WHAT IS MIS?

| MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS

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. If you have an interest in technology and have the desire to use
technology to improve people’s lives, a degree in MIS may be for you.
Examples of MIS software include Microsoft Dynamics, Fleetmatics WORK, Clarity Professional
MIS, and Tharstern Limited. MIS programs designed specifically for the graphics and print industry
include Avanti Slingshot, EFI Pace, and DDS Accura. Most MIS software programs are available as
desktop applications, though many solutions now include web-based interfaces and mobile apps
as well.

Need of Management Information System

An organisation must have a very clear version about requirements such as type of information
required, type of data available , type of stakeholders etc, at different levels of Management. An
Organisation established and MIS for the following reasons:

 Efficiently storing and managing data of all business functional areas.

 Fast and accurate delivery of information, as and when needed.
 Processing of gathered data and developing information from it.
 Information availability for production and inventory.
 Providing information about current economic status of company.
 Faster implementation of results available from reliable data sources.
 Smooth flow of data within various levels of organisation.
 Make availability of information required for planning organizing and monitoring business
process.

Purpose and Objectives of Management Information System

1) Data Capturing :
MIS gathers information from various internal and external either manually or electronically with
the use of computer terminals.

2) Processing of Data : 
The collected data goes through a number of process like calculation , sorting, classification and
summary for its conversion information.
3) Storage of information : 
The processed or the unprocessed data stored in the MIS for future use by saving it as an
organisation record. The data may also be used immediately.

4) Retrieval Of Information :
As per the request of different uses, retrieval of information is done by MIS from its stores.

5) Dissemination of information:
Information is the final product of MIS which is equally accessible by all users in the organisation.
It may be periodic or online with the use of computer terminal.

Advantages of Management Information System

1)Facilitates planning :
Management Information System provides relevant information for efficient decision making for
stop with the increasing size and complexity of organisation, managers now work remotely rather
than from the operations location. MIS proves to be a big help in such scenarios.

2) Minimises Information Overload :

MIS help in compartmentalizing data into smaller relevant parts of decision-making. This reduces
the confusion of large can organised data.

3) MIS Encourages Decentralization :

MIS enables decentralization of authority. This is possible as there and minority system at lower
levels of measuring performance. This helps in making changes in organisational plans and
procedures.

4) Brings Co-ordination :
MIS connect all decision making nodes in an organisation . it assist in assimilation of specialized
activities whereby each department becomes aware of the problems and requirement of other
departments . this ensures smooth functioning of an organisation.
5) Makes Control Easier :
MIS at as an important tool to relate managerial planning and control. MIS increases the data
processing and storage capacity as well as reduces the cost with the help of computer. It enhance
the managements capability to evaluate and improve performance.

Disadvantage of Management Information System

1)Highly sensitive, requires constant monitoring:

MIS content highly sensitive information about an organisation which can be used for fraudulent
activities. Constant monitoring and filtering is required to avoid manipulation of data by fraudster
causing harm to business.

2) Budgeting of MIS is Extremely Difficult :

MIS cannot be budgeted like activities of all other department. Hence, its expense is
unpredictable. Even though it forms a very sensitive and important function of organisation but it
is not possible to predict its expense.

3) Quality of Outputs Governed by Quality of Input :

The quality of the information generated through MIS is dependent on the quality of raw data used
for processing.

4) Lack of Flexibility to Update Itself :

MIS Cannot update itself automatically like many other application. Updating has to be done
manually by obtaining raw data and feeding it into the system for processing and updating pre
existing data.

5) Effectiveness Decrease Due to Frequent Changes in Top Management :

Frequent changes in middle or top management levels reduces the effectiveness of information
produced through MIS, as requirements of reports are the result of input provided by the top
management level . Change in management result in chair changed information requirement
because new team of management will require information on their own format.
6) Takes into Account only Qualitative Factors :
MIS takes into consideration only qualitative factors, ignoring the non qualitative factors such as
morale, attitude, and motivation of workers. is the biggest limitation of MIS.

MIS is a system that takes data as input and processes it and provides information. With the help of this
information, the management of the organization does decision making and planning.

Today most of the organizations implement MIS to achieve their goals.

components of management information system (MIS)

A management information system is made up of 6 main components. All these components work
together to achieve the goals of the organization.

:- people -

These are the users who use the information system. These users are computer professionals who use the
MIS system to process the data.

These users record daily transactions in MIS. These users are accountants, salespersons, engineers, clerk,
and managers.

2:- data (data) –

Another component of MIS is "Data".

Data in MIS means "day-to-day business transactions are collected in the database. For example, the
activities happening in a bank like- withdrawal, deposit, etc. Data are collected.

On the basis of data, the organization takes any decisions and does planning. This data is processed and
converted into information.

3:- hardware -

Hardware means all those physical devices which are used to process data in MIS.

It includes computers, printers, and networking devices (eg:- hub, switch, router, repeater) etc.

Data is processed only by hardware and networking and printing are also done by it. Input output devices
also come in this.

4:- software (software) –

Software means, those programs that run on hardware. Software is divided into two parts, first system
software and second application software.

System software is an operating system such as:- Windows, Mac OS, UNIX, LINUX, Ubuntu etc. System
software is used to operate computer hardware.

Application software is used by the user to complete a specific task. Examples of this- MS office, web
browser, payroll program, banking system, point of sales system etc.

5:- organizational procedures –

The procedures are a set of rules and guidelines made by the organization for MIS.
These procedures may be different for each organization. And it can also be different for each department
of the organization.

For example- the procedure of production department is different from that of sales department and both
departments have different need of information, so their procedures are also different.

The organizational procedures are developed by the users.

6:- Telecommunication (Telecommunication) –

This component connects the hardware to the network together, this connection can be wired (eg:
ethernet cable, fiber optics) or wireless.

A Management Information System is an information system that evaluates, analyzes,

and processes an organization’s data to produce meaningful and useful information

based on which the management can take right decisions to ensure future growth of the

organization.

Information Definition

“Information can be recorded as signs, or transmitted as signals. Information is any

kind of event that affects the state of a dynamic system that can interpret the

information.

Conceptually, information is the message (utterance or expression) being conveyed.

Therefore, in a general sense, information is “Knowledge communicated or received,

concerning a particular fact or circumstance”. Information cannot be predicted and

resolves uncertainty.”

What is Information?
Information is a set of data which is processed in a meaningful way according to the given requirement.
Information is processed, structured, or presented in a given context to make it meaningful and useful.

It is processed data which includes data that possess context, relevance, and purpose. It also involves
manipulation of raw data.
Information assigns meaning and improves the reliability of the data. It helps to ensure undesirability
and reduces uncertainty. So, when the data is transformed into information, it never has any useless
details.

According to Davis and Olson −

"Information is a data that has been processed into a form that is meaningful to recipient and is of real or
perceived value in the current or the prospective action or decision of recipient."

What is Data?
Data is a raw and unorganized fact that required to be processed to make it meaningful. Data can be
simple at the same time unorganized unless it is organized. Generally, data comprises facts,
observations, perceptions numbers, characters, symbols, image, etc.

Data is always interpreted, by a human or machine, to derive meaning. So, data is meaningless. Data
contains numbers, statements, and characters in a raw form.

Comparison chart

Data versus Information comparison chart

Data Information

Meaning Data is raw, unorganized facts that
need to be processed. Data can be
something simple and seemingly
random and useless until it is
organized.
When data is processed, organized, structured
or presented in a given context so as to make
it useful, it is called information.

Example Each student's test score is one The average score of a class or of the entire
piece of data. school is information that can be derived from
the given data.

Etymolog "Data" comes from a singular Latin
y word, datum, which originally meant
"something given." Its early usage
dates back to the 1600s. Over time
"data" has become the plural of
datum.
"Information" is an older word that dates back
to the 1300s and has Old French and Middle
English origins. It has always referred to "the
act of informing, " usually in regard to
education, instruction, or other knowledge
communication.

Implications of Information in Business

Information processing has transformed our society in numerous ways. From a business perspective, there
has been a huge shift towards increasingly automated business processes and communication. Access to
information and capability of information processing has helped in achieving greater efficiency in
accounting and other business processes.
A complete business information system, accomplishes the following functionalities −
 Collection and storage of data.
 Transform these data into business information useful for decision making.
 Provide controls to safeguard data.
 Automate and streamline reporting.
The following list summarizes the five main uses of information by businesses and other organizations −
 Planning − At the planning stage, information is the most important ingredient in decision
making. Information at planning stage includes that of business resources, assets, liabilities,
plants and machineries, properties, suppliers, customers, competitors, market and market
dynamics, fiscal policy changes of the Government, emerging technologies, etc.
 Recording − Business processing these days involves recording information about each
transaction or event. This information collected, stored and updated regularly at the
operational level.
 Controlling − A business need to set up an information filter, so that only filtered data is
presented to the middle and top management. This ensures efficiency at the operational level
and effectiveness at the tactical and strategic level.
 Measuring − A business measures its performance metrics by collecting and analyzing sales
data, cost of manufacturing, and profit earned.
 Decision-making − MIS is primarily concerned with managerial decision-making, theory of
organizational behavior, and underlying human behavior in organizational context.
Decision-making information includes the socio-economic impact of competition,
globalization, democratization, and the effects of all these factors on an organizational
structure.
In short, this multi-dimensional information evolves from the following logical foundations −
 Operations research and management science
 Theory of organizational behavior
 Computer science −
o Data and file structure
o Data theory design and implementation
o Computer networking
o Expert systems and artificial intelligence
 Information theory
Following factors arising as an outcome of information processing help speed up of business events and
achieves greater efficiency −
 Directly and immediate linkage to the system
 Faster communication of an order
 Electronic transfer of funds for faster payment
 Electronically solicited pricing (helps in determining the best price)
MIS Need for Information Systems
Managers make decisions. Decision-making generally takes a four-fold path −
 Understanding the need for decision or the opportunity,
 Preparing alternative course of actions,
 Evaluating all alternative course of actions,
 Deciding the right path for implementation.
MIS is an information system that provides information in the form of standardized reports and displays for
the managers. MIS is a broad class of information systems designed to provide information needed for
effective decision making.
Data and information created from an accounting information system and the reports generated thereon are
used to provide accurate, timely and relevant information needed for effective decision making by
managers.
Management information systems provide information to support management decision making, with the
following goals −
 Pre-specified and preplanned reporting to managers.
 Interactive and ad-hoc support for decision making.
 Critical information for top management.
MIS is of vital importance to any organization, because −
 It emphasizes on the management decision making, not only processing of data generated by
business operations.
 It emphasizes on the systems framework that should be used for organizing information
systems applications.

Contemporary Approaches to information systems

When an information system is being developed, much importance should be given to the
structure of the organization, culture of the organization, etc. But along with these, especial
attention should also be given to the technical side of MIS. The various contemporary approaches
to MIS development can be summarized as:
1) The Socio Technical Approach
Information systems are socio-technical systems. Although they are composed of machines,
devices, and “hard” physical technology, they require substantial social, organizational, and
intellectual investments to make them work properly. a) In the beginning, this approach was
finding it hard to survive but now it is being accepted worldwide and is also being
implemented at a very large scale. b) Involves key involvement of both of the above explained
approaches. c) Improves the performance of the information system as a whole
 Although information systems are a collection of electrical and mechanical devices, they
require the organization, and the people that work within the organization for them to be
successful.
 Technical Approach
 • The technical approach uses mathematical models to test the capabilities of information
systems.
 These disciplines include:
 • Computer Science - concerned with methods of computability, computation,and data
storage and access.
 • Management Science - emphasized the development of models for decision making, and
management practices.
 Operations Research - focuses on mathematical techniques for optimizing selected
parameters of organizations.(inventory control, transaction costs).
 Behavioral Approach
 • Deals with behavioral issues that arise in the development, and long term maintenance of
the information system.
 • Different disciplines, such as psychologists, sociologists, Economists, study information
systems, and the impacts they have in the organizational environment.
 Behavioral changes can occur within the organization during, and after information system
development. The key to this approach is to find the solution to the behavior, which is not a
technical issue.
 information/Data Collection Techniques
The most popular data collection techniques include −
 Surveys − A questionnaires is prepared to collect the data from the field.
 Secondary data sources or archival data: Data is collected through old records, magazines,
company website etc.
 Objective measures or tests − An experimental test is conducted on the subject and the data
is collected.
 Interviews − Data is collected by the system analyst by following a rigid procedure and
collecting the answers to a set of pre-conceived questions through personal interviews.
Information is Strategic Resources.
Information helps in taking Strategic, Tactical and operational Decisions. It is one of critical and importance resource.

1. It helps us understand Cost, Quality, price, technology, productivity and product.

2. It helps to smooth following of business process and there by smooth managing of business operation.

3. It helps to maintain the business standards like ISO, QS, CMMI, Six Sigma etc.

4. It helps to be ahead in the competition

5. It helps company in analyzing their own SWOT.

6. It helps in maintaining its own profitability.

7. It will help in taking new business decisions like new plant, new product, new business line etc.

8. It protects company from business cycles.

9. It provides future direction to the organization.

10.It provides the competitive edge.

Competitive Advantage vs. Differential Advantage

A differential advantage is when a firm's products or services differ from its competitors' offerings
and are seen as superior. Advanced technology, patent-protected products or processes,
superior personnel, and strong brand identity are all drivers of differential advantage. These
factors support wide margins and large market shares.

Apple is famous for creating innovative products, such as the iPhone, and supporting its market
leadership with savvy marketing campaigns to build an elite brand. Major drug companies can
also market branded drugs at high price points because they are protected by patents.
Competitive Advantage vs. Comparative Advantage
A firm's ability to produce a good or service more efficiently than its competitors, which leads to
greater profit margins, creates a comparative advantage. Rational consumers will choose the
cheaper of any two perfect substitutes offered. For example, a car owner will buy gasoline from
a gas station that is 5 cents cheaper than other stations in the area. For imperfect substitutes, like
Pepsi versus Coke, higher margins for the lowest-cost producers can eventually bring superior
returns.

Economies of scale, efficient internal systems, and geographic location can also create a
comparative advantage. Comparative advantage does not imply a better product or service,
though. It only shows the firm can offer a product or service of the same value at a lower price.

For example, a firm that manufactures a product in China may have lower labor costs than a
company that manufactures in the U.S., so it can offer an equal product at a lower price. In the
context of international trade economics, opportunity cost determines comparative advantages. 

Amazon (AMZN) is an example of a company focused on building and maintaining a comparative

advantage. The e-commerce platform has a level of scale and efficiency that is difficult for retail
competitors to replicate, allowing it to rise to prominence largely through price competition.

How Do I Know If a Company Has a Competitive Advantage?

If a business can increase its market share through increased efficiency or productivity, it would
have a competitive advantage over its competitors.

How Can a Company Increase Its Competitive Advantage?

Lasting competitive advantages tend to be things competitors cannot easily replicate or imitate.
Warren Buffet calls sustainable competitive advantages economic moats, which businesses can
figuratively dig around themselves to entrench competitive advantages. This can include
strengthening one's brand, raising barriers to new entrants (such as through regulations), and the
defense of intellectual property.

Why Do Larger Companies Often Have Competitive Advantages?

Competitive advantages that accrue from economies of scale typically refer to supply-side
advantages, such as the purchasing power of a large restaurant or retail chain. But
advantages of scale also exist on the demand side—they are commonly referred to
as network effects. This happens when a service becomes more valuable to all of its users
as the service adds more users. The result can often be a winner-take-all dynamic in the
industry. How to Use Information for Competitive Advantage
By Dinesh Thakur

Information and its use has become the competitive advantage of today’s world. The efficiency
with which a firm manages its information determines its success in the marketplace. This
enormous power of information unleashed in today’s world has brought down reaction times for
decision-making of managers, made customers more aware, competitors more efficient and
regulators more alert.
Today, one can no longer hide behind excuses of ‘plausible deniability’. These changes have
resulted in a change in mindset of managers and have transformed the way business is
conducted. Management of information itself has become a key success factor for firms.
However, information is not to be seen in isolation. Information in the current competitive
business environment is available to business firms in a computerized environment.
Computerization is required to make the information supplied to be timely and accurate, which
are critical factors for success in these competitive times.
Hence, the study of information management entails an understanding of information and
communication technology also. However, information management is a distinct subject not
related (other than the practical considerations of providing the output information timely and
accurately) to information and communication technology. Let us now delve deeper into the
subject to get a clear understanding of the basic concepts that drive management information
systems.
As is clear, the advantage that a modern corporate house enjoys can be traced to its
management of information. If the business house cannot manage its information, then it is likely
that it will not have any competitive advantage. Typically an organization can develop competitive
advantage if it can, does or have what others can’t, do or have. In modern times, the advantages
on account of raw materials, technological edge, etc., is being neutralized by the forces of
modern business. The last frontier so to say is information management. Companies that have
managed to do it successfully like Dell, Google, etc., have generated an unparalleled competitive
advantage as their reaction time to changes in the market and/or competition is much less and
hence, they can shift business gears faster than their competitors and hence the advantage.
Competitive advantage through managing information can accrue to an organization if it:

 Manages information to reduce reaction time for change

 Managing information makes the organization efficient
 Information management leads to insights into the business that the competitors
cannot have

 Information management is used for predictive analysis so that the organization is

one step ahead of competition.

This competitive advantage gained by managing information also requires changes in

organization cultures. Companies need to create a culture of information based management and
decision-making to take advantage of the opportunities of information management. This is a
challenge, as installing an organizational culture is not as straightforward as installing an
information management system. It is a process that takes a lot of time.

According Porter Miller: Information helps in following:

1. Change in industry structure: This includes Five Forces:

 Customers’ bargaining power
 Suppliers’ bargaining power
 Threats of new entrant in market
 Pressure from substitute products and services and
 Existing Industry competitors

2. Birth of new business/new business initiatives

3. New ways of doing business

A) Functional Use:
1) Lower the cost
2) Information and information system facilitate value chain e.g. product delivery, quality
3) In increased the speed, accuracy and timeliness of the organization
4) It helps in simplifying the business processes
5) It helps organization in meeting the standards and benchmarks
 B) Strategic Use:
1) New way of doing the work
2) New way of dealing in Product differentiation
3) It helps in new way of developing strategies, planning, forecasting and monitoring
4) It helps in problem solving and decision making by extensive internal and external data analysis.
5) It improves the ability to perform
6) It helps in getting advantages of market situation and keeps ahead in the competition.
7) It helps in eliminating waste, inefficiencies and gaps in the business operations
8) Provides the flexibility and helps manage the uncertainties
9) Analysis external information and making use of business

Strategic Information System can offer competitive advantage to an organization:

1) Generating databases to improve marketing: An information system also provides companies an

edge over their competition by generating databases to improve their sales and marketing strategies.
Such systems treat existing information as a resource. For example, an organization may use its
databases to monitor the purchase made by its customers, to identify different segments of the market,
etc.

2) Creating barriers to competitor’s entry: In this strategy, an organization uses information systems to
provide products or services that are difficult to duplicate or that are used to serve highly specialized
markets. This prevents the entry of competitors as they find the cost for adopting a similar strategy very
high.

3) ‘Locking in’ customers and suppliers: Another way of gaining competitive advantage is by locking in
customers and suppliers. In this concept, information systems are used to provide such advantages to a
customer or a supplier, that it becomes difficult for them to switch over to a competitor. For example,
an organization may develop its information system and give many benefits to its customers, like reliable
order filling, reduced transaction costs, increased management support and faster delivery service.

4) Leveraging technology in the value chain: This approach pinpoints specific activities in the business
where competitive strategies can be best applied and where information systems are likely to have a
greater strategic impact. This model advocates that information technology can best be used to gain
competitive advantages by identifying specific, critical leverage points.

5) Lowering the costs of the products: strategic information systems may also help organizations lower
their internal costs, allowing them to deliver products and services at a lower price than their
competitors can provide. Thus, such information systems can contribute to the survival and growth of
the organization. For example, airlines use information systems strategically to lower costs so that they
may counter competitor’s discount fares.

MIS as an instrument for the organizational change

MIS can deliver facts, data and trends to businesses with lightning speed. Having this
information allows companies to react quickly to market changes, regardless of the type
 (positive or negative) of volatility.

The role of the MIS in an organization can be compared to the role of heart in the body. The
information is the blood and MIS is the heart. In the body, the heart plays the role of supplying
pure blood to all the elements of the body including the brain.

The MIS satisfies the diverse needs through a variety of systems such as Query Systems, Analysis
Systems, Modelling Systems and Decision Support Systems. The MIS helps in Strategic Planning,
Management Control, Operational Control and Transaction Processing.

The MIS plays the role of information generation, communication, problem identification and
helps in the process of decision making. The MIS, therefore, plays a vital role in the
management, administration and operations of an organization.

External Change

a) MIS has made world smaller

b) Worldwide reorganization environment and attempt to control the calamity.
c) Health conscious among the group leading less sufferings
d) Change in the work lifestyle for better result
e) Creating Knowledge is an asset

Internal Change

a) MIS will change the Business Process

b) MIS will change the old standards and set new standards
c) MIS key for Continuous improvement Process
d) MIS will reduce the hierarchy and hence less operation cost.
e) MIS focus on “Shared information”.
f) MIS will accelerate restructure work bow for both line and staff functions.
g) MIS will bring change in Authority and power by merit and not by age or number of years of
experience.
h) MIS brings cultural change.
i) MIS measures the results and performance.
j) MIS brings Continuous addition to Organizational knowledge base
 Information Technology Characteristics and emerging trends

Characteristics

 Diffusion of e-governance on a large scale.

 The development of Information Technology has made education system simpler, easier, and
widespread. Now, people of remote areas can also use technology for their children’s education
and also avail the benefits of adult education.
 Development of remote areas.
 Fast economic development.
 Participation of public in governance and policy making.
 The judiciary and other administrative services can also take the help of technology to make
work easier and faster.
 Technology helps the police in nabbing the criminals.
 Highly beneficial for the common people, as they can access their rights and can take legal
action against the person who violates his/her rights.
 It increases the happiness and prosperity of not only an individual, but rather the society as a
whole.

Digital proficiency :- The business goals of IT are about leveraging information and technology
to lower costs, improve operations and increase revenue. Businesses will be more successful
when they realize that one of their greatest strengths will be their multifaceted digital proficiency
to scale up and shift from “doing digital” to “being digital.” A digital IT organization with high
digital proficiency plays a crucial role in building a high-responsive, high-intelligent and high-
mature digital business by interpreting business issues into technology enabled solutions and
leveraging necessary resources to solve well-defined business problems effectively.

Complexity

People are complex, business is complex and the world is complex. Complexity is one of the
emerging digital characteristics in the digital era. Imagine the complexity that comes in due to
these characteristics such as less structure, more rules and regulations, diversity, volatility,
ambiguity, unpredictability, lack of linearity and increased flux, etc. There are necessary
complexity and unnecessary complication.

Innovativeness

To move up digital maturity, businesses are looking for IT to add new innovative methods for
management of complexity, improving quality and driving digital transformation. The available
digital technologies just make innovation easier to do now
 than in the past – less costly and more easily accessible. Innovation can be categorized as
breakthrough innovation (push something to the new level), sustainable innovation (better
version of products or services), efficiency innovation (process improvement), or “soft
innovations” (communication or culture innovation).

Emerging trends

a) Analytics

The field of analytics has grown many folds in recent years. Analytics is a process which helps
in discovering the informational patterns with data. The field of analytics is a combination of
statistics, computer programming and operations research.

 The field of analytics has shown growth in the field of data analytics, predictive analytics and
social analytics.
 Data analytics is tool used to support decision making process. It converts raw data into
meaningful information.
 Predictive analytics is tool used to predict future events based on current and historical
information.
 Social media analytics is tool used by companies to understand and
accommodate customer needs.

b) Mobile Application

 Another emerging trend within information technology is mobile applications (software

application on Smart phone, tablet, etc.)
 Mobile application or mobile app has become a success since its introduction. They are designed
to run on Smartphone, tablets and other mobile devices. They are available as a download from
various mobile operating systems like Apple, Blackberry, Nokia, etc. Some of the mobile app are
available free where as some involve download cost. The revenue collected is shared between
app distributor and app developer.

c) Cloud Computing

One of the most talked about concept in information technology is the cloud computing.
Clouding computing is defined as utilization of computing services, i.e. software as well as
hardware as a service over a network. Typically, this network is the internet.

Cloud computing offers 3 types of broad services mainly

 1) Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS),
2) Platform as a Service (PaaS) and
3) Software as a Service (SaaS).

d) User Interfaces

User interface has undergone a revolution since introduction of touch screen. The touch screen
capability has revolutionized way end users interact with application. Touch screen enables the
user to directly interact with what is displayed and also removes any intermediate hand-held
device like the mouse.

Touch screen capability is utilized in smart phones, tablet, information kiosks and other
information appliances.
Impact of IT on Organization

Information technology systems are used by organizations to perform various tasks. Some use
IT to provide for the basic processing of transactions, while others enable customers,
distributors and suppliers to interact with the organization through various communication
technology systems such as the internet.

The term ‘’information technology systems in an organization ‘’ is composed of four distinct parts
which include: an organization, information in an organization, and information technology and
information technology systems in an organization.

Flow of Information: Information is a key resource for all organizations. What information
describes might be internal, external, objective or subjective. External information describes the
environment surrounding the organization. Objective information describes something that is
known. Subjective information describes something that is currently unknown. With information
technology the flow of all these three types of information is made simple buy use of centralized
data centers where all this data can be retrieved. Information in an organization can flow in four
direction and these include upward flow of information, downward flow of information, outward
flow of information and horizontal flow of information.

Transaction Processing: Information technology simplifies the transaction process of an

organization. A transaction process system (TPS) is a system that processes transactions that
occur within an organization. At the heart of every organization are IT systems whose main role
is to capture transaction information, create new information based on the transaction
information. TPS will update any transaction process and store
 that information in a database, so any concerned party in the organization can access that information via a centralized information storage
network of internet.

Decision Support: A decision support system (DSS) is a highly flexible and interactive IT system that is designed to support decision making
when the problem is not structured. A DSS works together with an artificial intelligence system to help the worker create information through
(OLAP) online analytical process to facilitate decision making tasks that require significant effort and analysis.

Workgroup Support: Since information technology facilitates in the creating an information sharing environment, workers can easily consult
each other across different department without any interruption. They can use emails, text chatting services to inquire some-thing related to a
given task at work. With work group support systems, group decision making becomes easier.

Executive Support: An executive information system (EIS) is an interactive management information system (MIS) combined with decision
support systems and artificial intelligence for helping managers identify and address problems and opportunities. An EIS allows managers to
view information from different angles. Yet it also provides managers with the flexibility to easily create more views to better understand the
problem or opportunity at hand.

Data Management: With the help of database software, an organization stores all its relevant data on a database. This infrastructure can be
designed when it is internal or external. An internal centralized system can only be accessed within the organization while an external
centralized system allows data to be accessed outside the organization using a remote (IP) internet protocol Address or a domain name. In this
case, employees or managers can use a company website to access relevant company data by use of passwords. This data is not exposed to
the public and search engines.

Communication: Information technology accounts in the development of communication technology. Services like electronic mail make
communication within and outside the organization easy and first. Now days email communication is a default communication technology used
by every organization. Communication is a great tool in business develops, with advanced communication tools, employees and managers can
easily make beneficial decisions in the organization

Recent Development in the Field Of IT

 Artificial intelligence
 Computational neuroscience and bioscience
 Cloud computing
 Decision support systems
  Evolutionary computing
 Human computer interface
 Information retrieval
 Intelligent agent and web applications
 Intelligent business computing
 Intelligent control and automation
 Intelligent fault diagnosis
 Intelligent sensor networks
 Next generation Internet
 Machine learning theory and methods
 Pattern recognition
 Soft computing Speech, image, and video processing
 The Internet of things
 Virtual reality and human-computer Interaction

Machine Learning and A.I:

It has been quite some time since artificial intelligence is making headlines owing to a plethora of applications which could be derived from it.
The technology could be enabled to allow computers to read, see, listen and even respond to human queries. However, recent times have
made A.I. be quite a buzzword. A.I. is powered by the technologies of machine learning.

Blockchain:

In the simplest of terms, a blockchain refers to an append-only transaction ledger. This ledger can be used to write new forms of information but
the previously written information cannot be edited, adjusted or changed. This is made possible with cryptography to link the newly added block.

There are numerous reasons for Blockchain’s popularity, such as:

 Immutability
 Being consensus-driven
 Decentralization
  Highly secure owing to cryptography implementation
.

Cognitive Technology: Cognitive Technology: Cognitive technology lies in the same basket as machine learning and deep learning. However,
it is powered by a much larger concept. Cognitive technology is powered by NLP or Natural Language Processing and speech recognition. This
is a form of technology which mimics the functions of the human brain on numerous levels which include data processing, data mining, pattern
recognition etc.

Humanized Big Data:

Humanized Big Data: Big data is essentially a technology which collects and analyzes data created from a plethora of sources which include
advanced machines constantly sending and receiving data, alerts, maintenance etc. Collecting and analyzing, which is the greatest strength of
Big Data, also forms to be its greatest weakness. It is difficult to derive concrete action guidelines or actionable meaning from a large heap of
data.

Transaction Processing System

Transaction Processing System is a type of information processing system, software and hardware combination, which supports Transaction
processing. Transaction processing is a type of computer processing in which each individual indivisible task, called a transaction, is worked
upon and executed as and when it comes. The response to requests is immediate. In contrast to this is batch processing in which a batch of
requests are stored and then executed all at once. A transaction Processing System is also used to collect, store, retrieve and modify
transactions executed by an organization.

In transaction processing, user or customer interaction is required, unlike batch processing. It allows only certain predefined, typically short
duration, tasks and transactions to be performed by the user and provides a predictable request execution time, which is pre- programmed.
This gives it the following characteristics:

 Predictability
 Reliability
 Consistency

Transaction processing systems are helpful in three areas:

  System runtime functions: An execution environment with high response time, reliability of execution and security of data
 System administration functions: Administrative support required for managing transactions

 Application development functions: Customization support to design and manage the user interface.
Example: ATM
.