PAGE

Assignment No.1

Corporate Information Strategy & Management

AZAN ALI |

PAGE

Article I. Table of ContentsBasic concepts of Corporate Information Strategy:.................................................................................2

Corporate:............................................................................................................................................2

Information:.........................................................................................................................................2

Strategy:...............................................................................................................................................2

Management:.......................................................................................................................................2

What is Information Management Strategy?.......................................................................................2

Organization:...........................................................................................................................................3

Organization Structure:........................................................................................................................3

Levels of Organization:.......................................................................................................................3

Top Level of Management...............................................................................................................4

Middle Level of Management..........................................................................................................4

Lower Level of Management...........................................................................................................5

Hierarchy of an organization...............................................................................................................6

Management Information System:...........................................................................................................6

Types of Management Information System:.......................................................................................6

Transaction processing systems:......................................................................................................6

Management information system:...................................................................................................7

Decision Support Systems (DSS)....................................................................................................7

Expert Systems and Artificial Intelligence......................................................................................7

Levels of Management Information System:.......................................................................................8

Corporate.........................................................................................................................................8

Team, division, business unit:..........................................................................................................8

Individual.........................................................................................................................................8

Bibliography:...........................................................................................................................................9

Article II.

1

PAGE

Basic concepts of Corporate Information Strategy

The basic concepts related to Corporate Information Strategy & Management are as under

Section II.01 CorporateA legal entity that is separate and distinct from its owners. Corporations enjoy most of the rights and responsibilities that an individual possesses; that is, a corporation has the right to enter into contracts, loan and borrow money, sue and be sued, hire employees, own assets and pay taxes.

Section II.02 InformationData that is (1) accurate and timely, (2) specific and organized for a purpose, (3) presented within a context that gives it meaning and relevance, and (4) can lead to an increase in understanding and decrease in uncertainty.

Section II.03 StrategyStrategy is a long term plan of an organization for how it will balance its internals strengths and weaknesses with external opportunities and threads to maintain its competitive advantage.

Section II.04 ManagementManagement is a process of achieving organization’s goals through planning, organizing, staffing, leading and controlling by effectively and efficiently utilizing physical, financial, human and informational resources.

Section II.05 What is Information Management Strategy?Each time more organizations reach the conclusion that the information should be managed as one of the main assets of the company that contributes both to identify opportunities and to reduce business risks.Effective and efficient management of such a significant asset demands a Management Information strategy, through it, an action plan is designed to ensure that the organization will properly apply the time, money and effort resources that will be demanded by the initiatives identified as necessary. This way, the information that shall be used by decision makers will be delivered in the short, medium and long terms, in order to make the difference in the industry and the markets they provide service Types of resources used by the organizations:

Physical Resources

Financial Resources Human Resources Informational Resources

2

PAGE

Article III. OrganizationA social unit of people that is structured and managed to meet a need or to pursue collective goals. All organizations have a management structure that determines relationships between the different activities and the members, and subdivides and assigns roles, responsibilities, and authority to carry out different tasks. Organizations are open systems--they affect and are affected by their environment.

Section III.01 Organization StructureAn organizational structure defines how activities such as task allocation, coordination and supervision are directed towards the achievement of organizational aims. It can also be considered as the viewing glass or perspective through which individuals see their organization and its environment.(wikipedia 2015) An example of organizational structure is given below

Section III.02 Levels of Organization

There are three levels of an organizations,(web 2015) Top level Middle level Lower level

3

PAGE

Section III.03 Top Level of ManagementIt consists of board of directors, chief executive or managing director. The top management is the ultimate source of authority and it manages goals and policies for an enterprise. It devotes more time on planning and coordinating functions.

The role of the top management can be summarized as follows

a. Top management lays down the objectives and broad policies of the enterprise.

b. It issues necessary instructions for preparation of department budgets, procedures, schedules etc.

c. It prepares strategic plans & policies for the enterprise.d. It appoints the executive for middle level i.e. departmental managers.e. It controls & coordinates the activities of all the departments.f. It is also responsible for maintaining a contact with the outside world.g. It provides guidance and direction.h. The top management is also responsible towards the shareholders for the

performance of the enterprise.

Section III.04 Middle Level of ManagementThe branch managers and departmental managers constitute middle level. They are responsible to the top management for the functioning of their department. They devote more time to organizational and directional functions. In small organization, there is only one layer of middle level of management but in big enterprises, there may be senior and junior middle level management. Their role can be emphasized as

a. They execute the plans of the organization in accordance with the policies and directives of the top management.

4

PAGE

b. They make plans for the sub-units of the organization.c. They participate in employment & training of lower level management.d. They interpret and explain policies from top level management to lower level.e. They are responsible for coordinating the activities within the division or

department.f. It also sends important reports and other important data to top level

management.g. They evaluate performance of junior managers.h. They are also responsible for inspiring lower level managers towards better

performance.

Section III.05 Lower Level of ManagementLower level is also known as supervisory / operative level of management. It consists of supervisors, foreman, section officers, superintendent etc. According to R.C. Davis, “Supervisory management refers to those executives whose work has to be largely with personal oversight and direction of operative employees”. In other words, they are concerned with direction and controlling function of management. Their activities include -

a. Assigning of jobs and tasks to various workers.b. They guide and instruct workers for day to day activities.c. They are responsible for the quality as well as quantity of production.d. They are also entrusted with the responsibility of maintaining good relation in

the organization.e. They communicate workers problems, suggestions, and recommendatory

appeals etc. to the higher level and higher level goals and objectives to the workers.

f. They help to solve the grievances of the workers.g. They supervise & guide the sub-ordinates.h. They are responsible for providing training to the workers.i. They arrange necessary materials, machines, tools etc. for getting the things

done.j. They prepare periodical reports about the performance of the workers.k. They ensure discipline in the enterprise.l. They motivate workers.m. They are the image builders of the enterprise because they are in direct contact

with the workers.(2015)

Section III.06

5

PAGE

Hierarchy of an organization

Article IV. Management Information System

Management Information Systems (MIS) is the study of people, technology, organizations and the relationships among them. MIS professionals help firms realize maximum benefit from investment in personnel, equipment, and business processes. MIS is a people-oriented field with an emphasis on service through technology. A management information system (MIS) is a computer based system that provides the information necessary to manage an organization effectively. An MIS should be designed to enhance communication among employees, provide an objective system for recording information and support the organization’s strategic goals and direction.

Section IV.01 Types of Management Information System There are four types of MIS that will be introduced in ascending order of sophistication.(academia.edu 2015)

6

PAGE

Section IV.02 Transaction processing systemsThese systems are designed to handle a large volume of routine, recurring transactions. They were first introduced in the 1960s with the advent of mainframe computers. Transaction processing systems are used widely today. Bank use them to record deposits and payments into accounts. Supermarkets use them to record sales and track inventory. Most managers use these systems to deal with tasks such as payroll, customer billing and payments to suppliers.Some examples of TPS are

Payroll systems Order processing system Reservation systems Stock control systems Systems of payments and funds transfers(academia.edu 2015)

Section IV.03 Management information systemFor historical reasons, many of the different types of information systems found in commercial organizations are referred to as “Management Information System”. However, within our pyramid model, Management information system are management level systems that are used by middle managers to help ensure the smooth running of the organization in the short to medium term. The highly structured information provided by these systems allow managers to evaluate an organization’s performance by comparing current with previous outputs.Some examples of MIS

Sales management systems Inventory control systems Budgeting systems Management Reporting systems (MRS) Personnel (HRM) systems(academia.edu 2015)

Section IV.04 Decision Support Systems (DSS)A DSS is an interactive computer system that can be used by managers without help from computer specialists. A DSS provides managers with the necessary information to make intelligent decisions. A DSS has three fundamental components:

Database management system (DBMS)

Stores large amounts of data relevant to problems the DSS has been designed to tackle.

Model-based management system (MBMS)

Transforms data from the DBMS into information that is useful in decision making.

Dialog generation and management system (DGMS) Provides a user-friendly interface between the system and the managers who do not have extensive computer training.Some examples of DSS

Group Decision Support Systems (GDSS) Computer Supported Co-operative work (CSCW) Logistics systems

7

PAGE

Financial Planning systems Spreadsheet Models

Section IV.05 Expert Systems and Artificial IntelligenceThese systems use human knowledge captured in a computer to solve problems that ordinarily need human expertise. Mimicking human expertise and intelligence requires that the computer (1) recognize, formulate and solve a problem; (2) explain solutions and (3) learn from experience. These systems explain the logic of their advice to the user; hence, in addition to solving problems they can also serve as a teacher. They use flexible thinking processes and can accommodate new knowledge.Some examples of EISExecutive Information Systems tend to be highly individualized and are often custom made for a particular client group; however, a number of off-the-shelf EIS packages do exist and many enterprise level systems offer a customizable EIS module.

Section IV.06 Levels of Management Information SystemWhen developing an information strategy within an organization, it is useful to consider information needs on three levels:(web 2015)

Corporate Team, division, business unit, etc. Individual

The needs of each of these three levels must be met if a coordinated and effective solution is to be maintained in the long term. Failure to address any one of the levels will lead to areas of the business or individuals findings their own solution, which may not fit well within the strategic goals of the organization. These are not new ideas, but they will be explored in the context of intranets and other corporate information systems.

CorporateAt the top is the corporate information that is useful for the whole organization. This ‘global’ information is generally fairly well addressed by the corporate intranet (even if the intranet itself needs improvement). Examples of corporate information include policies and procedures, HR information, online forms, phone directly, etc.

Team, division, business unitThe middle level is perhaps the most interesting, as it covers all the information shared within teams, divisions, business units, etc. This information may be critical to the day to day activities of the group, but of little interest to the rest of the organization. Example include project documentation, business unit specific content, meeting minutes etc.

IndividualAt the lowest level is the personal information needs of staff throughout the organization. Examples include correspondence (both internal and external), reports and spreadsheets.

8