Final Exam Study Guide MIS 2101 General Things You Should Remember Strategies for presenting a Business Case Faith Fear Fact Example A Fear based argument argues for implementing a system based on the threat of competitors gaining advantage over your organization Fact based arguments rely on indisputable facts and data to support your argument Understand the process for preparing a Cost Benefit Analysis Know the difference between tangible intangible benefits costs and recurring non recurring benefits costs A salary for an employee is a tangible recurring cost an installation fee is a tangible but non recurring cost an increase in revenue is a tangible benefit improved customer perception of your firm is an intangible benefit Understand the idea of Break Even analysis where the tangible benefits equal the tangible costs Intangible benefits and costs are harder to quantify and while they are real and potentially significant they don t usually play in Break Even Analysis Understand the strategies for improving inventory management Companies implement strategies like Just In Time inventory management systems to significantly reduce the amount of inventory needed on hand with often only a couple of hours of inventory on hand at any time or Customer Managed systems to reduce the costs involved in administering managing inventory We need to distinguish between business processes and business management and the hardware software needed to support our business applications and processes The part of business that focuses on hardware and software used to keep everything running smoothly and to support the business activity is the infrastructure part of the business Our future as business leaders involves developing the ability to develop a systematic structured approach to the continuous improvement of our business processes This involves critically examining and re thinking our current business processes in order to achieve dramatic improvements in performance this process is known as Business Process Management Understand how CRM and SCM is used to support a firm s overall strategy For example a retailer who has decided to use a low price strategy to compete and gain market share will focus on their supply chain efficiency to disintermediate the middle men and wholesalers to reduce their product costs and increase profit Other firms might focus on implementing a CRM system that operates 24 7 365 with the strategy of providing web based systems and interfaces that can provide consumers with product information sales order status customer support information problem issue resolution etc at any time any place from any device Chap 6 Business Intelligence Business Intelligence BI is the use of information systems to gather and analyze information from internal and external sources in order to make better business decisions BI is used to integrate data from disconnected non integrated sources Reports Databases Spreadsheets Integrated data helps to monitor and fine tune business processes BI can help businesses react better to various threats and opportunities including Unstable markets Global threats Fierce competition Short product life cycles Stringent regulations Providing wider choices for consumers Involves Continuous Planning at all levels of the business o Organizations need to continuously monitor and analyze business processes o Results lead to ongoing adjustments o It involves decision makers from all levels Databases Data and knowledge are among the most important assets for an organization Databases are collections of related data organized in a way that facilitates data searches mining storage organization Main Database Elements Components Entity something you collect data about such as people or classes Table contains entities Consists of rows and columns Row record a record in a table One row pertains to one entity instance Column attribute one cell in a row Each attribute contains a piece of information about the entity Most common ways to query a database Query a command for retrieving specified information from a database Structured Query Language SQL the most common language for querying databases Query by example QBE a simpler query interface using graphical drag and drop features newer and easier way to query databases no programming skills needed OLTP Online Transaction Processing IT systems used to process customer transactions e g orders deliveries invoicing payments etc Data from operational systems are useful inputs to BI analytical applications Operational OLTP vs Informational OLAP IT systems one keeps the processes running the other uses that data to make better decisions analysis Bus Intelligence Master Data Master data is the data that is deemed most important in the operation of a business It includes data about customers suppliers inventory employees and so on Important to have a single version of the truth BI applications base analyses on the single version of the truth by accessing multiple databases or using a data warehouse Data Warehouses Helps eliminate data inaccuracies redundancy by integrating multiple databases into a single system repository Primary purpose put key business information into the hands of decision makers Components of BI Business Intelligence Systems three primary types of BI systems Information and Knowledge Discovery Business Analytics Information Visualization Business Analytics BI applications to support human and automated decision making Business Analytics predict future outcomes Decision Support Systems DSS support human unstructured decision making Decision making support for recurring problems Used mostly by managerial level employees can be used at any level What if analyses Neural Networks Intelligent systems simulation of human reasoning intelligence Expert Systems Agents Bots Knowledge Management Systems Knowledge Management Systems Data Information Knowledge managing your most important assets Capturing the skills routines practices principles formulas methods heuristics and intuitions that make your business unique competitive Used to improve efficiency effectiveness and profitability Documents storing both facts and procedures Information Visualization Display of complex data relationships using graphical methods to make it easier to understand complex problems and information Enables managers to quickly grasp results of analyses Visual analytics Dashboards Geographic information systems Hard vs Soft Data In Business