Week 1: Strategic Goals of IT

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Week 1 Strategic Goals of IT
MIS5801 Management of Information
Technology Paul Weinberg weinberg_at_temple.eduAd
apted from material by David Schuff and Paul
Weinberg
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MIS and Computer Science

• Computer science and computer engineering is
  product-driven
• Example Development of the iPod
• MIS is solution-driven
• Example Hardees analyzed customer data and
  preferences to predict demand for a higher
  calorie hamburger

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What technologies have to converge to make mobile
devices work?

• Online music/video distribution
• Portable music/video
• Wireless telephone
• Computer operating system
• Computer animation
• Wireless computer networking and Internet
  services
• Power supply
• Display

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What skills did Jobs need on his iPhone team?

• Technology
• Financial
• Marketing
• Manufacturing
• Design
• Human interaction
• System
• Management
• Technology Integration
• Business Integration
• Entrepreneurship
• Others?

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The Role of MIS
Accounting
Finance
Sales
Human Resources
Production
MIS is the glue that ties businesses
togetherand uses the technology that makes
business work.
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Changes That Have Altered the Business Environment

• Emergence of the global economy
• Transformation of industrial economies
• Transformation of the business enterprise

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Emergence of the Global Economy

• Management and control in a global marketplace
• Competition in world markets
• Global work groups
• Global delivery systems

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Transformation of industrial economies

• Knowledge/information-based economies
• Whats the difference between a
  information-based economy and a
  manufacturing-based economy?
• Time-based competition
• Shorter product life
• Turbulent environment

What do all of these things have in common and
what does technology have to do with it?
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Transformation of the Business Enterprise

• Flattening
• Decentralization
• Flexibility
• Location independence
• Transaction and coordination cost pressure
• Collaborative work and teamwork

What do all of these things have in common and
what does technology have to do with it?
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How do you recognize technology-enabled business
opportunities?
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Basic tools for assessing a business
The Value Chain(Organization Structure)
Five Forces Model(The Environment)
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Give a technology-oriented example for each
force
http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porter_5_forces_analy
sis
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What can you learn from understanding an
organizations value chain?
http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Value_chain
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Try it How can mobile technology alter the
competitive landscape?
http//cdn3.pcadvisor.co.uk/cmsdata/reviews/336981
6/Samsung_Galaxy_S3IMG_0044.jpg
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Going forward
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Current Issues

• The spread of technology in organizations
• Downsizing and Outsourcing
• Career prospects and opportunities
• Need for people within organizations with analyst
  skills that also have technology skills

1-16
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Other Issues and Opportunities Faced by the IS
Function

• Greater Miniaturization, Speed, and Portability
• miniaturization
• integrated circuit
• Moores Law
• portability
• Greater Connectivity and Continuing Convergence
  of Computing and Communications connectivity
• interoperabiliity
• open systems
• convergence of computing and communications
• Greater Use of Digitized Information and
  Multimedia
• digitization
• multimedia
• Better Software Techniques and Interfaces with
  People

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Miniaturization

• Moores Law
• Chip capacities (storage and processing) have
  doubled every 18 months
• Why? Because they are getting smaller.
• But there are problems, for example
• Chip gates are becoming too small to block
  electrons, which determine the 1s from the 0s
• How to get around laws of quantum mechanics?
• Moore himself said we may hit the limit by 2017

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Moores Law Drives Microchip Performance Up...
Source Brynjolfsson, E. and S. Yang
Information Technology and Productivity A
Review of the Literature, Advances in Computers,
1996.
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And the cost of digital devices drops
Source ftp//download.intel.com/museum/Moores_La
w/Printed_Materials/Moores_Law_2pg.pdf
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Major Ideas

• Integration There are no boundaries between
• Business process design and technology design
• Major business functions
• Location doesnt matter
• IT does matter
• IT is a major driver of business innovation
• The use of technology by itself doesnt guarantee
  success

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That Used to Be Us

• Thomas Friedman discusses his book That Used to
  Be Us
• Specifically . . . Issues faced by the United
  States
• Globalization
• Changes in Information Technology
• Deficits
• Energy Consumption
• As you watch the video --- take notes for the
  following discussion

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That Used to Be Us

• What does it mean for the world to be
  hyperconnected?
• What is skills bias polarization?
• What are the three types of workers and how are
  they affected by skills bias polarization?
• What three things should people do to be
  competitive in this changing global environment?