Building Information System

Content
Introduction
Contemporary Approaches
Overview of System Development Process
Alternative System Building Method
1. System life cycle
2. Prototyping
3. Outsourcing
Information System- Success and Failure
 Introduction
 Building a new information system is one kind of
planned organizational change. The introduction of a
new information system involves much more than new
hardware and software.
 The existence of information system -- whether this
may be creating new one, minorly develop the existing
system, or massively change the system -- will affect
organizational change.
 When we design a new information system, we are
redesigning the organization. System builders must
understand how a system will affect specific business
processes and the organization as a whole.
 Systems Development And
Organizational Change
 Information technology can promote various
degrees of organizational change, ranging from
incremental to far-reaching. There are four kinds of
structural organizational change that are enabled by
information technology:
1. Automation,
2. Rationalization of Procedures,
3. Business Process Redesign (BPR), and
4. Paradigm Shifts
 Systems Development And
Organizational Change contd.
1. Automation:
 It means that some manual-human tasks can be
replaced by technology.
 It assist employees with performing their tasks more
efficiently and effectively.
2. Rationalization of procedures:
 A deeper form of organizational change and one that
follows quickly from early automation
 Example: when there are streamline of Standard
Operating Procedures (SOP) and this could be found in
programs that are making continuous improvement.
 Systems Development And
Organizational Change contd.

3. Business Process Redesign (BPR), exists to

analyze, simplify and redesign business
process to improve it much better.
4. Paradigm Shifts:
 It is the activity to rethink nature of business
with the aim to create new business model.
Paradigm shifts has the highest risk among the
other 3, yet it also has the highest return.
 Business Process Redesign
 Business process management provides a variety of tools
and methodologies to analyze existing processes, design
new processes, and optimize those processes. It has to go
through the following steps:
1. Identify processes for change: managers need to
determine what business processes are the most
important and how improving these processes will help
business performance.
2. Analyze existing processes: existing business
processes should be modeled and documented, noting
inputs, outputs, resources, and the sequence of
activities.
 Business Process Redesign contd.
3. Design the new process: once the existing process is
mapped and measured in terms of time and cost, the
process design team will try to improve the process by
designing a new one. A new streamlined “to-be” process
will be documented and modeled for comparison with the
old process.
4. Implement the new process: new information systems or
enhancements to existing systems may have to be
implemented to support the redesigned process. 
5. Continuous measurement: once a process have been
implemented and optimized, it needs to be continually
measured because they may lose their effectiveness if the
business experiences other changes or deteriorate over time
as employees fall back on old methods.
 Contemporary Approaches
to Information System
When an information
system is being
developed, much
importance should be
given to the structure of
the organization, culture
of the organization, etc.
Along with these, especial
attention should also be
given to the technical side
of information system.
 Contemporary Approaches
to Information System contd.
The Behavioral  The Technical Approach:
Approach: 1. Based on the mathematical
1. Based on the impact of and the normative models.
the behavior and also on 2. Physical technology forms
the response of the people the backbone of such an
in the organization. approach.
2. Motivational feasibility 3. Such an approach mainly
forms a very important finds much needed
and demanding part of contributions from the
such an approach towards disciplines like computer
information system science, management
development. science, operation research
etc.
 Contemporary Approaches
to Information System contd.
 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. Since problems with information
systems and their solutions are rarely all technical or
behavioral, a multidisciplinary approach is needed.
1. It improves the performance of the information system.
2. Involves key involvement of both behavioral and
technical approaches.
Overview of System Development Process

New information systems are an outgrowth of a

process of organizational problem solving.
A new information system is built as a solution
to some type of problem or set of problems the
organization perceives it is facing.
The problem may be one in which managers and
employees realize that the organization is not
performing as well as expected, or that the
organization should take advantage of new
opportunities to perform more successfully.
 Overview of System
Development Process contd.
 The activities that go into producing an information system
solution to an organizational problem or opportunity are
called systems development. Systems development is a
structured kind of problem solved with distinct activities.
 There are 2 major steps classification which is the
preparation steps and the translation steps.
 The preparation step includes 2 activities which is (a)
System Analysis and (b) System Designs.
 The translation steps, or the steps in which it realizes the
design into reality, include the rest 4 activities:
(c) Programming, (d) Testing, (e) Conversion, and
(f) Production and Maintenance.
 Overview of System
Development Process contd.
 Overview of System
Development Process contd.
a) Systems Analysis – the analysis of a problem that a firm
tries to solve with an information system. It also includes
a feasibility study to determine whether that solution is
feasible or achievable, from a financial, technical, and
organizational standpoint.
Establishing Information Requirements – it carefully
defines the objectives of the new or modified system and
develops a detailed description of the functions that the
new system must perform.

b) Systems Design – shows how the system will fulfill this

objective. The design of an information system is the
overall plan or model for that system.
 Overview of System
Development Process contd.
The remaining steps in the systems development
process translate the solution specifications
established during system analysis and design
into a fully operational information system.
They are
c) Programming – system specifications that
were prepared during the design stage are
translated into software program code.
d) Testing – conducted thoroughly to ascertain
whether the system produces the right results.
 Overview of System
Development Process contd.
e) Conversion – the process of changing from
the old system to the new system.
f) Production and Maintenance – after the new
system is installed and conversion is complete,
the system is said to be in production. Changes
in hardware, software, documentation, or
procedures to a production system to correct
errors, meet new requirements, or improve
processing efficiency are termed maintenance.
Alternative System Building Method

Systems differ in terms of their size and

technological complexity and in terms of the
organizational problems they are meant to solve.
A number of systems-building approaches have
been developed to deal with these differences.
This section describes these alternative methods:
1. The Traditional Systems Life Cycle,
2. Prototyping, and
3. Outsourcing.
Traditional Systems Life Cycle
The systems life cycle is the oldest method for
building information systems.
The life cycle methodology is a phased
approach to building a system, dividing systems
development into formal stages.
The systems life cycle methodology maintains a
very formal division of labor between end users
and information systems specialists.
Traditional Systems Life Cycle Contd.
 Technical specialists, such as system analysts and
programmers, are responsible for much of the systems
analysis, design, and implementation work; end users
are limited to providing information requirements and
reviewing the technical staff ’s work. 
 The life cycle also emphasizes formal specifications and
paperwork, so many documents are generated during the
course of a systems project.
 The systems life cycle is still used for building large
complex systems that require a rigorous and formal
requirements analysis, predefined specifications, and
tight controls over the systems-building process.
Traditional Systems Life Cycle Contd.
The systems life cycle approach can be costly,
time consuming, and inflexible.
 Prototyping
Prototyping is the process of building a
model of a system. In terms of an
information system, prototypes are
employed to help system designers build
an information system that intuitive and
easy to manipulate for end users.
Prototyping is an iterative process that is
part of the analysis phase of the systems
development life cycle.
 Prototyping contd.
The four-step model of the prototyping process, which consists
of the following:
 Step 1: Identify the user’s basic requirements. The system
designer (usually an information systems specialist) works
with the user only long enough to capture the user’s basic
information needs.
 Step 2: Develop an initial prototype. The system designer
creates a working prototype quickly, using tools for rapidly
generating software.
 Step 3: Use the prototype. The user is encouraged to work
with the system to determine how well the prototype meets
his or her needs and to make suggestions for improving the
prototype.
 Prototyping contd.
Step 4: Revise and enhance the
prototype. The system builder
notes all changes the user
requests and refines the prototype
accordingly. After the prototype
has been revised, the cycle
returns to step 3. Steps 3 and 4
are repeated until the user is
satisfied.
When no more iterations are
required, the approved prototype
then becomes an operational
prototype that furnishes the final
specifications for the application.
Sometimes the prototype is
adopted as the production version
of the system.
 What is Outsourcing?
Outsourcing involves transferring responsibility
for carrying out an activity (previously carried on
internally) to an external service provider.
The service provider in turn provides services back
to the customer against agreed service levels for an
agreed charge.
In many outsourcings the transfer of the activity
involves the transfer of staff and assets.
 Outsourcing contd.
Advantages:
The reasons for outsourcing IT are varied but
some of the most frequently cited drivers
include:
1. Reducing IT costs;
2. Access to world-class IT skills, experience and
resources;
3. Removing non-core business;
4. Minimizing sizeable capital expenditure on IT
infrastructure; and
5. Certainty of future IT spend.
 Outsourcing contd.
Disadvantages:
The potential downsides to outsourcing include:
1. A loss of control over a crucial business
service;
2. A lack of flexibility in the services received;
3. Damage to staff morale/culture clashes
(between the service provider and customer).
  Managing the outsourcing
relationship
 Once an outsourcing deal has been concluded committed
management of the outsourcing relationship is critical to its
success.
 A successful outsourcing requires processes and procedures
for managing the relationship between the customer and the
service provider: for example regular service meetings,
agreed processes for reviewing the services (preferably
involving benchmarking provision against other service
providers), reporting procedures and a robust mechanism
for escalating and resolving problems.
 An outsourcing services contract is not a contract which
should be put in a drawer once signed—it is a live and
operational document.
 Information System- Success
and Failure
Factors Contributing to Success
If a MIS is to be success then it should have all the features listed as
follows:
1. The MIS is integrated into the managerial functions. It sets clear
objectives to ensure that the MIS focuses on the major issues of the
business.
2. An appropriate information processing technology required to meet the
data processing and analysis needs of the users of the MIS is selected.
3. The MIS is oriented, defined and designed in terms of the user's
requirements and its operational viability is ensured.
4. The MIS is kept under continuous surveillance, so that its open system
design is modified according to the changing information needs.
5. MIS focuses on the results and goals, and highlights the factors and
reasons for non achievement.
 
Information System- Success and
Failure
6. MIS is not allowed to end up into an information generation mill
avoiding the noise in the information and the communication system.
7. The MIS recognizes that a manager is a human being and therefore, the
systems must consider all the human behavioral factors in the process of
the management.
8. The MIS recognizes that the different information needs for different
objectives must be met with. The globalization of information in
isolation from the different objectives leads to too much information and
information and its non-use.
9.  The MIS is easy to operate and, therefore, the design of the MIS has
such features which make up a user-friendly design.
10. MIS recognizes that the information needs become obsolete and new
needs emerge. The MIS design, therefore, has a basic potential capability
to quickly meet new needs of information.
11. The MIS concentrates on developing the information support to manager
critical success factors. It concentrates on the mission critical
applications serving the needs of the top management.
 Information System- Success and
Failure
Factors Contributing to Failures
Many a times MIS is a failures. The common factors which are
responsible for this are listed as follows:
1. The MIS is conceived as a data processing and not as an information
processing system.
2. The MIS does not provide that information which is needed by the
managers but it tends to provide the information generally the
function calls for. The MIS then becomes an impersonal system.
3. Underestimating the complexity in the business systems and not
recognizing it in the MIS design leads to problems in the successful
implementation.
4. Adequate attention is not given to the quality control aspects of the
inputs, the process and the outputs leading to insufficient checks and
controls in the MIS.
5. The MIS is developed without streamlining the transaction
processing systems in the organization.
 Information System- Success and
Failure
6. Lack of training and appreciation that the users of the
information and the generators of the data are different, and they
have to play an important responsible role in the MIS.
7. The MIS does not meet certain critical and key factors of its
users such as a response to the query on the database, an inability
to get the processing done in a particular manner, lack of user-
friendly system and the dependence on the system personnel.
8.  A belief that the computerized MIS can solve all the
management problems of planning and control of the business.
9.  Lack of administrative discipline in following the standardized
systems and procedures, wrong coding and deviating from the
system specifications result in incomplete and incorrect
information.
10.  The MIS does not give perfect information to all the users in the
organization.