Exam+Study+Notes

=Exam Notes=


 * Class 1 and Class 2**

E-Business Technologies · Information Systems that support business processes and support the people engaged in business processes. · Three key factors – ineffective solutions usually undermine one or all: o People o Process o Technology · Acquiring the right balance between each of the factors

Competitive Advantages of IT · IT can increase speed and lower cost of distribution and production of information

Types of Information Systems: · Transaction processing (TPS) o Facilitate processing of transfer of goods and services o Non-internet – electronic data interchange (EDI) systems o Internet – e-commerce sites · Management and Decision Support (MIS/DSS) o An analysis tool that helps managers decide what to do about an unstructured problem o The knowledge worker must know what kinds of questions to ask and how to process the responses o Culling and representing key data to support human decisions o “expert” systems – e.g., diagnosis software § Can help solves problems with clear rules and procedures § Applies human expertise. ‘Reasons’ until it has enough information to make a decision o “dashboards” – key information about a given information system presented for quick analysis · Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) o Systems to manage key inputs of organization o Can be human, physical or more abstract resources o HR systems o Inventory control and updating · Customer Relationship Management (CRM) o Representing key information of customer base and history of interaction o Sales support systems o Gain insights into customers needs, wants and behaviors o Data mining for key customer habits o Affiliate and loyalty systems · Knowledge Management (KM) o Representation and sharing of information within organization o Support the capture, organization, and dissemination of knowledge throughout the organization o Goal is to ensure knowledge is available and easy to find whenever employees may need it o Supports knowledge building – but it isn’t knowledge! o Groupware systems o Learning Management Systems o Consider: § Application: KM system § Data - choice of formats and transmission of data § Information - semantically valid data § Knowledge - what people do with information, application to tasks at hand § Wisdom – what elements should be known, what can be safely ignored when · Communication and social networking systems o Systems that link you to people you know and to people your contacts know o Examples: Friendster, Facebook, etc.

Tacit Knowledge and Explicit Information · IT - superior at representation and transfer of explicit information · Explicit information requires tacit knowledge to process correctly though - and IT has issues with tacit knowledge · Example: understanding visual data – human recognition vs. image search engines · Example: false assumption of some KM systems re: organizational knowledge

Stakeholder Analysis · Who stands to win/lose? Whose interests are compromised by corporate action/inaction? · Suppliers, customers, government, shareholders, managers, information workers - all have varying interests - failure to consider usually leads to unbalanced systems · Not a technology question – but very much a management issue and important in any technology implementation and change management situation · Who are the stakeholders and who are going to be affected by the given technology o What are the unintended consequences of technology · How do you encourage people, with the right budget, in the right order, to get everyone on board
 * Class 3**

Open Systems · Inputs - various sources of data/information, human resources, money, tech, raw materials · Outputs - Services/products – but also waste and its costs · Process – must deal with available inputs and create desirable outputs as efficiently as possible · Feedback loops – outputs are usually inputs for other processes – coordination of processes is key · Maintaining a balance in trying to manage complex systems issues o Complicated problems are solvable and have right and wrong answers o Complex problems never really have right or wrong answers. o E.g. The weather you cannot entirely predict

Organization Types – different technologies fit better in different organization types · Functional Hierarchy o Leverage economies of scale o Centralizes technical expertise o Clean chain of command o Coordination on task problematic o Can be inflexible to change o Turf wars, “not my department” attitude emerges · Decentralized o Flexible fast response to challenges o Greater task-oriented communication and collaboration o Downturns in some units don’t spread to others o Duplication of resources o Less coordination of functional expertise when expertise is spread widely o Limited upper management control · Matrix o Less hierarchy and adherence to bureaucratic role o Collaboration on shared tasks by design o Most flexible o Role conflict (is my functional role or my project team more important?) o Required coordination can take time - and failure to coordinate can be disastrous

Value Chains · Maximize value chain o Increase the amount of value and reduce the amount of overhead costs · Inbound - coordination of inputs · Operations - coordination of process · Outbound - coordination of outputs · Support - e.g., marketing, sales, HR, management- required to create and maintain organization but often not part of the value proposition · IT-enabled value chain o Different systems at different parts of value chain – inbound (SCM), operations (TPS, control systems), outbound (SCM), support (ERP, CRM, communication networks)

Automation · IT to automate scheduled, simple repetitive tasks · Increases efficiency, reduces human error

“Informating” · “Informating” creates data footprints that feed SCM, ERP and CRM tools · Digitally based transaction data can inform business and customer trends, feed into supply chain, etc. · Privacy a key concern · TMI? Integrating new feedback loops requires intelligent understanding of whole system – too much information might lead to confusion

Competitive Advantage · Transaction vs. resource models of advantage - making transactions as cheap as possible vs. building core competencies (e.g., Wal-Mart vs. Google) · IT increasingly not a specialized resource (Carr) - resource distinction limited and fleeting, lack of automation as a negative discriminant · Innovative uses of IT can be a resource competency · Transactional management by making transactions as cheap as possible · Build up core competencies

Understanding E-business · The “right” technology in the wrong context can cause more trouble · First understanding business structure and relationships is essential to getting it “right”
 * Class 4**

Internet-Related Models · Internet-Enabled o From simple to complex in functional integration and innovation o Basic e-commerce is simple and not difficult to implement o Virtual auctions, value integration, and collaboration slightly more complex · Value Networks o Networked collections of firms and entities, tied together by Internet technologies o Web brokers interface collective agents o Integrates suppliers, outsourced agents, customers - anyone with a stake o E.g., Itegix example · Market Participation o In theory, Internet removes many intermediaries between producers/consumers · Cyber Intermediaries o Portals and Cybermediaries play a role in reintroducing intermediation, but in a effective and powerful way

E-Business Models · Tele-work and Virtual Organizations o Remote work is a reality facilitated by networked communication/information systems · Virtual Organization o Virtual organizations also the norm, even in traditional orgs - ad hoc teams organize to tackle new and often serious issues, all tied in matrix organization · Process Outsourcing o Interaction and adhocracy - no need to have a full complement of people in-house o Overflow, tangential processed outsourced (e.g., HR services companies) o Even core processes can be (often overflow manufacturing - but even basics (e.g., Nike) · Collaborative Product Development o Integration of all business units (and all external partners) o Voices of internal/external, central and peripheral included (in the right mix ideally) o E.g., Ford and links to emergent technology providers, or open source development · Value Chain Integration o Tight symbiotic relations among all steps in process o E.g., Wal-Mart’s EDI system for suppliers - pressure on all steps to conform and lower prices, can lead to radical overhaul quickly

I.T. Considerations · Is IT enabling a core process (e.g., manufacturing) or is the core a process itself (e.g., law, education, etc.) · Degree of repetition (e.g., form processing should be relatively automatic - contingencies more labor intensive) · Degree of anticipation (e.g., is process trigger random or scheduled?)

I.T. as Infrastructure · Infrastructure provides foundation of all activity · Client-Server Models o Client initiates request, provides raw data o Server accepts data, processes it, returns result · N-Tiered Approach o Presentation, processing and data tiers to coordinate display, data handling, and data storage o Functionally specialized units can be updated without large-scale disruption, replicated and mirrored for more resiliency · EDI o Required data transmission for corporate transactions (esp. in complex supply chains run on JIT method) o Often hardwired value-added networks and standard formats based on agreements o Hardwired business rules and networks limits breadth of use o Issues § Fixed information sets - can be hard to integrate and unintuitive (e.g., product/industry codes) § Resilient to change - rigidity stifles innovation and change - change hard to replicate across § Could be very costly

Network Principles · Stable vs. dynamic (e.g., EDI vs. ad-hoc workflow systems) · Internal vs. external linkages (e.g. work teams vs. communities of practice) · Strong and weak ties (e.g., family/close friends vs. acquaintances, colleagues) · Tightly vs. loosely coupled (e.g., focused and hardwired vs. adhoc) · Environmental factors


 * Class 5 and Class 8**

Big Four Questions

1) Is there a need for an IS? o You can pretty much integrate IS into virtually any process - but should you? o Questions to ask include impact on value chain, benefits and drawbacks of new vs. existing system, human and capital resource requirements, etc.

2) Is the project feasible? o Technical - Is what we’d like to do even possible? o Financial - Does project have positive ROI?

3) Build or buy? o Buying/Leasing: quicker implementation, established networks of support o Building: customizable solutions, potential competitive advantage o Often some mix comes into play - e.g., complex ERP systems are bought but modified to context

4) In-house/outsourced? o In-house: internal control over process, responsibilities fit within organizational structure, but can be expensive to attract and manage IS talent o Outsourced: use of external talent as required, can be cheaper; but loss of control and responsibility - strong contracts and communication required

Modeling · Why create business models? o Some people do things because they need to be done, no rational explanation as to why things are done that way. o Many businesses based on tacit knowledge o Come up with the best possible models to make things as explicit as possible o Human knowledge needs to be brought down into a manner that computers can understand · Descriptive vs. normative models o Descriptive tells the narrative at high detail o Normative reduces complexity and flexibility, but leads its well towards development as a result o Both are necessary – descriptive as good sell, normative as what will actually happen · Data Flow Diagrams o Shows relations among processes at high conceptual level o Good for broad descriptions of overall process – less effective for programming · UML 2.0 Activity Diagrams o Action nodes: take data in, process it, and output to something else (IPO model) o Control nodes: coordinate data flow (e.g., terminal nodes, forks/joins, decision nodes) o Object nodes: assumed data stores (e.g., pulling data from databases, assumed to be right... UML · Unified Modelling Language (UML)‏ · Organization of process data by class, activity, use case, sequence and deployment · Approaches level of detail to allow for coding – almost writing psuedocode at this point

XML · Extensible, semantic and well-formed data · Information type defined through linked documents vs. embedded in tags

XSD · Specification of data types (string, ints, floats, doubles, etc.)

XSL · XSL – defines presentation in various platforms, browsers, etc. – e.g., difference between iPhone and desktop browsers · Multiple XSL’s possible for single set of XML data

XSD vs. XML · XSD = business logic layer · XSL = presentation layer · Why you separate the two: similar business logic can operate on multiple platforms and displays and vice versa · Failure to understand this leads to confusion of client interaction and core business logic – and serious problems.

Class 9 Business Governance and Internationalization Business Governance · Leadership roles and responsibilities · Emergence of CIO as C-level executive charged with technology support for mission critical tasks, sourcing issues (e.g., Four Big Questions), knowledge management, strategic direction

Information Security · Many threats to appropriate information exchange · Secure systems guarantee the best possible level authentic transactions - failure to do so can be devastating · Security as risk management - but excessive security isn’t better necessarily

Risk Control · Segregation of duties · Authorization · Security · Identity management · Verification

Global Governance · Outsourcing and alliances with multiple partners worldwide - new and interesting opportunities - and also threats to existing industries · Regional (e.g., NAFTA, EU) and world (GATT, WTO) trade deals changing the roles of national regulation and national economies · “Governance” increasingly not equaling government

Global Sourcing · In-Sourcing - in-house development · On-Shoring - partners in joint projects/efforts · Near-Shoring - transfer to regional partners (e.g., N. American auto manufacturing) · Off-Shoring - transfer to further labor markets

Issues in Outsourcing · International data sharing (e.g., transmission of credit or travel information to unsecure locations, USA Patriot Act ramifications) · Cultural and language issues · Conforming to varying national regulations

Class 10

Enterprise 2.0 · Enterprise 2.0 - the IT “flower” (Boothby) · Old enterprise software does not leverage power of connectivity and mass collaboration · Generally conceived for individual use, centralized management and control · Emergence of Web 2.0 apps has given rise to new branches of enterprise applications (hence the flower).

SLATES · Search – Linking – Authorship – Tagging – Extensions - Signals

Solution 1: Web-Based Office · Collaborative shared web-based documents vs. individual authorship on individual machines · Increasingly done by others - e.g., Google Docs and Spreadsheets

Solution 2: New Tools · Feed aggregators, blogs, wikis - an explosion of information · A move from managing old knowledge to facilitating new knowledge creation (and certainly managing infoglut) · Activity- vs. document-centered work - a move away from individually authored documentation towards leveraging network effects

Solution 3: Open Transactional Systems · SaaS - “software as a service” model - new markets for web-based services and modules · Open architectures (e.g., OpenBravo ERP, OpenID) and open APIs (application programming interfaces) leverage network effects in transactional/structured processes

Solution 4: Structured Tools for Ad-Hoc Work · Knowledge work is chaotic - infoglut common · Some emergent tools (e.g., Yahoo Pipes, Facebook apps) look to add some structured process to what otherwise might be information overload



CHANGE SIMULATION STEPS **
 * Planning stage**:

1) **Understand** the need for change through continuous environmental scanning and organizational diagnosis. E.g (Customers now demand more for less. Leading organizations recognize this important environmental change and have adopted customer-focused business strategies.) Look to two important sources of information in developing an understanding of your formal and informal organization:
 * -Data sources** Examine available data in novel ways to develop novel insights.
 * -Employees** Use a variety of techniques, formal and informal, for collecting information from employees across the organization (interviews, surveys, formal assessments, focus groups).
 * -Beware of your own biases** You are not immune from the success syndrome and other cultural biases. Take extra care to examine the problem objectively.
 * -Look for fundamental problems hidden beneath symptoms** Increasing costs, for example, may be a symptom of inefficiencies in workflow, poor quality or dysfunctional work teams. Although fundamental problems will never be as apparent as symptoms, you must dig to the root of problems in order to generate effective resolutions.

2) **Enlist core change team**: core team of powerful stakeholders. You will work with this team to develop a shared vision and strategy that will be rolled out to the entire organization.

3)**Vision and strategy:** will help people adjust to change because it provides guidance and coherence in turbulent times. Should be : tangible, desirable, feasible, flexible, focused, and simple. 4) **Motivate** change by communicating a sense of urgency and explain the change thoroughly before any action is taken. You will only succeed if you are patient. People must first understand why change must occur before they are expected to adopt change. creating a sense of urgency. Help employees at all levels understand the business and personal consequences associated with the status quo. By broadly communicating information that shows a potent external threat, you can overcome barriers to acceptance and motivate change. E.g Share competitive information
 * IMPLEMENTING CHANGE: **

5)**Communicate**: **Repetition, Consistency, Connectivity** Craft your message to help employees see "the big picture”, including what will be the same and what will be different. Create job-specific communications to help employees see how they can help achieve the vision and how they will benefit.

6)**Act**: Take steps to align the formal organization (systems, structures and processes) with the new vision and strategy. **Recruitment Systems, Training Systems, Reward Systems, Filling key positions with the right people, Shifting power between units,** Promote integration of functional units. Implement integrative mechanisms, such as cross-functional project teams, to promote cross-functional communication and collaboration.

7)**consolidate:** must work hard to maintain the momentum of the change effort through proper pacing. Change implementation should continue until the entire organization is aligned around the new vision and strategy: every system, structure and process must be aligned. Don’t celebrate quick wins as absolute victories. Rather, use them to set up the next- more difficult-round of implementation projects.

LECTURE NOTES

e-business technologies: Information systems that support business processes and people engaged with business processes. Balance out people, technology, and process issues.

Knowledge is human based, but Information technology supports it, making knowledge creation easier.

Types of Information Systems: e.g. ERP, CRM, knowledge management, communication and social networking systems.

Tacit Knowledge and Explicit Information • IT - superior at representation and transfer of explicit information • Explicit information requires tacit knowledge to process correctly though - and IT has issues with tacit knowledge • Example: understanding visual data – human recognition vs. image search engines • Example: false assumption of some KM systems re: organizational knowledge

Open Systems • Inputs - various sources of data/information, human resources, money, tech, raw materials • Outputs - Services/products – but also waste and its costs • Process – must deal with available inputs and create desirable outputs as efficiently as possible • Feedback loops – outputs are usually inputs for other processes – coordination of processes is key • Balance – hard to predict – complex systems issues

IT-enabled value chain • Different systems at different parts of value chain – inbound (SCM), operations (TPS, control systems), outbound (SCM), support (ERP, CRM, communication networks) • Historically separate, increasingly modular and interdependent • Communication among systems essential

N-Tiered approach • Presentation, processing and data tiers to coordinate display, data handling, and data storage • Functionally specialized units can be updated without large-scale disruption, replicated and mirrored for more resiliency Example: EDI • Required data transmission for corporate transactions (esp. in complex supply chains run on JIT method) • Often hardwired value-added networks and standard formats based on agreements • Hardwired business rules and networks - limits breadth of use, increasing complexity and cost

EDI Issues • Fixed information sets - can be hard to integrate and unintuitive (e.g., product/industry codes) • Resilient to change - rigidity stifles innovation and change - change hard to replicate across

Project Management Fundamentals • Integration • Risk • Time • Cost • HR • Procurement • Quality • Scope • Communications

What does a Project Manager Do? § Delineates tasks § Acquires or requests resources § First responder to projects falling out of scope § Ensures a quality and effective team § Provides feedback to client on progress § Provides translation layer between management and programmers

What does a Business Analyst do? § First-line communication with client § Understand the current business culture and the requirement to change it § Understand the limitation of both client, business and technology § Gathers the required knowledge or requests a Subject Matter Expert if required § Ensures end-product meet expectations § Documents __everything__

Where the two collide § Most small productions company will combine PM and BA § Some will mix PM and Team Lead § Avant-garde houses will not have PMs or BAs (i.e. they implement Agile and expect developers to be the experts) § Large house will have Technical and Programmer Analysts. Where there is conflict § Programmers don’t want project managers § Business Analysts don’t want project managers § Project managers don’t want either § High level managers don’t want any of them § All are required § All are equal

Modeling • Why create business models? • Descriptive vs. normative models - descriptive tells the narrative at high detail - normative reduces complexity and flexibility, but leads its well towards development as a result • Both are necessary – descriptive as good sell, normative as what will actually happen

Data, Business and Presentation Layers

•3 important layers to understand given information: 1. data layer: field of information necessary to have 2. business logic: is the layer that tries to make sense of it all and how everything relates (e.g. CRM has data of a customer but the logic of it includes how many times have they looked at the product, what they use the product for, etc) 3. presentation layer: indicates how to present all the information given by the business logic layer and figure out ways the data can be presented (i.e. accessibility of the data)

Data, Business and Presentation Layers • Keeping data separated from its presentation via business logic layer keeps data correct, presentation of processed data focused on presentation only • Consider scalability – separation of data from presentation allows for things like customization to mobile platforms • Bad data modeling = data handling disasters • XSD = business logic layer • XSL = presentation layer • Why you separate the two: similar business logic can operate on multiple platforms and displays and vice versa • Failure to understand this leads to confusion of client interaction and core business logic – and serious problems. __XML__
 * extensible markup language
 * everything has to be exactly correct in XML
 * it is internally consistent but you have the right to define every tag that you use


 * it defines semantic links between information