Management & Information

Systems
Lecture 1
John Walton

Management Information Requirements

How does information support managers?
Henri Fayol (18411925) devised a classic definition of
management that is still widely used in both industry
and academia.

To manage is to forecast and plan, to organise, to

command, to coordinate and to control.

Managers need Information for:

Decision Making
Control
Planning
Organising

Considerations in the provision of information:

Timing
Appropriateness
Accuracy
Conciseness
Frequency
Understandability

Information quality dimensions

Table 1.1

Summary of attributes of information quality

Different forms of information

Figure 1.10 Different forms of information

Source: BIM

Figure 1.3

Levels of managerial decision taking

Decision characteristics and

management level

Table 1.2

Decision characteristics and management level

Information characteristics for decisions by

management levels

Table 1.3

Information characteristics for decisions by management levels

Usage and applications of computer-based information systems by organisational

level (shading denotes usage of BIS)
Figure 2.7

Information Requirements of Key Decision-Making Groups in a Firm

Figure 13-2

HOW INFORMATION SYSTEMS IMPACT ON ORGANIZATIONS

Flattening Organizations

Stages in Decision Making

Figure 13-3

A model of decision making

Table 1.4

A model of decision making

Stakeholders in IS
All those affected by an organisations actions or
policies
Aim is to understand stakeholder attitudes and
actions towards an IS
Motivated by normal range of human needs
These shape their attitudes towards a system, in
the specific organisational context.

The contexts of IS

Figure 1.6

The contexts of information systems

Information and business value

Figure 1.3 An evaluation tool relating information to business value. An organizations use of information
on each axis can be assessed from 1 (low use of information) to 10 (high use of information)
Source: Marchand (2000)

Challenges of information management

in the organization
Relevance How do we find information relevant to our
decisions?
Accessibility How do organizations make relevant information
available to employees and partners through computer
applications, web and e-mail? How is the knowledge used to
apply information captured and shared between employees?
Legality How do organizations ensure they are using customer,
employee and market information in accordance with legal and
ethical standards?
Security How do we protect this information from accidental or
deliberate threats?
Value How can this information help organizations reach their
business objectives?

Information gathering should not be a one

off exercise, rather:
Managers should be constantly scanning the
environment with the aim of gaining
Strategic Intelligence
(see attached paper by M Xu and R Kaye)

Management Information Systems

A system using formalised procedures to
provide management at all levels in all
functions with appropriate information,
based on data from both internal and
external sources, to enable them to make
timely and effective decisions for planning,
directing and controlling the activities for
which they are responsible.
T. Lucey

Assessment of MIS
Does management have confidence in the
information provided by the MIS ?
Does management still make widespread use
of hunches ?

Does the MIS and the information provided

meet the needs and objectives of the
organisation ?

 Does a manager make a better decision with

the available information ?
Does management act on the information ?
Finally: A MIS should meet the needs of each
section of the organisation and the
organisation as a whole.

References
Bocij, Business Information Systems, 4th ed, Pearson, 2008
Laudon & Laudon, Management Information Systems, 11th ed, Pearson,
2010.
Chaffey, Business Information Management, Pearson, 2005
Lucey, Management Information Systems, 9th ed, Thomson, 2005.
Boddy D et al, Managing Information Systems, (3rd ed), 2009

Further Reading
Ackoff , Management Misinformation Systems, Management Science,
1967
Thompson , Strategic Management, (5th ed), 2005, Chapter 5.5