Internet

Information

Systems

COLLEGE OF ACCOUNTANCY AND COMPUTER

TECHNOLOGY

Block B, Flat 8, Masoje Estate. PTI Road Effurun. Delta

State. Nigeria.

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 EFFECT OF PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES ON THE SALES OF

LUBRICANTSINTERNET INFORMATION SYSTEM AND MODERN

AUTOMATION IN SMALL BUSINESS ORGANISATION.

(A CASE STUDY OF DAVIDSON NIGERIA LIMITED)

BY

MARIA E. ONYEKESILAS LINCON

AKP/WRR/BMG/BUS/HND2007/00……11

BEING A PROJECT WORK SUBMITED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF

BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, SCHOOL OF BUSINESS STUDIES,

AKWA IBOM STATE POLYTECHNIC, IKOT OSURUA, IKOT EKPENE,

IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT FOR THE AWARD OF HIGHER NATIONAL

DIPLOMA (HND) IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.

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 NOVEMBER 2009

CERTIFICATION

We hereby certify that this research project was carried

out by …………………………………….. SILAS LINCON

(AKP/WRR/BMG/BUS/HND/……../………….20078/00)

for the award of HIGHER NATIONAL DIPLOMA

CERTIFICATE. Department of Business Administration,

Akwa Ibom State Polytechnic. Ikot Asurua.

__________________ ______________

PRINCE VICTOR UDOFOT

DATE

Project supervisor

_________________

________________

Mrs OGBINAKA DATE

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Centre co-ordinator

DEDICATION

This research project is dedicated to the Almighty God for

His ever enduring love, kindness, mercy and grace all

through the course of this programme. Father, I thank

and worship you and give You all the Glory and Honour.

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I hereby which to Acknowledged the following people that has

made my dream and purpose in life to come through. First of

all, thanks to Almighty God who gave me power and wisdom,

and the grace to be educated and to my dear One and Only

love that gives me Joy, MR

___________________________________________ and my

dear mother Mrs.

___________________________________________ who is

an encouragement to my life and my brothers and Sisters

________________

__________________________________________________

_________________ for their love towards me in prayer, also

5
my supervisor who has been a great help to me.

_______________________________________ and my

lovely Register of Warri center MRS Stella Oyabugbe and my

father

__________________________________________________

____ whose Vision for my life was to be great and useful in life

and those many love ones too numerous to name. My prayer

to God Almighty is that HE should bless you richly in JESUS

NAME.

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 ABSTRACT

In modern workplace, it is imperative that technology

works both effectively and reliably. In a broad sense, the

term Information Systems (IS) refers to the interaction

between people, processes, and technology. This

interaction can occur within or across organizational

boundaries. An information system is not only the

technology an organization uses, but also the way in

which the organization’s people interact with the

technology and the way in which the technology works

with the organization’s business processes. Information

systems are distinct from information technology in that

an information system has an information technology

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component that interacts with the people and processes

components.

Computer is one of the modern automation used for

information and communication technology in a small

business organization. The researcher is empirically

synthesizing internet information system and modern

automation in a small business organization.

Sales promotion includes those marketing activities, other

than personal selling, advertising, and publicity, that

stimulate consumer purchasing and dealer effectiveness.

They include point-of-purchase displays, shows and

exhibit demonstrations, and other nonrecurrent selling

efforts.

Businesses can target sales promotions at three different

audiences: consumers, resellers, and the company's own

sales force. Sales promotion acts as a competitive weapon

by providing an extra incentive for the target audience to

purchase or support one brand over another. It is

particularly effective in spurring product trial and

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unplanned purchases. Most marketers believe that a given

product or service has an established perceived price or

value, and they use sales promotion to change this price-

value relationship by increasing the value and/or lowering

the price. Compared to the other components of the

marketing mix (advertising, publicity, and personal

selling), sales promotion usually operates on a shorter

time line, uses a more rational appeal, returns a tangible

or real value, fosters an immediate sale, and contributes

highly to profitability.

In this research work, the researcher will consider in

chapter one….the introduction of the study which will in

turn considers the following topics. The background of the

study, the statement of research problem, the objective of

the study, significance of the study, the hypothesis and

the structure of the work (research methodology).

Chapter two focuses on the literature review, this chapter

is where the researcher extract materials from various

books, magazines, news papers and internet resources. In

chapter three, the researcher deals on research methods

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 while chapter four is data analysis and presentation. The

findings, summary, and conclusion is in chapter five.

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.0 INTRODUCTON

2.0

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 Internet Information systems research work is generally

concerned with the study of the effects of information

systems on the behavior of individuals, groups, and

organizations with the help of application of modern

information system. In this chapter, the focus will be on

the background of the study, objective of the study,

significance of the study, limitation of the study, the scope

of the study, hypothesis, and methodology.

1.1 THE BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The duties of computer and information systems

managers vary greatly. Chief technology officers (CTOs),

for example, evaluate the newest and most innovative

technologies and determine how these can help their

organizations. The chief technology officer often reports to

the organization’s chief information officer, manages and

plans technical standards, and tends to the daily

information technology issues of the firm. (Chief

information officers are covered in a separate Handbook

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statement on top executives.) Because of the rapid pace

of technological change, chief technology officers must

constantly be on the lookout for developments that could

benefit their organizations. Once a useful tool has been

identified, the CTO must determine an implementation

strategy and sell that strategy to management.

The purpose of this study is to explore the feasibility of

applying an internet-based information system (IBIS) to

facilitate business alliance activities, especially for small

and medium enterprises whose business performance is

highly dependent on their strategic alliance partnerships.

At the start, in businesses and other organizations,

internal reporting was made manually and only

periodically, as a by-product of the accounting system and

with some additional statistic(s), and gave limited and

delayed information on management performance.

At that early stage, business computers were used for the

practical business of computing the payroll and keeping

track of accounts payable and accounts receivable As

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 applications were developed that provided managers with

information about sales, inventories, and other data that

would help in managing the enterprise, the term "MIS"

arose to describe these kinds of applications. Today, the

term is used broadly in a number of contexts and includes

(but is not limited to): decision support systems, resource

and people management applications, project

management and database retrieval application. Internet

based information system for small business enterprise,

focus on the effective use of computer system for the

success of business operations.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE RESEARCH PROBLEM

• The Internet allows computer users to remotely

access other computers and information stores

easily, wherever they may be in organisation. In

considering the subject of internet information

system and modern automation in small business

organisation, the question that pose a challenge to

many are:.

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 • what is information system?

• what are various types of information system

available for a small business organization?

• what is internet information system?

• can this system be developed for effective use

in an organization?

• what are the effect of internet information

system to individual, organization and its

environment?

• what forms the major components of

information system?

• what is management information system?

• has information system anything to do with

software and hardware?

1.3 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

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 The researcher has no doubt whatsoever, that the findings

presented in this study, will be of immense benefit to the

following categories of people among others:

• policy makers in various business organizations

• the managers and chief executives of this firm

• all internet and information system users in this

organization.

• system analyst

• information system administrators

• project managers

• management accountant

• decision support system experts

• students of management science

• computer science students

• other researchers

• Chief Information Officer (CIO)

• Chief Executive Officer (CEO),

• Chief Financial Officer (CFO),

• Chief Operating Officer (COO)

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 • Chief Technical Officer (CTO).

• The Chief Information Security Officer (CISO),

1.4 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

It would have been a total waste of time, efforts, energy

and of course fund, in conducting this research if it was

not meant to achieve any meaningful objectives. The

research would also have been seen as a fruitless exercise

if there were no fundamental objectives to be achieved at

the end of the study. The objectives of the study therefore

were:

(i) To investigate the role and the relative efficiency of

the use of internet information system and modern

automation in a small business organization.

(ii) To find out whether or not, internet information

system require the use of software and hardware.

(iii) To enable the researcher to avail himself of the

opportunity to contribute his quota to the pool of

knowledge on the internet information system in business

organization.

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 (iv) To provide an objectively sufficient ground for the

researcher to make contributions to the "GREAT

DEBATE" as to whether information system components

involve the use of computer and other automations.

(v) To determine various information system careers

available in an organization.

1.5 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This work was carried out under a tight schedule of school

pressure and work load which makes it absolutely

necessary to devote limited time to do it, having sleepless

night etc.

Another problem encountered is finance, the cost of

transportation in carrying out the investigation. Individual

differences in responses to questionnaire are also a

limitation encountered.

The Questionnaire method of primary data collection was

limited to the verbal responses of subjects to pre-arrange

questions. It also had limitation that its usefulness

depended on the level of understanding of the subjects.

There was the limitation of the problem of memory in

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remembering past facts. The structured nature of the

questionnaire may compel the respondents to give

answers that they do not fully endorse, There was the

limitation of the rigidity of the research instrument, which

diminishes the amount of information that could be

gathered.

There was the limitation that the cost of administering the

questionnaire was very high due to high administrative,

personnel and traveling costs especially when some of the

respondents were initially not on their seats. There was

the limitation that the researcher and the field data

collectors were not policemen and so they could not force

some of the respondents if they refuse to give answers.

There was also the limitation of the scarcity of time and

money resources.

In nutshell, the researcher will like to mellow down this

point to the following subtopics

Material Procurement

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 There was a lot constraints as to getting information and

materials for the job. The researcher made series of

consultations and visit to most renowned institutions to

acquire the needed information. Most materials used were

very difficult to come by, as there is no library within the

town.

Time Constraints

Combining academic work with job is no doubt a thought

provoking issue, as it has to do with time. Actually, a lot

of time was wasted as the researcher visited the

organizations and individuals together with government

agencies to obtain valuable information for the project.

Financial Constraints

The researcher would have obtained more information

than what is obtainable here but due to lack of money to

visit some of the firms and government agencies located a

bit farther from the researcher place of resident.

1.5 1.6 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

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 Information for this research study was gathered from

various angles as follows:

(1) The use of the Internet: Much of the materials were

down-loaded from the internet on internet information

system and modern automation in small business

organization.

(2) The procedural manuals and past research

materials/projects on internet information system were

also used.

(3) Some of the information used were extracted from

compact disk that has related topic, text books and so on.

HYPOTHESIS

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It is a conjectural statement of the relationships between

two or more variables. It is testable, tentative problem

explanation of the relationship between two or more

variables that create a state of affairs or phenomenon.

E,C, Osuola (1986 page 48) said hypothesis should always

be in declarative sentence form, and they should relate to

them generally or specially variable to variables.

HYPOTHESIS THUS:

1. Explain observed events in a systematic manner

2. Predict the outcome of events and relationships

3. Systematically summarized existing knowledge.

In essence, there exist NULL HYPOTHESIS set up only to

nullify the research hypothesis and the ALTERNATIVE

HYPOTHESIS for the purpose of the study. For the

efficiency of the study, the hypothesis is as follows:

NULL HYPOTHESIS (HO)

1. Internet information system does not create flexibility

in working hours and location?

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 2.` Internet information system is not a subset of the

overall internal controls of a business covering the application of

people, documents, technologies, and procedures?

ALTERNATIVE HYPOTHESIS

1. Does internet information system create flexibility in

working hours and location?

2. Is internet information system a subset of the overall

internal controls of a business covering the application of

people, documents, technologies, and procedures?

1.7 METHODOLOGY

For a proper or adequate attainment of the objectives of

the study, the research work was organised into five (5)

chapters.

Chapter one (1) introduces the study and explored the

background to the study. It also deals with other relevant

issues in the study, such as the problem of the study, the

objectives of the study, the significance, and its

limitations.

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 The chapter also disuses the research hypothesis and

methodology of the study.

Chapter two (2) contains a review of related literature on

the problem under study. Chapter three (3) deals with the

design of the study with regards to gathering or collection

of data and the instruments used in analysing it.

In chapter four (4) the data so collected, are presented,

analysed and interpreted accordingly.

Chapter five (5) which is the last but not the least gives

the summaries conclusions drawn from the findings, and

the recommendation made by the researcher.

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.0 INTRODUCTION

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 In virtually all academic exercises, including research

work, available literatures form a major source of

information, facts and knowledge in any chosen discipline

of leaning. It is on this note that the researcher devoted

this chapter to the review of literatures related to the

problem under study.

2.1 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND SYSTEM

The phrase information systems of any set-up are the

total machine/equipment used for handling information

within a given organisation. An information system is a

set of people, data, and procedures that work together to

provide useful information. The emphasis on systems

means that the various components seek common

objective of supporting organisation activities. These

include day-to-day business operations, communications

of information, management activities, and decision-

making.

2.2 INFORMATION:

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Managers at all levels must be provided with decision-

oriented information. The fact that the nature of decisions

differs at the three levels creates a major difficulty for

those attempting to develop an MIS: The information

needs of each level differ, and the information system

must be tailored to provide appropriate information to all

levels.

Decisions made at the lower level are generally routine

and well defined. The needs of first-level supervisors can

be met by normal administrative data-processing activities

such as preparation of financial statements and routine

record keeping.

Tactical decision making is characterised by an

intermediate time horizon, a high use of internal

information, and significant dependence on rapid

processing and retrieval of data. Many middle-level

decisions are ill structured. The major focus of tactical

decisions is how to make efficient use of organisational

resources.

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 Information needs of various mgt levels

LEVELS OF DECISION MAKING

CHARACTERISTICS OPERATIONAL TACTICAL STRATEGIC

Time horizon Daily Weekly/monthly Yearly
Degree of structure High Moderate Low
Use of external Low Moderate Very high
information
Use of internal Very high High Moderate/low
information
Degree of judgment Low Moderate Very high
Information online Very high High moderate
Level of complexity Low Moderate Very high
Information in Real High High High
Time

2.3 SYSTEMS:

In a system, inputs are processed to achieve outputs;

and feedback --- information received by the system,

either internally or externally --- is used in adjusting

future events. For example, in a manufacturing system,

input takes the form of raw materials, which are

processed by manufacturing facilities, which results in

output in the form of finished goods. Feedback occurs

in the form of quality control standards and customer

complaints. Processing can respond to feedback by

adjusting output. These four elements are present in all

systems and can thus be used to analysed them. A

business firm is composed of a multitude of such

systems. By carefully integrating the data required to

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 meet its systems information needs, a business

positions itself to cope with internal and external

changes.

SYSTEM CYCLE

Input Processing Output

Feedback

2.4 MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM

A management information system (MIS) is a

subset of the overall internal controls of a business

covering the application of people, documents,

technologies, and procedures by management

accountants to solve business problems such as costing

a product, service or a business-wide strategy.

Management information systems are distinct from

regular information systems in that they are used to

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analyze other information systems applied in

operational activities in the organization. Academically,

the term is commonly used to refer to the group of

information management methods tied to the

automation or support of human decision making, e.g.

Decision Support Systems, Expert systems, and

Executive information systems.

It has been described as, "MIS 'lives' in the space that

intersects technology and business. MIS combines

technology with business to get people the information

they need to do their jobs better/faster/smarter.

Information is the lifeblood of all organizations - now

more than ever.

By definition, An 'MIS' is a planned system of the

collecting, processing, storing and disseminating data in

the form of information needed to carry out the

functions of management. In a way it is a documented

report of the activities those were planned and

executed. According to Philip Kotler "A marketing

information system consists of people, equipment, and

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 procedures to gather, sort, analyze, evaluate, and

distribute needed, timely, and accurate information to

marketing decision makers."

2.5 INTERNET

The Internet is a global system of interconnected

computer networks that use the standardized Internet

Protocol Suite (TCP/IP) to serve billions of users

worldwide. It is a network of networks that consists of

millions of private and public, academic, business, and

government networks of local to global scope that are

linked by copper wires, fiber-optic cables, wireless

connections, and other technologies. The Internet

carries a vast array of information resources and

services, most notably the inter-linked hypertext

documents of the World Wide Web (WWW) and the

infrastructure to support electronic mail. In addition it

supports popular services such as online chat, file

transfer and file sharing, gaming, commerce, social

networking, publishing, video on demand, and

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 teleconferencing and telecommunications. Voice over

Internet Protocol (VoIP) applications allow person-to-

person communication via voice and video.

2.6 INFORMATION SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT

Information technology departments in larger

organizations tend to strongly influence information

technology development, use, and application in the

organizations, which may be a business or corporation.

A series of methodologies and processes can be used in

order to develop and use an information system. Many

developers have turned and used a more engineering

approach such as the System Development Life Cycle

(SDLC) which is a systematic procedure of developing

an information system through stages that occur in

sequence. An Information system can be developed in

house (within the organization) or outsourced. This can

be accomplished by outsourcing certain components or

the entire system. A specific case is the geographical

distribution of the development team (Offshoring,

Global Information System).

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A computer based information system, following a

definition of Langefors, is:

• a technologically implemented medium for

recording, storing, and disseminating linguistic

expressions,

• as well as for drawing conclusions from such

expressions.

which can be formulated as a generalized information

systems design mathematical program

Geographic Information Systems, Land Information

systems and Disaster Information Systems are also

some of the emerging information systems but they can

be broadly considered as Spatial Information Systems.

System development is done in stages which include:

• Problem recognition and specification

• Information gathering

• Requirements specification for the new system

• System design

• System construction

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 • System implementation

• Review and maintenance

2.7 INTERNET INFORMATION SYSTEM IN

DAVIDSON NIG. LTD.

In Davidson Nigeria Limited, internet information

system stands for the application of internet

information services and information device. Internet

Information Service (IIS) - formerly called Internet

Information Server - is a set of Internet-based services

for servers created by Microsoft for use with Microsoft

Windows. It is the world's second most popular web

server in terms of overall websites behind the industry

leader Apache HTTP Server.

2.8

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 MANAGING
DIRECTOR

2.9 DAVIDSON NIGERIA LTD

OGANOGRAM
PERSONNEL OPERATION
MANAGER MANAGER

DATABASE
ADMINISTRATOR
CLIENT
SUPERVISOR

TECHNICIAN/
ADMINIST SYSTEM
RATOR SUPPORT
OFFICER
SYSTEM
PROGRAMMER
ADMIN.
OFFICER

SUPERVISOR

SYSTEM
ANALYST

ACCOUNTANT

WARRI CONT
FOREMAN

TECHNOLOGIST

SECRETARY
SITE
CONTROLLER

DATA 33
ENTRY
CLERK OPERATOR
2.9 INFORMATION SYSTEMS RESEARCH

Information systems research is generally concerned

with the study of the effects of information systems on

the behavior of individuals, groups, and organizations. [8]

[9]
Notable publication outlets for information systems

research are the journals Management Information Systems Quarterly,

Information Systems Research, Journal of the Association for Information Systems,

and Communications of the Association for Information

Systems.

Since information systems is an applied field, industry

practitioners expect information systems research to

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 generate findings that are immediately applicable in

practice. However, that is not always the case. Often

information systems researchers explore behavioral

issues in much more depth than practitioners would

expect them to do. This may render information

systems research results difficult to understand, and

has led to criticism.

2.10 NATURE OF INFORMATION PROCESSING.

The preparation of reports containing information

involves subjecting the basic facts, i.e. the data to

a number of processing operations which typically

include verification, validation, sorting, merging,

computing, comparing, updating and printing.

Data information Information

processing
Text, graphic
Transaction Processing Video display
details system

Printed document
and reports

Graphical
information

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Quantitative information. This type of information deals

with the magnitude of variables: their variability and

absolute magnitude expressed in terms of the quantity of

various entities. Typical examples are listed below:

(a) variations in the level of income and

expenditure;

(b) variations in the level of product costs;

(c) variations from the credit limit allowed to

customers;

(d) variations in the level of stocks;

(e) actual quantity produced;

(f)actual quantity sold;

(g) the level of labour turnover;

(h) average queuing time and service time in

service functions

(i) variations in the amount of capital expenditure on

projects

(j)project activity times

(k) variations in the mix of products and the effect

on profit maximisation or cost minimisation.

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 Qualitative information. This type of information may

be defined as that relating to the attributes of an entity in

respect of quality factors. Information of this nature is

very useful for managerial control and often employs the

technique of making comparisons with quality standards

and actual achievements as a basis for management by

exception. Examples of qualitative information are outline

below.

(a) standard of finish product in respect of paint

work or electro-plating

(b) variations of tolerances of manufactured parts, i.e.

deviations from standard dimensions;

(c) variations of quality of the ingredients used in

the manufacture of foodstuffs which alter taste and

texture;

(d) quality of information for effective decision

making.

In developed organisations, communications flow down, up

and across, from boardroom to shop- floor and back

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between departmental managers or between sales

assistants.

They also move diagonally between different levels of

different departments. To and fro organisation, an upward

communication flow is just as important as a downward one.

When downward communication becomes an avalanche and

upward communication a tremble, then, sooner or later, an

organisation will suffer:

- Poor morale

- Low productivity and

- Potentially explosive frustration in its

employee.

- The downward flow of information is most frequently

channelled through an organisation line of authority

from manager to subordinate in a reports to

relationship.

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 CHAPTER THREE

SYSTEM ANALYSIS AND DESIGN

3.1 THE SPECTRUM OF SYSTEM ANALYSIS

Systems are created to solve problems. Many of the

fundamental considerations affecting the design of a

system, stems often unconsciously, from the systems

approach to organisations. The systems approach has

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 many facets of which the following are the most

important:

• All systems are composed of inter-related parts or sub-

systems and the system can only be explained as a whole.

This is known as holism or synergy. The systems view is

that the whole is more than just the sum of the parts and

that vital inter-relationships will be ignored or

misunderstood if the separate part are studied in isolation.

• Systems are hierarchical in that the parts or sub-systems

are made up of other smaller parts. For example, the

accounting system of an organisation may be a sub-

system of the information system, which is itself a sub-

system of the organisation as a whole. Internet

information system is one in an organization that could be

traced to a typical management information system.

• The parts of a system constitute an indissoluble whole so

that no part can be altered without affecting other parts.

Many organisational problems stem from ignoring this

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 principle. For example, a departmental procedure or form

might be changed without considering the ripple effects on

the other departments affected, with dire consequences.

Internet information system is so dynamic in an

organization that can not be ignored or overlooked.

• The sub-systems should work towards the goals of their

higher systems and not pursue their own objectives

independently..

System analysis is the stage in the software

development process whereby the existing system is

analysed in order to ascertain the problems in the existing

system in order to proffer solutions to the problems

identified.

3.1.1 ANATOMY OF THE EXISTING INTERNET

INFORMATION SYSTEM (EXECUTIVE INFORMATION

SYSTEMS)

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An Executive Information System (EIS) is a type of

management information system intended to facilitate and

support the information and decision-making needs of

senior executives by providing easy access to both

internal and external information relevant to meeting the

strategic goals of the organization. It is commonly

considered as a specialized form of a Decision Support

System (DSS)

The emphasis of EIS is on graphical displays and easy-to-

use user interfaces. They offer strong reporting and drill-

down capabilities. In general, EIS are enterprise-wide DSS

that help top-level executives analyze, compare, and

highlight trends in important variables so that they can

monitor performance and identify opportunities and

problems. EIS and data warehousing technologies are

converging in the marketplace

To manage large enterprises is complex task requiring the

use of information as a strategic tool by the entire

executive team. Executive information system (EIS)

facilitates this requirement by providing information for

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decision support in pursuit of the attainment of a

competitive advantage. This is achieved by the more

effective use of information to determine strategies, which

will ultimately be expressed by an improved profit figure.

Software systems are available, which provide facilities for

electronic delivery of critical information in the form of

reports and charts without the need for executives to

learn the technical aspects of computers

An executive does not require keyboard skills to use the

EIS because provision is made for using a mouse, a touch

screen, or a few keys on the keyboard for performing EIS

functions. The system has been designed to make

strategic information reading available to senior

executives while minimising the workload of the

information providers who support the executive team. It

automates (i.e., using computer to do work done by

people previously) the processes required for the

successful implementation of an EIS:

i Information access.

ii Integration

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 iii Analysis

iv Reporting and

v Delivery.

Fast access to information as executive’s use a mouse to

point to the desired report or chart and the information

displays on the screen just in a few seconds. Colour charts

showing important trends can accompany the displayed

reports. The electronic briefing book can be updated at

any time.

• THE MERIT OF THE EXISTING SYSTEM

3.1.2
• It provides the opportunity to identify information
most important to76 the business, which focuses attention
on critical operation areas.
• After implementing on EIS critical information will become

available on demand reducing the volume of routine

information which after requires sifting to detect

critical facts requiring managerial attention.

• The system provides speedy access to information by

hands – on facilities saving valuable from computerised

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 data processing system files and databases by the

interconnection of mainframe to personal computers

used by executive.

• Colour graphics are easy to understand and use.

• Adjusting and restructuring screens are straight

forward.

3.2.1 THE PROBLEMS OF THE EXISTING SYSTEM

• Limited functionality, by design

• Information overload for some managers

• Benefits hard to quantify

• High implementation costs

• System may become slow, large, and hard to manage

• Need good internal processes for data management

• May lead to less reliable and less secure data

• System dependent

3.1.2.2 THE NEED FOR AN ALTERNATIVE SYSTEM

Having seen the problems faced by the system as a result

of the Executives who consider the acquisition of

Executive Information Systems (EIS) may encounter

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 several major problems already in their selection and

introduction stages. Key issues are the following: Can the

EIS's really match our managerial needs and support

decision making in our organizational contingencies? How

widely in the leadership levels can they be introduced?

Are they easy-to-learn, easy-to-use and easily

customizable? Do they utilize the newest information

technology, e.g. graphics and modern interface

technology? Can they work in our computer network? In

order to facilitate elegant solutions of the selection

problems, we construct an evaluation framework which

guides the selection of an EIS product to match the

managerial needs according to the organizational

contingencies. This framework is useful immediately after

the specification of the decision making support

requirements of the executive.

3.1.3 THE PROPOSED SYSTEM

The proposed system is an on-line system (internet-based).

The system will be designed using Office application, MS

46
Front Page, the HTML codes for the front and MS Access for

the database design.

The emphasis of EIS will be on graphical displays and easy-

to-use user interfaces. They will offer strong reporting and

drill-down capabilities. In general, EIS will be enterprise-

wide DSS that help top-level executives analyze, compare,

and highlight trends in important variables so that they can

monitor performance and identify opportunities and

problems.

3.2 SYSTEM DESIGN

It is a most crucial phase in the development of a system.

Normally, the design proceeds in two stages: (i) preliminary

or general design (ii) structured or detailed design.

1. Preliminary or general design

Designing an online system demands a great deal of

creativity and planning. It is also very costly and time

consuming. In system analysis, researcher has focused on

what requirements discovered in the analysis. In this design

phase, the researcher changes focus and concentrates on

47
how a system can be developed to meet the requirements.

Several steps are useful during this design phase:

• Review goals and objectives.

• Develop system model.

• Perform feasibility analysis

• a. Review goals and objectives. The objectives of the

new or revised system were identified during system

analysis and stated in the system analysis report. Before the

researcher can proceed with system design, these objectives

must be reviewed, since any system design offered must

conform to them.

• Integrating data across time is difficult because old

records must be purged from live application systems

(after they have been written to archive files), because

live application systems must evolve over time (making

old records incompatible with the current ones) and

because the current generation of application systems are

designed to transact current business, not facilitate

historical comparisons. The most promising approach to

all of these problems is to design the data warehouse to

48
 correspond to today's view of the world and load data

from yesterday's files (going back in history as far as

possible), making an effort to be as faithful as possible to

the data as it was written. It is inappropriate and

impractical to re-format the authoritative back-up or

frozen files that are used to populate the data warehouse;

it is not easy to change Oracle tables and data extracts for

the historical tables in the data warhouse, but it is well

worth the effort.

• The difficulty of integrating data across subject areas

occurs for two main reasons. The first is that there are

inherent differences between subject areas (e.g., the

payroll and instructional calendars really are different).

Integration across subject areas requires a concerted

effort at the data modeling stage to look below the

surface and find common concepts and common data. The

second difficulty stems from the fact that the University

purchases application packages from different software

vendors. This has warehouse design implications at many

different levels, as discussed elsewhere in these

guidelines. The implications range from a requirement

49
 that the modeling process discover data elements from

different sources that are really "the same" (although they

may be named differently on the mainframe), to the

requirement that data values be sufficiently understood so

that they can be put in common terms in the data

warehouse.

• Data standardization and normalization. Standardization

and normalization of data are the fundamental means of

making a data warehouse really useful. They enable

integration across time and subject areas, making it

easier to learn how to use and to understand the data

warehouse, and simplifying design and maintenance of

the data warehouse. As the following pages make clear,

both standardization and normalization are complex

subjects.

• "Standardizing data" means that a series of explicit rules

are applied to the data as it is designed, entered,

documented and used. Following the guidelines set forth

in this document would be one step toward standardizing

the data in the data warehouse.

50
• "Normalizing" the data is a fundamental aspect of data

standardization. Data normalization is a process of logical

analysis that determines the simplest, most parsimonious

and most stable structure for a database. The example in

exhibits 1 and 2 suggests that data normalization is really

very intuitive; a detailed discussion and further definition

can be found in Durell (1985). Although it is required by a

relational database management system (RDBMS) such as

Oracle, the significance and utility of normalization go far

beyond the requirements of the RDBMS. Putting the data

from many different application systems (and many

different data formats) into one format, aside from any

other inherent advantages, permits correlation of data

from different subject areas. Properly normalizing the data

removes many of the traps that are found in other data

formats and permits making meaningful connections more

easily. Most people have a much easier time thinking

about data in a normalized form than they do about data

in other formats. Documenting normalized data is easier

than documenting "the same data" when it is in another

format. Current hardware and software technology permit

51
 us to take advantage of these characteristics of

normalized data.

• Normalization example. The following made-up example

illustrates the idea of normalizing mainframe data and

suggests some of the processes that are involved.

Consider two records from a mainframe file belonging to

an application which lists the phone numbers of university

employees.

b. Develop system model. The researcher next attempts is

to represent symbolically the system’s major components is

to verify his understanding of the various components and

their interactions. In reviewing the models, the analyst

refers to system theory to discover any possible omissions of

important subsystems……

-are the major interactions among subsystems shown?

-are the inputs, processes, and outputs appropriately

identified?

-does the model provide for appropriate feedback to each of

the subsystems?

52
-are too many functions included within one subsystem?

To ensure a minimal risk of failure, we need to be aware of

the various factors that could potentially affect the success

of the system. The most effective way to gain such an

awareness is by having a structured approach to facilitate

the study of these factors. This is provided by the

construction of a suitable development framework for the

classification of relevant issues. A development framework is

"helpful in organising a complex subject, identifying the

relationships between the parts and revealing the areas

where further developments will be required" (Sprague,

1980).

As part of research done in both the academic and

professional communities, a number of frameworks and

models of the EISs development process have emerged. Few

frameworks are reviewed in this research work. The purpose

of the examination of these frameworks is to identify

features useful in identifying elements of EISs development

and usage that influence the success of these systems.

These features, once identified can be combined in a single

53
framework which will serve as the foundation for a deeper

study of the factors associated with the success of EISs.

ESPRIT (the first frame work)

A diagram of the outline of the framework is given in the

following figure and some issues relevant to each phase, are

briefly discussed below.

E S P R I T
EVALUATION SURVEY OF PROTOTYPE REVIEW IMPLEMENT TRANSFER

OF BUSINESS A CURRENT THE THE FULL THE SKILL-

CONSULTANT NEEDS REQUIREMENT BENEFITS PROJECT IN-HOUSE

E S P RI T

Evaluation Survey of Prototype Review the Implement the

Transfer the a current full ErS project of Consultants

Business needs requirement benefits

skills in-house

Figure 1. Outline of the ESPRIT framework.

In the first phaseHere, the consultants undertaking the

development project are committed to carry out a joint

survey to assess the EIS requirements. The suitability of

the consultancy team is then evaluated. Among the things

that need to be considered is whether the team has

54
experience in the particular industry in which the system

is to be implemented and also a full understanding of the

criteria by which the organisation measures success.

The second phase consists of a survey and feasibility

study to identify a suitable prototype project. End-users of

the system and other people affected by the system are

involved in the project. The software and hardware to be

used for the prototype are selected. It is also necessary,

at this stage, to assess availability of data. A formal

proposal comprising timescales, costs, benefits and detail

of activities is then drawn up. This forms the terms of

reference for the project and the consultants should

obtain authorisation to go on with the prototype.

Once the prototype is finished it is presented to its users.

This is best done at an executive meeting. It is a way for

the system to establish credibility for itself. The

presentation should focus on giving a realistic impression

of what the system will provide when it is complete.

Any data displayed should be checked to ensure accuracy

relevance and timeliness before

55
they are used. This occasion provides an opportunity for

potential users to explore the system and ask questions

about it.

The prototype is installed in the executive sponsor's office

to demonstrate how the sponsor will use his/her time

more productively, and how money can be made or saved

when using the system.

A formal cost/benefit analysis takes place at this point.

Based on this, and in the light of experience gained so far,

the full EIS proposal is updated with full project costs

and timescales set out. The proposal is then submitted for

authorisation to proceed.

It might be necessary to make changes to the prototype

even to the extend of starting all over again with a new

organisation structure in mind. New hardware may need

to be acquired. The choice of software is re-evaluated in

the light of the new changes. Procedures for the

automation of collection of information are designed and

implemented incorporating extensive checks on the data

for suitability. Then the format of the reports

56
(both paper and on-screen) delivered by the system is

designed and the EIS is ready for use by the developers at

key executive meetings.

The last phase involves the design and implementation of

training courses for the users of the system. Training of

the senior executives is then done on a one-to-one basis.

The pace of the sessions is taken slowly. Training courses

for planners, analysts and the system

manager are also planned and implemented. Any

documentation supplied with the system, about the

facilities the EIS provides, is produced in different versions

for each type of user.

The users are then interviewed and their comments about

the benefits gained from installing the system are

documented in order to justify the costs of running the

EIS on a permanent basis. At this point, the next EIS

project should be identified and plans made about its

implementation which should be an easier undertaking.

57
A Structural EISs Framework.

This framework was put forward to classify the results of a

study on EISs practices

conducted in the US, in 1988. The study involved 50

companies that were either using an

EIS or were very near to having one operational. The

framework stems from practical

experience in developing EISs, a body of literature on

EISs and discussions with EISs

vendors, consultants and EISs staff members (Watson et

aI., 1991). The framework

consists of three components an outline of which is given

below.

58
The researcher identified a number of elements associated

with the structural perspective. These elements are classified

into two categories: Personnel and Data. The first category,

includes people involved in developing an Executive

Information System. The other one makes the distinction

between data internal to the organisation and data used

from outside the organisational boundaries.

59
The framework takes the view that EISs development is a

dynamic process that places the elements making up the

structural perspective in motion. Issues relevant to the

development process form the second component of the

framework. They are included in the framework to focus

attention on issues relevant to activities undertaken to

develop an EIS, since these activities play an important role

in the success of the final system. Issues put forward in this

component include, the development time for a system, the

development methodology used, the hardware and software

used for the system as well as issues about the evolution

and spread of the system to other members in the

organisation.

The third component is the user-system dialogue. Various

issues in relation to the users of the system are addressed

and classified into three categories. The first of these,

involves issues concerning the knowledge users need to

operate the system. The second category addresses issues

pertinent to the operation of the system, such as system

response time and the user-system interface. Finally, the

last category looks into how information is presented and the

60
 effect of the use of colour and multiple presentation formats.

The 'user system dialogue' component is important as it

incorporates the users' perspective in the framework.

The first component, is a structural perspective of the development of EISs.

It illustrates
key elements, important to the development process and the interactions
between them.
The following diagram summarises the structural perspective.
External Environment
External Pressuru
Internal Environment
Structural Perspective of EISs development

2. Structured or detailed design.

In the detailed design stage, computer oriented work begins

in earnest. At this stage, the design of the system becomes

more structured. Structure design is a blue print of a online

system solution to a given problem having the components

and inter-relationship among the same components as the

original problem. Input, output and processing specifications

are drawn up in detail. In the design stage, the

programming language and the platform in which the new

system will run are also decided.

61
 There are several tools and techniques used for designing.

They are:

⇒ Flowchart

⇒ Data flow diagram

⇒ Data dictionary

⇒ Structured English

⇒ Decision tree.

New system is designed generally using logical models based

on the information derived from the previous stage. For the

first time physical aspects of the new system are included:

Type of system

⇒ Hardware specifications

Data organisation

⇒ Files/databases

Packages/programming

3.3 OUTPUT DESIGN:-

62
The output design shows how the report will actually look like.

The online tax monitoringexecutive information system will

generate the following reports:

(i) Confirmation report: The report shows a confirmation

message telling theshowing user(tax payer) that the

information submitted is successful.

(ii) Financial report: This report will show the total

amount log in by the tax payuser and the balance if

any.

3.4 INPUT DESIGN:-

This report shows a type of data entry and is user

friendly. To carry out this design, label and text box is

needed.

3.5 FILE DESIGN

The system bas only one database file. This file is made

up of three tables. Each table of the database file is

designed with specific format for each field. Input is

processed against the files to produce the necessary

63
 output. Consideration involved in the designing of these

files are:

i). method of access

ii) record layout

Access mode for each of the files is random, that is records in a

file can be read or modified.

Record layout

This is the description of the structure of the records in each of

the file used. The record layout for all the two files used in the

online system are given below:

Database file

Personal data
S/N FIELD NAME DATA TYPE FIELD
WIDTH
1 SURNAME TEXT 18
2 OTHER NAMES TEXT 30
3 AGE NUMBER 2
4 GENDER TEXT 6
5 MARITAL TEXT 9
STATUS
6 RESIDENTIAL MEMO -
ADDRESS

64
 7 OFFICE MEMO -
ADDRESS
8 OCCUPATION TEXT 15
9 NATIONAL ID TEXT 16
CARD NO
10 SIGNATURE OLE -
11 PHOTOGRAPH OLE -

Employment data

S/N FIELD NAME DATA TYPE FIELD

WIDTH
1 SURNAME TEXT 18
2 OTHER NAMES TEXT 30
3 GENDER TEXT 6
4 CIVIL- LOGICAL 1

SERVANTJUNIOR

STAFF
5 SELF- LOGICAL 1

EMPLOYEDSENIOR

STAFF
6 JOB STATUS TEXT 10
7 BASIC PAY NUMBER 8
8 OFFICE MEMO -

ADDRESSDEPARTMENT
9 LGASTAFF ID TEXT 19

Validation database

S/N FIELD NAME DATA TYPE FIELD WIDTH

1 IDENTIFICATION TEXT 14

NO
2 USER NAME TEXT 30

65
3 PASSWORD TEXT 12
4 REMARK TEXT 10

3.6 This is in-built checking facility that enables the discovery

of errors in the input data. Validation is based on the rule

created through expressions. When data fail validating, a

message will display informing the user of the error.

Example, if a field is meant for numeric value, the user

mistakenly inputted the alphabet, the system will prompt

the user with the message that there is an error in the

input data. It also provide the user the information on

how to re-enter the data correctly.

3.7 FILE SECURITY

Access to databases is controlled by the use of passwords

so that only right user can gain access to the system . The

security is placed on the system through the use of a

username and password.

66
 CHAPTER FOUR

DESIGN METHODOLOGY AND TECHNOLOGY

4.1 PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE

The design of the online system was accomplished due to

the application of many technologies. The web pages was

designed using ms front page and HPML (hypertext

Markup Language), the working program that enables the

forms to interface with the database files was designed in

visual basic programming language. The modular

approach was used for the program designs. That is, each

module was designed and developed separately and later

linked together to form the coherent system.

In software, a module is a part of a program. Programs

are composed of one or more independently developed

67
modules that are not combined until the program is

linked. A single module can contain one or several

routines. Typical characteristics of modular components

include portability, which allows them to be used in a

variety of systems, and interoperability, which allows

them to function with the components of other systems.

Modular programming is the concept that similar functions

should be contained within the same unit of programming

code and that separate functions should be developed as

separate units of code so that the code can easily be

maintained and reused by different programs. The source

program listing is attached in Appendix B. Various

technologies applied will be considered below:

(a) OVERVIEW OF HYPERTEXT MARKUP LANGUAGE

(HTML)

The Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) is a simple

markup language used to create hypertext documents

that are platform independent. HTML documents are

SGML documents with generic semantics that are

appropriate for representing information from a wide

68
range of domains. HTML markup can represent hypertext

news, mail, documentation, and hypermedia; menus of

options; database query results; simple structured

documents with in-lined graphics; and hypertext views of

existing bodies of information.

HTML has been in use by the World Wide Web (WWW)

global information initiative since 1990.

HTML is an application of ISO Standard 8879:1986

Information Processing Text and Office Systems; Standard

Generalized Markup Language (SGML).

HTML defines the structure and layout of a Web document

by using a variety of tags and attributes. The correct

structure for an HTML document starts with

<HTML><HEAD>(enter here what document is

about)<BODY> and ends with </BODY></HTML>. All the

information you'd like to include in your Web page fits in

between the <BODY> and </BODY> tags.

69
 There are hundreds of other tags used to format and

layout the information in a Web page. Tags are also used

to specify hypertext links. These allow Web developers to

direct users to other Web pages with only a click of the

mouse on either an image or word(s).

HTML is a subset of a broader family of language called

standard generalised mark-up language (SGML) which is a

group of languages for encoding and formatting

documents for output to a computer screen but which are

generally hidden from the user. It is essentially a set of

codes used to format the appearance of web page and to

create links.

Simply put, it is a way or means of formatting information

to make it suitable for display on the WWW.

b. VISUAL BASIC

Visual Basic, which is used for the form design and to

interface th data entry form to the database files is a

programming language suitable for all forms of computer

applications- numerical, scientific, graphical, database,

70
commercial programming. It is an object oriented

programming (OOP) language which has more advantages

than its procedural language counterpart. It is quite

flexible and effective in database manipulations, accessing

and retrieval of information, etc.

Object-oriented programming (OOP) is a programming

language model organized around "objects" rather than

"actions" and data rather than logic. Historically, a

program has been viewed as a logical procedure that

takes input data, processes it, and produces output data.

The programming challenge was seen as how to write the

logic, not how to define the data. Object-oriented

programming takes the view that what we really care

about are the objects we want to manipulate rather than

the logic required to manipulate them. Examples of

objects range from human beings (described by name,

address, and so forth) to buildings and floors (whose

properties can be described and managed) down to the

little widgets on your computer desktop (such as buttons

and scroll bars).

71
The first step in OOP is to identify all the objects you want

to manipulate and how they relate to each other, an

exercise often known as data modeling. Once you've

identified an object, you generalize it as a class of objects

(think of Plato's concept of the "ideal" chair that stands for

all chairs) and define the kind of data it contains and any

logic sequences that can manipulate it. Each distinct logic

sequence is known as a method. A real instance of a class

is called (no surprise here) an "object" or, in some

environments, an "instance of a class." The object or class

instance is what you run in the computer. Its methods

provide computer instructions and the class object

characteristics provide relevant data. You communicate

with objects - and they communicate with each other -

with well-defined interfaces called messages.

The concepts and rules used in object-oriented

programming provide these important benefits:

• The concept of a data class makes it possible to

define subclasses of data objects that share some or

all of the main class characteristics. Called

72
 inheritance, this property of OOP forces a more

thorough data analysis, reduces development time,

and ensures more accurate coding.

• Since a class defines only the data it needs to

be concerned with, when an instance of that class

(an object) is run, the code will not be able to

accidentally access other program data. This

characteristic of data hiding provides greater system

security and avoids unintended data corruption.

• The definition of a class is reusable not only by

the program for which it is initially created but also

by other object-oriented programs (and, for this

reason, can be more easily distributed for use in

networks).

• The concept of data classes allows a

programmer to create any new data type that is not

already defined in the language itself.

4.2 OBJECTS AND PROPERTIES

Your web page document is an object. Any table, form,

button, image, or link on your page is also an object. Each

object has certain properties (information about the

73
 object.) for example, the background colour of the

document is written….document.bgcolor. you could

change the color of your page to red by writing the line:

document.bgcolor=’’red”

The contents (or value) of a texbox named ‘password’ in a

form named ‘entry form is document.entryform.

Passsword.Value.

4.3 METHODS

Most objects have a certain collection of things that they

can do. Different objects can do different things, just as a

door can open and close while a light a can turn on and

off. A new document is opened with the method

document. Open () you can write ‘Hello World’ into a

document by typing document. Write (Hello World’). Open

() and write () are both methods of the object: document.

4.4 EVENTS

74
 Event are how we trigger our functions to run. The easiest

example is a button, whose definition includes the words

on click=’’run_my_function ()’’.

The onClick event, as its name implies, will run the

function when the user clicks on the button. Other events

include. On Mouse Over, OnMouseOut, OnFocus, OnBlur,

Onload, and OnUnload.

c. 1.5 INTERNET INFORMATION SERVICEOVERVIEW

OF MS FRONT PAGE

Internet Information Services (IIS) - formerly called

Internet Information Server - is a set of Internet-

based services for servers created by Microsoft for use

with Microsoft Windows. It is the world's second most

popular web server in terms of overall websites behind the

industry leader Apache HTTP Server. The services

provided currently include FTP, FTPS, SMTP, NNTP, and

HTTP/HTTPS.

75
1.6 Information systems development methodology
Information systems development methodology or ISDM

is a tool kit of ideas, approaches, techniques and tools

which system analysts use to help them translate

organisational needs into appropriate Information

Systems;

An ISDM is:-

'....recommended collection of philosophies, phases,

procedures, rules, techniques, tools, documentation,

management, and training for developers of Information

Systems”. (Avison and Fitzgerald, 1988)

76
 CHAPTER FIVE

IMPLEMENTATION ,RECOMMENDATION
AND CONCLUSION.

5.1 IMPLEMENTATION

Implementation is the stage of a project during which theory

is turned into practice. During this phase, all the programs of

the system are loaded onto user’s computer. For effective

implementation to be carried out, the following will be

required:

i) hardware and software requirement

ii) system modification

77
iii) system testing

iv) change over technique

Hardware and software requirement

Hardware

When talking about hardware for an EIS environment, we

should focus on the hardware that meet the executive’s

needs. The executive must be put first and the executive’s

needs must be defined before the hardware can be selected.

The basic computer hardware needed for a typical EIS

includes four components:

1. Input data-entry devices. These devices allow the

executive to enter, verify, and update data

immediately;

2. The central processing unit (CPU), which is the

kernel because it controls the other computer system

components;

3. Data storage files. The executive can use this part to

save useful business information, and this part also

78
 help the executive to search historical business

information easily;

4. Output devices, which provide a visual or permanent

record for the executive to save or read. This device

refers to the visual output device or printer.

In addition, with the advent of local area networks (LAN),

several EIS products for networked workstations became

available. These systems require less support and less

expensive computer hardware. They also increase access of

the EIS information to many more users within a company.

Software

Choosing the appropriate software is vital to design an

effective EIS. Therefore, the software components and how

they integrate the data into one system are very important.

The basic software needed for a typical EIS includes four

components:

1. Text base software. The most common form of text

is probably documents;

79
 2. Database. Heterogeneous databases residing on a

range of vendor-specific and open computer platforms

help executives access both internal and external data;

3. Graphic base. Graphics can turn volumes of text and

statistics into visual information for executives. Typical

graphic types are: time series charts, scatter diagrams,

maps, motion graphics, sequence charts, and

comparison-oriented graphs (i.e., bar charts);

4. Model base. The EIS models contain routine and

special statistical, financial, and other quantitative

analysis.

Perhaps a more difficult problem for executives is choosing

from a range of highly technical software packages. Ease of

use, responsiveness to executives' requests, and price are all

reasonable considerations. Further, it should be considered

whether the package can run on existing hardware.

5.2 SYSTEM MODIFICATION

Pre-installation modification. User department personnel

may request a modification to the potential design of the

system for a number of reasons. The design may, for

80
instance, create a number of previously unforeseen

problems or fail to resolve existing ones. This situation may

be discovered during prototyping, i.e. when running a model

of the system to assess if it will achieve stipulated

objectives. Such requests can be accepted after discussions

between management, operating department (user)

personnel and systems staff. This will necessitate a

modification to the relevant systems documentation to

ensure it accords to the system eventually implemented. A

record of the modification should be promulgated, i.e.

committed to a formal record indicating:

a. authority for the request;

b. date of request;

c. system or sub-system in question;

d. terms of reference indicating the reason for the request;

e. agreed course of action

Post-implementation. This can be very costly, time-

consuming and disruptive. Inferior system design should be

avoided at all costs which is why defined checkpoints should

be incorporated at various stages of development. A system

81
will need updating due to technological and economic

developments and the passage of time.

File conversion and take-on of opening balances

Many computer-based systems are of an accounting

nature necessitating the conversion of files to magnetic

media and the transfer of opening balances to the

computer files. The time it takes to accomplish this task

requires careful planning and control. The

Longer the transfer takes the more difficul it becomes to

catch up personnel attempt to run both the current and

the computer system on a disjointed basis. Catch-up must

be given priority while maintaining the current system in

an up to-date condition. Very often record are converted

from ledger cards on which transaction details are

recorded by hand or posting machine to magnetic media

by suitable encoding methods. Before conversion it is

essential that the balances on such record as tax record,

payroll records of each tax payer are reconciled to ensure

only correct balances are transferred to the new system.

82
 This creates a high volume activity and suitable

arrangements must be made sufficiently in advance to

avoid unnecessary take-on delay

5.3 SYSTEM TESTING

Prior to the installation of the computerised system test

data must be prepared for live testing. It is also necessary

to simulate the operation of the computer application

before it is installed, to detect any bugs. This is

accomplished by desk checking or dry running, which

involves running through the program coding, as the

computer would do when processing actual data.

5.4 CHANGE OVER TECHNIQUE

The method of system changeover is outlined below to

illustrate the characteristics, which need to be taken into

account during the planning stage of installation.

(a) pilot scheme change over

Nature of a pilot scheme. This method of system

changeover adopts a cautious approach. Resources are

not committed to a state-wide implementation and the

83
 installation of a system is restricted to one location only

The results obtained from running this pilot scheme assist

in determining the suitability of the system for other

locations.

When to use a pilot scheme. A pilot scheme should be

adopted when the system under consideration has far-

reaching consequences on the efficient performance of

key activities on a wide scale throughout the “business”.

5.5 CONCLUSION.

Internet information system, when properly examined pose a

great challenge to existing manual system with the

consideration of the following facts that……….

production of the desired information, at the right time, in the

right amount, with an acceptable level of accuracy and in the

form required at an economical cost;

incorporation of checks and controls which are capable of

detection and dealing with exceptional circumstances and

errors; effective safeguards for the prevention of fraud;

efficient security measures in order to avoid loss of data stored

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in master file; efficient design of document and reports will

make the business to achieve it goal.

5.6 RECOMMENDATION

As soon as the internet information system becomes

operational, it is recommended that the following should be

considered:

System monitoring. After the system has gone live and

proved to be performing satisfactory, it is still necessary

to monitor the system to ensure that no abnormalities

occur and to remove the cause if any arise. It may be

found that, although the system is achieving results as

stipulated in the system specification, the system design

does not provide for certain requirements. This situation

will, of course, require system modification, which will

necessitate program recoding, recompiling and retesting.

System maintenance. Systems in their original form

often outlive their usefulness because of the need to

change business practices in accordance with changing

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economic circumstances and the introduction of new

legislation. In addition, systems may be implemented

initially on a stand-alone functional basis and

management may later consider it a practical proposition

to integrate related systems to avoid the input of data

several times to each of several systems for different

purposes.

Retraining personnel. When manual systems are

superseded by computerised applications there is a need

to retrain existing personnel or recruit personnel from

external sources for the new types of task which have

been created. Before training can commence, it is

necessary to select suitable personnel with the required

aptitude and potential for specified tasks. The cost and

benefits will be compared to know if it has met its

objectives.

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9. Ciborra, C. (2002). The Labyrinths of Information: Challenging the Wisdom of Systems.

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