Chapter 1: Introduction to Information Systems Flashcards
Define Information technology (IT)
Information technology (IT): refers to any computer-based tool that people use to work with information and to support an organization’s information and information-processing needs
- Focuses on technical side of business,
- ex. what kind of hardware, software, database you need
define Information system (IS)
Information system (IS): collects, processes, stores, analyzes, and disseminates information for a specific purpose.
- uses information to make decisions about their operations
Give three reasons to study Information Systems?
Hint: define two terms
First Reason: The Informed User—You!
Informed user: a person knowledgeable about ISs and IT
Second Reason: the organization you join will be undergoing a digital transformation.
Digital transformation: is the business strategy that leverages IT to dramatically improve employee, customer, and business partner relationships; to support continuous improvement in business operations and business processes; and to develop new business models and businesses
Third reason: managing the IS function within an organization is no longer the exclusive responsibility of the IS department. Rather, users now play key roles in every step of this process
define and provide an example for data items, information, and knowledge
Data items: refer to an basic description of things, events, activities, and transactions that are recorded, classified, and stored, but are not organized to convey any specific meaning.
- Data items can be numbers, letters, figures, sounds, and images.
Ex. of data items are collections of numbers (e.g., 3.11, 2.96, 3.95, 1.99, 2.08) and characters (e.g., B, A, C, A, B, D, F, C).
Information: refers to data that have been organized so that they have meaning and value to the recipient.
- Ex. a grade point average (GPA) by itself is data, but a student’s name coupled with their GPA is information. The recipient interprets the meaning and draws conclusions and implications from the information
Knowledge: consists of data and/or information that is organized and provides insight, learning, and expertise relevant to a current business issue.
- Ex. suppose that a company has found over time that students with grade point averages over 3.0 have exceled in its management program. Based on this accumulated knowledge, that company may decide to interview only those students with GPAs over 3.0.
define Computer-based information system (CBIS), and define its 5 Information technology components
Computer-based information system (CBIS): uses computer technology to perform some or all of its intended tasks
- Hardware: consists of devices such as the processor, monitor, keyboard, and printer. Together, these devices accept, process, and display data and information.
- Software: is a program or collection of programs that enables the hardware to process data.
- Database: is a collection of related files or tables containing data.
- Network: is a connecting system (wireline or wireless) that enables multiple computers to share resources.
- Procedures: are the instructions for combining these components to process information and generate the desired output.
Information systems perform these various tasks via a wide spectrum of applications, define an Application “App” and Functional area information system
Application “app”: is a computer program designed to support a specific task or business process.
- Ex. human resources department may uses one application for screening job applicants and another for monitoring employee turnover.
Functional area information system or “departmental information system”: The collection of application programs in a single department
- Ex. the collection of application programs in the human resources area is called the human resources information system (HRIS)
Types of Computer-Based Information Systems: define the 2 information systems that support the entire organization (internally)
Hint: TPS, ERP
Transaction processing system (TPS): supports the monitoring, collection, storage, and processing of data from the organization’s basic business transactions, each of which generates data
○ A transaction is anything that changes the firm’s database.
○ ex. Imagine a student switching sections in a course. It’s a change in the university’s information system but doesn’t affect the accounting department (tuition remains the same).
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems: it allows enterprise functional areas of your company to work from one database
define Interorganizational information systems (IOSs), Supply Chain, and Electronic commerce (e-commerce) systems
Interorganizational information systems (IOSs): Information systems that connect two or more organizations
Supply chain: is the flow of materials, information, money, and services from suppliers of raw materials through factories and warehouses to the end customers.
Electronic commerce (e-commerce) systems: are a type of interorganizational information system. These systems enable organizations to conduct transactions, called business-to- Business (B2B) electronic commerce, and customers to conduct transactions with businesses, called business to- consumer (B2C) electronic commerce
How does each system affect which type of manager? such as Functional Area information systems, Business analytics (BA) systems, define Knowledge worker, Dashboards, and Expert System
Functional area information systems summarize data and prepare reports, primarily for middle managers, but sometimes for lower-level managers
Business analytics (BA) systems “business intelligence (BI) systems”: provide computer-based support for complex, nonroutine decisions, primarily for middle managers and knowledge workers.
- they enable users to perform their own data analysis
Knowledge workers: are professional employees such as financial and marketing analysts, engineers, lawyers, and accountants. All knowledge workers are experts in a particular subject area.
- They create information and knowledge, which they integrate into the business.
Dashboards “digital dashboards”: are a special form of IS that support all managers of the organization.
- They provide rapid access to timely information and direct access to structured information in the form of reports. Dashboards that are tailored to the information needs of executives are called executive dashboards.
Expert systems (ESs): attempt to duplicate the work of human experts by applying reasoning capabilities, knowledge, and expertise within a specific domain.
- Ex. navigation systems use rules to select routes
How Does IT Impact Organizations? Software disruption across several industries based on two scenarios:
- industries where software disrupted the previous market-leading companies
- industries where a new company (or companies) used software to achieve a competitive advantage.
- ex. Book industry, Music industry, Financial Services Industry
How Does IT Impact Organizations? Explain the 4 negative and 1 outcomes, excluding entire industries impact
IT Reduces the Number of Middle Managers
* IT makes managers more productive, and it increases the number of employees who can report to a single manager. Thus, IT ultimately decreases the number of managers and experts
IT Changes the Manager’s Job
* Managers have to change how they make their decisions.IT offers managers quick access to information, but this can increase their stress due to shorter decision-making windows.
IT Eliminate Jobs
IT Impacts Employees at Work
* Many people have experienced a loss of identity because of computerization.
Employees’ Health and Safety
two issues associated with IT:
1. job stress
2. long-term use of the keyboard.
IT Provides Opportunities for People with Disabilities
How does IT Affects Our Quality of Life (1 positives, 1 negative), The Robot Revolution (give 3 examples), and how IT Impacts Health Care
IT Affects Our Quality of Life
* (+) IT can provide employees with flexibility that can significantly improve the quality of leisure time, even if it doesn’t increase the total amount of leisure time.
* (-) IT also can place employees on “constant call,” which means they are never truly away from the office
The Robot Revolution
Baxter
* an industrial robot, costs $30,000 and performs various repetitive tasks traditionally done by humans in factories.
Drones
Autonomous Vehicles
IT Impacts Health Care
(+) IT has made better and faster diagnoses and can monitor critically ill patients more accurately.
* Has also streamlined the process of researching and developing new drugs.
* Expert systems now help doctors diagnose diseases, and machine vision is enhancing the work of radiologists
(-) physicians caution against self-diagnosis.
