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1.What are the characteristics and Organization of MIS?
Explain
Management Information System is part of the business internal
controls and includes theutilization of people, documents,
technology, and management accounting procedures to solve business
problems such as cost of products, services, or business strategy.
Pegasus solutions isone example of the management information
system that can be regarded as a system whichprovides for the needs
of mid-level leaders (managers), both in work units and the
sub-unit within the organization.
Management Information System used data from
transaction-processing systems along withother data, which is then
processed into a specific report. Management Information Systems
arealso said to be a Management Reporting System. Thats because
this system produces variousreports for management purposes,
particularly on matters relating to the management, control,and
organizational development.
Main Characteristics of Management Information Systems
* Operates on structured tasks in which the procedures, decision
making, information flow,report formats, and so on, are
defined.
* Aim to improve efficiency and reduce costs.
* Provide reports for decision making purposes.
* Facilitate access to information for management purposes.
In the well-established organization that is parsed, Management
Information Systemscommonly found under the form of functional
information systems, such as PersonnelInformation Systems,
Information Systems Inventory, Financial Information Systems,
Manufacturing Information Systems, Information Systems
Marketing, and various otherinformation systems in accordance with
the requirements of each units work within theorganization.
However, it should be emphasized that these systems are not to
be functionally isolated systems,stand alone, and without any
connection to other systems. Thats because these systems must work
together in providing information for management needs within the
organization.
General Purpose Information Management System
* Provide information used in the services cost calculations,
products, or other destinationmanagement.
* Provide information used in control, planning, evaluation, and
continuous improvement.
* Provide information to make the decision.
The third objective suggests that managers and other users need
to have access to managementaccounting information and know how to
use it. Management accounting information can helpmanagers to
identify the problem, solve the problem, and evaluate performance
(accounting
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information used and needed for all phases of management,
including planning, control anddecision making).
The most important characteristics of an MIS are those that give
decision-makers confidencethat their actions will have the desired
consequences.
RelevanceThe information a manager receives from an MIS has to
relate to the decisions the manager hasto make. An effective MIS
takes data that originates in the areas of activity that concern
themanager at any given time, and organizes it into forms that are
meaningful for makingdecisions. If a manager has to make pricing
decisions, for example, an MIS may take sales datafrom the past
five years, and display sales volume and profit projections for
various pricingscenarios.
Accuracy A key measure of the effectiveness of an MIS is the
accuracy and reliability of its information.
The accuracy of the data it uses and the calculations it applies
determine the effectiveness of theresulting information. The
sources of the data determine whether the information is
reliable.Historical performance is often part of the input for an
MIS, and also serves as a good measureof the accuracy and
reliability of its output.
UsefulnessThe information a manager receives from an MIS may be
relevant and accurate, but it is onlyuseful if it helps him with
the particular decisions he has to make. For example, if a manager
hasto make decisions on which employees to cut due to staff
reductions, information on resultingcost savings is relevant, but
information on the performance of the employees in question is
more useful. The MIS has to make useful information easily
accessible.
TimelinessMIS output must be current. Management has to make
decisions about the future of theorganization based on data from
the present, even when evaluating trends. The more recent thedata,
the more these decisions will reflect present reality and correctly
anticipate their effects onthe company. When the collection and
processing of data delays its availability, the MIS musttake into
consideration its potential inaccuracies due to age and present the
resultinginformation accordingly, with possible ranges of
error.
Completeness
An effective MIS presents all the most relevant and useful
information for a particular decision.If some information is not
available due to missing data, it highlights the gaps and
eitherdisplays possible scenarios or presents possible consequences
resulting from the missing data.Management can either add the
missing data or make the appropriate decisions aware of themissing
information. An incomplete or partial presentation of information
can lead to decisionsthat don't have the anticipated effects.
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2.Describe the role of information in decision making?
Management information systems combine hardware, software and
network products in an integratedsolution that provides managers
with data in a format suitable for analysis, monitoring,
decision-
making and reporting. The system collects data, stores it in a
database and makes it available to usersover a secure network.
Information Access
Managers need rapid access to information to make decisions
about strategic, financial, marketing
and operational issues. Companies collect vast amounts of
information, including customer records,
sales data, market research, financial records, manufacturing
and inventory data, and human resource
records. However, much of that information is held in separate
departmental databases, making it
difficult for decision makers to access data quickly. A
management information system simplifies
and speeds up information retrieval by storing data in a central
location that is accessible via a
network. The result is decisions that are quicker and more
accurate.
Data Collection
Management information systems bring together data from inside
and outside the organization. By
setting up a network that links a central database to retail
outlets, distributors and members of a
supply chain, companies can collect sales and production data
daily, or more frequently, and make
decisions based on the latest information.
Collaboration
In situations where decision-making involves groups, as well as
individuals, management
information systems make it easy for teams to make collaborative
decisions. In a project team, for
example, management information systems enable all members to
access the same essential data,
even if they are working in different locations.
Interpretation
Management information systems help decision-makers understand
the implications of their
decisions. The systems collate raw data into reports in a format
that enables decision-makers to
quickly identify patterns and trends that would not have been
obvious in the raw data. Decision-
makers can also use management information systems to understand
the potential effect of change. A
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sales manager, for example, can make predictions about the
effect of a price change on sales by
running simulations within the system and asking a number of
what if the price was questions.
Presentation
The reporting tools within management information systems enable
decision-makers to tailor reports
to the information needs of other parties. If a decision
requires approval by a senior executive, the
decision-maker can create a brief executive summary for review.
If managers want to share the
detailed findings of a report with colleagues, they can create
full reports and provide different levels
of supplementary data.
3.Explain the role of MIS in Organization planning and decision
making.
Decision making is an integral part of the functioning of any
organization. To facilitate decisionmaking in this ever-competitive
world it is imperative that managers have the right informationat
the right time to bridge the gap between need and expectation. To
facilitate better flow ofinformation adequate Management
Information Systems (MIS) is the need of the hour. Thus itis
important to have an understanding of the MIS followed in an
organization by all levels ofmanagement in order to take effective
decisions.
A management information system collects and processes data
(information) and provides it tomanagers at all levels who use it
for decision making, planning, program implementation, andcontrol.
The MIS has many roles to perform like the decision support role,
the performance
monitoring role and the functional support role. There are many
potential benefits of MISinvestmentsInvesting in information
systems can pay off for a company in many ways.1. It can support a
core competency.2. Enhance distribution channel management.3.
Builds brand equity.4. IT investment can boost production
processes5. Information systems allow company flexibility in its
output level.An information system comprises of all the components
that collect, manipulate, and disseminatedata or information. It
usually includes hardware, software, people, communications
systemssuch as telephone lines, and the data itself. The activities
involved include inputting data,
processing of data into information, storage of data and
information, and the production ofoutputs such as management
reports.OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDYThe objective of this project is to
study the MIS implementation of MCC Ltd. and with the helpof this
domain, to get an insight into the needs of MIS in business setups
on a big scale, variousfunctions performed by the MIS, benefits
derived out of such a system and the risks involved.The study focus
was analyzing the business needs of the organization, key
challenges or desiredfunctional requirements of the MIS, the IT
solution that is currently implemented and the
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and long-range planning, short-range planning, management
control and other managerial problem solving.Decision Support
System: A decision support system is an information system
application thatassists decision-making. DSS tends to be used in
planning, analyzing alternatives and trial anderror search
solutions. They incorporate a variety of decision-making models and
thus area
capable of performing what-if analysis.Executive Support System:
An ESS is a special kind of DSS. It is specially tailored for the
useof chief executives of an organization to support his
decision-making. Thus ESS is acomprehensive information system that
includes various types of decision support systems, but itis more
specific and person oriented.Office Automation System: Office
automation refers to the application of computer andcommunication
technology to office functions. Office automation systems are meant
to improvethe productivity of managers at various levels of
management by providing secretarial assistanceand better
communication facilities.Business Expert System: A BES is a
knowledge based information system that uses itsknowledge about a
specific, complex application area to act as an expert.
ROLES OF MISTHE PERFORMANCE MONITORING ROLEMIS are not just
statistics and data analysis. They have to be used as an MBO
(Management byObjectives) tool. They help:
to establish relevant and measurable objectives
to monitor results and performances (reach ratios)
to send alerts, in some cases daily, to managers at each level
of the organization, on alldeviations between results and
pre-established objectives and budgets.THE FUNCTIONAL SUPPORT
ROLEBusiness processes and operations support function is the most
basic. It involves collecting,recording, storing, and basic
processing of data. Information systems support business
processesand operations by:
recording, storing and processing sales data, purchase data,
investment data, payroll dataand other accounting records
recording, storing and processing inventory data, work in
process data, equipment repairand maintenance data, supply chain
data, and other production/operations records
recording, storing and processing personnel data, salary data,
employment histories, andother human resources records
recording, storing and processing market data, customer
profiles, customer purchase
histories, marketing research data, advertising data, and other
marketing recordsrecording, storing an processing business
intelligence data, competitor analysis data,
industry data, corporate objectives, and other strategic
management recordsuse of all the above to implement, control, and
monitor plans, strategies, tactics, new products,new business
models or new business ventures.
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6.Explain the factors influencing successful use of MIS in an
Organization .
Many organizations use MIS successfully, others do not. Though
the hardware and the software is thelatest and has appropriate
technology, its use is more for the collection and storage of data
and its
elementary processing. There are some factors which make the MIS
a success and some others, whichmake it a failure. These factors
can be summarized as follows:
Factors Contributing to Success
If a MIS is to be success then it should have all the features
listed as follows:
The MIS is integrated into the managerial functions. It sets
clear objectives to ensure that the MISfocuses on the major issues
of the business.
An appropriate information processing technology required to
meet the data processing and analysisneeds of the users of the MIS
is selected.
The MIS is oriented, defined and designed in terms of the user's
requirements and its operationalviability is ensured.
The MIS is kept under continuous surveillance, so that its open
system design is modified accordingto the changing information
needs.
MIS focuses on the results and goals, and highlights the factors
and reasons for non achievement.
MIS is not allowed to end up into an information generation mill
avoiding the noise in the informationand the communication
system.
The MIS recognizes that a manager is a human being and
therefore, the systems must consider all
the human behavioral factors in the process of the
management.
The MIS recognizes that the different information needs for
different objectives must be met with. Theglobalization of
information in isolation from the different objectives leads to too
much information andinformation and its non-use.
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The MIS is easy to operate and, therefore, the design of the MIS
has such features which make up auser-friendly design.
MIS recognizes that the information needs become obsolete and
new needs emerge. The MIS
design, therefore, has a basic potential capability to quickly
meet new needs of information.
The MIS concentrates on developing the information support to
manager critical success factors. Itconcentrates on the mission
critical applications serving the needs of the top management.
Factors Contributing to Failures
Many a times MIS is a failures. The common factors which are
responsible for this are listed as follows:
The MIS is conceived as a data processing and not as an
information processing system.
The MIS does not provide that information which is needed by the
managers but it tends toprovide the information generally the
function calls for. The MIS then becomes an impersonalsystem.
Underestimating the complexity in the business systems and not
recognizing it in the MIS designleads to problems in the successful
implementation.
Adequate attention is not given to the quality control aspects
of the inputs, the process and theoutputs leading to insufficient
checks and controls in the MIS.
The MIS is developed without streamlining the transaction
processing systems in theorganization.
Lack of training and appreciation that the users of the
information and the generators of the dataare different, and they
have to play an important responsible role in the MIS.
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The MIS does not meet certain critical and key factors of its
users such as a response to thequery on the database, an inability
to get the processing done in a particular manner, lack
ofuser-friendly system and the dependence on the system
personnel.
A belief that the computerized MIS can solve all the management
problems of planning andcontrol of the business.
Lack of administrative discipline in following the standardized
systems and procedures, wrongcoding and deviating from the system
specifications result in incomplete and incorrectinformation.
The MIS does not give perfect information to all the users in
the organization.
