Qn 2: Waring, A.

(1996) defines an information system as “a recognizable whole which

consists of a number of parts (called components and elements) that are connected up
in an organized way.” Further discuss this definition in relation to key concepts presented
in the course, e.g. Purpose, boundary, stake holders, etc.

Information technology is the important weapon to improve and keep an

enterprises’ competitiveness in ever-changing business environment. It is a systematic
methodology that is mostly required as a supporting tool achieving complicated activities
connected with introduction of information systems.

Information technology (IT) consists of all the hardware and software that a firm
needs to use in order to achieve its business objectives.

An information system can be defined technically as a set of interrelated

components that collect (or retrieve), process, store, and distribute information to
support decision making and control in an organization (Kenneth & Jane, 2007, p.10). In
addition to supporting decision making, coordination, and control, information systems
also help managers and workers analyze problems, visualize complex subjects, and
create new products.

Information systems contain information about significant people, places, and

things within the organization or in the environment surround it. By information we mean
“data that is organized and meaningful to the person receiving it. Data is therefore raw
material that is transformed into information by data processing. Information can be
defined in terms of its surprise value. It tells the recipient something he did not know
(Davis & Olsen, 1985, p.30).

A brief example (Figure 1-1) contrasting information and data may prove useful.
Raw data from a supermarket checkout counter can be processes and organized to
produce meaningful information, such as the total unit sales of dish detergent for a
specific store.

331 Brite Dish Soap 1.29 Sales Region: Northwest

863 BL Hill Coffee 4.69 Store: Superstore #122
173 Meo Cat .79 Item No. Description Units Sold
331 Brite Dish Soap 1.29 331 Brite Dish Soap 7,156
.
. YTD Sales : $9,231.24

Data Information

Figure 1-1

Information is seen as the result of a transformation, conversion or encoding

process; data, as the raw material, must be transformed into information. Information
always has a recipient or user; the recipient must experience that which is received as
meaningful or of value.
 The conclusion that the only condition for data to become information is that it
must be meaningful to the recipient follows from these two assumptions: that the
conversion of data makes it more meaningful to the recipient; and that meaningful data
should have an effect on the recipient. The meaningful to the recipient condition is
necessary and sufficient. One information scientist cited “Data, as distinct to information,
simply means something is given. It is an assumed to be fact. The fact is not necessarily
accurate or inaccurate; it is simply a given. Information assumes a level of
understanding and interpretation with respect to that fact or those facts. …. Human
interaction with the data system, as I’ll call it, is significant in determining whether the
result is information or data (Wurman, 1989, p.36).”

Three activities in an information system produce the information that

organizations need to make decisions, control operations, analyze problems, and create
new products or services. These activities are input, processing, and output (see Figure
1-2). Input captures or collects raw data from within the organization or from its external
environment. Processing converts this raw input into a meaningful form. Output transfers
the processed information to the people who will use it or to the activities for which it will
be used. Information systems also require feedback, which is output that is returned to
appropriate members of the organization to help them evaluate or correct the input
stage.

Figure 1-2

An information system contains information about an organization and its

surrounding environment. Three basic activities- input, processing, and output; produce
the information organizations need. Feedback is output returned to appropriate people or
activities in the organization (stakeholders) to evaluate and redefine the input. Mitroff
(1983) defined stake holders as “all those parties who either affect or who are affected
by an organization’s actions, behaviors and polices”.

In order to understand the relationship between inputs, outputs and processes,

one need to understand the environment in which all of this occurs. The environment
represents everything that is important to understanding the functioning of the system,
but is not part of the system. The environment it is that part of the world that can be
ignored in the analysis except for its interaction with the system. It includes: competition,
people, technology, capital, raw materials, data, regulation and opportunities. The
boundary defines the difference between the environment and the system; the correct
boundary is a function of the problem under consideration.

In SSMC’s (Systems on Silicon Manufacturing Co.Pte.Ltd) system for the

application of leave, E-leave system, through its intranet, the raw input consists of date
of application, number of days to apply, applicant’s name, employee’s ID and the
covering officer. SSMC’s computers store these data in the Leave DBMS and process
them to calculate leave taken to date, calculate current application and format into an
email request. The output consists of approval/disapproval of leave application in the
form of email, reason in the case of disapproval and number of leave taken in total. The
system provides meaningful information, such as the number of leave taken in a year for
the HR to compute into the payroll.

To fully understand information systems, one will need to be aware of the broader
organization, people, and information technology dimensions of systems (see Figure 1-
3) and their power to provide solutions to challenges and problems in the business
environment. Information systems literacy requires an understanding of the
organizational and people dimensions of information systems as well as the technical
dimensions addressed by computer literacy. Information systems literacy draws on both
technical and behavioral approaches to studying information systems.

Figure 1-3
 An information system provides a solution to a problem or challenge facing a firm
and represents a combination of people, organization, and technology elements. The
people dimension of information systems involves issues such as training, job attitudes,
and management behavior. The technology dimension consists of computer hardware,
software, data management technology, and networking/telecommunications technology.
The organization dimension of information systems involves issues such as the
organization’s hierarchy, functional specialties, business processes, culture, and political
interest groups.

To sum up, Waring, A (1996) definition of information system as “a recognizable

whole which consists of a number of parts that are connected up in an organized way”.
Each components and elements (mentioned above) plays an important role in order to
achieve the six major objectives in business today: operational excellence; new
products, service, and business models; customer/supplier intimacy; improved decision
making; competitive advantage; and day-to-day survival. This explains the need of
information systems for conducting business today.

Reference:
Davis, G.B. and Olsen, M.H. (1985), Management Information Systems: Conceptual
Foundations, Structure and Development, McGraw-Hill.

Kenneth C.Laudon and Jane P.Laudon (2007), Essentials of Business Information

Systems, Pearson International Edition.

Lucas D. Introna(1997), Management, Information and Power, Macmillan Press Ltd.

Mitroff I.I. (1983), Stakeholders of the Organizational Mind, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco.

Wurman R.S. (1989), Information Anxiety: what to do when informal doesn’t tell you what
you want to know, Bantam Books.