ECOM 500 Module 07: Critical Thinking

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Computer Science

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Reviewing The Adventures of an IT Leader

For this assignment, complete a 3-5 page summary based on your readings in The Adventures of an IT Leader. (Chapter 16 in The Adventures of an IT Leader )

As you read the chapters, think about pertinent issues and the relationship of these factors to situation outcomes. As you prepare your paper, respond to the following questions:

  • How much time and effort should an information technology (IT) department devote to scanning for and analyzing emerging technologies?
  • What are your responses to Bernie Ruben’s three questions in taking action on the blog issue at IVK:
    • What if anything should we do about this blog entry?
    • What should be our general policy about blogging based on inside information from within the company?
    • What should be our process for spotting emerging technologies and analyzing them to see how they might be relevant to use for better or worse?
  • Which of the three proposed processes should IVK sue for enforcing infrastructure technology standards? Recommend and justify.
  • Is IT standardization and innovation (or flexibility) in conflict in an organization like IVK?
  • What do you think of the kid’s toolkit approach to management?

Use academic writing standards and APA style guidelines, citing references as appropriate.

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CONTENTS: CASE STUDIES CASE STUDY 1 Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A): The Role of the Operating Manager in Information Systems CASE STUDY I-1 IMT Custom Machine Company, Inc.: Selection of an Information Technology Platform CASE STUDY I-2 VoIP2.biz, Inc.: Deciding on the Next Steps for a VoIP Supplier CASE STUDY I-3 The VoIP Adoption at Butler University CASE STUDY I-4 Supporting Mobile Health Clinics: The Children’s Health Fund of New York City CASE STUDY I-5 Data Governance at InsuraCorp CASE STUDY I-6 H.H. Gregg’s Appliances, Inc.: Deciding on a New Information Technology Platform CASE STUDY I-7 Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (B): Cleaning Up an Information Systems Debacle CASE STUDY II-1 Vendor-Managed Inventory at NIBCO CASE STUDY II-2 Real-Time Business Intelligence at Continental Airlines CASE STUDY II-3 Norfolk Southern Railway: The Business Intelligence Journey CASE STUDY II-4 Mining Data to Increase State Tax Revenues in California CASE STUDY II-5 The Cliptomania™ Web Store: An E-Tailing Start-up Survival Story CASE STUDY II-6 Rock Island Chocolate Company, Inc.: Building a Social Networking Strategy CASE STUDY III-1 Managing a Systems Development Project at Consumer and Industrial Products, Inc. CASE STUDY III-2 A Make-or-Buy Decision at Baxter Manufacturing Company CASE STUDY III-3 ERP Purchase Decision at Benton Manufacturing Company, Inc. CASE STUDY III-4 The Kuali Financial System: An Open-Source Project CASE STUDY III-5 NIBCO’s “Big Bang”: An SAP Implementation CASE STUDY III-6 BAT Taiwan: Implementing SAP for a Strategic Transition CASE STUDY III-7 A Troubled Project at Modern Materials, Inc. CASE STUDY III-8 Purchasing and Implementing a Student Management System at Jefferson County School System CASE STUDY IV-1 The Clarion School for Boys, Inc.– Milwaukee Division: Making Information Systems Investments CASE STUDY IV-2 FastTrack IT Integration for the Sallie Mae Merger CASE STUDY IV-3 IT Infrastructure Outsourcing at Schaeffer (A): The Outsourcing Decision CASE STUDY IV-4 IT Infrastructure Outsourcing at Schaeffer (B): Managing the Contract CASE STUDY IV-5 Systems Support for a New Baxter Manufacturing Company Plant in Mexico CASE STUDY IV-6 The Challenges of Local System Design for Multinationals: The MaxFli Sales Force Automation System at BAT CASE STUDY IV-7 Meridian Hospital Systems, Inc.: Deciding Which IT Company to Join CASE STUDY IV-8 Mary Morrison’s Ethical Issue Seventh Edition Managing Information Technology Carol V. Brown Howe School of Technology Management, Stevens Institute of Technology Daniel W. DeHayes Kelley School of Business, Indiana University Jeffrey A. Hoffer School of Business Administration, The University of Dayton E. Wainright Martin Kelley School of Business, Indiana University William C. Perkins Kelley School of Business, Indiana University Prentice Hall Boston Columbus Indianapolis New York San Francisco Upper Saddle River Amsterdam Cape Town Dubai London Madrid Milan Munich Paris Montreal Toronto Delhi Mexico City Sao Paulo Sydney Hong Kong Seoul Singapore Taipei Tokyo Editorial Director: Sally Yagan Editor in Chief: Eric Svendsen AVP/Executive Editor: Bob Horan Editorial Project Manager: Mary Kate Murray Editorial Assistant: Jason Calcano Director of Marketing: Patrice Lumumba Jones Senior Marketing Manager: Anne Fahlgren Production Manager: Debbie Ryan Art Director: Jayne Conte Cover Designer: Bruce Kenselaar Photo Researcher: Karen Sanatar Manager, Rights and Permissions: Hessa Albader Cover Art: Fotolia Media Editor: Denise Vaughn Media Project Manager: Lisa Rinaldi Full-Service Project Management: Integra Software Services Pvt. Ltd. Printer/Binder: Edwards Brothers Cover Printer: Leghigh-Phoenex Color Text Font: 10/12, Times Credits and acknowledgments borrowed from other sources and reproduced, with permission, in this textbook appear on appropriate page within the text. Microsoft® and Windows® are registered trademarks of the Microsoft Corporation in the U.S.A. and other countries. Screen shots and icons reprinted with permission from the Microsoft Corporation. This book is not sponsored or endorsed by or affiliated with the Microsoft Corporation. Copyright ©2012, 2009, 2005, 2002, 1999 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Prentice Hall, One Lake Street, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458. All rights reserved. Manufactured in the United States of America. This publication is protected by Copyright, and permission should be obtained from the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or likewise. To obtain permission(s) to use material from this work, please submit a written request to Pearson Education, Inc., Permissions Department, One Lake Street, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458. Many of the designations by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and the publisher was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed in initial caps or all caps. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Managing information technology / Carol V. Brown . . . [et al.]. — 7th ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-13-214632-6 (alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-13-214632-0 (alk. paper) 1. Management information systems. I. Brown, Carol V. (Carol Vanderbilt), 1945T58.6.M3568 2012 658.4'038011—dc22 2010048598 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ISBN 10: 0-13-214632-0 ISBN 13: 978-0-13-214632-6 BRIEF CONTENTS Chapter 1 Managing IT in a Digital World PART I Information Technology Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 1 17 Computer Systems 19 Telecommunications and Networking The Data Resource 95 60 PART II Applying Information Technology Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Enterprise Systems 189 Managerial Support Systems E-Business Systems 253 187 223 PART III Acquiring Information Systems 327 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Basic Systems Concepts and Tools 329 Methodologies for Custom Software Development 361 Methodologies for Purchased Software Packages 390 IT Project Management 410 PART IV The Information Management System Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 517 Planning Information Systems Resources 519 Leading the Information Systems Function 536 Information Security 561 Social, Ethical, and Legal Issues 575 Glossary 668 Index 691 iii This page intentionally left blank CONTENTS Preface xvii Chapter 1 Managing IT in a Digital World 1 Recent Information Technology Trends 2 Computer Hardware: Faster, Cheaper, Mobile 2 Computer Software: Integrated, Downloadable, Social 2 Computer Networks: High Bandwidth, Wireless, Cloudy New Ways to Compete 4 New Ways to Work 5 Managing IT in Organizations Managing IT Resources IT Leadership Roles 4 5 5 7 The Topics and Organization of This Textbook 8 Review Questions 9 • Discussion Questions 9 • Bibliography 9 왘 CASE STUDY 1 Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A): The Role of the Operating Manager in Information Systems 10 PART I Information Technology Chapter 2 Computer Systems 17 19 Basic Components of Computer Systems 20 Underlying Structure 20 Input/Output 20 Computer Memory 21 Arithmetic/Logical Unit Computer Files Control Unit 23 23 25 The Stored-Program Concept 25 Types of Computer Systems 28 Microcomputers 29 Midrange Systems 30 Mainframe Computers Supercomputers 33 34 Key Types of Software 34 Applications Software 36 An Example of an Application Product Personal Productivity Software Support Software 37 38 41 The Operating System Language Translators 41 43 v vi Contents Third Generation Languages 43 Fourth Generation Languages Markup Languages 46 48 Object-Oriented Programming 49 Languages for Developing Web Applications Database Management Systems CASE Tools 51 52 54 Communications Interface Software Utility Programs 54 54 The Changing Nature of Software 55 The Information Technology Industry 55 Review Questions 56 • Discussion Questions 57 • Bibliography 58 Chapter 3 Telecommunications and Networking The Need for Networking 61 Sharing of Technology Resources Sharing of Data 60 61 61 Distributed Data Processing and Client/Server Systems Enhanced Communications 62 62 Marketing Outreach 62 An Overview of Telecommunications and Networking 62 Key Elements of Telecommunications and Networking 63 Analog and Digital Signals 63 Speed of Transmission 64 Types of Transmission Lines Transmission Media 65 65 Topology of Networks Types of Networks 72 Network Protocols 86 70 The Exploding Role of Telecommunications and Networking 88 Online Operations Connectivity 88 89 Electronic Data Interchange and Electronic Commerce 89 Marketing 89 The Telecommunications Industry 90 Review Questions 92 • Discussion Questions 92 • Bibliography 93 Chapter 4 The Data Resource 95 Why Manage Data? 96 Technical Aspects of Managing the Data Resource The Data Model and Metadata Data Modeling 98 Database Programming 100 97 97 Contents Managerial Issues in Managing Data Principles in Managing Data 101 101 The Data Management Process 106 Data Management Policies 110 Review Questions 114 • Discussion Questions 114 • Bibliography 114 왘 CASE STUDY I-1 IMT Custom Machine Company, Inc.: Selection of an Information Technology Platform 116 왘 CASE STUDY I-2 VoIP2.biz, Inc.: Deciding on the Next Steps for a VoIP Supplier 128 왘 CASE STUDY I-3 The VoIP Adoption at Butler University 144 왘 CASE STUDY I-4 Supporting Mobile Health Clinics: The Children’s Health Fund of New York City 157 왘 CASE STUDY I-5 Data Governance at InsuraCorp 166 왘 CASE STUDY I-6 HH Gregg: Deciding on a New Information Technology Platform 170 왘 CASE STUDY I-7 Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (B): Cleaning up an Information Systems Debacle 177 PART II Applying Information Technology Chapter 5 Enterprise Systems 189 Application Areas 189 Critical Concepts 187 191 Batch Processing versus Online Processing 191 Functional Information Systems Vertical Integration of Systems Distributed Systems 192 Client/Server Systems Virtualization 192 192 193 194 Service-Oriented Architecture and Web Services 194 Transaction Processing Systems Payroll System 196 196 Order Entry System 196 Enterprise Resource Planning Systems 198 An Example ERP System: SAP ERP 199 Data Warehousing 201 Customer Relationship Management Systems 204 Office Automation 206 Videoconferencing Electronic Mail 207 208 Groupware and Collaboration 209 An Example Groupware System: Lotus Notes 210 vii viii Contents Intranets and Portals 213 Factory Automation 215 Engineering Systems 216 Manufacturing Administration 216 Factory Operations Robotics 217 217 Supply Chain Management Systems 217 Review Questions 219 • Discussion Questions 220 • Bibliography 220 Chapter 6 Managerial Support Systems 223 Decision Support Systems 223 Data Mining 224 Group Support Systems 228 Geographic Information Systems 229 Business Adopts Geographic Technologies What’s Behind Geographic Technologies 230 231 Issues for Information Systems Organizations 232 Executive Information Systems/Business Intelligence Systems 234 Knowledge Management Systems 237 Two Recent KMS Initiatives within a Pharmaceutical Firm KMS Success 240 Artificial Intelligence 241 Expert Systems 241 Obtaining an Expert System 242 Examples of Expert Systems 242 Neural Networks 244 Virtual Reality 245 Review Questions 250 • Discussion Questions 250 • Bibliography 251 Chapter 7 E-Business Systems 253 Brief History of the Internet E-Business Technologies 254 254 Legal and Regulatory Environment 257 Strategic E-Business Opportunities (and Threats) B2B Applications 260 B2C Applications 263 Two Dot-Com Retailers 264 Two Traditional Catalog Retailers Two Traditional Store Retailers Summary: B2C Retailing 268 266 267 259 239 Contents Dot-Com Intermediaries 269 Summary: Successful Online Intermediary Models 273 Special Issue: What Makes a Good Web Site for Consumers 273 Special Issue: What Makes a Good B2C Social Media Platform 275 Review Questions 276 • Discussion Questions 276 • Bibliography 277 왘 CASE STUDY II-1 Vendor-Managed Inventory at NIBCO 279 왘 CASE STUDY II-2 Real-Time Business Intelligence at Continental Airlines 284 왘 CASE STUDY II-3 Norfolk Southern Railway: The Business Intelligence Journey 294 왘 CASE STUDY II-4 Mining Data To Increase State Tax Revenues in California 300 왘 CASE STUDY II-5 The CliptomaniaTM Web Store 308 왘 CASE STUDY II-6 Rock Island Chocolate Company, Inc.: Building a Social Networking Strategy 321 PART III Acquiring Information Systems 327 Chapter 8 Basic Systems Concepts and Tools The Systems View What Is a System? 329 329 330 Seven Key System Elements Organizations as Systems 330 334 Systems Analysis and Design 335 Business Processes 336 Identifying Business Processes 336 Business Process Redesign 336 Processes and Techniques to Develop Information Systems 339 The Information Systems Development Life Cycle 339 Structured Techniques for Life-Cycle Development 340 Procedural-Oriented Techniques 341 Techniques for the As-Is Model 343 Techniques for the Logical To-Be Model 344 Techniques for Documenting the Physical To-Be System 348 Object-Oriented Techniques 351 Core Object-Oriented Concepts 351 Summary of Processes and Techniques to Develop Information Systems 353 ix x Contents Information Systems Controls to Minimize Business Risks Types of Control Mechanisms 355 Controls in the Definition and Construction Phases 355 Controls in the Implementation Phase 357 Review Questions 358 • Discussion Questions 359 • Bibliography 359 Chapter 9 Methodologies for Custom Software Development 361 Systems Development Life Cycle Methodology 361 The SDLC Steps 362 Initiating New Systems Projects Definition Phase 363 363 Construction Phase 365 Implementation Phase 366 The SDLC Project Team 370 Managing an SDLC Project 371 SDLC Advantages and Disadvantages Prototyping Methodology The Prototyping Steps 371 373 373 The Prototyping Project Team 375 Managing a Prototyping Project 375 Prototyping Advantages and Disadvantages Prototyping Within an SDLC Process Newer Approaches 375 376 377 Rapid Application Development (RAD) Agile Methodologies 377 378 Managing Software Projects Using Outsourced Staff 381 Supporting User Application Development (UAD) 382 Advantages and Disadvantages of User-Developed Applications 382 Assessing the Risks from UAD 384 Guidelines for User Developers 385 Review Questions 387 • Discussion Questions 387 • Bibliography 388 Chapter 10 Methodologies for Purchased Software Packages The Make-or-Buy Decision 391 Purchasing Methodology 391 The Purchasing Steps 392 Project Team for Purchasing Packages Managing a Purchased System Project 400 401 Purchasing Advantages and Disadvantages Special Case: Enterprise System Packages Open Source Software 405 402 403 390 354 Contents New Purchasing Option: Application Service Providers (ASPs) 406 Review Questions 408 • Discussion Questions 408 • Bibliography 409 Chapter 11 IT Project Management 410 IT Portfolio Management 411 Project Management Roles 412 Project Manager 412 Project Sponsor and Champion Roles 413 Project Initiation 415 Project Planning 416 Scheduling Budgeting Staffing 416 417 418 Planning Documents 420 Project Execution and Control 420 Managing Project Risks 423 Managing Business Change 424 Project Closing 426 Special Issue: Managing Complex IT Projects Special Issue: Managing Virtual Teams 427 427 Review Questions 430 • Discussion Questions 430 • Bibliography 431 왘 CASE STUDY III-1 Managing a Systems Development Project at Consumer and Industrial Products, Inc. 432 왘 CASE STUDY III-2 A Make-or-Buy Decision at Baxter Manufacturing Company 442 왘 CASE STUDY III-3 ERP Purchase Decision at Benton Manufacturing Company, Inc. 449 왘 CASE STUDY III-4 The Kuali Financial System: An Open-Source Project 455 왘 CASE STUDY III-5 NIBCO’s “Big Bang”: An SAP Implementation 468 왘 CASE STUDY III-6 BAT Taiwan: Implementing SAP for a Strategic Transition 484 왘 CASE STUDY III-7 A Troubled Project at Modern Materials, Inc. 498 왘 CASE STUDY III-8 Purchasing and Implementing a Student Management System at Jefferson County School System 506 PART IV The Information Management System Chapter 12 Planning Information Systems Resources 519 Benefits of Information Resources Planning 519 Creating a Context for IS Resource Decisions Aligning IS and Business Goals 520 520 517 xi xii Contents Balancing the Trade-offs Between Standardization and Agility Obtaining IT Capital Investment Approvals 520 The Information Resources Planning Process 520 Assessing The Current Information Resources 521 Measuring IS Use and Attitudes 521 Reviewing the IS Organizational Mission 522 Assessing Performance versus Goals 523 Creating an Information Vision 524 Designing the IT Architecture 524 Formulating the Strategic IS Plan 526 The Strategic IS Planning Process 526 Tools for Identifying IT Strategic Opportunities 527 Formulating Operational IS Plans 532 Guidelines for Effective IS Planning 532 Review Questions 534 • Discussion Questions 534 • Bibliography 534 Chapter 13 Leading the Information Systems Function 536 IS Organization Responsibilities and Governance 537 Managing IT Service Delivery 539 Chargeback Systems 539 Service Level Agreements (SLAs) 541 IT Service Management with ITIL 542 Supporting Computer Users 543 Strategies for User Computing 543 Support Services 544 Control Policies and Procedures Supporting Telecommuters Managing IT Applications 546 546 548 An Applications Portfolio Approach 548 Metrics for IT Applications Management 549 Managing IT Human Resources 549 Managing the Business/IT Relationship 553 Measuring Overall IS Performance 554 Special Issue: IS Management in Global Organizations Special Issue: Managing IT Outsourcing 556 Review Questions 558 • Discussion Questions 559 • Bibliography 559 Chapter 14 Information Security 561 Computer Crime 561 The Chief Security Officer Role 565 554 520 Contents Risk Management for Information Security 565 Compliance with Laws and Regulations 567 Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) 567 Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 (GBLA) 569 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) The PATRIOT Act 569 Organizational Polices for Information Security Planning for Business Continuity 571 Electronic Records Management (ERM) 571 569 Review Questions 573 • Discussion Questions 574 • Bibliography 574 Chapter 15 Social, Ethical, and Legal Issues 575 The Legal Environment 575 Ethics Frameworks 576 Identifying Ethical Problems Analyzing Ethical Problems 576 577 Social Issues 578 Privacy 579 Privacy Problems 579 E-Commerce Privacy Concerns 580 Workplace Privacy 581 Ethics of Invasion of Privacy 582 Laws on Privacy 582 Identity Theft 583 Impact of Identity Theft 584 Laws on Identity Theft 585 Intellectual Property Rights 585 Software Piracy 586 Copyright Protection Patent Protection 586 586 Digital Entertainment Piracy 587 Internet File Sharing 587 Ethical Questions 589 Other Social Issues 589 Access to the Technology 589 Freedom of Speech 590 Hazards of Inaccuracy 590 Impact on Workers The Future 590 591 Review Questions 591 • Discussion Questions 592 • Bibliography 592 569 xiii xiv Contents 왘 CASE STUDY IV-1 The Clarion School for Boys, Inc.—Milwaukee Division: Making Information Systems Investments 594 왘 CASE STUDY IV-2 FastTrack IT Integration for the Sallie Mae Merger 611 왘 CASE STUDY IV-3 IT Infrastructure Outsourcing at Schaeffer (A): The Outsourcing Decision 628 왘 CASE STUDY IV-4 IT Infrastructure Outsourcing at Schaeffer (B): Managing the Contract 634 왘 CASE STUDY IV-5 Systems Support for a New Baxter Manufacturing Company Plant in Mexico 642 왘 CASE STUDY IV-6 The Challenges of Local System Design for Multinationals: The MaxFli Sales Force Automation System at BAT 647 왘 CASE STUDY IV-7 Meridian Hospital Systems, Inc.: Deciding Which IT Company to Join 660 왘 CASE STUDY IV-8 Mary Morrison’s Ethical Issue Glossary 668 Index 691 666 CONTENTS: CASE STUDIES Case Study 1 Case Study I-1 Case Study I-2 Case Study I-3 Case Study I-4 Case Study I-5 Case Study I-6 Case Study I-7 Case Study II-1 Case Study II-2 Case Study II-3 Case Study II-4 Case Study II-5 Case Study II-6 Case Study III-1 Case Study III-2 Case Study III-3 Case Study III-4 Case Study III-5 Case Study III-6 Case Study III-7 Case Study III-8 Case Study IV-1 Case Study IV-2 Case Study IV-3 Case Study IV-4 Case Study IV-5 Case Study IV-6 Case Study IV-7 Case Study IV-8 Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A): The Role of the Operating Manager in Information Systems 10 IMT Custom Machine Company, Inc.: Selection of an Information Technology Platform 116 VoIP2.biz, Inc.: Deciding on the Next Steps for a VoIP Supplier 128 The VoIP Adoption at Butler University 144 Supporting Mobile Health Clinics: The Children’s Health Fund of New York City 157 Data Governance at InsuraCorp 166 HH Gregg: Deciding on a New Information Technology Platform 170 Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (B): Cleaning Up an Information Systems Debacle 177 Vendor-Managed Inventory at NIBCO 279 Real-Time Business Intelligence at Continental Airlines 284 Norfolk Southern Railway: The Business Intelligence Journey 294 Mining Data to Increase State Tax Revenues in California 300 The Cliptomania™ Web Store 308 Rock Island Chocolate Company, Inc.: Building a Social Networking Strategy 321 Managing a Systems Development Project at Consumer and Industrial Products, Inc. 432 A Make-or-Buy Decision at Baxter Manufacturing Company 442 ERP Purchase Decision at Benton Manufacturing Company, Inc. 449 The Kuali Financial System: An Open-Source Project 455 NIBCO’s “Big Bang”: An SAP Implementation 468 BAT Taiwan: Implementing SAP for a Strategic Transition 484 A Troubled Project at Modern Materials, Inc. 498 Purchasing and Implementing a Student Management System at Jefferson County School System 506 The Clarion School for Boys, Inc.—Milwaukee Division: Making Information Systems Investments 594 FastTrack IT Integration for the Sallie Mae Merger 611 IT Infrastructure Outsourcing at Schaeffer (A): The Outsourcing Decision 628 IT Infrastructure Outsourcing at Schaeffer (B): Managing the Contract 634 Systems Support for a New Baxter Manufacturing Company Plant in Mexico 642 The Challenges of Local System Design for Multinationals: The MaxFli Sales Force Automation System at BAT 647 Meridian Hospital Systems, Inc.: Deciding Which IT Company to Join 660 Mary Morrison’s Ethical Issue 666 xv This page intentionally left blank PREFACE Today’s private and public organizations are increasingly dependent on information technologies for achieving their strategic and operational objectives. Over the past decade alone, enterprise systems have been expanded to provide secure, electronic linkages with suppliers and customers, and the Internet has become a mainstream channel for communications and business transactions. As a result, decision making about information technology resources has also become even more visible as the roles and accountabilities of the IS function have become important not only operationally but also strategically. The overall objectives and targeted audience for this edition remain the same as for the prior sixth edition: to provide comprehensive coverage of IS management practices and technology trends for advanced students and managers. Earlier editions of this textbook have been used for courses in MBA, MS in IS, and executive education programs, as well as in advanced undergraduate courses. We believe that our approach of providing both up-to-date chapter content and full-length case studies, written by the same authors, results in a unique set of materials for educators to customize for students seeking careers as business managers, IS managers, or IS specialists. NEW TO THIS EDITION • All 15 chapters in this edition have been revised to reflect up-to-date technology trends and state-of-the-art IS management practices. • The total number of chapters has been reduced from 17 to 15 to better match the semester schedules of many of our textbook adopters. • Overall topical coverage has been retained, but we have reduced some presentations of the content as follows: • Chapter 2 (Computer Systems) includes content from separate chapters on computer hardware and computer software in the sixth edition. • The content from Chapter 13 of the sixth edition has now been incorporated into two chapters in the seventh edition: The discussion of key characteristics of user-developed applications appears in Chapter 9 (Methodologies for Custom Software Development) and the discussion of support and control mechanisms for end-user computing appears in Chapter 13 (Leading the Information Systems Function). • The in-depth case studies in this edition include five completely new case studies and six that have been significantly revised. THE CHAPTER CONTENT Following an introductory chapter that sets the stage for learning about IS management roles and technology trends, the textbook chapters are presented in four parts: Part I—Information Technology provides background knowledge about major information technology components: hardware and software, networks, and data. Depending on the targeted audience, these chapters may be assigned as background readings as a kind of “level-setting” for students from different educational and work backgrounds and experiences. Part II—Applying Information Technology introduces in detail the capabilities of three categories of software applications: enterprise systems, managerial support systems, and e-business systems. Part III—Acquiring Information Systems prepares the reader for leading and participating in projects to design or select, implement, and support the utilization of software xvii xviii Preface applications—including methodologies for custom-developed systems and purchased software packages, as well as IT project management. Part IV—The Information Management System provides knowledge about effectively planning IS resources for the business, leading IS units responsible for provisioning these resources, and best practices for addressing information security, as well as larger social, legal, and ethical issues related to information technologies. THE TEACHING CASES To demonstrate real-world IS management challenges, this textbook also includes a set of six to eight full-length case studies for each of the four parts of the textbook. These full-length case studies are based on research by academic authors with access to Fortune 500 companies, midsized companies, and some not-for-profit or government organizations. Some of the company names are camouflaged, but many are not. The 30 case studies in this seventh edition provide rich descriptions of both successful and problematic real-world situations so that students can learn about the challenges of implementing new information systems, the capabilities of different types of software applications—including those that leverage the Internet, the difficulties encountered when managing IS projects with different levels of complexity, and approaches to effectively address systems integration and other technology leadership challenges—from both IS manager and non-IS manager perspectives. The five completely new case studies in the seventh edition address these specific topics: • • • • • implementing technologies to support mobile clinics (Case Study I-4) deciding on a new enterprise-level IT platform (Case Study I-6) developing a business intelligence capability (Case Study II-3) mining data to increase government tax revenues (Case Study II-4) exploring the potential organizational benefits of social media (Case Study II-6) Several other case studies have also been significantly revised to take into account new technical or managerial developments. THE SUPPLEMENT PACKAGE: WWW.PEARSONHIGHERED.COM/BROWN A comprehensive and flexible technology support package is available to enhance the teaching and learning experience. All instructor and student supplements are available on the text’s Web site. See www.pearsonhighered.com/brown. The Web site also includes a large number of “old favorite” case studies from earlier editions. Instructor Resource Center The following Instructor Resources are available on the secure faculty section of the Brown Web site: • Instructor’s Manual The Instructor’s Manual includes syllabi for several courses (both undergraduate and master’s level) that have used this book. It also includes lecture notes on each chapter, answers to the review and discussion questions at the end of each chapter, and teaching notes on the case studies that have been prepared by the authors. • Test Item File and TestGen Software The Test Item File includes multiple-choice and True/False questions for each chapter in this textbook. The Test Item File is available in Microsoft Word and for use with the computerized Prentice Hall TestGen, as well as WebCT and Blackboard-ready conversions. TestGen is a comprehensive suite of tools for testing and assessment. Screen wizards and full technical support are available to instructors to help them create and distribute tests to their students, either by printing and distributing through traditional methods or by online delivery. Preface • PowerPoint Slides The PowerPoint slides that have been developed for this edition emphasize the key concepts in the text, include many of the figures in the text, and provide some Web links to enhance student learning. Faculty instructors can customize these presentations by adding their own slides and links to Web resources and/or by editing the existing ones. • The Image Library is a collection of the text art organized by chapter. This collection includes all of the figures, tables, and screenshots (as permission allows) from the book. These images can be used to enhance class lectures and PowerPoint slides. CourseSmart eTextbooks Online CourseSmart is an online delivery choice for instructors and students. If this alternative is selected, students purchase an electronic version of the textbook at a different price. The potential advantages of an etextbook are that students can search the text, make electronic notes, and bookmark important passages for later review (www.coursesmart.com). ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Our thanks go to our professional colleagues who have used one or more editions of this textbook and have provided valuable feedback to us directly, or responded to review requests by our publisher, since the first edition in 1991. The list is too long to provide here, but we hope that all of you will accept our collective, anonymous Thank You! Special thanks also go to academic colleagues (mostly current and prior Indiana University faculty and students) who have coauthored content for specific chapters that can still be found in this edition: Susan A. Brown, Dong-Gil Ko, Lisa Murphy, Jay Newquist, Madhu Rao, Blaize Reich, Andrew Urbaczewski, Ramesh Venkataraman, and Dwight Worker. The following individuals have also collaborated with us on case study research or coauthored the case studies that appear in this book: Ron Anderson-Lehman, S. Balaji, Greg Clancy, Tony Easterlin, Jane Fedorowicz, Janis L. Gogan, Dale Goodhue, Vijay Khatri, Scott A. Kincaid, Nicholas Lockwood, Stephen R. Nelson, Kevin Ryan, John Sacco, Rebecca Scholer, Mohan Tatikonda, Iris Vessey, Hugh Watson, Taylor Wells, Bradley Wheeler, Michael Williams, and Barbara Wixom. We have also benefited from several sources of support for our research that have led to the development of case studies for this textbook—including the IM Affiliates program at the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University, the EDS Corporation, British American Tobacco, SAP-America, Teradata Corporation, the Center for Information Systems Research at MIT’s Sloan School of Management, and the Society for Information Management (SIM). Our deep appreciation goes out to the reviewers of the sixth edition, who helped make the seventh edition better: T.C. Bradley, III, Indiana University; Chiang-Nan Chao, St. John’s University; Abbas Foroughi, University of Southern Indiana; Richard Gram, Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Georgia Miller, Indiana University-Purdue University at Columbus; Ezra Rhein, Brooklyn College; Robin Starnes, Texas A&M University; Manouchehr Tabatabaei, Georgia Southern University; Nolan J. Taylor, Indiana University; and Patricia White, Troy University. Finally, each author extends their gratitude to the other four for their intellect, professionalism, and longtime interest in providing quality instructional materials for today’s and tomorrow’s business managers and IS leaders. Carol V. Brown Daniel W. DeHayes Jeffrey A. Hoffer E. Wainright Martin William C. Perkins October 2010 xix This page intentionally left blank CHAPTER 1 Managing IT in a Digital World The utilization of information technology (IT) has become pervasive. Businesses not only have information systems (IS) that connect frontline employees with back-office accounting and production systems but also compete with dot-com (Internet only) companies via Web-based stores and online customer service channels. Travelers can access high-speed wireless networks from public transportation, airports, and even in-flight airplanes to keep them productive. Work teams may never meet face-to-face and regularly use meeting software and video conferencing. Workers may choose a BlackBerry, iPhone, or other smartphone to access office e-mail anytime, anywhere. And today’s schoolchildren find resources via Internet searches rather than card catalogs in school libraries. Today’s consumers also live in what has been called an increasingly “flat world” in which IT linkages across emerging, developing, and developed economies help to “level” the economic playing field (Friedman, 2005). Citizens across the globe may have access to world news online. Geographical positioning systems not only help travelers find the best route to their destination but can also facilitate the identification of a nearby retail store or restaurant. The designing and management of computer hardware, software, and networks to enable this pervasive digital world is the work of IT professionals. However, all business managers, not just IT managers, are responsible for wisely investing in and effectively utilizing these information technologies for the benefit of their organizations. By the year 2000, more than half of capital expenditures by businesses in developed countries were for IT purchases. The primary objective of this textbook is to increase your knowledge about IT management so that as a manager you can effectively invest in and utilize new and already in-place information technologies. In the following chapters we will describe • • • • technologies available today and emerging technology trends, software applications to support business operations and business intelligence, “best practices” for acquiring and implementing new systems, and planning and managing an IS department’s resources. The objective of this first textbook chapter is to set the stage for the remaining 14 chapters and the full-length case studies that follow. We use the term information technology (IT) as computer technology (hardware and software) for processing and storing information, as well as communications technology (voice and data networks) for transmitting information. We use the term information systems (IS) department to refer to the organizational unit or department that has the primary responsibility for managing IT. 1 2 Chapter 1 • Managing IT in a Digital World Next, we briefly describe some recent IT trends that have led to (1) new ways for businesses to compete and (2) new ways for employees to accomplish their work. Then we briefly introduce the key IT management responsibilities in today’s organizations and the types of IT assets that need to be managed in collaboration with business leaders. The chapter ends with a brief summary of the topics that will be covered in the remaining Parts I–IV of this textbook. RECENT INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRENDS As a personal user of various computer and communication devices, you are probably already aware of some of the innovations in computer systems and networks that have been introduced by IT vendors over the past decade. This fast-paced technological change makes it difficult to accurately predict the IT products and services that will be “winners” tomorrow—and significant mispredictions about technologies have been common in the past (see the box “Mispredictions by IT Industry Leaders”). However, it seems safe to predict that computer and communication devices will continue to touch almost every aspect of our lives. In Part I of this textbook, we will discuss in detail the key concepts underlying today’s computer systems (hardware and software) and network technologies. For now, let us briefly consider some of the technology developments that have already led to pervasive computing in the first decades of this twenty-first century. Computer Hardware: Faster, Cheaper, Mobile Computer-on-a-chip (microcomputer) technology was available as early as the 1970s, and the introduction of the first IBM Personal Computer (PC) in 1981 was the beginning of desktop computing. Today, desktop and portable computers produced by manufacturers around the world have become commodity products with processing power that is equivalent to an organization’s entire computing center of the 1960s. The typical computer for individuals to use today has graphical icons, point-and-click and/or touch screen navigation, and preloaded software to access the Internet—all at a cheaper price than what the same features would have cost 12 months earlier, with better computer virus protection. Because of their portability and wireless capabilities, lightweight laptop and notebook computers are replacing larger desktop machines in offices today. They can be carried into meetings, taken on business trips, and used at home to remotely connect to office systems. Smaller, handheld devices have also continued to improve in functionality and have become indispensable tools to access e-mail and other applications inside and outside of the office, on the factory floor, as well as in hospital corridors. In mid-2007, Apple Computer began selling a new smartphone (iPhone) with touch screen navigation and scrolling, and simplified calling from an address book, e-mail and text messaging, visual voice mail, video playing, and Web browsing via Wi-Fi connectivity. Since then, other IT vendors have been developing smartphones with similar features, and Apple has introduced a lightweight notebook computer (the iPad) with a similar interface. Computer Software: Integrated, Downloadable, Social By the early 1990s, Microsoft Corporation’s Windows software had become the standard operating system for the vast majority of microcomputers being used as desktop and portable computer “clients.” By the end of the 1990s, Microsoft’s Office suite (i.e., word processing, spreadsheet, database, slideshow presentation, and e-mail software sold in a single bundle) as well as its Web browser (Internet Mispredictions by IT Industry Leaders This “telephone” has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us. —Western Union internal memo, 1876 I think there is a world market for maybe five computers. —Thomas Watson, Chairman of IBM, 1943 But what [is a microchip] good for? Engineer at the Advanced Computing Systems Division of IBM, 1968 There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home. —Ken Olson, President, Chairman, and Founder of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977 640K ought to be enough for anybody. —Attributed to Bill Gates, Chairman of Microsoft, 1981 [Based on Kappelman, 2001; Jones, 2003] Chapter 1 • Managing IT in a Digital World 3 The New App Economy Downloadable software apps have sparked a growth surge in the software industry. Apple introduced the iPad to U.S. buyers in April 2010, and within a few days after its launch, more than 3,000 new applications were available for downloading—in addition to the 150,000 apps originally developed for the iPhone or iTouch—including news apps for the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and USA Today. One reason for this rapid growth is that there are virtually no “barriers to entry.” Another is that in October 2009 iPhone developers were told that they could give away their applications on an experimental basis and ask for payment later. By late 2009, Yahoo didn’t have an App Store, but it listed apps for downloading on its home page. [Based on Boehret, 2010; MacMillan et al., 2009] Explorer) had become the de facto software in use in U.S. organizations and multinational companies. The presence of software standards made it easier for their employees to work and communicate with other employees and business partners, even when working from multiple office locations. Today, many large companies and now midsized and smaller organizations have also made capital investments in enterprise systems: software packages with integrated modules that can easily share data across dispersed work teams, business divisions, and national boundaries in “real time.” Enterprise systems have now been widely adopted by manufacturing and service firms of all types and sizes in the United States and around the globe. Software applications that can access a customer’s database can now be used more easily by suppliers to replenish materials for that customer, and customers can check on the status of their orders via the Internet. Downloadable applications of bit-size software programs for smartphones and larger programs for other portable devices have now also become pervasive. Two years after the iPhone was first introduced, Apple’s App Store had 85,000 applications that millions of iPhone owners had downloaded. In fact, the ongoing success of the iPhone by Apple is to some degree due to the fact that more software apps are available for this Apple product than for any of its competitors. Today’s mobile devices have therefore catalysts for a whole new software industry market (see the box “The New App Economy”). Another remarkable software trend has been the growth of so-called Web 2.0 or social media applications, such as profile sharing software (e.g., Facebook, LinkedIn), cogenerated information tools (e.g., Wikis, blogs), and information messaging tools (e.g., Twitter). Although initially these software applications were hosted on Web sites designed for public communities, today these same tools may be used by a company’s marketing and public relations groups for branding and other marketing activities (Culnan et al., 2010). Similar tools are also being used on internal networks (intranets) for connecting company employees across time, distance, and divisional affiliation (Majchrzak et al., 2009). At IBM, for example, social networking tools are being used to bridge newer and more senior employees across the globe (see the box “Social Networking within IBM”). Social Networking within IBM Beehive is IBM’s intranet equivalent to Facebook. Within the first 15 months of its launch, more than 50,000 IBMers had joined and were sharing both work-related and personal information. ThinkPlace is a virtual forum for employees to suggest, comment on, rate, and route ideas. Within its first 3 years, more than 18,000 ideas had been suggested; of the 350 ideas actually implemented, over half had resulted in time savings improvements. SmallBlue identifies social networks within IBM by analyzing e-mail and electronic chats between employees who opt to participate. Employees can see visual displays of who knows what and who knows whom within the knowledge communities that they are a part of. 4 Chapter 1 • Managing IT in a Digital World Computer Networks: High Bandwidth, Wireless, Cloudy The introduction of a Web browser in the mid-1990s that used an Internet communications standard (TCP/IP) to link companies and individuals to the Internet has been described as a “killer application” due to its widespread global impact. Demands for high-speed Internet access have spurred investments by government and the private sector to install fiber-optic (high-bandwidth) lines. Today, many households in developed countries pay a monthly fee for cable, satellite, or a telephone utility for integrated data, voice, and perhaps television services in their homes. New investments by Western countries in high-bandwidth lines to their own rural areas as well as to emerging nations in Africa are also being announced as this textbook goes to press. Satellite and cellular technologies now link remote workers to central support centers, travelers to travel services, and delivery personnel to transportation schedulers. Wireless technologies have also enabled some emerging countries to bypass expensive investments in hardwired telecommunications lines to more remote areas. Investments in wireless connectivity to better support mobile workers inside an organization’s walls have also recently increased. For example, physicians and nurses with mobile computer and communications devices have increased their productivity and service quality by communicating more easily with clinicians on other hospital floors or at other worksites as well as by accessing electronic patient records and test results at the patient’s bedside. Another growing trend has been the usage of the Internet to obtain remote “hosting” or other IT capabilities from “the cloud” (Bala and Henderson, 2010). In Softwareas-a-Service (SaaS) models, third-party service providers deploy, manage, and remotely host software applications on a rental or lease agreement. This is an especially attractive option for small organizations, but industry pioneers (such as salesforce.com) also provide 24*7 access to distributed organizations and remote workers for Fortune 1000 companies. Other vendors offer computer infrastructure services (IaaS) via the Internet, such as computer server processing and data storage, which enable organizations to more effectively handle peak processing loads. NEW WAYS TO COMPETE Computers and communication networks enable companies to compete in two primary ways (Porter, 2001): • Low Cost—competing with other businesses by being a low-cost producer of a good or a service • Differentiation—competing with other businesses by offering products or services that customers prefer due to a superiority in characteristics such as product innovativeness or image, product quality, or customer service Computers can lower the costs of products or services by automating business transactions, shortening order cycle times, and providing data for better operational decision making. Since the 1980s, a flood of IT innovations have led to efficiency gains in manufacturing firms alone—such as shortening the time to develop new products with computeraided design tools; optimizing a plant floor process with software that implements a human expert’s decision rules; and speedily changing a production line with computerized planning systems based on sales information. IT has also been used by companies to differentiate their products or services from those of competitors. IT applications can provide sales personnel with information to help them better service a specific customer; justin-time replenishments of supplies for business customers based on inventory levels rather than manually initiated purchasing orders; and decision support applications with embedded industry knowledge, such as best practices for first responders to treat a heart attack or stroke patient. After the introduction of the Web browser in the mid-1990s, most companies first began to use the Web to create a brand “presence” on the Internet: Managers registered memorable names for a URL for their company’s public Web site and then posted information (initially just based on hard-copy materials dubbed “brochureware”) for potential customers, stockholders, and other stakeholders. By the late 1990s, traditional companies could see how Amazon.com and other dot-com innovators were using the Web, and they too began to find innovative ways to use Web technologies to reach customers. However, since the features of a public Web site are also visible to competitors and can be quickly copied by them, it has also become more difficult for companies to compete by product or service differentiation via the Web than it perhaps was for them in an offline world. For example, a company’s customers may use Web sites that allow them to easily compare not only their products or services—and their prices—but also those offered by competitors. Consumers can also request their “own” price and be electronically alerted to price changes as they occur. The airline companies in particular have faced severe industry pressures for low prices and have found it more difficult to differentiate their services. On the other hand, the Internet can increase a company’s “reach” to new customers and new suppliers, who may even be on different continents. Airline companies now have a direct channel to consumers and business customers, which means they don’t have to pay travel agents or online Chapter 1 • Managing IT in a Digital World intermediaries to sell all of their tickets. Advertising via the Internet has also become increasingly common. Web sites can be programmed to display screens using a different language, different currency, and even perhaps local pricing, depending on the user’s browser location or selected preferences. Many businesses also buy, or sell, products using Web-based auctions with suppliers or business customers that they may never work with face-to-face. NEW WAYS TO WORK Recent IT innovations in computer hardware, software, and networks have also enabled people to work more productively as employees in an office—as well as working as telecommuters at a site far from a home office, as members of “virtual” teams, or even as “free agents” contracted by organizations for a short-term period. Sales personnel and other traveling managers have become telecommuters with portable computers and other mobile equipment that give them access to company data anytime (24 hours a day, 7 days a week) and essentially anywhere with an Internet connection. Some cities have also experimented with laws that require businesses to support telecommuting by implementing work schedules that require less commuting—such as four days working in the office and one day working outside it—to help protect the environment. Some new businesses might not even have a physical office building or headquarters. Instead, the company might operate as a “virtual organization” made up of individual professionals scattered across different domestic or global locations. Working as a member of a virtual team—that is, teams with members who are separated too far geographically to work face-to-face—has also become increasingly common. Team members may use software that supports online team meetings and document sharing as well as perhaps videoconferencing from an online computer or in specially equipped videoconferencing rooms. Team leaders have learned to motivate workers and coordinate across different time zones at different work sites on different continents. Individuals with specialized skills may also choose to work independently as free agents who contract out their services without being a permanent employee of any organization. Organizations may locate and hire free agents (from a Web site such as guru.com) to take advantage of time zone differences for designing slideshows, Web site development, telemarketing, or other specialized skills that are temporarily needed for a specific project or only needed periodically. By using free agents, companies also avoid having to make a long-term commitment to an employee for salary and expensive benefits (such as health care insurance). 5 MANAGING IT IN ORGANIZATIONS Within organizations, supporting these new ways of competing and new ways of working with computer systems and networks is the responsibility of the information systems (IS) department. Although essentially all modern organizations today are dependent on IT networks and applications for processing transactions and managerial decision-making support, not all organizations have the same level of dependency on IT. Some organizations may still use IT primarily for back-office support but rely heavily on person-to-person communications to operate their business; others may be heavily dependent on information systems up and running 24 ⫻ 7 for all their business operations but don’t aggressively invest in newer technologies to enable newer strategies (Nolan and McFarlan, 2005). Organizations also don’t always have the same level of IT dependency over time. For example, a change in the organization’s business leadership may result in more aggressive IT investments. Managing IT Resources Today’s increased dependence on IT by businesses in many different industries also requires IT leaders who know how to effectively plan for and manage the organization’s IT resources, as well as IT-savvy business leaders who can envision strategic IT utilization (Ross et al., 1996; Weill and Ross, 2009). In Figure 1.1, we introduce three types of IT resources, which we discuss in more detail below. Managing technology resources requires effective planning, building, and operating of a computer and communications infrastructure—an information “utility”—so that managers and other employees have the right information available as needed, anytime, TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE Technology Infrastructure Computer, software, and networks that enable an organization to conduct business and share information across organizational units as well as business partners Human Resources IT professionals and managers who have the needed mix of technology, business, and interpersonal skills to plan for, design, and manage the other IT resources Business/IT Relationships Established relationships between business and IT workers to ensure that the other IT resources are aligned with business needs FIGURE 1.1 Three Types of IT Resources 6 Chapter 1 • Managing IT in a Digital World anywhere. Just like cell phone users expect to be able to send and receive calls without being “dropped” by the network, computer users expect computers to be up and running, and networks to be available and fast, so that they can access software applications and data quickly and easily. Organizations with high operational dependence on IT systems are so dependent on IT that if an information system fails for a minute or more, or online response time exceeds a few seconds, employees can’t get their work done. When customer transactions can’t be processed, and suppliers can’t receive orders for materials, business revenues suffer. In a widely read but poorly titled article (called “IT Doesn’t Matter”) published in the Harvard Business Review a few years ago, the author argued that the primary IT management role today is to manage the costs and vulnerabilities of the computing “utility”—the data centers and networks that provide access to business data and applications (Carr, 2003). However, while this is a critical IT management role, sometimes outsourced to IT vendors, it is not the only one. Managing IT also requires identifying what new technologies to invest in and how to specifically tailor these new IT solutions to improve the way a specific company does business. Effective management of the technology asset therefore requires not only skilled IT managers and IT professionals—the human resources asset—but also active participation by business managers as captured by the third IT asset: the business/IT relationship asset. Managing the people resources for any business function requires attention to recruiting, developing, and retaining the best talent available. Today there is a high demand not just for IT personnel with specialized technology skills but also for personnel who have both technology skills coupled with business knowledge and interpersonal skills. Business analyst and systems analyst roles require personnel who can understand the IT needs of HUMAN RESOURCES workers in marketing, accounting, manufacturing, and other business functions, as well as knowledge of an industry (e.g., financial services or healthcare). IT professionals who have a business education, as well as technical skills, are therefore especially in demand for these types of roles. Business-facing positions such as these are also most effectively sourced by internal employees—not by employees of an outsourcing firm or by temporary external personnel. In the United States today, there are growing concerns about whether the supply of new college and university graduates with IT-related majors will be lower than the demand for entry-level, domestic IT workers. Although companies in developed countries such as the United States have increasingly been utilizing IT workers in less developed countries to take advantage of lower labor costs for software programming tasks in particular, IT professionals are still critically needed to perform important “in-house” IT roles. (These will be discussed further in Chapter 13.) BUSINESS/IT RELATIONSHIPS The importance of this type of IT resource was first brought to light in the mid1990s as packaged software systems and the Internet were catalysts for an increase in new IT investments (Ross et al., 1996). How well an organization uses joint IT-business decision making for making investments in a firm’s technology assets is so critical today that there needs to be a “blending” or “fusion” of IT and the business (see the box “Fusing IT and the Business”). Achieving business value from IT investments requires aligned goals for strong working partnerships between business managers and IT managers (Brown, 2004) to develop the business case for investing in new IT solutions and skill sets, for specifying the business requirements that will be used to design new IT applications, and for effectively implementing these new IT solutions so that the potential benefits become realized benefits. Fusing IT and the Business When Terry Pearce was an IT manager at a large financial services company several decades ago, he found that the business managers who refused to help the IT managers understand what new information systems they actually needed were the managers who ended up with the least successful IT projects. Their projects were delayed and more expensive than planned. He concluded that it wasn’t intentional. Rather, the business managers just couldn’t appreciate why their involvement was important; they saw IT as merely a tool—not as integral to their business. But to succeed in today’s digital economy, senior business managers in companies dependent on information need to be “IT-savvy.” When IT is the basis for a company’s competitive capabilities, business managers need to be confident in their abilities to build their company’s IT capabilities into a strategic asset. [Based on Pottruck and Pearce, 2000; Weill and Ross, 2009] Chapter 1 • Managing IT in a Digital World 7 CEO or President Business Unit #1 Business Unit #2 Business Unit #3 VP (IT) Individual VP (IT) Retirement Services VP (IT) Group CIO Corporate Applications Payroll HR Enterprise Architecture Planning and Finance Systems Operations FIGURE 1.2 Typical Example of IS Organization Chart for a Large Company with Multiple Business Units IT Leadership Roles Many organizations today have created an officer-level position for the senior IT executive in the organization: the chief information officer (CIO). Although in other organizations, the senior IT leader may not be formally designated as a CIO, all of today’s IT leaders are all expected to work closely with other senior managers to keep the company’s IT resources aligned with the goals of the business. Senior IT leaders may report directly to a president or CEO or may report to another officer in the company—such as a chief financial officer (CFO) or chief operating officer (COO). CIOs and other senior IT leaders come from a variety of backgrounds. Some managers are chosen to lead the IT organization because of their in-depth technical knowledge, but others may be chosen because of their abilities to work well with senior business leaders, not because of their technical know-how. A typical organization chart for an IS department in a large company that has multiple business units is shown in Figure 1.2. Reporting to this CIO are IT managers responsible for system operations (data centers and networks), technology and financial planning for the IS department, designing and building the company’s IT architecture, and acquiring and maintaining software applications. The latter includes IT managers over corporate applications (payroll and HR functions) as well as three IT vice presidents who are responsible for acquiring and maintaining applications for the company’s three business units. Unlike the other IT managers, these three vice presidents have a direct reporting relationship to the CIO (indicated by the solid lines) as well as a “matrix” reporting relationship to the general managers of the business units they support (indicated by the dotted lines). This dual reporting relationship helps ensure that the IS department’s resources are well aligned with the business; it is one approach to establishing and maintaining a strong business/IT relationship. Other important new roles for IT managers have also emerged. For example, some companies have created a chief security officer (CSO) position to plan for and monitor compliance with new federal laws and reporting requirements and to ensure that appropriate investments are made in technologies and procedures to manage IT security risks. Other new roles at the middle-management level help ensure that contracts with key outsourcing suppliers have successful outcomes (Willcocks and Griffiths, 2010). Senior business managers also play IT leadership roles by serving on committees that approve and prioritize new IT investments and by sponsoring IT investments for their business areas. Other business managers may serve as business process experts on IT project teams to select, design, and implement software packages. All of these business manager roles are critical because business leaders are the most knowledgeable about what changes in work processes will be needed to achieve the greatest business benefits from a new IT solution. Business managers can also best anticipate what operational obstacles might be encountered when implementing a new software application and actions that can be taken to avoid them. 8 Chapter 1 • Managing IT in a Digital World THE TOPICS AND ORGANIZATION OF THIS TEXTBOOK The primary objective of this textbook is to increase your knowledge about IT management so that as a manager you can effectively invest in and utilize new and old information technologies. The remaining chapters of this textbook have been grouped into four distinct parts, as described below. At the end of each part, we provide several fulllength case studies that were primarily written by the authors specifically for this textbook. Although some of the organization names are camouflaged, all of these cases are based on real-world practices and events. Part I. Chapters 2, 3, and 4 on computer systems, networks, and data present fundamental technology concepts and major IT industry developments. As will be described, business managers are frequently the designated “owners” of systems projects and organizational data sets (e.g., customer data, product data). Both IT and business managers therefore share responsibilities for ensuring data quality and appropriate security levels. Readers who have already studied the technologies described in Part 1 will benefit from the summary discussions, industry updates, as well as the sections on newer technology developments such as Web services, WiMAX networks, and cloud computing. Part II. Chapters 5, 6, and 7 provide in-depth descriptions of three different categories of software applications used by today’s organizations. Chapter 5 focuses on enterprise systems, including supplychain system applications that link a company with its customers or suppliers, as well as back-office systems for financial reporting and managing the company’s human resources. Chapter 6 describes different types of managerial support systems, which include applications to support daily operational decision making as well as strategic decision making using sophisticated analytical toolsets. Chapter 7 focuses on systems that leverage the Internet, including business-to-business (B2B) and businessto-consumer (B2C) applications, as well as Web sites that play intermediary roles (such as search engines). Successful e-business examples of both traditional and dot-com companies provide useful models for how companies in different industries can leverage the Internet to compete in a digital world. Part III. The four chapters in Part III describe methods and techniques for developing and implementing applications and managing IT projects, based on today’s “best practices.” Chapter 8 introduces systems thinking concepts and design methods that are common across the systems development methodologies described in the subsequent chapters. Chapter 9 discusses in detail both traditional and newer methodologies for custom application development. Although the primary focus is on custom software engineering by IT professionals, user application development methods are also discussed. Chapter 10 focuses on the selection, design, and implementation of purchased software packages, and Chapter 11 presents effective practices for managing IT projects in general. Special project management challenges addressed here include managing IT projects—including managing IT project risks and implementing business change as part of an IT project. Part IV. Chapters 12, 13, and 14 focus on how to effectively plan and manage an organization’s IT assets. Chapter 12 focuses on the strategic IT planning of information resources from a portfolio perspective. Chapter 13 describes today’s IS leadership roles and responsibilities in detail, including alternative IS governance designs and effective IT outsourcing practices. Chapter 14 focuses on information security practices, including managerial practices to help ensure IT security at multiple levels and IT-related compliance with federal laws and other regulations. The final chapter in this textbook, Chapter 15, addresses issues that extend beyond an organizational setting: social, ethical, and legal issues from the perspective of individuals and societies. Included here are the importance of maintaining the privacy of personal information and reducing vulnerabilities to identity theft crimes. Also discussed are some “unintended” social impacts of today’s digital technologies as well as some examples of IT-related ethical dilemmas faced by managers and computer users. As our seventh edition of this textbook is prepared for publication, we authors take pride in having witnessed the first decades of a digital age that holds great opportunities for those in developed countries as well as governments, organizations, and individuals in developing and emerging countries across the globe. Yet all of us—in our roles as managers, IT specialists, consumers, and world citizens— need to remain vigilant about not only how to effectively design and use IT but also how to fulfill our social and environmental responsibilities for the appropriate usage of today’s and tomorrow’s information technologies. Chapter 1 • Managing IT in a Digital World 9 Review Questions 1. Define what is encompassed in the term information technology. 2. What are some of the ways that IT has become “pervasive”? 3. What kinds of portable IT help employees work more efficiently and effectively? What may interfere with productivity? 4. What kinds of IT can help support teams when team members work at different locations? 5. How have some businesses used the Internet to compete based on low cost, product/service differentiation, or both? 6. What kind of a business might choose to have low levels of dependence on IT? 7. What three types of IT resources need to be managed well? 8. What are some examples of newer IT manager roles, and why are they needed today? 9. For what reasons might an IT manager have a reporting relationship with a CIO as well as with a senior business manager? Discussion Questions 1. Provide an example of how a business function with which you are familiar (e.g., sales, marketing, finance, operations/ production, accounting, human resources) utilizes IT for operational and/or strategic purposes. 2. Describe some ways that you personally use information technologies differently than you did just a few years ago. 3. Some organizations purposefully select a CIO that has strong business management backgrounds, not just technical experience. Under what organizational circumstances do you think this might be an effective choice? 4. Describe a new business for which you think a “virtual organization”—which has no physical office or headquarters— could be an effective design. What are some ways that the organization could use IT to help them effectively run their business? 5. Would you like to work as a free agent? Why or why not? 6. Using the Internet, identify what is meant by the term digital divide. What actions do you think could be taken to lessen this divide—both within your own country and elsewhere in the world? 7. Identify some Web sites for publications that could be useful supplementary resources for studying some of the IT topics in this textbook. Bibliography Bala, Iyer, and John C. Henderson. 2010. “Preparing for the future: Understanding the seven capabilities of cloud computing.” MIS Quarterly Executive 9, 2 (June): 117–131. Boehret, Katherine. 2010. “For the iPad, Apps with their own wow factor.” The Wall Street Journal (April 7): D3. Brown, Carol V. 2004. “Seamless IT alignment” in S. Chowdhury (ed.), Next Generation Business Handbook. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1157–1168. Carr, Nicholas. 2003. “IT doesn’t matter.” Harvard Business Review (May): 41–49. Culnan, Mary J., Patrick J. McHugh, and Jesus I. Zubillaga. 2010. “How large U.S. companies can use twitter and other social media to gain business value.” MIS Quarterly Executive 9, 4 (December): 243–259. Friedman, Thomas L. 2005. The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century. New York: Farrar, Strauss and Giroux. Jones, Kathryn. 2003. “The Dell way.” Business 2.0 (February): 23. Kappelman, Leon. 2001. “The future is ours.” Communications of the ACM 44, 3 (March): 46–47. MacMillan, Douglas, Peter Burrows, and Spencer E. Ante. 2009. “The App Economy.” BusinessWeek (November 2): 44–49. Majchrzak, Ann, Luba Cherbakov, and Blake Ives. 2009. “Social networking within corporations.” MIS Quarterly Executive 8, 2 (June): 103–108. Nolan, Richard, and F. Warren McFarlan. 2005. “Information technology and the board of directors.” Harvard Business Review 83 (October). HBR Reprint R0510F. Porter, Michael E. 2001. “Strategy and the internet.” Harvard Business Review 79 (March): 63–78. Pottruck, David S., and Terry Pearce. 2000. Clicks and Mortar: Passion Driven Growth in an Internet Driven World. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Ross, Jeanne W., Cynthia Mathis Beath, and Dale L. Goodhue. 1996. “Develop long-term competitiveness through IT assets.” Sloan Management Review 38, 1 (Fall): 31–42. Weill, Peter, and Jeanne W. Ross. 2009. IT-Savvy. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Press. Willcocks, Leslie, and Catherine Griffiths. 2010. “The crucial role of middle management in outsourcing.” MIS Quarterly Executive 9, 3 (September): 177–193. 10 Case Study 1 • Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A) Case Study 1 Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A): The Role of the Operating Manager in Information Systems It was 7:30 P.M. on September 22, 2006, and Leon Lassiter, Vice President of Marketing with the Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (MSCC), was still in his office, reflecting on the day’s frustrations. Lassiter had met with four territory managers, his marketing support supervisor, and a number of other members of his staff. All were upset about their lack of access to the new computer system and the problems they were having using their old systems. Lassiter had assured them that the problems were being addressed. He stressed that patience was needed during the ongoing conversion to the new system. Now, during his private moment, Lassiter was beginning to recognize the problems and complexities he faced with the system conversion. The work of his marketing staff, who were unable to access the new computer system to handle their accounts, had ground to a halt. Even worse, something had happened to the data in most of the workstations, which meant that conference registrations and other functions had to be done manually. These inconveniences, however, were minor compared to Lassiter’s uneasy feeling that there were problems with Midsouth’s whole approach to the management of information technology. Lassiter knew that time was of the essence and that he might have to step in and manage the conversion, even though he had no information technology background. He wondered what he should do next. Background of the MSCC In the early 1900s, economic development in the Midsouth area was highly dependent on transportation systems. As a result of legislative decisions, many communities in the Midsouth area could not gain access to reasonable transportation services, thus retarding business and economic development. With no one to represent their concerns to the state government, a group of powerful businesspeople formed the MSCC to lobby the legislature on the issue of transportation access. The MSCC dealt with this single issue until the 1930s, when its charter was changed to include a broader range of issues affecting the business community, including state banking laws, transportation, industrial development, and business taxes. By the mid-1990s, the MSCC, under the new leadership of President Jack Wallingford, became an aggressive advocacy organization for the business community. The broadening of MSCC’s role brought substantial change to the organization. In 1988 the MSCC had a staff of 14, a membership of 3,000 businesses and individuals, and an annual budget of $1,720,000. Over the years, the MSCC had been able to develop a reserve account of just over $1.5 million. By 2000, the staff had grown to 24, the $1.5 million cash reserve had been drawn down to $250,000, and membership had dropped to 2,300, largely because of the loss of some major manufacturers in the region, the bursting of the Internet bubble, and the resulting economic slowdown. The reserve reduction, supported by the Board of Directors, had fueled considerable internal growth in terms of staff and capabilities. During this time, the MSCC also moved into larger offices and upgraded their workstations. In the early 2000s the MSCC was considered the most powerful business advocacy organization in the Midsouth area and one of the most innovative chambers of commerce in terms of its approaches and techniques in dealing with problems facing the business community. The greatest problem facing the management of the MSCC at the time was the growing concern that its aggressive growth might have to be curtailed because it could no longer fund its annual operating budget. Leon Lassiter In mid-2000, Wallingford was faced with a serious dilemma. The MSCC was projecting a $330,000 deficit for the 2001 fiscal year. Wallingford realized he was going to have to reduce both the number of staff and the number of programs or find some way to grow revenue more aggressively in the organization. Wallingford asked his Vice President of Public Affairs and Operations, Ed Wilson, to find someone new to lead the sales and marketing function. Leon Lassiter came to the MSCC in December 2000 with 12 years of experience in sales management and marketing with American Brands, where he had recently turned down a promotion to regional sales manager. The MSCC, he reasoned, offered more of an opportunity to have an impact than at American Brands. As Vice President of Marketing and Membership, Lassiter reported directly to Wallingford. After settling in to the organization, he initiated a thorough review of all programs, departments, and processes. He found that the marketing support functions were better coordinated and managed than the sales functions. Additionally, although the MSCC had Case Study 1 • Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A) purchased workstations for sales and marketing and had installed some custom software, the information system was quite limited in capability. Due to concerns over security, no staff member had access to all the data necessary to operate the marketing and sales activities of the MSCC. Each workstation was equipped to perform particular functions with the needed data resident on the workstation. With his analysis completed, Lassiter began to develop an entirely new sales and marketing process based on measurable goals, documented operating procedures, and regular training programs. He knew that eventually a new information system would have to be developed. activities were to track the activity occurring in membership. Primary uses included: • • • • • • • Information Technology Use at the MSCC The Marketing and Sales Division For a few years, Lassiter was able to operate his organization’s tasks with the existing set of individual workstations, all of which were connected to a print server. The marketing division’s primary information technology • • Developing the membership database Developing the prospective member database Making daily changes to both databases Generating a series of letters for personalized mail contact Generating prospect and member lists and labels by industry sector, firm size (sales, employment), zip code, mailing designator, and other criteria Processing call-record activity by the territory managers Tracking member activities and concerns through a comment field Creating audit trails for reviewing changes General word processing The marketing support area performed most of the computing tasks for the marketing division via their local Board of Directors President (Wallingford) VP Economic Development VP Human Resources VP Public Affairs (Wilson) VP Mktg./ Membership (Lassiter) VP Public Finance (Hedges) International Trade Personnel Environment & Energy Sales Library Services Conferences Legislative Services Mktg. Systems Analyst (Kovecki) Office Mgmt. Communications Controller Reception Print Operations EXHIBIT 1 MSCC Organizational Structure 11 12 Case Study 1 • Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A) workstations. They filled all requests for labels, lists, and changes from the sales and marketing staff. Requested changes to the member database sometimes backed up as much as two or three days. Lassiter felt this was unacceptable and hoped to achieve a two-hour turnaround on member-change activity. Four territory managers, a marketing support supervisor, and five clerical people staffed the marketing division. The territory managers generated 75 to 80 call records per day that required database changes, letters, and invoice processing. These requests were processed by the clerical staff. In addition, the clerical staff processed commissions on membership sales, member cancellations, and general database maintenance. The clerical staff also prepared special-letter requests from the territory managers and performed all normal secretarial duties. Operations Division Ed Wilson managed the operations division. Eight managers and support staff worked in operations. This group was responsible for providing financial information and insuring accounting controls. The operations staff maintained: • • • • • • • The general ledger system Fund balances Accrual accounting functions Payment history tracking Commission schedules Membership cancellation tracking Report generation Wilson also planned to be able to track legislative bills from their introduction, through their demise in committee or chamber, their passage, or their veto by the governor. This information would be keyed into the system, updated as changes occurred, printed, and sent to selected staff members on a daily basis. Human Resources Division The human resources division, with two managers and two support staff, was responsible for developing a conference and seminar tracking and reporting mechanism that would also have the capability of printing out badges for conference or seminar attendees. The division also maintained personnel records. Changing Times By 2002, as a result of Lassiter’s marketing and sales reorganization and Wilson’s aggressive management of expenses, the MSCC was experiencing solid financial growth. While the two men were primarily responsible for the success, Wilson and Lassiter clashed on numerous occasions. Lassiter felt that much of the territory managers’ work and marketing support activities could be automated to provide the MSCC with a significant reduction in labor and allied costs. Lassiter believed that a fulltime systems analyst should be hired to meet the growing information needs of the MSCC. Wilson, on the other hand, was worried about the cost of the MSCC’s information systems. In the past, the MSCC had hired a consultant, Nolan Vassici, to make recommendations on hardware and software and to develop the custom software used by each division. Wilson felt that continuing to hire Vassici whenever additional or corrective work was needed was the best option. He did not want to increase the number of employees. Wilson knew that as a small, nonprofit agency, MSCC had limited funds for the expansion of computing capabilities. Adding a full-time systems analyst to the staff would make it significantly more difficult to respond to growing staff demands in other areas. Continuing the relationship with Vassici provided Wilson with the ability to specify exactly what Vassici worked on and what should be tabled until there was the time and budget for it. Although Lassiter and Wilson continued to clash, Lassiter understood Wilson’s desire to control costs in light of the limited resources of the MSCC. Lassiter knew that the slowly growing computer sophistication of the staff would explode once the tap was fully opened. However, Lassiter felt that the demand could be dealt with effectively once the MSCC determined the extent of the staff’s needs. In early 2003, Lassiter and Wilson joined forces on a concept by which the MSCC would offer a health insurance program to its members, now more than 4,500 businesses and individuals. Although the proposal was eventually rejected by the Board of Directors, Wilson and Lassiter, as a result of the study, recognized that there were many revenue-producing opportunities the MSCC could pursue that would require a much higher level of information systems use. Wilson soon hired a systems analyst to increase the MSCC’s capabilities. Simon Kovecki, a young computer science graduate with no experience in a membership organization like the MSCC or with accounting software, joined the MSCC in June 2003 and spent his first three months on the job learning the organization and its computing systems. He worked exceptionally long hours as he struggled to understand software for which there was no documentation. Calls to Vassici for help were useless because his business had closed. Case Study 1 • Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A) Catalyst for Change By 2005, the MSCC had reached a point where some organizational changes had to occur. Wallingford, at the urging of the Board of Directors, assigned Lassiter the additional areas of communications, graphic arts, and printing operations. Controller duties were assigned to Harry Taska, and Jeff Hedges, the new Vice President of Public Finance, was assigned responsibility for computer operations. Wilson, nearing retirement, retained his public affairs activities and was asked to focus his efforts on developing an important public affairs project. Just after the staff changes took place, Kovecki confided to Lassiter that he was disappointed by the changes in staff responsibility. He felt he should have been elevated to manager of information systems and given additional staff. Hedges, who had little computer background, was also in charge of research on various issues of interest to the members of the MSCC as well as oversight of the Controller’s function. Kovecki was concerned that Hedges would not have the time to manage the growing computer operations properly. Lassiter shared Kovecki’s concern over the lack of top management attention to the information systems area. His concern led him to send out requests for information to a number of firms servicing the software needs of organizations like the MSCC. Primarily interested in sales and marketing software, he focused on software from Cameo, MEI Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry, Connecticut Business and Industry Association, TelePro 2000, and Data Link. Lassiter sent the information he received from these vendors to other senior managers but received little response. Wilson was involved in his new project, Taska was learning his new duties as Controller, and Hedges had little time to examine the computer activities. In August 2005, Lassiter attended a national association meeting where a session on management software led to his discovery of a small software firm called UNITRAK. The company had developed a software suite that Lassiter was convinced would meet the MSCC’s needs. He based his assessment on the MSCC’s current and anticipated future needs for computing capability that had been developed by Kovecki in 2004. (See Exhibit 2.) Planning the New Information Technology System Lassiter had identified areas in UNITRAK where he felt this more powerful information system would allow the Information Systems Capabilities Marketing Operations Public Affairs Public Finance Economic Development Human Resources Executive Through early 2004, Wilson continued to manage the computer systems and, with the help of Kovecki, upgraded the hardware in the workstations. With Kovecki’s constant attention, the software continued to work relatively well. In 2005 Wilson, with Kovecki’s assistance, developed an online legislative information system on a workstation that was considered state of the art in the chamber of commerce industry. With this application and the growth in members and types of computer applications, the MSCC senior management began to worry about the separation of systems for membership and marketing, finance, conferences, and other applications which required frequent data reentry. With 2005 dues revenue approaching $2.8 million and approximately 4,750 member firms, the MSCC was among the largest statewide chambers of commerce in the country. The staff had swelled to 42 and the financial reserve was nearly $2.6 million. Although Lassiter felt some satisfaction with the MSCC’s growth and financial strength, he was bothered with the lack of forethought as to how the MSCC might develop a comprehensive plan to use information for the future. Wilson, too, recognized the value of information systems to an organization in the business of gathering, analyzing, and using information to affect legislative outcomes. 13 Word Processing Record Maintenance Legislative Services Online Publications List Processing Label Generation Database Management Financial Controls Conference Registration Seminar Registration Billings/Invoicing Publication Processing Data Search/Research Inventory Tracking Desktop Publishing Project Management X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X EXHIBIT 2 MSCC Information Systems Needs 14 Case Study 1 • Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A) MSCC to be more efficient. These improvements would enable staff members to: • Input special member information into a notes field (not then available) • Generate telemarketing scripts that would allow “tree scripting” based on various sales objections (not then available) • Utilize a statistical inquiry feature that would provide quantitative analysis of sales activity figures from all marketing activities (not attempted with the separate workstation systems) In addition, the new information systems would allow territory managers to: • Access their account information from their workstations rather than asking a staff member • Develop letters and attachments from their workstations, using information in a central database rather than manually linking information contained in several separate databases In a memo to the management group, Lassiter commented, “The UNITRAK system not only meets our needs now, but it is also powerful enough to provide the MSCC with the room to grow over the next 5 years.” The software also appeared to be user friendly, which Lassiter believed was the key to freeing up Kovecki’s time. Lassiter explained the software to Hedges, who wanted the current accounting software left intact but agreed that now was the time to move forward in finding a more powerful software solution for the MSCC’s problems. Hedges also agreed that other modules in the UNITRAK system could be activated at a later time. In October 2005, Lassiter contacted Greg Ginder, President of the UNITRAK Software Corporation, and invited him to the MSCC for a demonstration of the system’s capabilities. Wilson observed about 30 minutes of the threehour demonstration and told Lassiter, “I’ll support it if you want it. It will work for my project for public affairs.” Hedges agreed that the new system would free up Kovecki’s time and allow him to become more involved in planning and systems development. Kovecki’s comments were different. He remarked, “Yeah, the software has its strengths and weaknesses and it probably would save some of my time. But I don’t like the idea of staff having uncontrolled access to so much data. It’s not clear what they’ll do with it.” The Proposal Lassiter decided to move ahead quickly with a proposal to Wallingford and the Board of Directors. He developed simple flow charts that showed the hours it took to conduct certain activities, e.g., the staff time new member sales took with the current workstation arrangement, versus the time it would take with the new software. Lassiter knew that the Executive Committee of the Board would require considerable justification to approve an “off-budget” capital expenditure that would significantly reduce reserves. He had also done some calculations to show that if the new system performed as he hoped, each territory manager would be able to generate $150,000 in increased sales through increased contacts. Although Lassiter knew this goal was aggressive and very difficult to justify, he wanted to be able to demonstrate a less-than-six-month payback if challenged by a member of the Executive Committee. Lassiter believed that UNITRAK would reduce the price of the software. The software was new, and UNITRAK had sold it to only one other statewide chamber of commerce organization, the Northern State Chamber of Commerce. Jeff Fritzly, Vice President of Marketing and Development of the NSCC, told Lassiter: We looked at quite a few software packages as well as writing our own custom software, but our consultant chose the UNITRAK software. We purchased the software from UNITRAK and got a good discount on the needed new hardware. They have been very helpful and supportive of our needs. A week before the Executive Committee meeting, Ginder and Lassiter agreed on a price for the software. Lassiter was pleased that the price was 30 percent less than Northern State had paid. With the help of Ginder and a member of the Executive Committee who headed the local branch office of a computer equipment manufacturer, Lassiter was also able to achieve an excellent discount on new server hardware. He felt this low cost was another justification for approval of the project. Lassiter also made it a point to meet with both Wilson and Hedges to keep them abreast of the negotiation and seek their advice. He felt that by increasing the level of communication with Hedges and Wilson, he would be able to gain their interest and support, which he felt was important to the success of the project. When the Executive Committee of the Board met in November 2005, Lassiter explained that the MSCC had reached the limit of its current system design, and that an investment in a central server connected to networked workstations was needed to allow the MSCC to Case Study 1 • Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A) meet current and future opportunities for growth. During his presentation, Lassiter said: While the MSCC has made significant and appropriate investments in the workstations necessary for the MSCC to increase its operational sophistication, we have reached the limit of these smaller machines. With the spectacular growth in revenue we’ve enjoyed over the last five years, our requirements and demands have increased dramatically. Without an immediate investment in increased capability, the MSCC’s continued growth and services will be in jeopardy. In response to challenges from the Executive Committee regarding what the new system would mean to the bottom line and the MSCC’s reserves, Lassiter responded, “I believe we will see a 10–15 percent increase in sales and a 20 percent increase in staff productivity once the new system is operational.” With these assurances and a price that would consume only 10–15 percent of reserves, the members of the Executive Committee complimented Lassiter on his work and approved the purchase of the software. Implementation Greg Ginder of UNITRAK was ecstatic over the decision and promised unlimited support at no charge to install the new system. But Kovecki continued to express concern about staff members using the new capabilities of the system. He said: I know that Lassiter expects this new software to be user friendly, but I’m uncomfortable with how strongly he feels about training the staff to use as many of the features as possible. He thinks that training the staff on whatever they want to learn will make the MSCC more effective, but I disagree. We would be opening Pandora’s box and we would lose control over what was going on. The last thing we need is for people to be getting into things they don’t need to be in. By February 2006, Lassiter had heard nothing regarding the purchase of the new system. Kovecki told Lassiter that no one had approved the purchase order. Lassiter then questioned Hedges, who responded that he had heard nothing more and had been busy with research on issues of interest to the MSCC members. “Go ahead and purchase the software,” Hedges told Lassiter. “It’s your system anyway.” Although Lassiter tried to explain that it was 15 not his responsibility to implement the purchase or conversion, he felt the project would not move forward without his purchasing the software. After signing the purchase order, Lassiter handed it to Kovecki and said, “You and Hedges are the project managers. I shouldn’t be involved at this point. It’s up to you guys to complete the project.” Near the end of March, Lassiter asked Kovecki how the project was proceeding. Kovecki stated that the hardware had been delivered but that he was busy with a project of Wilson’s and didn’t have time to work on the new software. Lassiter went to Wilson to inquire about the anticipated length of the project Kovecki was working on, and Wilson indicated it should be finished by mid-April. Although Lassiter felt uncomfortable about pushing Hedges and Kovecki, he was beginning to feel that he would have to use his influence to get things moving. Lassiter held a meeting with his staff, informing them that a new system had been purchased that would improve operations in several areas. Several staff members expressed concern that they had not been consulted or informed of the idea before its approval. Specific questions were asked regarding word processing, new member recruiting, and commission processing. Lassiter, anticipating that Kovecki had studied the documentation, asked Kovecki to answer the questions. Kovecki was unable to answer the questions and indicated he needed more time to study the documentation. Lassiter set up an appointment with UNITRAK for training for Kovecki and himself. After a positive training visit, Lassiter asked Kovecki to spend half a day with him to set up a project flow chart and anticipate potential problems, but May and June passed with little forward progress on the conversion. Lassiter had told the Executive Committee that the project would be completed by the end of March 2006, yet little had been accomplished. Upon Kovecki’s return from a two-week vacation at the end of June, Lassiter asked Wallingford to intervene and to strongly urge Hedges and Kovecki to complete the project. Lassiter stated: It really bothered me that I had to go over Hedges’ head but we were coming up on the seventh month of what should have been an easy three-month project. It’s partly my fault because I didn’t establish teamwork up front, nor did I make clear early in the process the responsibilities of those participating. The Final Phase With Hedges’ agreement, Lassiter set up two days of staff training for the third week in August 2006. Kovecki had assured Lassiter that the system would be up by the last 16 Case Study 1 • Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A) day of training so that the staff could immediately use the new system. Lassiter broke the training into major segments and had Kovecki set up training sites in two separate conference rooms for staff. UNITRAK sent a two-person team that would act as project managers and trainers. The training went well with the exception of the conference and seminar segment of the software. The users brought up significant complaints that the new software servicing this area was not as functional and user friendly as the existing custom-written workstation software. Although Lassiter suspected that a large part of ...
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Running Head: CRITICAL THINKING

1

Critical Thinking: Reviewing the Adventures of an IT Leader
Student’s Name
Professor
Course
Date

REVIEWING THE ADVENTURES OF AN IT LEADER
Introduction
The adventures of an IT leader begin with Barton taking up the leadership role in the IT
department of IVK, after failing in the loans processing leadership roles. He had second thoughts
about taking up the roles since he has no IT background, in both education and experience.
However, since it seems to be the only option he takes up the role. What follows is a series of
conflicting actions and interests between the IT experts who find it hard to cope with his
leadership traits which do not put in place any considerations of the IT department. The
department fails to perform (De Copenhagen, 2011). This paper looks into the issues that comes
up in Barton’s IT department leadership adventure and gives insight on best practice courses of
action.

Evaluation of Emerging Technologies

Barton seems to be more focused on research done independently. He does not involve
the team that will effect changes at IVK. He realizes new changes in both software and hardware.
His action is directed towards requesting funds from the finance to purchase the technologies he
thinks essential. To some point it is difficult to work with some purchases because of
compatibility, but in the process, the IT department copes, but they end up requesting for other
resources to enhance compatibility, for instance on the case of Unix and Microsof...


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