3.2 Systems Flashcards
Corporate information system (CIS)
Def: A fully integrated, company wide system (1) that aims to meet all organisational ICT requirements at all levels (1)
Ex: All systems in the company access and update the same data source (1) E.g. Personnel data is used by different departments. (1)
Back office system
Def: Back office systems run the internal operations (1) of an organisation and are not accessible or visible to the general public. (1)
Ex: An example of a back office system is Accounts. (1)
Transaction Processing systems
Def: Transaction processing systems carry out the day to day activities of most organisation at an operational level (1) These systems might deal with commercial transactions such as customers buying tickets or paying bills (1) and others involve receiving data such as making bookings, enrolling students etc(1).
Ex: As transactions are carried out the database records are updated before another transaction takes place (1) for example when multiple users are using a flight booking system as a seat is booked, the number of available seats is reduced (1)
Workflow management system
Def: software that helps organisations analyse and manage business processes (1) and identify possible problem areas that are slowing down the information flow (1) which may affect the efficiency of the organisation.
Ex: In a call centre workflow management lets managers define activities and allocate staff to them(1) Workflow management systems use databases and networks so each user is given access to the data they need at exactly the right time (1) If a workflow management system identifies a bottleneck or any other problems, Managers can re-allocate team members to do different jobs(1)
Workflow systems often include document management systems
Document management systems.
Def: Used to store paper based documents electronically (1). Documents were scanned and stored as image files, with keywords, authors and other data similar to a library system (1) which are easy to search for (1) links can be set up making it easy to cross-reference between documents (1)
Ex: Some organisation (e.g. insurance companies) receive paper documents in many different forms DMS is used to digitise them by scanning them in and organising them
Systems for collaborative working
Def: These enable teams to work on one project or activity at the same time (1) Collaborative systems allow parts of the project to be “locked” while individual team members work on that part (1)
Ex: An example could be where developers are working on systems documentation: while one developer is updating a document, others can read it, but not update it(1).
Management Information Systems (MIS)
Def: Management Information Systems (MIS) convert data from internal and external sources into information (1). It is then communicated in an appropriate form for managers at different levels to make decisions (1)
The data that is produced by the lower levels of the organisation all feeds into the MIS, is summarised and presented in forms that are easy for managers to interpret
Ex: For example, the bakery manager in a supermarket chain may require details of past seasonal sales details in order to determine order levels (1).
Decision support systems
Def: Decision support systems are high level management information systems used by senior managers to make strategic decisions(1).
Ex: For example, the Board of a supermarket would require information about competitor activity and likely potential customers before making the decision to open a branch in a new area.
Enterprise systems
Def: Enterprise systems are most often seen in large and medium sized organisations and aim to overcome the difficulties caused by different systems being run in different departments (1).
Ex: Typically an enterprise system is based on a very large database and is used to integrate all key business activities (1) such as sales, accounting, human resources, inventory (stock control) etc
Data mining techniques are often used to look for hidden patterns in the data that may be useful and not immediately obvious
Customer Relationship Management.
Def: Customer Relationship Management system records details of all transactions and contacts made with a customer (1) and stores information about them in order to improve the service that a customer receives (1). CRM software stores the customer data centrally so that the up to date information is available to all departments (1)
Ex: Loyalty card systems used by retailers are an example of a CRM system. (1) When purchases are made the customer presents the loyalty card and the CRM systems accumulate points or credit. The customer data is used to analyse shopping habits and often used to identify “target” customers and for trend analysis
A data warehouse can be used to store the vast quantities of data generated by enterprise ECRM systems
E-commerce systems
Def: E-commerce systems are designed to support the buying and selling of goods and services online (1)
Security of online transactions is vital and a cause for concern for customers so secure servers are setup for financial transactions and display https instead of http with a padlock symbol
Ex: systems used for online sales, ticket reservations, licence applications etc
E-commerce systems with back office integration
Def: This is when online e-commerce systems are linked with back office systems. So, when a customer places an order, the online system accepts the order then transfers the information back to the customer while the back office automatically records the transaction, recalculates inventory levels and generates the invoice
Payroll
Def: A payroll system calculates the amount that is owed to employees based on factors such as the time they worked, their hourly wages or salaries.
Ex: Payroll systems carry out tasks that include keeping tracking of hours, calculating wages, withholding taxes and deductions, printing and delivering payslips and paying tax and national insurance to the government.
Human Resources systems
Def: Human Resources systems can be used to record personal details of all staff , including start date , qualifications and training and past employments and experience. Some HR systems are also combined with payroll packages.
Stock control
Def: A system that makes sure that the correct level of stock is maintained to be able to meet demand while keeping the costs of holding stock to a minimum Stock control systems help you to: Know how many items of stock you have When to re-order replacement stock What is selling well What is selling badly What is getting out of date
Linked to purchasing systems, accounting, sales, JIT etc
Can be used to manage internal resources (unit 3.12) such as ICT consumables (i.e. printer cartridges, paper) and is necessary for efficient management of consumables
Stock control system (ICT consumables)
Def: Stock control systems can be used to manage ICT consumables. Knowledge of current stock holdings and re-order levels are necessary for efficient management of consumables, such as paper and toner cartridges.
‘just in time’ (JIT)
Def: A ‘just in time’ operation uses ICT systems to ensure organisation’s stock levels are kept to a workable minimum. (1)
Ex: A production control system could calculate how much stock is required and would check current unallocated stock levels using a stock control system (1). If there is insufficient stock , an automatic order is placed with the supplier using an automated system, such as Electronic Data Interchange (1) ; this uses agreed formats, eliminating the need for data entry and reducing errors. Once authorised by payment maybe transferred to the supplier’s account using BACS – itself being an example of EDI.
Data Warehouse
A storage facility for vast quantities of data
Data mining
The extraction of previously unknown and potentially useful information from data
Internet service
An internet service is a public service that can be accessed by anyone with an internet connection (1)
An extranet service
An extranet service is a service that uses internet technology within an organisation (1) but can be extended to users outside the organisation, such as customers or suppliers. Authorisation such as passwords will be needed to gain access to an extranet service.
Saas (Software as a service)
Saas is a cloud computing service. For SaaS (Software as a Service), software is supplied by the cloud provider, an example being payroll.
Paas (platform as a service)
Paas is a cloud computing service. For PaaS (Platform as a Service) , the cloud provider supplies a platform to run software provided by BBP and a fixed charge is made. For example, if BBP purchased package Accounting software, this could be installed on the cloud platform and BPP would not have to provide hardware.
a help desk system
A help desk system is used to record all requests for help and all faults to hardware and software (1). It is used to provide an historical log of issues (1). This can be used by different levels of staff to determine appropriate action (1).
For example, a help desk will hold details of faults on hardware and software, whilst an asset register would hold details of date asset purchased, release state, modifications, maintenance agreements etc.
Asset register
Def: An asset register system is used to keep details of all assets, including hardware and software (1) . Details recorded would include date of purchase, the current version of any software used and maintenance agreements.
Integrated help desk and asset register
The help desk and asset register have common entities but hold different information that can be linked.
For example, a help desk will hold details of faults on hardware and software, whilst an asset register would hold details of date asset purchased, release state, modifications, maintenance agreements etc.
An integrated help desk and asset register would benefit an organisation by identifying hardware and software weak points and will result in either identifying appropriate items for replacement or highlighting areas where training would be beneficial. This information would be provided on reports for all levels of staff.
Legacy systems
Def: A legacy system is an outdated computer system, programming language or application software (1) Often legacy systems are not replaced due to cost, the disruption it would cause or the concern that a new system may not be an improvement on the legacy one (1)
Legacy systems are generally reliable (1) as all errors have been uncovered and corrected. (1)
Organisations can develop new systems by accessing data contained in legacy systems. (1) This can be performed using screen-scraping (1),where information from multiple legacy systems is re-displayed to users. (1)
Legacy systems - Screen scraping
Under normal circumstances, a legacy application is either replaced by a new program or brought up to date by rewriting the source code. In some cases, it is desirable to continue using a legacy application but the lack of availability of source code, programmers or documentation makes it impossible to rewrite or update the application.
In such a case, the only way to continue using the legacy application may be to write screen scraping software to translate it into a more up-to-date user interface.
Accountancy/finance systems
Accounts systems monitor and control the money coming into and going out of an organisation
Ordering systems
Def: Ordering systems take a customer’s order and process the payments and deliver the goods to the customer when available (1) Allows businesses to manage the distribution goods from supplier to customers (1)This automated system will calculate stock levels and re-order stock which saves time and minimises overheads (1) Order tracking calculates delivery times and availability of stock which enables management to manage and track orders from their desktop
Customer support systems
Def: To provide a service to customers who have bought products or services (1) To provide good customer support a business must be able to provide information such as
Order progress, Past purchases, Service history. Good customer support can result in future sales. Customers systems will log complaints from customers and record all actions that take place
Good customer support should provide online support for customers including self-service support tools, instant access to FAQs and other information and resources
