Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Chapter 1
Chapter 1
To achieve a goal
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
Most systems are composed of smaller
subsystems . . .
. . . And vice versa!
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
Every organization has goals.
The susbsystems should be designed to
maximize achievement of the organization’s
goals
Even to the detriment of the subsystem itself
EXAMPLE: The production department (a
subsystem) of a company might have to
forego its goal of staying within its budget in
order to meet the organization’s goal of
delivering product on time.
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
Goal conflict occurs when the activity of a
subsystem is not consistent with another
subsystem or with the larger system.
Goal congruence occurs when the
subsystem’s goals are in line with the
organization’s goals.
The larger and more complicated a
system, the more difficult it is to achieve
goal congruence.
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
The systems concept encourages integration
(i.e., minimizing the duplication of recording,
storing, reporting and processing).
Data are facts that are collected, recorded,
stored, and processed by an information
system.
Organizations collect data about:
Events that occur
Resources that are affected by those events
Agents who participate in the events
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
Information is different from data.
Information is data that have been
organized and processed to provide
meaning to a user.
Usually, more information and better
information translates into better
decisions.
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
However, when you get more information
than you can effectively assimilate, you
suffer from information overload.
Example: Final exams week!
When you’ve reached the overload point,
the quality of decisions declines while the
costs of producing the information
increases.
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
Benefits of information
- Cost of producing information
Value of information
Completeness
Completeness
Timeliness
You get it in time to make your decision.
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
Characteristics that make information
useful:
Relevance
Reliability
Completeness
Timeliness
Understandability
It’s presented in a manner you can
comprehend and use.
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
Characteristics that make information
useful:
Relevance
Reliability
Completeness
A consensus notion—the nature of the
Timeliness
information is such that different people
would tend to produce the same result.
Understandability
Verifiability
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
Characteristics that make information
useful:
Relevance
Reliability
Completeness
Timeliness
Understandability
You can get to it when you need it and in a
format you can use.
Verifiability
Accessibility
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
Information is provided to both:
External users
Internal Users
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
Information is provided to both:
External users
Internal Users
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
External users primarily use information
that is either:
MANDATORY INFORMATION—Required
by a governmental entity, such as Form 10-
K’s required by the SEC; or
ESSENTIAL INFORMATION—Required to
conduct business with external parties, such
as purchase orders.
SYSTEMS, DATA, AND
INFORMATION
In providing mandatory or essential
information, the focus should be on:
Minimizing costs
Meeting regulatory requirements
Organizational
Culture Strategy
AIS design is
affected by AIS
information
technology, the
organization’s
strategy, and the
organization’s Information
culture. Technology
WHY STUDY ACCOUNTING
INFORMATION SYSTEMS?
Organizational
Culture Strategy
Information technology
affects the company’s AIS
choice of business
strategy. To perform
cost-benefit analyses on
IT changes, you need to
understand business Information
strategy. Technology
WHY STUDY ACCOUNTING
INFORMATION SYSTEMS?
Organizational
Culture Strategy
Outbound logistics
Technology
Incomplete rules
Require subjective assessments
EXAMPLE: Deciding whether to sell auto
insurance to a customer with a tainted
driving history.
ROLE OF THE AIS IN THE VALUE
CHAIN
There is variation in the degree of
structure used to make decisions:
Structured decisions
Semi structured decisions
unstructured decisions
Non-recurring and non-routine
Require a great deal of subjective
assessment
EXAMPLE: Deciding whether to begin
selling a new type of insurance policy
ROLE OF THE AIS IN THE VALUE
CHAIN
There is also variation in the scope of a
decision’s effect:
Operational control decisions
Relate to performance of specific tasks
Often of a day-to-day nature
EXAMPLE: Deciding whether to order
inventory
ROLE OF THE AIS IN THE VALUE
CHAIN
There is also variation in the scope of a
decision’s effect:
Operational control decisions
Management control decisions