IT 3 Management information systems MIS DEFINITION Management

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] DEFINITION Management Information Systems - are organised collections of people, procedures and resources designed to support the decisions of managers

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Role of Management The traditional roles of managers are: • Planning • Organising • Coordinating • Controlling • Forecasting • Decision making

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] EXAMPLES Supermarkets - overview of how each supermarket performs, aids decisions in which supermarket performs well or not so well, opening new branches, or closing branches. Schools - SIMS keep records about pupils Parcel delivery Company - looks at delivery areas, decisions can be made about opening new depots etc,

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] TRADITIONAL DATA FLOW IN ORGANISATIONS Traditional information flow in an organisation is through notice boards, newsletters and memos. Technological systems include Email, Intranets, collaboration software e. g. Computer databases.

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] PURPOSE of MIS Enable companies to make decisions in key areas. MIS ensures that Managers can make the correct decisions based on information received. MIS aids managers in Decision Making There are THREE main types of Decision Making: - 1. STRATEGIC 2. TACTICAL 3. OPERATIONAL

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Gazebos Boded Business MANAGER Area Manager Sales Rep 1 Sales Rep 2

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Gogledd Cymru Sales Rep 2 Sales Rep 1 Sale representatives visit, promote and sell Garden Gazebos in the North Wales Area. Sales Rep 3 Sales Rep 4

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Sales Rep 1 sold £ 25, 000 worth of Gazebos Last year in the Ynys Mon Area Sales Rep 1 What decision could the Business Manager make with this information? From a standard database this type of information would be straight forward to obtain. • Bonusues • How well or poor he has performed • Compare with other Reps • Compare with other areas Is this GOOD or BAD? ?

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Sales Rep 1 sold £ 25, 000 worth of Gazebos Last year in the Ynys Mon Area Sales Rep 1 What other information would be required if a decision was to be made? ? This information can be obtained INTERNALLY - Sales, other salesmen, last years sales To be able to make a better decision, EXTERNAL information would be useful, such as: Population of area, Weather at that time, Competitors in the area, Market climate.

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] What is the difference between a MIS and ordinary Data Processing - [Simple Database] 1. Based on far more information than a standard database - information is gathered externally. 2. Can be used when timing is crucial - market requirements. 3. Used to make critical management decisions.

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] INTERNAL COMPONENTS OLD Style Data Flow Database in the company Management Information System [MIS] Business Manager - Store Info - Process Info • Sales - Collect Info • Products - Output Info Area Manager • Employees Sales Rep Information would be limited and only within the company

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] EXTERNAL COMPONENTS Population of area CENSUS Weather conditions for time of year INTERNAL COMPONENTS Management Information System [MIS] - Store Info - Process Info - Collect Info Competitors Market Research Business Manager Area Manager - Output Info Sales Rep Different people would make use of different information within the MIS

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Internal information includes data from transaction processing of the data processing system - within the business, school etc. External information includes market research, details about the activities of competitors, information about social trends, economic factors, government legislation, and so on.

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Management information systems are: Designed to ‘convert data from internal and external sources into information, communicated in an appropriate form to managers at different levels of an organization. The information enables effective decisions or appropriate planning to be carried out. USES A sales manager will perhaps require a report showing the sales for a geographic area and / or by salesman A production manager will require a report showing stock levels currently and anticipated sales before making the product To be effective the reports should be in an appropriate form that is up to date and accurate with the correct level of detail for his job.

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Schools use Management Information Systems [SIMS] Within this system information is kept about staff, pupils, school budgets, timetabling etc. PUPILS: - Subjects, teachers, class, medical records, primary school, reports, test results, registration, attendance, behaviour patterns. Information is obtained INTERNALLY & EXTERNALLY

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] EXTERNAL COMPONENTS CENSUS Education Authority Parents INTERNAL COMPONENTS Management Information System [MIS] Medical records Teacher - Store Info - Process Info - Collect Info Primary School Head of Year - Output Info Admin Class Teacher Exams Different people would make use of different information within the MIS

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] MIS aids managers in Decision Making There are THREE main types of Decision Making: - 1. STRATEGIC 2. TACTICAL 3. OPERATIONAL

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] 1. Strategic Information - Senior managers need to make long-term planning decisions e. g. an Ice cream company wants to save costs by closing one of its six factories. A strategic decision is required about which one to close. To make this decision, senior managers need internal information (e. g. the labour costs of each factory, equipment and layout of factory) and external information (e. g. the present site value of each factory, location).

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] 2. Tactical Information - Middle managers often require tactical information e. g. a factory manager in an ice cream company might need to decide whether or not to run an extra shift during the summer months. He could use data modelling to see whether or not this would be profitable. (Keep ahead of competitors) 3. Operational Information - Operations managers are usually responsible for the production side of an organisation e. g. an automated re-ordering system can be used for stock control purposes.

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Example of a shoe shop: 1. STRATEGIC - LONG TERM PLANNING The Marketing Manager of the company might want to forecast sales trends over the next few years, and is looking to open new branches in different areas or employ more staff. 2. TACTICAL The Regional Manager might want a weekly or monthly report showing sales figures in each region to find out how they meet their targets. Make decisions about sales or special offers 3. OPERATIONAL - DAY TO DAY RUNNING A shop manager might need a daily list of all shoes sold so that they can order more to make sure they don’t run out of stock

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Example of a school: 1. STRATEGIC - LONG TERM PLANNING Headteacher looks at number of pupils coming into the school in next 5 yrs. Plan staffing requirements and building development. Budget decisions using informatio from Local Authority 2. TACTICAL Head of year use data about ability of pupils for setting groups and creating timetables 3. OPERATIONAL - DAY TO DAY RUNNING Teachers registration, reports or tests marks, record bad behaviour of pupils

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] 5 Features of an EFFECTIVE MIS 1. Include data that is relevant and accurate Too much data can be as bad as too little. Data must be up to date and accurate - no mistakes validation & verification procedures used to ensure this. 2. Give information when required Some systems only output information at the end of the month - eg monthly sales, a good system will allow people to access the system for current information whenever required 3. Be accessible to wide range of users Decisions have to made at different levels of the company - so even sales representatives would have access to information regarding their performance etc 4. Present data in the most appropriate format Is the information presented in a good way to make decisions, graphs or tables. 5. Be flexible Circumstances change, types of information required change, can the system cope with this

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] FACTORS WHICH CAN LEAD TO A POOR MIS or FAILURE 1. Complexity of the system. If the system is difficult to use no one will use it, or the required information cannot be outputted. 2. Inadequate initial analysis For the system to be effective the type of information inputted or gathered at the beginning must be relevant. Poor analysis at the beginning might have resulted in poor or irrelevant data being gathered and inputted at the beginning. 3. Lack of management involvement in initial design Probably a IT specialist would have set the system up - who wouldn't know anything about running a business or school. The business manager or school head would have to have an input of the requirement of the system - “this is what i want it to do”

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] 4. Inappropriate hardware and software. Speed of the server - data slow in being processed, software not up to the job, difficult to find information, poor interface. 5. Lack of management knowledge about computer systems and their capabilities System needs to be up to date and current with new IT systems, people who run the system must be aware of latest developments and issues concerned with the system. Poor staff training on how to use the system, 6. Poor communications between professionals Staff should talk with each other, explaining features that don’t work properly or need improving. Communication between IT manager and business manager is essential. 7. Lack of professional standards IT professionals with qualifications updating and developing the system. - BCS British Computer Society. Work carried out on the system would be up to standards.

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Data Mining/Data Warehousing A "data warehouse" is an enormous store of data, which has usually been collected over a long period of time. This data could be details of customers and records of transactions. An information system can employ "data mining" to drill into the data. This involves looking for meaningful patterns in the data i. e. trends and changes, which can be identified by managers to give their organisations a competitive advantage.

IT 3 Management information systems [MIS] Management Information Systems (MIS) are organised collections of people, procedures and resources designed to support the decisions of managers. (1) At least four pros and four cons to gain 8 marks. Candidates may include some of the following: Features of good MIS • Accuracy of the data • Flexibility of data analysis • Providing data in an appropriate form • Accessible to a wide range of users and support a wide range of skills and knowledge • Improve interpersonal communications amongst management and employees • Allow individual project planning • Avoid information overload • Allow speedy decisions for urgent situations Factors which can lead to poor MIS • Complexity of the system • Inadequate initial analysis • Lack of management involvement in initial design • Inappropriate hardware and software • Lack of management knowledge about computer systems and their