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1、備課筆記：管理信息系統(tǒng)導(dǎo)論, 海南大學(xué) 旅游學(xué)院 Chapter one Answers to Discussion Questions 1. How can information systems support a company’s business operations and decision-making, and give them a competitive advantage? Give examples to illustrate your answer. Information systems play a vital role in the succes

2、s of an enterprise and there is a growing dependence on the use of these systems. Information systems certainly do support a company’s business operations and decision-making by enabling companies to more effectively carry out their operations, and do it is more effective ways. Through the use of

3、information systems, managers are better able to make decisions based on current data, and they often discover trends, opportunities, or even pitfalls that they were not aware of before. Operational efficiencies and profit margins can be dramatically increased through the use of information systems.

4、 People now have the tools that they can use to do their jobs better, faster, and more effective. Competitive advantage is capture through the ability to be better able to meet customers demands, offer then high quality products, and to do it better than your competitors can. Other examples inclu

5、de the increase use of the Internet, intranets, and extranets in ways in which they can be used to provide information infrastructure a business needs for efficient operations, effective management, and competitive advantage. 2. How does the use of the Internet, intranets, and extranets by an e-b

6、usiness enterprise support their e-commerce activities? In order to succeed today, organizations are increasingly competing in global markets. The increased use of technologies such as the Internet, intranets, and extranets have definitely revolutionized how businesses are operating and how they

7、 will continue to explore opportunities now available through these technologies in order to operate more effectively. Companies are rapidly extending their uses of these three technologies in order to compete by offering their customers, suppliers, and partners the ability to perform business tran

8、sactions more effectively. 3. Refer to the Real World Case on General Electric in the chapter. If you were the new CEO of GE, what other e-business moves would you recommend for the company? Defend your proposals. Student’s answers will vary in response to this question. However, GE is us

9、ing a number of strategies in order to gain a competitive edge and to work closer with their customers, suppliers, employees, and those that they outsource parts of their business to. These channels of communication enable GE to realize faster response times, constant up to date information on busi

10、ness throughout the entire organization. Improvements in efficiencies have increase their profit line, reduced operating costs, and opened the door to greater communication. Students may suggest other e-business moves for GE, which may include new Internet appliances for salespeople, customer serv

11、ice representatives and dealer contacts. 4. Why do big companies still fail in their use of information technology? What should they be doing differently? Top Five Reasons for Success Top Five Reasons for Failure User involvement Lack of user input Executive management suppo

12、rt Incomplete requirements and specifications Clear statement of requirements Changing requirements and specifications Proper planning Lack of executive support Realistic expectations Technological incompetence Certainly the reasons listed in the table above could account for t

13、he major causes of why companies fail in their use of information technology. However, it is important to note that the field of technology is changing at such a rapid pace that many large and successful companies are having difficulty keeping up with it. Other ideas may include such things as a d

14、emand for skilled employees in this area; the major expense involved in managing and developing systems and hardware acquisitions, increased and more aggressive competition from competitors both domestic and internationally. 5. How can a manager demonstrate that he or she is a responsible end use

15、r of information systems? Give several examples. Students’ answers will vary, however they must realize that information is a powerful resource that can be used in a variety of inappropriate manners. As a manager or other end user of information, we all must insure that we consider the ethical

16、responsibilities of the use of information. For example, uses of information technology might be used in an improper, irresponsible, or in a harmful way, which can hurt other individuals or even society as a whole. Information systems must be managed to benefit society while at the same time meet

17、the goals of the organization. Irresponsible use would include taking advantage of access to confidential data for personal gain or interest. 6. Refer to the Real World Case on Duke Energy in the chapter. What are some other methods for introducing e-business into a company? Which do you prefe

18、r? Why? Students’ answers will vary, however business benefits can include both tangible and intangible benefits. Better customer service, increased profits, greater market penetration, closer and richer communication with customers and suppliers, faster responses to market trends, more up to

19、date information, attracting new customers, or reducing costs. 7. What is a major management challenge in developing IT solutions to solve business problems and meet new e-business opportunities? One only has to pick up any newspaper or business-related magazine to see a story about some facet

20、 of new e-business opportunities. Businesses are increasingly incorporating technology into their quest to survive and compete in the marketplace. The Internet and the WWW provide the enabling mechanisms to foster the growth of electronic commerce and electronic business. Electronic commerce is d

21、efined as the use of electronic transmission mediums (telecommunications) to engage in the exchange, including buying and selling, of products and services requiring transportation, either physically or digitally, from location to location. Electronic business opportunities include the exchange of

22、information not directly related to the actual buying and selling of goods. Increasingly, businesses are using electronic mechanisms in order to distribute information and to provide better customer support. Management challenges in developing IT solutions to solve business problems and meet new e

23、-business opportunities are daunting. Good decisions may spell the difference between successful or failure. 8. Why are there so many conceptual classifications of information systems? Why are they typically integrated in the information systems found in the real world? Conceptual classifi

24、cations of information systems are designed to emphasize the many different roles of information systems. This can be done from various points of view, such as the level of management that the information systems serve, or the business functions they support. In practice, these roles are not alway

25、s clearly divided, and in any case, information produced by one business activity may serve as input data to another activity. Thus it makes sense to integrate various roles into one information system. Clearly, no one system can possible meet all the needs of an organization, and no division of a

26、n organization works in isolation from the other divisions. 9. In what major ways have the roles of information systems applications in business expanded during the last 40 years? What is one major change you think will happen in the next 10 years? Data processing (1950s-1960s), management

27、reporting (1960s-1970s), decision support (1970s-1980s), strategic end user support (1980s-1990s), enterprise and global internetworking (1990s-2000s). (See Figure 1.13). During the next 10 years we will experience dramatic growth in neural networks, fuzzy logic, artificial intelligence, robot

28、ics, biotechnology, space, and oceanic discoveries based on very advanced technologies. 10. Can the business use of the Internet technologies help a company gain a competitive advantage? Give an example to illustrate your answer. There is no doubt that the Internet can help a company gain a c

29、ompetitive advantage. Competing in the global markets are forcing firms to develop and utilize better and more innovative ways to gain market share. Areas such as market research, electronic commerce, electronic focus groups etc. are examples of how a company can use the Internet to gain a competiti

30、ve advantage. The Internet is none major means whereby companies can actually get closer to their customers. This enables them to get immediate feedback on a product, make modifications to improve products, and essentially listen to the customers who are using the product. A. ANSWERS TO APP

31、LICATION EXERCISES 1. Using the Internet for Business Research a) Prepare a one-or two-page summary of some of your findings and the sources you used. b) End your paper with a few sentences describing one thing you have learned from your research that might help you in your future career in b

32、usiness. This is a subjective question, which will vary from student to student. Today’s students are very adept at using search engines in order to locate information that would satisfy this question. Most websites offer users an easy way to research a wide array of information. One intriguin

33、g example of the business use of information technology is in the area of forensic science and the use of technology to solve crime – even those which are a decade or more old. 2. Visiting the Smart Business Supersite a) Prepare a one- or two-page summary describing the “Computing in Busines

34、s” material you found most interesting and relevant as a business end user. b) End your paper with a few sentences describing one thing you have learned from your research that might help you in your future career in business. This is also a subjective question, which will vary from student to

35、student. Students would find informative and interesting items on this site. One example that is interesting is the category is job careers. Students often find this area informative in gathering and informing themselves on current market demand and opportunities in this field. 3. Jefferson

36、 State University: Recognizing IS Components a) Identify the people, hardware, software, network, and data resources and the information products of this information system. The microcomputer system and printer are hardware, the word processing package and the networked operating system are t

37、he software, the student represents people resources of the system, the text entered by the student is data, and the final document produced is the information product. No specific network resources are discussed in this example. b) Identify the input, processing, output, storage, and control ac

38、tivities that occurred. The system accepts input in the form of text data typed by the student on the keyboard. The word processing software processes this input data to format it appropriately for display or printing, and facilitate editing of the input document. Output is in the form of a copy o

39、f the document file saved on disk, display of the document on the video screen, and a printed copy of the document. The document is temporarily stored in the computer’s primary memory and permanently stored on disk when it is saved. The warning message received when saving a file under a name that

40、 has already been used is an example of control. 4. Office Products Corporation: Recognizing IS Components Identify the people, hardware, software, data, and network resources and the information products of this information system. ? People: customers, dealers, order entry clerks, warehouse p

41、ersonnel, president. ? Hardware: IBM AS/400, 60 PC workstations, printers, telecommunications links, video display terminals, dumb terminals (dealers), PC workstation for president, controller, sales manager, inventory manager, and other executives. ? Software: database management system ? Networ

42、k: local area network ? Data resources: database ? Information products: orders b) Identify the input, processing, output, storage, and control activities that occurred. ? Input: order entries ? Processing: AS/400 (checks the availability of ordered parts, allocates the stock, and updates

43、 customer and product databases). ? Output: order pick list on the warehouse printer, management reports (printed and viewed on screen). ? Storage: magnetic disk on AS/400 ? Control: Data entry procedures, formatted screens, AS/400 checks the order as it is entered. 5. Western Chemical Corpora

44、tion: Recognizing the Types and Roles of Information Systems a) Make an outline that identifies how information systems support (1) business operations, (2) business decision-making, (3) strategic advantage, (4) an e-business enterprise, (5) electronic commerce at Western Chemical. The teleco

45、mmunications system, word processing, and data from the chemical refinery process are designed primarily to support business operations. The use of the refinery data to “suggest” answers to problems to the engineer and the periodic, exception and demand reports generated by the system are designed

46、to support managerial decision making. The text summaries and graphics displays provided to top management help support strategic decision-making. Overall, the systems improve operational efficiency, which helps the strategic position of Western Chemical in the industry. b) There are many diffe

47、rent types of information systems at Western Chemical. Identify as many as you can in the preceding scenario. Refer to Figure 1.18, 1.20, and 1.22 to help you. Explain the reasons for your choices. Using the system to capture data about sales orders and purchases describes a transaction proces

48、sing system. The electronic mail and word processing systems are office automation systems. The sensors capturing data about the refinery process are part of a process control system. The use of the data to suggest answers to complex refinery problems would represent an expert system. The report

49、s sent to managerial end users represent an information reporting system. The use of computers by managerial end users to interactively assess the possible results of alternative decisions represents a decision support system. The text summaries and graphic displays provided to top management are

50、an executive information system. B. ANSWERS TO REAL WORLD CASES Real World Case 1: General Electric Company: Implementing e-Business and e-Commerce Initiatives 1. Are the buy, sell, and make e-business and e-commerce initiatives of GE applicable to other companies – both large and sma

51、ll? Give examples to support your answer. This case dramatizes just one of the countless examples of the business challenges and opportunities created by the growth of the Internet and the World Wide Web. Like many businesses, GE are moving forward in their desire to work in the new “marketspace

52、” economy. It is also evident in this case that organizations are able to realize major competitive advantages, heightened efficiency, obtain greater market penetration, realize cost reductions, and increased profits through utilizing of new technologies. GE expects to save 1.6 billion in 2001 thr

53、ough their e-business initiatives. On the sell side and buy side GE are doing billions of dollars worth of business. They hope to realize major costs reductions by using Net-based collaboration tools what will enable them to get even closer to their employees and customers. 2. Could the busine

54、ss value of GE’s Web-based collaboration tools be as great as their executives claim? Why or why not? Certainly, the business value of GE’s Web-based collaboration tools can be as great as their executives claim. As the case states, these tools enable GE to realize faster workflow and quicker, smar

55、ter decisions. It also enables their employees as well as their customers to be an integral part of the total system. A vital link to successful innovation projects is through increased communication, and certainly GE has demonstrated that. 3. Evaluate the business value of Jeff Immelt’s e-b

56、usiness directives for GE. Do you agree with their strategic importance for GE at this time? Explain your answer. Jack Welch was the major driving force behind the commitment to radically transform business at GE. After his departure, Jeff Immelt became the new CEO. Welch had stressed four majo

57、r business strategies: globalization, business services, e-business, and the total quality program known as Six Sigma. As the new CEO, Jeff Immelt chose to concentrate his driving forces into the strategies previously developed by Jack Welch. Immelt stressed digitising or outsourcing the parts of

58、 the business that did not touch the customer. He supported the development of “digital cockpits” or corporate information portals that let managers track the vitals of their business moment by moment. The strategic important of these two concepts appear to be leading factors for GE at the time

59、of the writing of this case. Immelt is the new CEO, and his strategy to drive and support existing strategies is probably a smart move on his part. Real World Case 2: Duke Energy: Introducing e-Business into a Company 1. Should Duke Energy’s guerrilla approach to introducing e-business be

60、adopted by other companies? Why or why not? Other companies can certainly adopt the approach used at Duke Energy to introduce e-business. The uniqueness of the approach is the total team involvement and commitment to ensure that a system is successful. In actuality, the commitment of the all

61、of the members in this team is the basic reason for its success. Everyone is interested in the project; they give their best effort, and take pride in the successful outcome of the system. Involvement and commitment are set very high right from the onset of the team entering into a business unit.

62、 They don’t order systems development, they work closely with the users to identify potential successes, and build from there. Group dynamics were and are critical to the success of a team environment. 2. Select and evaluate one of Duke Energy’s e-business projects. What are its business benefi

63、ts and limitations? Students will choose different e-business projects. One of the e-business projects was the Duke Energy Trade and Marketing. This business unit was responsible for providing energy to very large customers, such as city power companies. Two team members were part of this pr

64、oject. Ted Schultz from strategic planning, and Elizabeth Henry from customer focus. Both Henry and Schultz realized that the needs of the two customer sets would be very similar. This team helped this business unit by helping they conduct comprehensive focus groups in order to gather information

65、 on what customers wanted. The result of this process was in discovering a customisable Web portal that enabled clients to obtain services like online billing and account status as well as energy industry information. The business benefits was the ability to give customers what they wanted today

66、(however it does not address their future needs). 3. Are any of Duke Energy’s e-business initiatives applicable to other companies? Explain your answer. Certainly, Duke Energy’s e-business initiatives can be applicable to other companies. Any method of enhancing communication, improving efficiency, reducing costs, and increasing profits through the use of these technologies can have wide spread application. One of the greatest benefits is the ability to get closer to your final customer