability to keep track of many alternatives and
consequences.
Reflect understanding of group and organizational processes of decision
making.
Be sensitive to the bureaucratic and political requirements of systems
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
2. Data, information, knowledge, and wisdom
DATA
Data is raw material for information. Data may be available in the following
types.
Text
Graphic
Image
Animation
Audio
Video
The availability of data in these various types have led to the notion of
multimedia, multimedia database, and multimedia information systems.
Information is processed data that is used for decision making.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
INFORMATION
Information may refer to any of the following as used in our day to day
conversation:-
Information as a commodity
This refers to an item in a book, in someone’s head, in a corporate file, or a statistic
When information is regarded as a commodity, it often assumes economic value
“information (or knowledge) is power” refers to this usage of information
Information as energy
It is regarded as a quantifiable physical entity whose presence or absence can be
verified experimentally
Example: The information provided by sound waves emitted by a school bell
Information as communication
To be informed is the result of communication, or information transfer
Information as facts
How many weeks is it since the start of classes? How many weeks are there before
the mid-semester exams? How many students are there is his class?
When the term information is used in this way, it does not necessarily mean that
there is any implied or actual use of the fact
Information as data
The symbols OF-27-13-1 are data. They could mean anything or nothing. In the
context of an item registration form, they become an identification number- a fact
Information as knowledge
Information is often used interchangeably with knowledge
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
The late scholar Fritz Machlup (1983) carefully assessed the
different meanings associated with information.
Something one did not know before.
A clue.
Something that affects what one already knows
How data are interpreted.
Something useful in some way to the person receiving it.
Something used in decision making.
Something that reduce uncertainty.
The meaning of words in sentences.
Something that provides more than what is stated.
Something that changes what a person who receives it believes or
expect.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
KNOWLEDGE
Knowledge includes the capability of evaluating information
in some meaningful or powerful way.
It is a cognitive state beyond awareness.
It is deduced, not simply sensed.
WISDOM
Wisdom implies the application of knowledge as contained
in human judgment centered around certain criteria or
values that are generally accepted by the culture or society.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
Some comparisons between information and knowledge.
(Machlup, 1983 in Tague-Sutcliffe, 1995)
Information is piecemeal, fragmented, particular, whereas
knowledge is structured, coherent, and often universal.
Information is timely, transitory, whereas knowledge is of
enduring significance.
information is flow of messages, whereas knowledge Is a stock.
Information is acquired by being informed, whereas knowledge
can be acquired by thinking.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN MIS …
Assignment
Start from a given set of data and show how this
may be transformed to become.
Information
Knowledge
Wisdom
