ImpulsE

Future Technology Movie Reflection

2011-03-10T10:20:00.000-08:00

WALL-E

In the not so distant future, humans have quite literally trashed the planet to the point it's uninhabitable. With no means to sustain themselves – the plants have all died or are buried under miles of garbage – humans have fled in luxurious spaceships where their every whim is satisfied by robots. After hundreds of years living in space not having to move a muscle, we've devolved to the point of being fat couch potato globs that vaguely resemble the Pillsbury Doughboy.

WALL-E (short for Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) goes about his lonely job of compacting trash. It's what he was built for and programmed to do, and there's no reason for him to stop. He was inadvertently left turned on when everyone took off, so he goes about his work each and every day with only an indestructible cockroach named Hal for company. And after hundreds of years of this, WALL-E has developed a personality. He's an inquisitive little guy who collects weird items of trash that he then uses to furnish and decorate his home. He's also developed affection for Hello, Dolly! And watches the old VHS tape over and over again.

There are a number of important messages contained in WALL-E, but fundamentally it's a touching sci-fi love story. Yes, you can take from it the lesson of protecting our environment. And it's definitely a cautionary tale about our reliance on technology to do everyday tasks for us. But above all, WALL-E is simply one of the most romantic tales ever put on film.

WALL-E's such a joyous film you can't help but be totally caught up in the world of a lonely robot looking for love. Pixar's put together yet another movie to be enjoyed by all ages and one sure to go down in history as one of the best animated movies ever created. I know those are strong words, but I believe they are completely justified.

SURROGATES

Set in present day, people have found a new way to live their lives to the fullest — with surrogate robots. The robots are a sexy, physically perfect mechanical representations of themselves. Basically you’re you, only hotter and better at everything that you do. With everyone safe in their homes, free of pain, fear and consequences, the world is a utopia, that is until the first murder occurs and FBI agent Greer (Willis) will have to leave his surrogate behind and risk his life to unravel the mystery.

There are a lot of interesting ideas in Surrogates, from the intentionally wooden acting by some surrogates to the Wall-E-esque degradation of the human bodies behind the machines, but Mostow is far too absorbed in the nonsense conspiracy plot and frenetic action sequences to allow the audience to explore the world he's created. Half-baked and generic, Surrogates is entertaining enough for what it is, but a bland take on what could have been truly special.

I ROBOT

It's Chicago 2035 and urban planners have solved both the traffic and parking problems, and U.S. Robots (USR) has promised to put a robot into every home. Patrolling the streets of the future is detective Del Spooner (Will Smith), a confirmed robot hater, who spends his time—in Barney Fife style—busting robots for various crimes. The problem, robots can't commit crimes. This is because they are bound by the three laws of robotics, which state that robots must obey their masters and do no harm. Then one day a robot does commit a crime, murder, and Spooner is on the case ready to take his fury out on anything and everything cybernetic.

I, Robot's more fundamental problem, though, is the robots themselves. Little time is spent establishing why anthropomorphized robots have been embraced by this future America, what it has meant for humanity to have robots picking up all the boring and manually demanding jobs from Fed Ex delivery to garbage collecting to bartending, and what it will mean if robots are removed from the sociological mix now that they have become a part of life. Not helping is Alan Tudyk's creepy performance as robot "hero" Sonny.

Movie explores about the technological ability of humankind as well as how we can protect ourselves from any disasters caused by the same technological inventions. It is a science fiction thriller but it lacks the richness of imagination. The plot is thrilling but lacks depth. Sonny, the robot is a brilliant computer graphic creation. Special effects are impressive. There are lots of twists and turns in the film. And some of the jokes are corny.

PIRATES OF THE SILICON VALLEY

This is a movie about the geek business, or at least the personality of the geek business. Specifically, it's about the rise and fall of Apple (yes, Apple was on top for a while and Microsoft was the underdog) and the punches that the little guy (Microsoft, I swear) pulled trying to beat the big guys (IBM and Apple).

The film dutifully details the skyrocketing of Apple from a manufacturer of the first cookie cutter color PCs (the Apple II that didn't leave your high school until well after you did) to one of the biggest personal computer companies to the giant taken down by the people that helped build it up (don't you know, Microsoft helped make the original Macintosh operating system).

At the Apple camp Steve Jobs is invited to see the graphical user interface which has been developed by Xerox. Xerox had developed the mouse, and standard interface styles we all know today. But the company big whigs thought it was a silly idea and agreed to let Apple look at everything they had. Apple naturally stole everything they could.

Over at Microsoft, Bill Gates fears Apple's expansive growth, and travels to Apple headquartes to talk of an alliance. Bill weasels his way into the heart of Steve Jobs, Apples founder and has access to Apples new machines. After reverse engineering and a few modifications, Windows is born. Apple discovers this during a speech touting Apples new advertisement campaign for the Macintosh. Bill Gates yells at Steve Jobs for the first time. The great rivalry between Windows and Mac is born.

Eagle Eye

This is an interesting modern designer thriller although it could have been great-but it is good even in the hectic, techno-chic and youth-oriented manner employed to explore our surveillance agenda, the modern day technological dynamics of our daily existence and our paranoia with terrorism in all forms ,
it is what sword fish was 6 years ago -only it is frantically paced ,over-edited yet very engaging ,the two actors do a lot of shouting and running closely pursued by some well-orchestrated explosions and pyrotechnic displays but they are affective too and Shia is quite persuasive as jerry Shaw, a vulnerable, disillusioned Princeton dropout who has no faith anymore-while chased from los Angeles to the mid-west by a super-efficient female voice on a phone who communicates in a very amusing manner with neon billboards and public displays of pure anger which are hugely enjoyable .

Whatever other task you need to or should do, do that instead of going to see this painful work. Its utterly nonsensical plot (beyond the pale of even the most outlandish sci fi stories) made the under-two-hour film feel like a three hour visit to the dentist. Seriously, the only people who will enjoy this film will be NASCAR fans and other people who similarly like to see big pieces of metal crashing into each other at high speed. And by the way Mr. Director, the little boy could not have played a single note of music on his trumpet with something stuck in the instrument's leadpipe.

SAD1 Assignment5

2010-02-24T08:45:00.000-08:00

How do we know if the Life Cycle in our university is specifically developed for the University? And how do we know if the life cycle meets our needs as a student of the university?

I am currently studying in the University Of Southeastern Philippines. Our university is a government funded university. Our university has its own life cycle. Before we identify and discuss about the university's life cycle we should discuss first what is a System Development Life Cycle.

A Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is any logical process used by a systems analyst to develop an information system, including requirements, validation, training, and user (stakeholder) ownership. Any SDLC should result in a high quality system that meets or exceeds customer expectations, reaches completion within time and cost estimates, works effectively and efficiently in the current and planned Information Technology infrastructure, and is inexpensive to maintain and cost-effective to enhance.

To manage this level of complexity, a number of systems development life cycle (SDLC) models have been created: "waterfall"; "fountain"; "spiral"; "build and fix"; "rapid prototyping"; "incremental"; and "synchronize and stabilize".

SDLC models can be described along a spectrum of agile to iterative to sequential. Agile methodologies, such as XP and Scrum, focus on light-weight processes which allow for rapid changes along the development cycle. Iterative methodologies, such as Rational Unified Process and Dynamic Systems Development Method, focus on limited project scopes and expanding or improving products by multiple iterations. Sequential or big-design-upfront (BDUF) models, such as Waterfall, focus on complete and correct planning to guide large projects and risks to successful and predictable results.

Software development projects typically include initiation, planning, design, development, testing, implementation, and maintenance phases. However, the phases may be divided differently depending on the organization involved. For example, initial project activities might be designated as request, requirements-definition, and planning phases, or initiation, concept-development, and planning phases. End users of the system under development should be involved in reviewing the output of each phase to ensure the system is being built to deliver the needed functionality.

INITIATION PHASE

Careful oversight is required to ensure projects support strategic business objectives and resources are effectively implemented into an organization's enterprise architecture. The initiation phase begins when an opportunity to add, improve, or correct a system is identified and formally requested through the presentation of a business case. The business case should, at a minimum, describe a proposal’s purpose, identify expected benefits, and explain how the proposed system supports one of the organization’s business strategies. The business case should also identify alternative solutions and detail as many informational, functional, and network requirements as possible.

The presentation of a business case provides a point for managers to reject a proposal before they allocate resources to a formal feasibility study. When evaluating software development requests (and during subsequent feasibility and design analysis), management should consider input from all affected parties. Management should also closely evaluate the necessity of each requested functional requirement. A single software feature approved during the initiation phase can require several design documents and hundreds of lines of code. It can also increase testing, documentation, and support requirements. Therefore, the initial rejection of unnecessary features can significantly reduce the resources required to complete a project.

If provisional approval to initiate a project is obtained, the request documentation serves as a starting point to conduct a more thorough feasibility study. Completing a feasibility study requires management to verify the accuracy of the preliminary assumptions and identify resource requirements in greater detail.

The feasibility support documentation should be compiled and submitted for senior management or board study. The feasibility study document should provide an overview of the proposed project and identify expected costs and benefits in terms of economic, technical, and operational feasibility. The document should also describe alternative solutions and include a recommendation for approval or rejection. The document should be reviewed and signed off on by all affected parties. If approved, management should use the feasibility study and support documentation to begin the planning phase.

PLANNING PHASE

The planning phase is the most critical step in completing development, acquisition, and maintenance projects. Careful planning, particularly in the early stages of a project, is necessary to coordinate activities and manage project risks effectively. The depth and formality of project plans should be commensurate with the characteristics and risks of a given project.

Project plans refine the information gathered during the initiation phase by further identifying the specific activities and resources required to complete a project. A critical part of a project manager’s job is to coordinate discussions between user, audit, security, design, development, and network personnel to identify and document as many functional, security, and network requirements as possible.

Primary items organizations should address in formal project plans include:

Project Overview – Project overviews provide an outline of the project plan. Overviews should identify the project, project sponsors, and project managers; and should describe project goals, background information, and development strategies.

Roles and Responsibilities – Project plans should define the primary responsibilities of key personnel, including project sponsors, managers, and team members. Additionally, project plans should identify the responsibilities of third-party vendors and internal audit, security, and network personnel.

Communication – Defined communication techniques enhance project efficiencies. Therefore, management should establish procedures for gathering and disseminating information. Standard report forms, defined reporting requirements, and established meeting schedules facilitate project communications. Management should establish acceptance criteria for each project phase. Management should also establish appropriate review and approval procedures to ensure project teams complete all phase requirements before moving into subsequent phases.

Defined Deliverables – Clearly defined expectations are a prerequisite for successfully completing projects. Representatives from all departments involved in, or affected by, a project should assist in defining realistic project objectives, accurate informational, functional, and interface requirements, and objective acceptance criteria.

Control Requirements – An essential part of the planning process involves designing and building automated control and security features into applications. Identifying all required features and exactly where they should be placed is not always possible during initial project phases. However, management should consider security and control issues throughout a project’s life cycle and include those features in applications as soon as possible during a project’s life cycle.

Risk Management – Managing risks is an important part of the project planning process. Organizations should establish procedures to ensure managers appropriately assess, monitor, and manage internal and external risks throughout a project’s life cycle. The procedures should include risk acceptance, mitigation, and/or transfer strategies. External risks include issues such as vendor failures, regulatory changes, and natural disasters. Internal risks include items that affect budgets, such as inaccurate cost forecasting or changing functional requirements; scheduling difficulties, such as unexpected personnel changes or inaccurate development assumptions; and work flow challenges, such as weak communication or inexperienced project managers.

Change Management – Personnel often request the addition or modification of functional requirements during software development projects. Although the addition or modification of requirements may be appropriate, standards should be in place to control changes in order to minimize disruptions to the development process. Project managers should establish cut-off dates after which they defer requested changes to subsequent versions. Additionally, representatives from the same departments involved in establishing requirements should be involved in evaluating and approving proposed changes. Large, complex, or mission-critical projects should include formal change management procedures.

Standards – Project plans should reference applicable standards relating to project oversight activities, system controls, and quality assurance. Oversight standards should address project methodology selections, approval authorities, and risk management procedures. System controls standards should address functional, security, and automated-control requirements. Quality assurance standards should address the validity of project assumptions, adherence to project standards, and testing of a product’s overall performance. Management should review, approve, and document deviations from established standards.

Documentation – Project plans should identify the type and level of documentation personnel must produce during each project phase. For instance, personnel should document project objectives, system requirements, and development strategies during the initiation phase. The documentation should be revised as needed throughout the project. For example, preliminary user, operator, and maintenance manuals created during the design phase should be revised during the development and testing phases, and finalized during the implementation phase.

Scheduling – Management should identify and schedule major project phases and the tasks to be completed within each phase. Due to the uncertainties involved with estimating project requirements, management should build flexibility into project schedules. However, the amount of flexibility built into schedules should decline as projects progress and requirements become more defined.

Budget – Managers should develop initial budget estimations of overall project costs so they can determine if projects are feasible. Managers should monitor the budgets throughout a project and adjust them if needed; however, they should retain a baseline budget for post-project analysis. In addition to budgeting personnel expenses and outsourced activities, it is important to include the costs associated with project overhead such as office space, hardware, and software used during the project.

Testing – Management should develop testing plans that identify testing requirements and schedule testing procedures throughout the initial phases of a project. End users, designers, developers, and system technicians may be involved in the testing process.

Staff Development – Management should develop training plans that identify training requirements and schedule training procedures to ensure employees are able to use and maintain an application after implementation.

DESIGN PHASE

The design phase involves converting the informational, functional, and network requirements identified during the initiation and planning phases into unified design specifications that developers use to script programs during the development phase. Program designs are constructed in various ways. Using a top-down approach, designers first identify and link major program components and interfaces, then expand design layouts as they identify and link smaller subsystems and connections. Using a bottom-up approach, designers first identify and link minor program components and interfaces, then expand design layouts as they identify and link larger systems and connections.

Contemporary design techniques often use prototyping tools that build mock-up designs of items such as application screens, database layouts, and system architectures. End users, designers, developers, database managers, and network administrators should review and refine the prototyped designs in an iterative process until they agree on an acceptable design. Audit, security, and quality assurance personnel should be involved in the review and approval process.

DEVELOPMENT PHASE
The development phase involves converting design specifications into executable programs. Effective development standards include requirements that programmers and other project participants discuss design specifications before programming begins. The procedures help ensure programmers clearly understand program designs and functional requirements.

Programmers use various techniques to develop computer programs. The large transaction-oriented programs associated with financial institutions have traditionally been developed using procedural programming techniques. Procedural programming involves the line-by-line scripting of logical instructions that are combined to form a program.
Primary procedural programming activities include the creation and testing of source code and the refinement and finalization of test plans. Typically, individual programmers write and review (desk test) program modules or components, which are small routines that perform a particular task within an application. Completed components are integrated with other components and reviewed, often by a group of programmers, to ensure the components properly interact. The process continues as component groups are progressively integrated and as interfaces between component groups and other systems are tested.

Advancements in programming techniques include the concept of "object-oriented programming." Object-oriented programming centers on the development of reusable program routines (modules) and the classification of data types (numbers, letters, dollars, etc.) and data structures (records, files, tables, etc.). Linking pre-scripted module objects to predefined data-class objects reduces development times and makes programs easier to modify. Refer to the "Software Development Techniques" section for additional information on object-oriented programming.

Organizations should complete testing plans during the development phase. Additionally, they should update conversion, implementation, and training plans and user, operator, and maintenance manuals.

TESTING PHASE

The testing phase requires organizations to complete various tests to ensure the accuracy of programmed code, the inclusion of expected functionality, and the interoperability of applications and other network components. Thorough testing is critical to ensuring systems meet organizational and end-user requirements.

If organizations use effective project management techniques, they will complete test plans while developing applications, prior to entering the testing phase. Weak project management techniques or demands to complete projects quickly may pressure organizations to develop test plans at the start of the testing phase. Test plans created during initial project phases enhance an organization’s ability to create detailed tests. The use of detailed test plans significantly increases the likelihood that testers will identify weaknesses before products are implemented.

Testing groups are comprised of technicians and end users who are responsible for assembling and loading representative test data into a testing environment. The groups typically perform tests in stages, either from a top-down or bottom-up approach. A bottom-up approach tests smaller components first and progressively adds and tests additional components and systems. A top-down approach first tests major components and connections and progressively tests smaller components and connections. The progression and definitions of completed tests vary between organizations.

Bottom-up tests often begin with functional (requirements based) testing. Functional tests should ensure that expected functional, security, and internal control features are present and operating properly. Testers then complete integration and end-to-end testing to ensure application and system components interact properly. Users then conduct acceptance tests to ensure systems meet defined acceptance criteria.

Testers often identify program defects or weaknesses during the testing process. Procedures should be in place to ensure programmers correct defects quickly and document all corrections or modifications. Correcting problems quickly increases testing efficiencies by decreasing testers’ downtime. It also ensures a programmer does not waste time trying to debug a portion of a program without defects that is not working because another programmer has not debugged a defective linked routine. Documenting corrections and modifications is necessary to maintain the integrity of the overall program documentation.

Organizations should review and complete user, operator, and maintenance manuals during the testing phase. Additionally, they should finalize conversion, implementation, and training plans.

IMPLEMENTATION PHASE

The implementation phase involves installing approved applications into production environments. Primary tasks include announcing the implementation schedule, training end users, and installing the product. Additionally, organizations should input and verify data, configure and test system and security parameters, and conduct post-implementation reviews. Management should circulate implementation schedules to all affected parties and should notify users of any implementation responsibilities.
After organizations install a product, pre-existing data is manually input or electronically transferred to a new system. Verifying the accuracy of the input data and security configurations is a critical part of the implementation process. Organizations often run a new system in parallel with an old system until they verify the accuracy and reliability of the new system. Employees should document any programming, procedural, or configuration changes made during the verification process.

MAINTENANCE PHASE

The maintenance phase involves making changes to hardware, software, and documentation to support its operational effectiveness. It includes making changes to improve a system’s performance, correct problems, enhance security, or address user requirements. To ensure modifications do not disrupt operations or degrade a system’s performance or security, organizations should establish appropriate change management standards and procedures.

Change management (sometimes referred to as configuration management) involves establishing baseline versions of products, services, and procedures and ensuring all changes are approved, documented, and disseminated. Change controls should address all aspects of an organization’s technology environment including software programs, hardware and software configurations, operational standards and procedures, and project management activities. Management should establish change controls that address major, routine, and emergency software modifications and software patches.

Major modifications involve significant changes to a system’s functionality. Management should implement major modifications using a well-structured process, such as an SDLC methodology.

Routine changes are not as complex as major modifications and can usually be implemented in the normal course of business. Routine change controls should include procedures for requesting, evaluating, approving, testing, installing, and documenting software modifications.
Emergency changes may address an issue that would normally be considered routine, however, because of security concerns or processing problems, the changes must be made quickly. Emergency change controls should include the same procedures as routine change controls. Management should establish abbreviated request, evaluation, and approval procedures to ensure they can implement changes quickly. Detailed evaluations and documentation of emergency changes should be completed as soon as possible after changes are implemented. Management should test routine and, whenever possible, emergency changes prior to implementation and quickly notify affected parties of all changes. If management is unable to thoroughly test emergency modifications before installation, it is critical that they appropriately backup files and programs and have established back-out procedures in place.

Software patches are similar in complexity to routine modifications. This document uses the term "patch" to describe program modifications involving externally developed software packages. However, organizations with in-house programming may also refer to routine software modifications as patches. Patch management programs should address procedures for evaluating, approving, testing, installing, and documenting software modifications. However, a critical part of the patch management process involves maintaining an awareness of external vulnerabilities and available patches.

Maintaining accurate, up-to-date hardware and software inventories is a critical part of all change management processes. Management should carefully document all modifications to ensure accurate system inventories. (If material software patches are identified but not implemented, management should document the reason why the patch was not installed.)

Management should coordinate all technology related changes through an oversight committee and assign an appropriate party responsibility for administering software patch management programs. Quality assurance, security, audit, regulatory compliance, network, and end-user personnel should be appropriately included in change management processes. Risk and security review should be done whenever a system modification is implemented to ensure controls remain in place.
Refer to the "Maintenance" section of this booklet and the IT Handbook’s "Information Security Booklet" for additional details regarding change controls.

DISPOSAL PHASE

The disposal phase involves the orderly removal of surplus or obsolete hardware, software, or data. Primary tasks include the transfer, archiving, or destruction of data records. Management should transfer data from production systems in a planned and controlled manner that includes appropriate backup and testing procedures. Organizations should maintain archived data in accordance with applicable record retention requirements. It should also archive system documentation in case it becomes necessary to reinstall a system into production. Management should destroy data by overwriting old information or degaussing (demagnetizing) disks and tapes. Refer to the IT Handbook’s “Information Security Booklet” for more information on disposal of media.

Actually i did not see the university's actual infrastructure, but I can say that the university has it's own infrastructure and so the university has its own life cycle specifically designed for the university. But those plans where not implemented well because of some factors. One of these factors is the budget. The University Of Southeastern Philippines is government funded university and the budget for the development for the university is sometimes not enough and this may result to postponement of some projects, thats the development cycle of the university is slow.

As a student of the university I can say that the university's plan doesn't completely meet the needs of the students. But I am grateful that the University offers us low cost standard education. Thats why we as a students must also do our part and contribute for the development of the University.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systems_Development_Life_Cycle#Overview
http://www.ffiec.gov/ffiecinfobase/booklets/d_a/08.html

SAD1 Assignment3

2010-02-24T08:43:00.000-08:00

Discuss the role of a systems analyst as a project manager. (at least one thousand words) .... you need to interview an analyst/project manager ..

Our interviewee was the System Analyst of Davao Light and Power Corporation. He just gave us brief explanations regarding this topic. As what he said, it is up to us on how we elaborate the topic long enough to satisfy the problem statement given in this assignment.

A Project Manger is the person who keeps track of an information systems project either from inception to deployment or through a single stage. Project managers have varying levels of responsibilities and authority. A project manager is often a client representative and has to determine and implement the exact needs of the client, based on knowledge of the firm they are representing. The ability to adapt to the various internal procedures of the contracting party, and to form close links with the nominated representatives, is essential in ensuring that the key issues of cost, time, quality and above all, client satisfaction, can be realized.

TYPICAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Monitors, maintains, and upgrades applicable technology systems in assigned area of responsibility, which includes quality assurance, problem solving, researching user issues, performing upgrades and maintenance, and implementing system modifications.

2. Writes and maintains user report programs based on the needs of internal customers.

3. Supports, troubleshoots, and upgrades applicable system infrastructures.

4. Provides project management for systems implementations, which may include: designing products, programming, providing team leadership, testing, implementing, reporting, reviewing finished products, and tracking performance and data quality.

5. Analyzes business process issues and/or problems and provides consulting assistance to system users; conducts research on possible solutions and makes recommendations based on findings; develops proposals that outline feasibility and costs; suggests, designs, tests, implements, and evaluates solutions.

6. Provides technical end-user support, including researching user complaints, researching issues, answering technical questions, and/or assisting with application revisions.

7. Supervises technical/support staff; participates in hiring, evaluating, training, disciplining, and recommending discharge as necessary.

8. Develops a variety of applications, procedures, reports, scripts, and/or interfaces. Maintains a variety of records and/or documentation for assigned area of responsibility.

9. Monitors and maintains systems to ensure system integrity and security, which may include: duplicating and backing up data, managing user accounts and authorizations, maintaining software security, and/or performing other related activities.

10. Positions in this classification may perform all or some of the responsibilities above and all positions perform other related duties as assigned.

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS:
• Computers and applicable software applications;
• Advanced computer installation, configuration, and/or networking principles and techniques;
• Operating systems;
• Customer service principles;
• System analysis and design principles;
• Business processes;
• Technology infrastructures;
• Project management principles;
• Database management and/or administration principles;
• Applicable programming principles and/or languages.

DEMONSTRATED SKILLS:
• Installing, configuring and troubleshooting technological platforms and systems;
• Utilizing and managing databases;
• Communicating technical information to a non-technical audience;
• Designing reports;
• Providing end-user support for complex problems;
• Managing projects;
• Creating system user documentation;
• Developing and facilitating training sessions;
• Evaluating and designing new systems and applying them to new or existing business processes;
• Reading and interpreting technical manuals;
• Communicating technical information to a non-technical audience;
• Establishing mechanisms for coordinated data development, sharing, and information exchange with other departments, agencies, and staff;
• Providing customer service;
• Defining problems, collecting data, establishing facts, and drawing valid conclusions;
• Working with diverse academic, cultural and ethnic backgrounds of community college students and staff;
• Utilizing computer technology used for communication, data gathering and reporting;
• Communicating effectively through oral and written mediums.

A project is a temporary endeavor, having a defined beginning and end (usually constrained by date, but can be by funding or deliverables), undertaken to meet particular goals and objectives[3], usually to bring about beneficial change or added value. The temporary nature of projects stands in contrast to business as usual (or operations), which are repetitive, permanent or semi-permanent functional work to produce products or services. In practice, the management of these two systems is often found to be quite different, and as such requires the development of distinct technical skills and the adoption of separate management.

The primary challenge of project management is to achieve all of the project goals and objectives while honoring the preconceived project constraints. Typical constraints are scope, time, and budget. The secondary—and more ambitious—challenge is to optimize the allocation and integration of inputs necessary to meet pre-defined objectives.

A Software Project Manager has many of the same skills as their counterparts in other industries. Beyond the skills normally associated with traditional project management in industries such as construction and manufacturing, a software project manager will typically have an extensive background in software development. Many software project managers hold a degree in Computer Science, Information Technology or another related field and will typically have worked in the industry as a software engineer.

In traditional project management a heavyweight, predictive methodology such as the waterfall model is often employed, but software project managers must also be skilled in more lightweight, adaptive methodologies such as DSDM, SCRUM and XP. These project management methodologies are based on the uncertainty of developing a new software system and advocate smaller, incremental development cycles. These incremental or iterative cycles are timeboxed (constrained to a known period of time, typically from one to four weeks) and produce a working subset of the entire system deliverable at the end of each iteration. The increasing adoption of lightweight approaches is due largely to the fact that software requirements are very susceptible to change, and it is extremely difficult to illuminate all the potential requirements in a single project phase before the software development commences.

REFERENCES:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_management
http://www.answers.com/topic/project-manager
http://www.pcc.edu/hr/employment/job-classifications/systems-analyst.html

SAD1 Assignment2

2010-02-24T08:37:00.000-08:00

Interview a Systems Analyst and ask what skills and characteristics must a systems analyst develop in order to be more effective in any design modeling process.

Before we discuss about the characteristics and skills that a system analyst must develop lets know first what a system analyst is.

A systems analyst is responsible for researching, planning, coordinating and recommending software and system choices to meet an organization's business requirements. The systems analyst plays a vital role in the systems development process. A successful systems analyst must acquire four skills: analytical, technical, managerial, and interpersonal. Analytical skills enable systems analysts to understand the organization and its functions, which helps him/her to identify opportunities and to analyze and solve problems. Technical skills help systems analysts understand the potential and the limitations of information technology. The systems analyst must be able to work with various programming languages, operating systems, and computer hardware platforms. Management skills help systems analysts manage projects, resources, risk, and change. Interpersonal skills help systems analysts work with end users as well as with analysts, programmers, and other systems professionals.

Because they must write user requests into technical specifications, the systems analysts are the liaisons between vendors and the IT professionals of the organization they represent. They may be responsible for developing cost analysis, design considerations, and implementation time-lines. They may also be responsible for feasibility studies of a computer system before making recommendations to senior management.

In some organizations a single worker called a programmer-analyst is responsible for both systems analysis and programming. (The work of computer programmers is described elsewhere in the Handbook.) As this becomes more commonplace, these analysts will increasingly work with Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE) tools and object-oriented programming languages, as well as client/server applications development, and multimedia and Internet technology.

Many others specialize in analysis, application, or design of a particular system or piece of the system. Network or systems administrators, for example, may install, configure, and support an organizations systems or portion of a system. Telecommunications specialists generally are involved with the interfacing of computer and communications equipment. Computer security specialists are responsible for planning, coordinating, and implementing an organizations' information security measures. These and other growing specialty occupations reflect the increasing emphasis on client-server applications, the growth of the Internet, the expansion of World Wide Web applications and Intranets, and the demand for more end-user support. An example of this is the growing number of job titles relating to the Internet and World Wide Web such as Internet and Web developers, or Webmasters.

Systems analysts require a balanced mix of business and technical knowledge, interviewing and analytical skills and a good understanding of human behavior. See system development cycle, salary survey and Systemantics.

Work Activities

• Help staff and users solve computer problems.
• Test and maintain computer programs and systems. Revise programming based on errors found during tests.
• Write computer programs.
• Talk with staff or clients to determine their computer needs.
• Link different computer systems so information can be shared.
• Train staff how to use computer systems.
• Coordinate installation of new computer programs or hardware.
• Create charts and diagrams that show how the programs interact.
• Create and review plans about developing new systems.
• Examine computer reports and test results to find problems.
• Write documentation about program and system procedures.
• Prepare reports for managers about programming costs and benefits for the organization.
• Read materials related to the job.
A systems analyst performs the following tasks:
• Interact with the customers to know their requirements
• Interact with designers to convey the possible interface of the software
• Interact/guide the coders/developers to keep track of system development
• Perform system testing with sample/live data with the help of testers
• Implement the new system
• Prepare High quality Documentation

This are the four basic skill that a system analyst must have.

- technical skills
- management skills
- analytical skills
- intrapersonal skills

Analytical Skills

is the ability to visualize, articulate, and solve complex problems and concepts, and make decisions that make sense based on available information. Such skills include demonstration of the ability to apply logical thinking to gathering and analyzing information, designing and testing solutions to problems, and formulating plans.

Systems analysts use their knowledge and skills to solve computer problems and enable computer technology to meet the individual needs of an organization.

To test for analytical skills one might be asked to look for inconsistencies in an advertisement, put a series of events in the proper order, or critically read an essay. Usually standardized tests and interviews include an analytical section that requires the examine to use their logic to pick apart a problem and come up with a solution.

Although there is no question that analytical skills are essential, other skills are equally required as well. For instance in systems analysis the systems analyst should focus on four sets of analytical skills: systems thinking, organizational knowledge, problem identification, and problem analyzing and solving.

It also includes the way we describe a problem and subsequently finding out the solutions.

Management Skills

In all business and human organisation activity is simply the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives. Management comprises planning, organizing, staffing, leading or directing, and controlling an organization (a group of one or more people or entities) or effort for the purpose of accomplishing a goal. Resourcing encompasses the deployment and manipulation of human resources, financial resources, technological resources, and natural resources.

Analysts then use techniques such as structured analysis, data modeling, information engineering, mathematical model building, sampling, and cost accounting to plan the system. Analysts must specify the inputs to be accessed by the system, design the processing steps, and format the output to meet the users' needs. Once the design has been developed, systems analysts prepare charts and diagrams that describe it in terms that managers and other users can understand.

Technical Skills

Systems analysts understand the potential and the limitations of information technology. The systems analyst must be able to work with various programming languages, operating systems, and computer hardware platforms.

Intrapersonal Skills

Refers to mental and communicative algorithms applied during social communications and interaction to reach certain effects or results. The term "interpersonal skills" is used often in business contexts to refer to the measure of a person's ability to operate within business organizations through social communication and interactions. Interpersonal skills are how people relate to one another.

As an illustration, it is generally understood that communicating respect for other people or professionals within will enable one to reduce conflict and increase participation or assistance in obtaining information or completing tasks. For instance, to interrupt someone who is currently preoccupied with the task of obtaining information needed immediately, it is recommended that a professional use a deferential approach with language such as, "Excuse me, are you busy? I have an urgent matter to discuss with you if you have the time at the moment." This allows the receiving professional to make their own judgement regarding the importance of their current task versus entering into a discussion with their colleague. While it is generally understood that interrupting someone with an "urgent" request will often take priority, allowing the receiver of the message to judge independently the request and agree to further interaction will likely result in a higher quality interaction. Following these kinds of heuristics to achieve better professional results generally results in a professional being ranked as one with 'good interpersonal skills.' Often these evaluations occur in formal and informal settings.

Having positive interpersonal skills increases the productivity in the organization since the number of conflicts is reduced. In informal situations, it allows communication to be easy and comfortable. People with good interpersonal skills can generally control the feelings that emerge in difficult situations and respond appropriately, instead of being overwhelmed by emotion.

System Analyst as an architect

Systems analysts are the architects, as well as the project leaders, of an information system. It is their job to develop solutions to users' problems, determine the technical and operational feasibility of their solutions, as well as estimate the costs to develop and implement them.

They develop prototypes of the system along with the users, so that the final specifications are examples of screens and reports that have been carefully reviewed. Experienced analysts leave no doubt in users' minds as to what is being developed, and they insist that all responsible users review and sign off on every detail.

Typical Duties of system analyst:

1. Analyze existing business operations and existing information systems (computerized or not).
2. Study trends in technology.
3. Study trends in business and be aware of competitors' exploitation of technology.
4. Propose alternative solutions to business problems and select preferred solution. Justify selection.
5. Recommend technology products (hardware and software) for purchase.
6. Design new systems including process flow, user interface, reports, and security procedures.
7. Prepare training material for users of new system.
8. Supervise implementation of new system.

Most Desired Skills and Qualities

1. Excellent communication abilities (oral and written).
2. Problem solving.
3. Understanding of the potential of computer technology.
4. Appreciation for the business's objectives.
5. Ability to guide people through periods of change.
6. Patience. - should be #1
7. Creativity.

The system analyst that we interviewed for this assignment is the system analyst of Davao Light & Power Company.

Davao Light and Power Company is the third largest privately-owned electric utility in the Philippines. It holds the franchise for distributing electric power to Davao City, the largest city in the world in terms of land area, as well as Panabo City and the municipalities of Carmen, Dujali, and Sto. Tomas in Davao del Norte. On September 29, 2000, the franchise was renewed for another 25 years by virtue of Republic Act 8960.

In 2008, the company sold 1.371 billion kilowatt-hours to 257,100 customers with a peak demand of 248 megawatts (MW). Among the country’s most efficiently run power utilities, its systems loss rate of 8.17% is well below the government mandated cap of 9.50%.

Davao Light maintains a 53.8 MW standby diesel power plant with a capability of 40 MW for sustained operations. As needed, it is activated to stabilize voltage as well as augment the power supply of its primary generating sources. It makes use of a fully functional automated mapping and facilities management (AM/FM) system to track the location of electric distribution assets in its franchise. Also in place is a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system, a facility that allows remote real-time data gathering and control of equipment in all power substations.

High-end computers, sophisticated software, and other devices are being used to speed up meter reading, streamline billing, provide efficient and prompt response to customer inquiries, generate management information, and analyze electrical grid information.

Special attention has been devoted to improving Davao Light’s service standards. Innovative re-engineering efforts have cut down service cycle times. Outsourcing of tasks and reallocating manpower and other resources has allowed the utility to improve productivity while keeping costs relatively stable. Current efforts focus on teamwork, service excellence, professionalism, and innovation in preparation for a deregulated and competitive environment.

Now and in the future, Davao Light is committed to deliver reliable and efficient service at reasonable rates.

Davao Light & Power Company is located at JP Laurel Avenue Bajada, Davao City.

The one that we interviewed in Davao Light is one of the experienced system analyst in the company. They designed the current system that the company is using now. Based on his experience he told us what skills that a system analyst must develop. This skills are communication skills, technical skills, managerial skills and analytical skills. He also stated that it is important that a system analyst know how to model data, how to model process and administrative works. For communication skills he said that a system analyst must know how to point something to the client and must present the project nicely to the client. For technical he said that it is important that you know all the systems in the organization, the legacy systems and the program system. The last thing that he told as is that a system analyst must be business oriented, an analyst should know the business functions and processes of the organization or company.

Reference:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systems_analyst
http://www.math.utep.edu/mathmajor/system/home.html
http://www.answers.com/topic/systems-analyst-technology
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20061017220551AAvUwac
http://www.iseek.org/careers/careerDetail?id=7&oc=100047
http://davaolight.com/[justify]

SAD1 Assignment1

2010-02-24T08:36:00.000-08:00

In this first chapter I will identify and discuss some of characteristics that I have as a system analyst. HmMmMm. There are many characteristics that are essential to become a good system analyst. Before we discuss about the characteristic that I have and the characteristics that one should have to become a good system analyst we should discuss first what a system analyst is.

System analyst is the person responsible for the development of an information system. Systems analysts design and modify systems by turning user requirements into a set of functional specifications, which are the blueprint of the system. They design the database or help design it if data administrators are available. They develop the manual and machine procedures and the detailed processing specifications for each data entry, update, query and report program in the system. A system analyst research, plan, coordinate and recommending software and system choices to meet an organization's business requirements. The systems analyst plays a vital role in the systems development process. A successful systems analyst must acquire four skills: analytical, technical, managerial, and interpersonal. Analytical skills enable systems analysts to understand the organization and its functions, which helps him/her to identify opportunities and to analyze and solve problems. Technical skills help systems analysts understand the potential and the limitations of information technology. The systems analyst must be able to work with various programming languages, operating systems, and computer hardware platforms. Management skills help systems analysts manage projects, resources, risk, and change. Interpersonal skills help systems analysts work with end users as well as with analysts, programmers, and other systems professionals.

Because they must write user requests into technical specifications, the systems analysts are the liaisons between vendors and the IT professionals of the organization they represent[1] They may be responsible for developing cost analysis, design considerations, and implementation time-lines. They may also be responsible for feasibility studies of a computer system before making recommendations to senior management.

Systems analysts are the architects, as well as the project leaders, of an information system. It is their job to develop solutions to users' problems, determine the technical and operational feasibility of their solutions, as well as estimate the costs to develop and implement them. They develop prototypes of the system along with the users, so that the final specifications are examples of screens and reports that have been carefully reviewed. Experienced analysts leave no doubt in users' minds as to what is being developed, and they insist that all responsible users review and sign off on every detail. Systems analysts require a balanced mix of business and technical knowledge, interviewing and analytical skills and a good understanding of human behavior. See system development cycle, salary survey and Systemantics.

WHAT DO SYSTEM ANALYSTS DO?

The rapid spread of computers has generated a need for highly trained workers to design and develop new hardware and software systems and to incorporate technological advances into new or existing systems. Job titles used to describe the broad category of computer-related occupations evolve rapidly, reflecting new areas of specialization or changes in technology as well as the preferences and practices of employers. Although many narrow specializations exist, this professional specialty group is commonly categorized into computer scientists, computer engineers, and systems analysts.

Far more numerous than do computer scientists and computer engineers, systems analysts use their knowledge and skills to solve computer problems and enable computer technology to meet the individual needs of an organization. They study business, scientific, or engineering data processing problems and design new solutions using computers. This process may include planning and developing new computer systems or devising ways to apply existing systems' resources to additional operations. Systems analysts may design entirely new systems, including both hardware and software, or add a single new software application to harness more of the computer's power. They work to help an organization realize the maximum benefit from its investment in equipment, personnel, and business processes. Most systems analysts generally work with a specific type of system depending on the type of organization they work for for example, business, accounting or financial systems, or scientific and engineering systems. Companies generally seek business systems analysts who specialize in the type of systems they use.

Analysts begin an assignment by discussing the systems problem with managers and users to determine its exact nature. Much time is devoted to clearly defining the goals of the system and understanding the individual steps used to achieve them so that the problem can be broken down into separate programmable procedures. Analysts then use techniques such as structured analysis, data modeling, information engineering, mathematical model building, sampling, and cost accounting to plan the system. Analysts must specify the inputs to be accessed by the system, design the processing steps, and format the output to meet the users' needs. Once the design has been developed, systems analysts prepare charts and diagrams that describe it in terms that managers and other users can understand. They may prepare cost-benefit and return-on-investment analyses to help management decide whether implementing the proposed system will be financially feasible.

A systems analyst performs the following tasks:
• Interact with the customers to know their requirements
• Interact with designers to convey the possible interface of the software
• Interact/guide the coders/developers to keep track of system development
• Perform system testing with sample/live data with the help of testers
• Implement the new system
• Prepare High quality Documentation

System analyst must have knowledge of:

• Flow charting, data and process modeling, traffic analysis, form design, and control and measurement procedures;
• Research techniques, methods, procedures and reporting methods;
• Data input methods and control techniques used for computer processing;
• Mainframe, minicomputers, personal computer, LANS, and WANS;
• Application security and privacy techniques;
• Methods of structured systems analysis and design, and information engineering;
• Proper English usage, spelling, grammar and punctuation;
• City policies and procedures affecting departmental operations;
• City and Department Mission including strategic goals and objectives;
• General City Operations;
• Applicable local, State and Federal laws and regulations;
• Project organization necessary to achieve objectives, controls resources, and report status;
• LAN, WAN, Internet, and Intranet networking characteristics, protocols, technologies, applications, and integration concepts;
• Principles and application of statistical methods;
• Principles and practices of personnel management and supervision;
• Facilitation of work groups and design teams.

Here are some of the characteristics that one should have to become a good system analyst:

•Skilled – in order to become a good system analyst one should acquire many skills in fields of Information Technology and business. A System analyst must have management skills, leadership skills, analytical skills, technical, Intrapersonal skills and programming skills.
•Business Oriented – understands the business problems of the end-user and is intimate with the operation of the user's department. In other words, the analyst can comfortably walk in the shoes of the end-user. If they are doing their job properly, analysts make excellent candidates to assume responsibility in the management hierarchy.
•Perseverance – a system analyst must have great determination. An essential characteristic that a system analyst should have. System analyst needs determination to achieve his goals and to finish the project in time.
•Dedication - a system analyst must be dedicated to his/her work in order to the work properly.
•Flexible – in order to keep up in the fast changing environment of Business and Information Technology a system analyst must be flexible enough. A good systems analyst must adapt changes in trends in technology, business and both. You have to face with changing environment in which the current system implementation will replace with new system after a year.

Here some important natural abilities that system analyst should have.

Oral Comprehension
Using Rules To Organize Things Into Patterns
Anticipating Problems
Written Comprehension
Speech Clarity
Applying Rules Flexibly
Fluency Of Ideas
Near Vision
Deductive Reasoning
Oral Expression
Inductive Reasoning
Written Expression
Speech Recognition
Doing Math Quickly
Mathematical Reasoning
Recognizing Patterns In Complex Situations
Ability To Concentrate
Originality

Work Style Characteristics

Attention To Detail
Analytical Thinking
Dependability
Integrity
Adaptability/Flexibility
Innovation
Cooperation
Initiative
Stress Tolerance
Persistence
Independence
Self Control
Achievement/Effort
Concern For Others
Social Orientation
Leadership

http://www.answers.com/topic/systems-analyst-technology
http://www.math.utep.edu/mathmajor/system/home.html#what

MIS2 Assignment8

2010-02-24T08:31:00.000-08:00

fast forward ..., you were hired and have been tasked to develop a strategic information systems plan for a company. The company officers have extended an invitation for you to meet with them to discuss the direction of the company. Before this meeting, they have asked that you provide a list of questions with some explanation about the "why" of the question so they can be prepared, thus maximizing the output from this meeting. If I was hired to develop a Strategic Information Systems plan for a company and the company invited me to discuss with them the direction of the company and asked me to provide some question for the meeting about the Strategic Information Systems plan, here are the following questions that must be ask.

― What is the business all about and what are the objectives of the company?

Before you develop a strategic information systems plan you ask first what business does the company have and you should ask about the company’s objectives. Because knowing the objective of the company can help you determine the direction of the company.

― Why the need for change?

Knowing the reasons why the company needs to change is also important. Why the company takes risk on changing their current system is a factor to consider. Because as technology changes, the organization’s practices also change and it will have a great effect to those people who are working in the company. That’s why you should meet the needs of the company that hired you.

― What is the company’s business plan?

The Strategic information systems plan must be inline or linked to the company’s business plan. Because the strategic information systems plan that will be developed will support the organization’s overall business plan.
― What is the scope and limitation of the Strategic Information Systems plan?
It is important to know the scope and limitation of the strategic information systems plan that I will develop so that I will not go overboard beyond the company’s needs. And it can also help prevent miss understanding between me and the company.

― What is the company’s current situation?

After knowing the scope of the strategic information systems plan. Knowing the company’s current situation is important. Before I develop a strategic information systems plan I should know what their current system is, what their previous strategic information systems plan is, the management strategy, the implementation plan and budget. Because it will be my reference or basis for developing a new strategic information systems plan that will provide the needs of the company.

― What are the critical success factors?

In order to meet the company’s needs and in order to achieve success, I must know what are the critical success factors in developing a strategic information systems plan. Some of this success factors are the operational goals shaped by the company, the firm, the manager, and the broader environment that are believed to assure the success of an organization.

MIS2 Assignment 5

2009-12-29T00:41:00.000-08:00

In the spectrum of organizational change, which is the most radical type of change: automation, rationalization of procedures, business reengineering, or paradigm shifts? (you are expected to read an article about this question) .. at least 3000 words

Significant organizational change occurs, for example, when an organization changes its overall strategy for success, adds or removes a major section or practice, and/or wants to change the very nature by which it operates. It also occurs when an organization evolves through various life cycles, just like people must successfully evolve through life cycles. For organizations to develop, they often must undergo significant change at various points in their development. That's why the topic of organizational change and development has become widespread in communications about business, organizations, leadership and management.

Leaders and managers continually make efforts to accomplish successful and significant change -- it's inherent in their jobs. Some are very good at this effort (probably more than we realize), while others continually struggle and fail. That's often the difference between people who thrive in their roles and those that get shuttled around from job to job, ultimately settling into a role where they're frustrated and ineffective. There are many schools with educational programs about organizations, business, leadership and management. Unfortunately, there still are not enough schools with programs about how to analyze organizations, identify critically important priorities to address (such as systemic problems or exciting visions for change) and then undertake successful and significant change to address those priorities. This Library topic aims to improve that situation.

There are many approaches to guiding change -- some planned, structured and explicit, while others are more organic, unfolding and implicit. Some approaches work from the future to the present, for example, involving visioning and then action planning about how to achieve that vision. Other approaches work from the present to the future, for example, identifying current priorities (issues and/or goals) and then action planning about to address those priorities (the action research approach is one example). Different people often have very different -- and strong -- opinions about how change should be conducted. Thus, it is likely that some will disagree with some of the content in this topic. That's what makes this topic so diverse, robust and vital for us all.

The rate of organizational change has not slowed in recent years, and may even be increasing. The rapid and continual innovation in technology is driving changes to organizational systems and processes. Witness the startling growth of the internet, which is enabling much faster and easier access to knowledge. Add to this the increased expectations of employees as they move more freely between organizations. And, of course, globalization has seen the tearing down of previous international market barriers. It is no wonder that relentless change has become a fact of organizational life.

In spite of the importance and permanence of organizational change, most change initiatives fail to deliver the expected organizational benefits. This failure occurs for a number of reasons. You might recognize one or more of these in your organization.

• absence of a change champion or one who is too junior in the organization
• poor executive sponsorship or senior management support
• poor project management skills
• hope rested on a one-dimensional solution
• political infighting and turf wars
• poorly defined organizational objectives
• change team diverted to other projects

Failed organizational change initiatives leave in their wake cynical and burned out employees, making the next change objective even more difficult to accomplish. It should come as no surprise that the fear of managing change and its impacts is a leading cause of anxiety in managers.

Understanding your organization and matching the initiative to your organization’s real needs (instead of adopting the latest fad) is the first step in making your change program successful. Beyond that, recognize that bringing about organizational change is fundamentally about changing people’s behavior in certain desired ways. As is apparent from the above list of reasons for failure, lack of technical expertise is not the main impediment to successful change. Leadership and management skills, such as visioning, prioritizing, planning, providing feedback and rewarding success, are key factors in any successful change initiative.

Whatever your change program, one key area requiring your attention is the identification and management of change stakeholders. A stakeholder is any person with an interest in the change process or the outcome of the proposed change. Stakeholders bring with them an amalgam of competing interests and often act to further their own power, influence and survival. The added difficulty for change managers rests in the fact that such political maneuvering is often in the guise of impartial and rational argument. Who are your major stakeholders? How will you get them on board and retain their support throughout the life of your change program?

Another essential activity often neglected by failed changed initiatives is the setting of clearly defined and measurable objectives. Goal setting done well engages stakeholders and commits them to the program. Other benefits include focusing effort to where it is important and providing a yardstick for measuring program success. Are your goals fuzzy and hard to put a finger on, or are they SMART goals? Do they link to the strategic objectives of the organization and do they have widespread and genuine support across the organization?

People, and only people, can make your organizational change happen. Programs fail where roles and tasks are not agreed and clarified. In organizations with a low performance culture, many employees and managers will expend considerable effort in hiding from responsibility. What are the key roles and responsibilities for bringing about the change in your area? For any change initiative, we have identified four key change roles: Change Driver, Change Implementer, Change Enabler and Change Recipient. Who are the people that occupy each role in your change program? Have the right people been selected for the right roles?

Whatever your change initiative, most likely the above-mentioned roles will not be working in isolation. More and more, results can only be achieved through people working in collaboration – in teams. Are your teams of the optimal size – not too small and not too big? Have you got the right team leader? Do they have the necessary technical and interpersonal skills? One reason why teams are much more productive than individuals working in isolation is that members may leverage off each other’s strengths and compensate for each other’s weaknesses. Do your teams have the right balance of natural working styles? At times, teams get stuck. What is your strategy in moving stuck teams forward?

Training is an indispensable tool for skilling teams and bedding in change. Many organizations, however, fail to benefit from the resources spent on training. Soon after the training is completed, employees continue to cling on to the old way of doing things. How successfully are you using training in your organizational change program? Do you have a well-articulated training plan? Does the training focus on behavior change or simply on content? Have you planned for back in the workplace support? Do your managers actively support the training?

No matter how good your training, some employees, customers and suppliers will resist the change. Unless you have a well-thought out strategy for dealing with resistance, resisters will wear your program down till it grinds to a halt. Are your resisters out in the open or do they work from the underground? The stated reasons for resisting may simply be a smokescreen. Have you uncovered the real reasons for resistance to your program? How have you helped people work through the psychological process of change? What is your strategy for overcoming resistance to change?

Change agents also play a key role in influencing organizational change. Note that the emphasis is on influencing change versus "managing change" which is debatable. This pdf focuses on the Internal Networker, drawing from some of Peter Senge's papers from around 1996. The three roles (executive leader, local line leader, and internal networker) all come from Senge. The split between the formal & informal organization and strategic & tactical orientation have been added to emphasize the domain of each role. The function of change agent role model has also been added since this is a critical role the internal networker plays in organizational change. The linkage between the executive leader and the local line leader was also shifted to an empowering relationship that is really bi-directional in how it gains its strength. Traditionally, empowerment is something thought of being given to someone else. However, this overlooks the possibility of self-leadership through testing boundaries of empowerment. All too often, limits on empowerment are assumed and never tested. Therefore, it is essential to add a pull component to empowerment.
In initiating organizational change, the first step is raising awareness that some change is needed. An Organizational Assessment can be used as a point for initiating the dialogue that is necessary for organizational change to gain grassroots acceptance (the 1st step towards commitment).

IT can promote various degrees of organizational change ranging from incremental to far-reaching. Three kinds of structural organizational change that are enabled by IT:

(1) Automation,

(2) Rationalization,

(3) Reengineering.

Each carries different rewards and risks.
The most common form of IT-enabled organizational change or the first phase of IT adoption is automation. This has allowed employees to automate a number of time-consuming and error-prone activities and gain benefits in cycle-time, productivity, and accuracy. For example, a main contractor makes use of standalone software to keep track all Request For Information (RFI) in a project.

A deeper form of organization change or the second phase of IT adoption is rationalization of procedures. Automation frequently reveals bottlenecks in production and makes the existing arrangement of procedures and structures painfully cumbersome. Rationalization of procedures involves the streamlining of standard operating procedures, which eliminates obvious bottlenecks, so that operating procedures become more efficient. Roughly speaking, it is a process of fine tuning the first step. For example, the main contractor implements an intranet and standardizes the data in RFI across all projects in the enterprise.

A more powerful type of organizational change or the third phase of IT adoption is business process reengineering, in which business processes are analyzed, simplified, and redesigned. Reengineering involves radically rethinking the flow of work and the construction business processes with the intention to radically reducing the costs of businesses. Using IT, organizations can rethink and streamline their business processes to improve speed, service, and quality. Business process reengineering reorganizes workflows, combining steps to cut waste and eliminating repetitive, paper-intensive tasks. It is much more ambitious than rationalization of procedures because it requires a new vision of how the process is to be organized. For example, the main contractor sets up an extranet to online collaborate with the architect for the RFI process.

Not many construction industry players have moved beyond the first phase of automation. However, there are some companies have committed to a continuing investment in technological advancement and organizational change. By changing how they are organized and do business, they have achieved far greater benefits than available through automation alone. Companies like this have succeeded in staying ahead of their competitors not merely by automating but by changing their organization as well. Their strategic advantage has been their preparedness and ability to continually innovative, and to manage the change necessary to gain substantial business benefits.

BUSINESS PROCESS REENGINEERING. Business process reengineering (BPR) is, in computer science and management, an approach aiming at improvements by means of elevating efficiency and effectiveness of the business process that exist within and across organizations. The key to BPR is for organizations to look at their business processes from a "clean slate" perspective and determine how they can best construct these processes to improve how they conduct business.

Business process reengineering is also known as BPR, Business Process Redesign, Business Transformation, or Business Process Change Management. Reengineering is a fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in cost, quality, speed, and service. BPR combines a strategy of promoting business innovation with a strategy of making major improvements to business processes so that a company can become a much stronger and more successful competitor in the marketplace.

The main proponents of reengineering were Michael Hammer and James A. Champy. In a series of books including Reengineering the Corporation, Reengineering Management, and The Agenda, they argue that far too much time is wasted passing-on tasks from one department to another. They claim that it is far more efficient to appoint a team who are responsible for all the tasks in the process. In The Agenda they extend the argument to include suppliers, distributors, and other business partners.

Re-engineering is the basis for many recent developments in management. The cross-functional team, for example, has become popular because of the desire to re-engineer separate functional tasks into complete cross-functional processes. Also, many recent management information systems developments aim to integrate a wide number of business functions. Enterprise resource planning, supply chain management, knowledge management systems, groupware and collaborative systems, Human Resource Management Systems and customer relationship management systems all owe a debt to re-engineering theory.

Business process reengineering is one approach for redesigning the way work is done to better support the organization's mission and reduce costs. Reengineering starts with a high-level assessment of the organization's mission, strategic goals, and customer needs. Basic questions are asked, such as "Does our mission need to be redefined? Are our strategic goals aligned with our mission? Who are our customers?" An organization may find that it is operating on questionable assumptions, particularly in terms of the wants and needs of its customers. Only after the organization rethinks what it should be doing, does it go on to decide how best to do it.

Within the framework of this basic assessment of mission and goals, reengineering focuses on the organization's business processes--the steps and procedures that govern how resources are used to create products and services that meet the needs of particular customers or markets. As a structured ordering of work steps across time and place, a business process can be decomposed into specific activities, measured, modeled, and improved. It can also be completely redesigned or eliminated altogether. Reengineering identifies, analyzes, and redesigns an organization's core business processes with the aim of achieving dramatic improvements in critical performance measures, such as cost, quality, service, and speed.

Reengineering recognizes that an organization's business processes are usually fragmented into subprocesses and tasks that are carried out by several specialized functional areas within the organization. Often, no one is responsible for the overall performance of the entire process. Reengineering maintains that optimizing the performance of subprocesses can result in some benefits, but cannot yield dramatic improvements if the process itself is fundamentally inefficient and outmoded. For that reason, reengineering focuses on redesigning the process as a whole in order to achieve the greatest possible benefits to the organization and their customers. This drive for realizing dramatic improvements by fundamentally rethinking how the organization's work should be done distinguishes reengineering from process improvement efforts that focus on functional or incremental improvement.

REFERENCES:

http://www.softlogic.org/blog/

http://www.managementhelp.org/org_chng/org_chng.htm
http://www.businessperform.com/change-management/change_management.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_process_reengineering

MIS2 Assignment 4

2009-12-29T00:34:00.000-08:00

You were invited by the university president to prepare an IS plan for the university, discuss what are the steps in order to expedite the implementation of the IS Plan. (at least 5000 words)

The question was if I were invited by the university president to present my ISP (Information Systems Plan) for the university, identify and discuss the steps to expedite or speed up the implementation of the said Information Systems Plan.

Building an ISP (Information Systems Plan) might sound like an overwhelming task for a smaller organization, but it need not be. Since time and other resources are limited in any organization, it is important that you use resources wisely. One way to do this is by preparing and following a simple, effective plan. Fortunately, you can build on the experiences of other organizations that have already implemented an ISP.

As the case for USEP, though we may not be that techie neither of the facilities and the students can be called techie enough except for their exceptional talents, planning for an Information Systems may seem relevant. We all know what an Information System is already, I assumed, but to recall, The goal of an information system is to provide users with high-quality information so they can make effective decisions. An information system supports daily, short-term, and long-range activities of users. Some examples of users include store clerks, sales representatives, accountants, supervisors, managers, executives, and customers. The kinds and types of information that users need often change over time.

As I browse the net, I saw an article, no not just an article but rather a file of a 15-year Strategic Plan of our beloved university. As we all know, information systems planning is a part of a strategic planning in an organization or corporation, its other half is the business planning, as I assume. The 15-year Strategic Plan of the University of Southeastern Philippines specifically aims to provide the University with a road map to reposition itself toward becoming more competitive and responsive to the needs of its stakeholders. Essentially, this would mean USEP achieving academic excellence in the future and the leader in research, development and extension in Southern Philippines and the rest of the country. Well, I do hope something better will be notice soon enough.

Since an organization's or any corporation's business strategic plan contains both organizational goals and a broad outline of steps required to reach them, the business strategic plan affects the type of system an organization needs. Deciding which new systems to build should be an essential component of the organizational planning process. Organizations need to develop an information systems plan that supports their overall business plan and in which strategic systems are incorporated into top-level planning.

The information systems planning refers to the process of the translation of strategic and organizational goals into systems development plan and initiatives. For example, part of the information systems plan for a luxury car company might be to build a new product tracking system to meet the organizational goal of improving customer service. Proper information systems planning ensures that specific systems development objectives support organizational goals. One of the
primary benefits of information systems planning is that it provides a long-range view of information technology use in the organization. The information systems plan provides guidance on how the information systems infrastructure of the organization should be developed over time. The plan serves as a road map indicating the direction and rationale of systems development. Another benefit of information systems planning is that it ensures better use of information systems resources, including
funds, information systems personnel, and time for scheduling specific projects.

Overall objectives of information systems are usually distilled from the relevant aspects of the organization's business strategic plan. Information systems projects can be identified either directly from the objectives determined in the first step or may be identified by others, such as managers within the various functional areas. Setting priorities and selecting projects typically requires the involvement
and approval of senior management. Once specific projects have been selected within the overall context of a strategic plan for the business and the systems area, an information systems plan can be
developed. The plan contains a statement of organizational goals, identifies the project objectives, and specifies how information technology supports the attainment of the organizational goals. When
objectives are set, planners consider the resources necessary to complete the projects including equipment (computers, network servers, printers, and other equipment and devices), software,
employees (systems analysts, programmers, users and others), expert advice (specialists and other consultants), and so on.

The information systems plan lays out specific target dates and milestones that can be used later to monitor the plan’s progress in terms of how many objectives were actually attained in the time
frame specified in the plan. The plan also includes the key management decisions concerning hardware acquisition; structure of authority, data, and hardware; telecommunications; and required organizational change. Organizational changes are usually described, including management and employee training requirements; recruiting efforts; changes in business processes; and changes in authority, structure, or management practice. The manager's toolkit in gives the guideline for developing an information
system plan.

As part of translating the corporate strategic plan into the information systems plan, many companies seek systems development project that will provide a competitive advantage. This usually requires creative and critical analysis. Creative analysis involves the investigation of new approaches to existing problems. By looking at problems in new or different ways and by introducing innovative methods to solve them, many firms have gained a competitive advantage. Typically, these new solutions are inspired by people and things not directly related to the problem. Critical analysis requires unbiased and careful questioning of whether system elements are related in the most effective or efficient ways. It involves considering the establishment of new or different relationships among system elements and perhaps introducing new elements into the system.

The impact a particular system has on an organization's ability to meet its goals determines the true value of that system to the organization. While all systems should support business goals, some systems are more pivotal in continued operations and goal attainment than others. These systems are called mission-critical systems. An order processing TPS, for example, is usually considered mission-critical. Without it, few organizations could continue daily activities, and they clearly would not meet the goals.

Regardless of the particular system development effort, the development process should define a system with specific performance and cost objectives. The success or failure of the systems development effort will be measured against these objectives. Performance objectives measure the extent to which a system performs as desired. Is the system generating the right information for a value-added business process? Is the output generated in a form that is usable and easily understood? Is the system generating output in time to meet organizational goals and operational objectives? Cost objectives attempt to balance the benefits of achieving performance goals with all costs associated with the system. Balancing performance and cost objectives within the overall framework of organizational goals can be challenging. Systems development objectives are important, however, in that they allow an organization to effectively and efficiently allocate resources and measure the success of a systems development effort.

In establishing a good information systems plan, PROJECT MANAGEMENT plays a vital role. There is a very high failure rate among information systems projects because they have not been properly managed. The Standish Group, which monitors IT projects success rates, found that in 2007 only 29
percent of all IT investment were completed on time, on budget, and with all features and functions originally specified. Firms may have incorrectly assessed the business value of the new system or were unable to manage the organizational change required by the new technology. That is why it is essential to know how to manage information systems projects. Project management refers to the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to achieve specific targets within specified budget, and time constraints. Project management activities include planning the work, assessing risk, estimating resources required to accomplish the work, organizing the work, acquiring human and material resources, assigning tasks, directing activities, controlling project execution, reporting progress, and analyzing the result. As in other areas of business, project management for information systems must deal with five major variables: scope (defining what work is included in a project), time (defining the amount of time required to complete the project), cost (calculating the total cost of hardware, software, human resources, and work space), quality (specifying an indicator of how well the end result of a project satisfies the objectives), and risk (estimating the potential problems that would threaten the success of a project).

To plan and schedule a project effectively, the project leader must identify the following components of the project:
• The goal, objectives, and expectations of the project, collectively called the scope of the project
• Required activities
• Time estimates for each activity
• Cost estimates for each activity
• The order in which activities must occur
• Activities that may be performed concurrently

When these items are identified, the project leader usually records them in a project plan. A popular tool used to plan and schedule the time relationships among project activities is a Gantt chart.

Information systems development consists of phases, referred to collectively as the system development life cycle. The system development life cycle (SDLC) is a very formal approach to building information systems and refers to all the activities that go into producing an information systems solution to an organizational problem or opportunity. This methodology assumes that an
information system has a life cycle similar to that of any living organism, with a beginning, a working period, and an end. SDLC partitions the system development process into distinct phases and has an organized set of activities that guide people through the development of an information system. Some activities in the SDLC may be performed at the same time, while other activities are performed sequentially. Each activity involves interaction with the organization. Depending on the type and
complexity of the information systems being developed, the nature and duration of the specific activities vary from one system to the next. The activities of the SDLC can be grouped into the five major phases:

1. Planning
2. Analysis
3. Design
4. Implementation
5. Operation and maintenance.

Each phase in the system development cycle consists of a series of activities, and the phases form
a loop. Information systems development is an ongoing process for an organization. The phases in the SDLC form a loop, because when the information system requires changing, which may happen for a variety of reasons such as information requirements of users has changed or hardware and software become obsolete, the planning phases for a new or modified system begins and the system development life cycle starts again. The goal of the SDLC is to keep the project under control and assure that the information system developed satisfies the requirements. In theory, the five phases in the system development cycle often appear sequentially. In reality, activities within adjacent phases often interact with one another--making the system development cycle a dynamic iterative process. Members of the system development team follow established guidelines during the entire system development cycle. They also interact with a variety of IT professionals and others during the system development cycle. In addition, they perform several ongoing activities during all five phases of the system development cycle. The following sections discuss each of these phases.

PLANNING PHASE. The initiation of a system development project may begin in many different ways. A system user requests a new or modified information system for a variety of reasons, some external and some internal. An external reason is competition. For example, once one bank offers Internet access to account information, others will have to follow suit, or run the risk of losing customers. One internal reason for modifying an information system is to improve or enhance it. For example, if a school wants to provide students with the ability to register for classes via the Internet, the school would have to modify the existing registration system to include this enhancement. The most obvious internal reason for changing an information system is to correct a business problem. For example, the stock-on-hand listed on a report may not match the actual stock-on-hand in the warehouse.

The planning phase for a project begins when the steering committee receives a project request. As mentioned earlier in this chapter, the steering committee is a decision-making body for a company. This committee typically includes a mix of vice presidents, managers, nonmanagement users, and IT personnel.

During the planning phase, four major activities are performed:
(1) review and approve the project requests;
(2) prioritize the project requests;
(3) allocate resources such as money, people, and equipment to approved projects; and
(4) form a project development team for each approved project.

ANALYSIS PHASE. “What do we want the system to do for our business?” This phase identifies business objectives, system functionality, and information requirements. System functionalities are a list of the types of information systems capabilities you will need to achieve your business objectives. The information requirements for a system are the information elements that the system must produce in order to achieve the business objectives. You will need to provide these lists to system developers and programmers so they know what you as the manager expect them to do. The key
here is to let the business decisions drive the technology, not the reverse. This will ensure that your technology platform is aligned with your business.

Once you have identified the business objectives and system functionalities, and have developed a list of information requirements, you can consider how all these functionalities will be delivered. System analysis is the analysis of the problem that the organization will try to solve with an information system. This analysis consists of two major tasks:
(1) conduct a preliminary investigation and
(2) perform a detailed analysis.

When the steering committee discusses the system proposal and decides which alternative to pursue, it often is deciding whether to buy packaged software from an outside source, build its own custom software, or outsource some or all of its IT needs to an outside firm. Packaged software is mass-produced, copyrighted, prewritten software available for purchase. Vendors offer two types of packaged software: horizontal and vertical. Horizontal market software meets the needs of many different types of companies. If a company has a unique way of accomplishing activities, then it also ma require vertical market software. Vertical market software specifically is designed for a particular business or industry. Horizontal market software tends to be more widely available and less expensive than vertical market software. You can search for vertical and horizontal market software on the Web.

Instead of buying packaged software, some companies write their own applications. Application software developed by the user or at the user's request is called custom software. The main advantage of custom software is that it matches the company's requirements exactly. The disadvantages usually are that it is more expensive and takes longer to design and implement than packaged software. Companies can develop custom software in-house using their own IT personnel or outsource it, which
means having an outside source develop it for them. Some companies outsource just the software development aspect of their IT operation. Others outsource more or all of their IT operation. Depending on a company's needs, outside firms can handle as much of the IT requirements as desired. Some provide hardware and software. Others provide services such as Web design and development, Web hosting, sales, marketing, billing, customer service, and legal assistance. A trend that has caused much
controversy relates to companies that outsource to firms located outside their homeland.

DESIGN PHASE. Information analysis describes what an information system should do to meet information requirements, while information systems design shows how the system will fulfill this objective. The design of an information system is the overall plan or model for that system, which consists of all the specifications that give the system its form and structure. You must have a
system design specification--a description of the main components in the system and their relationship to one another. These specifications should address all of the managerial, organizational, and technological components of the system solution.

The design phase consists of two major activities: logical design and physical design. Logical design lays out the logical model that describes the components of the system and their relationship to each other as they would appear to the users. It describes inputs and outputs, processing functions to be performed, business procedures, data models and controls. Controls specify standards for acceptable performance and methods for measuring actual performance in relation to these standards. A logical design usually is a data flow diagram.

During program design, the systems analyst prepares the program specification package, which identifies the required programs and the relationship among each program, as well as the input, output, and database specifications. Many people should review the detailed design specifications before they are given to the programming team. Reviewers should include users, systems analysts, managers, IT staff, and members of the system development team. One popular review technique is an inspection. An inspection is a formal review of any system development cycle deliverable. A team of four or
five people examines the deliverables, such as reports, diagrams, mockups, layout charts, and dictionary entries. The purpose of an inspection is to identify errors in the item being inspected. Any identified errors are summarized in a report so they can be addressed and corrected.

One again, the systems analyst reevaluates feasibility to determine if it still beneficial to proceed with the proposed solution. If the steering committee decides the project still is feasible, which usually is the case, the project enters the implementation phase.

IMPLEMENTATION PHASE. When you have both the logical and physical designs for your system, you can begin considering how to actually build the system. The implementation phase converts the system specifications established during systems analysis and design phases into a fully operational information system. The purpose of this phase is to construct the new or enhanced system and then
deliver it to the users. Five major activities are performed in this phase:
(1) acquire necessary hardware and software;
(2) develop computer programs if necessary;
(3) install and test the new system;
(4) train and educate users; and
(5) convert to the new system.

According to the specifications in the system design, the system analyst sends either a request for quotation or a request for proposal to prospective hardware and software vendors. A request for quotation (RFQ) is used when you know which products you want. The vendor quotes prices for the specified products. A request for proposal (RFP) is used when you want the vendor to select the products that meets your requirements and them quote the prices. Systems analysts have a variety of ways to locate vendors. Many publish their product catalogs on the Web. These online catalogs provide up-to-date information on and easy access to products, prices, technical specifications, and ordering information. Another source for hardware and software products is a value-added reseller. A value-added reseller (VAR) is a company that purchases products from manufacturers and then resells these products to the public--offering additional services with the product. Examples of additional services
include user support, equipment maintenance, training, installation, and warranties. Instead of using vendors, some companies hire IT consultants; that is, they outsource this task. An IT consultant is a professional who is hired based on computer expertise, including service and advice. IT consultants often specialize in configuring hardware and software for businesses of all sizes.

OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE PHASE. After the new system is installed and conversion is complete, the system is said to be in production or operation. The information systems specialists maintain the information system and provide its users with ongoing assistance during its operation
period. This phase consists of four major activities:
(1) conducting a post-implementation system review;
(2) correcting errors;
(3) identifying enhancements; and
(4) monitoring system performance.

One of the first activities the company performs is to meet with users. The purpose of this meeting, called the post implementation system review, is to discover whether the information system is performing according to the users' expectations. Both users and technical specialists will review the information system to determine how well it has met its original objectives and to decide whether any revisions or modifications are in order. If the system is not meeting the users' expectations, the systems analyst must determine what must be done to satisfy the users--back to the planning phase.

Sometimes users identify errors in the system when the program does not produce correct results. Problems with design (logic) usually are the cause of these errors. For example, the total of a column might be incorrect on a daily order summary. These types of errors require investigation--back to the planning phase.

If the users would like the system to do more, that is, they have additional requirements, the system analyst must decide how to enhance the existing system to satisfy the users. System enhancement involves modifying or expanding an existing information system--back to the planning phase.

The system analyst monitors the system to determine if the system is inefficient at any point and if the inefficiency is causing a problem. Changes in hardware, software, documentation, or procedures to an existing system to correct errors, meet new requirements, or improve processing efficiency means that we begin planning all over again. Thus, the loop forms in the system development life cycle.

REFERENCE:
http://www.flint.umich.edu/~weli/courses/bus181/notes/chapter3.pdf

MIS2 assignment 1

2009-11-13T22:20:00.001-08:00

IT has wide scope of fields. An IT professional can work in a variety of word area, such as Programming, Engineering, Database Administration, Networking, Web Development, E-commerce.
An IT professional create, operate, maintain and program computers. An IT professional must have the skills and knowledge required to carry out specialized tasks in a recognized field of IT. To be a competent IT professional, you must know what the expectations of your colleagues, your industry, your clients and the general public are. Meeting these expectations is what qualifies you to call yourself a professional, and what gives you recognition as a professional. In today's world the role of the IT professional is crucial. IT has become an essential resource for most organizations. The evolving scenario is one of a growing complexity of computer systems and businesses dependence on them. Qualified and competent IT professionals are needed to ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of computers.
10 years from I see myself as a competent IT professional specialized in many fields. But before that I want to talk about the things that might happen before I reach 31. There are many things I want to learn in achieve in the field that I’ve chosen. I want to be a web developer, IT educator, Database administrator and many more. I even want to be a 2D and 3D animator and do 2d and 3D modeling to practice my artistic skills. .
10 years from now I see myself working in a big company as a successful IT professional. I want to be the company’s IT manager or system analyst. But I know that getting in that position is not an easy thing to do. In order to become a competent IT professional you should work hard and be knowledgeable about the IT industry to meet the demands of the company that you’re working for.
To be an IT professional that I want to be someday it is essential to have strategies and plans on how to get there. First is to finish my studies as an IT student and obtain my college diploma. Second is obtaining enough working experience to have more knowledge about the work of an IT professional, third is training and workshop, Training seeks to close or fill any gaps that an individual has in these areas.
After working with the company and obtaining knowledge on how to run the company. I will start my own business and have my own company someday. Wish me luck. .

Assignment9: Information Environment

2009-10-01T11:42:00.000-07:00

Information Environment

The concept of a "physical environment" is one that we understand well. We talk about the environment in general, and that has come to specifically mean our natural resources: the lakes, the streams, the land, our oceans and air. We can also talk about specifics of the environment that contribute to an immediate purpose. For instance, if we want to go swimming, we can talk about if the lake is free of fish or if the water is a good temperature for swimming.

If we are talking about the "physical environment of a room", such as a classroom, we can talk about the physical attributes of the room: the color of its walls, the cleanliness of its floor, the placement of windows, the temperature and the like. We can also talk about the attributes of the room that contribute to its specific purpose: whether there is a computer in the classroom for students, whether the chairs are comfortable, if the VCR is functioning, if the video feed is "wavy", and so on.

We also talk about the "political environment," which is not a physical environment, but an environment of ideas, attitudes, laws and emotions. For instance, if a law is proposed, legislators have to consider the political environment. Is there a sense that the general population would accept this law? What would be the consequences if the law was passed? What would be the consequences to a particular legislator (like the proposer of the legislation, particularly!) if it were even proposed? And this process of consideration would include the economic situation of the country (a related system), whether the proposer is about to retire (personal consequences), and the implications of the implementation of the law.

The information environment shares attributes of all of these definitions of an environment. It is both a physical environment and an environment of ideas. It is the ways that information is being presented to us, the kinds of information that is being presented to us, and the impact that that information has on us. And "us" means "us" as people living in an information-rich society, as well as "us" as "professionals". Without carrying the analogy too far, we can understand that in this context, information is all around us.

With this very broad definition, our information environment includes advertising, nutritional labels on cans of soup, and messages on our microwaves and the signs on our highways. These, by in large, we leave to others.

When we consider the information environment, we need to consider these aspects:

• The technologies being used
• Laws and policies - and rights and ethics - governing the transfer of information
• The impact of all of this on the information professional, and on the user
• Our changing sense of community

Information professionals have always focused on the information technologies of importance to its users: books, videos, maps, sound recordings and the like.

The Technologies

Properly speaking, the information technologies, as described in your textbooks, include the telephone, the wireless, the computer, the television, and many others. We will touch on some of these: the television and the computer, for example.

But we have a real problem with technologies, and that is convergence. Ten years ago we could leave television to the mass communications folks. Now, with the rise of networks such as Home and Garden TV, the Food TV network and the like, television networks are turning into video databases. And some of the digital library experiments are working with building databases of educational programming. Useful, "how-to" information that one might want to retrieve, is becoming widely available. So, we have issues of convergence of technologies in the sense of content: an entertainment technology is being used for practical, useful information. These networks recognize the retrieval value of their information, and so must we.

We have issues of convergence of the technologies themselves: when personal computers first became available, often you used your television as a monitor. (Actually we do in our UTK SIS classrooms, too!). But the point is, that was the ONLY option for some machines in the late 1970's and early 1980's. Now, you can buy machines that are both televisions and vcr's all in one box. Businesses can buy a fax/printer/answering machine and so forth all in one machine. With voice mail, a computer is integrated into the telephone system to marry your telephone with your answering/message system.

Convergence is also happening at the service or industry level: the telephone company, for example, is very interested in becoming your video provider. And your Internet provider. They have an established market base: there are telephone wires strung into about 98% of all the homes and businesses in this country. Your cable company is ALSO very interested in becoming your telephone service provider. They also are gaining a large share of the television market, and, they have the bandwidth (the capacity of their wires) to carry the traffic.

Of course the technology, or rather the converged set of technologies, that is gathering the most attention, is the Internet. And the part of the Internet that has found its way into the children's section of the Sunday funnies, into commercial jingles, into talk radio, into cereal boxes, is of course the Web (formerly known as the World Wide Web). A project that started out as a means for physicists to exchange scientific and technical information now has them talking to children in classrooms a continent away.

The Internet, and particularly the Web, will be used as the "backbone" for the class because it enables us to examine all of the aspects of the information environment in a single microcosm. If you studied "An introduction to bibliography" in the 1930's, you would learn the structure of an early book: quartos and folios, signatures and colophons, and how they were all put together. Librarians were taught how to work with books published in the early days of printing. Publishing has changed a good deal, and much of the work of cataloging these resources has been done. The parts of a book, because of the mechanization of the publishing industry, are pretty standardized (although the serials people will rightly argue this point). Now, however, we need to learn about how Web pages are constructed.

We talk about the global community of the Internet. But community networks also have grown up as local resources for sharing community-level information. Often, public and school libraries are actively involved in these as well.

Laws and Policies and Ethics
We can speak of a continuum of "things" governing behavior: ettiquette and just good manners, social conventions of what is proper, policies of organizations and groups, ethical principles, laws, and interpretations of laws by the courts. The Internet has brought consideration of all of these right onto the front page of the daily newspaper. Ettiquette in the Internet arena is called "nettiquette". Usenet groups have their own social rules for behavior, and they differ from group to group. Perhaps of most concern for information professionals are the areas of intellectual property (copyright, for example), intellectual freedom and censorship, and privacy.

When all we had to worry about was print, copyright was, well, interesting for copyright lawyers. The photocopy machine changed all that, and librarians had to learn the laws. Then personal computers, with the ability to easily copy software, made the issue of piracy an international economic discussion. With the Web, and the ability to easily copy and paste text, plagiarism is a hot topic indeed. As is copyright of a Web page, and the images thereon. And because the internet is a global, international arena, we have become very conscious of the different views of intellectual property in different countries. In some, for example, it can be argued that intellectual property belongs to the community as a whole, and not to an individual. This puts a very different perspective on how you use and work with resources.

Even five years ago, censorship was a concern for librarians and lawyers. The debate for information professionals focused on books that were "challenged" by parents or members of the community for various reasons such as racisim or sexual content. In the courts, cases focused primarily on pornography, but also on the means to violence: how to build a bomb, for example. But it was no where near the hot topic it is today, on an international scale. The latest debate focuses on "filtering" - whether a filter of some sort should be placed on internet computers to prevent people from reaching sites of "questionable" content, usually focusing on pornography and violence. But who is to decide what is "questionable?" and from what perspective? and from what country? Is materials selection censorship, do we practice it already? Companies like SurfWatch are making millions of dollars enabling people to individually censor the Net. All libraries are reviewing their policies and consulting lawyers to figure out what they can - and cannot - do.

The Impact on the Information Professional

What does all of this mean for the information professional? Clearly, job advertisements are increasingly technical. And discussions amongst librarians are focusing on copyright, on intellectual property, on censorship, and on privacy.

The immediate and traditional environment of the information professional is very different from what it was even three years ago, just before Mosaic was released. It is increasingly difficult, if not impossible altogether, to escape to a back corner and avoid information technologies. Five or six years ago, the "hot topic" was how to move bibliographic information from an online database to a personal bibliographic database. This is now hardly discussed.

The information environment of the user has also radically changed: if the typical undergraduate cannot find resources through his or her personal computer, the resources simply don't exist. Businesses are the fastest growing sector of the Web, and they expect to radically change the way we receive news, stock information, sports information and the like (not to mention books, groceries, fishing tackle and other goods).

What particularly is changing is the nature of the relationships between the technologies, the information professional, the information resources, and the users. Some relationships are becoming more adversarial, some more cooperative; some increasingly based on finance and economics. Particularly challenging is the international character of these relationships, and our increased awareness of practices and policies in other countries.

The Importance of Community
Information professionals are integrally related to their communities. And the idea of "community" is no longer defined as "your users." It is an international community: the information policies of other countries directly affect the way that you can access information about them, and the way that they can access information about you. In the issue of copyright, for example, the Berne Convention specifies that an author's rights will be respected according to the laws of the receiving country. We have agreed to these treaties. But what are those rights? In the issue of censorship, the laws of some Scandanavian countries are more liberal than those of the United States. Whose laws do you accept? If you answer quickly, well, the US laws, how do you accept the fact that other countries have different copyright laws, which may not accept US conventions? What are their rights?
It is also national: you are by definition a part of the national information policy sphere. Pages needed here.
And it is local. Indeed, what do your users want and need? According to what standards? Tammy Benshoof of KORRNET will answer some of these questions. The issue of community information networks is a natural outgrowth of the need to communicate, the need to be in touch with other people, and the technolgies that are pressing upon us.
The public library clearly answers local community needs, according to local community standards. But what are we to make of the Benton Report, that suggests that the public library staff can be replaced by volunteer retirees? What does that tell us of the public perception of the local library?

The Importance of Community

Information professionals are integrally related to their communities. And the idea of "community" is no longer defined as "your users." It is an international community: the information policies of other countries directly affect the way that you can access information about them, and the way that they can access information about you. In the issue of copyright, for example, the Berne Convention specifies that an author's rights will be respected according to the laws of the receiving country. We have agreed to these treaties. But what are those rights? In the issue of censorship, the laws of some Scandanavian countries are more liberal than those of the United States. Whose laws do you accept? If you answer quickly, well, the US laws, how do you accept the fact that other countries have different copyright laws, which may not accept US conventions? What are their rights?

It is also national: you are by definition a part of the national information policy sphere. Pages needed here.

And it is local. Indeed, what do your users want and need? According to what standards? Tammy Benshoof of KORRNET will answer some of these questions. The issue of community information networks is a natural outgrowth of the need to communicate, the need to be in touch with other people, and the technolgies that are pressing upon us.

The public library clearly answers local community needs, according to local community standards. But what are we to make of the Benton Report, that suggests that the public library staff can be replaced by volunteer retirees? What does that tell us of the public perception of the local library?
.
http://web.utk.edu/~gwhitney/whatis.html

I choose an information environment that is related to my course. As an IT student I choose the internet. Internet is the world’s information pool. It is where many data and information can be found. Any information that you want to know is here in the internet. Except for those top secret information. From news, information on products, sports etc. You can find it in the internet. Here is where you can see what is happening in the world.

My role within the information environment that I choose is the same as every one that are using the internet. To send and receive information. By uploading images, videos, making web sites or by sending email you send information to where you want to send them. As an IT you have the role in internet environment is not just to send and receive information but to manage those information.

Principles of Information Organization and Representation can help you manage and organize information so that you can present the information much better. There are many principles of information organization and representation.

In the internet environment there are many challenges that you will face. First is the internet connection. Before you can be in this environment you should have good stable internet connection. There are many information that are in the internet, one of the problem is how will you search for the right information that you where searching?

Assignment 8.

2009-10-01T10:58:00.000-07:00

TOPIC: As a student, you were invited by the Dean of the Institute of Computing to attend a seminar-workshop on information systems planning with some of the faculty members. In one of the sessions, a discussion of outsourcing came up. You have been asked to present your evaluation about outsourcing the information systems functions of the school.

Required:
You are to take a position- outsource or in-source and justify your position. (3000words)

Base on previous discussions, and as what I learned based on my own understanding, I go for Outsourcing. As we all know, and it is posed all over this topic, Outsourcing is subcontracting a service such as product design or manufacturing, to a third-party company. The decision to outsource is often made in the interest of lowering cost or making better use of time and energy costs, redirecting or conserving energy directed at the competencies of a particular business, or to make more efficient use of land, labor, capital, (information) technology and resources. Outsourcing became part of the business lexicon during the 1980s. It is essentially a division of labour. Outsourcing in the information technology field has two meanings. One is to commission the development of an application to another organization, usually a company that specializes in the development of this type of application. The other is to hire the services of another company to manage all or parts of the services that otherwise would be rendered by an IT unit of the organization. The latter concept might not include development of new applications.

Outsourcing involves the transfer of the management and/or day-to-day execution of an entire business function to an external service provider.[3] The client organization and the supplier enter into a contractual agreement that defines the transferred services. Under the agreement the supplier acquires the means of production in the form of a transfer of people, assets and other resources from the client. The client agrees to procure the services from the supplier for the term of the contract. Business segments typically outsourced include information technology, human resources, facilities, real estate management, and accounting. Many companies also outsource customer support and call center functions like telemarketing, CAD drafting, customer service, market research, manufacturing, designing, web development, print-to-mail, content writing, ghostwriting and engineering. Offshoring is the type of outsourcing in which the buyer organization belongs to another country.

Outsourcing and offshoring are used interchangeably in public discourse despite important technical differences. Outsourcing involves contracting with a supplier, which may or may not involve some degree of offshoring. Offshoring is the transfer of an organizational function to another country, regardless of whether the work is outsourced or stays within the same corporation/company.

Outsourcing occurs when a company purchases products or services from an outside supplier, rather than performing the same work within its own facilities, in order to cut costs. The decision to outsource is a major strategic one for most companies, since it involves weighing the potential cost savings against the consequences of a loss in control over the product or service. Some common examples of outsourcing include manufacturing of components, computer programming services, tax compliance and other accounting functions, training administration, customer service, transportation of products, benefits and compensation planning, payroll, and other human resource functions. A relatively new trend in outsourcing is employee leasing, in which specialized vendors recruit, hire, train, and pay their clients' employees, as well as arrange health care coverage and other benefits.

The growth in outsourcing in recent years is partly the result of a general shift in business philosophy. Prior to the mid-1980s, many companies sought to acquire other companies and diversify their business interests in order to reduce risk. As more companies discovered that there were limited advantages to running a large group of unrelated businesses, however, many began to divest subsidiaries and refocus their efforts on one or a few closely related areas of business. Companies tried to identify or develop a "core competence," a unique combination of experience and expertise that would provide a source of competitive advantage in a given industry. All aspects of the company's operations were aligned around the core competence, and any activities or functions that were not considered necessary to preserve it were then outsourced. Today, outsourcing is embraced by companies of all sizes and industry orientations. As analysts Tom Osmond commented in Employee Benefit News, "many companies have decided that transactional and administrative functions are neither core competencies nor value-added activities. In fact, some companies are putting themselves at risk as a result of using outdated technology and not complying with government regulations. Vendors, by focusing on administration as part of their business model, provide better service enforced by contracts and service-level agreements."

Successful outsourcing requires a strong understanding of the organization's capabilities and future direction. As William R. King explained in Information Systems Management, "[d]ecisions regarding outsourcing significant functions are among the most strategic that can be made by an organization, because they address the basic organizational choice of the functions for which internal expertise is developed and nurtured and those for which such expertise is purchased. These are basic decisions regarding organizational design." Outsourcing based only upon a comparison of costs can lead companies to miss opportunities to gain knowledge that might lead to the development of new products or technologies.

Outsourcing can be undertaken to varying degrees, ranging from total outsourcing to selective outsourcing. Total outsourcing may involve dismantling entire departments or divisions and transferring the employees, facilities, equipment, and complete responsibility for a product or function to an outside vendor. In contrast, selective outsourcing may target a single, time-consuming task within a department, such as preparing the payroll or manufacturing a minor component, that can be handled more efficiently by an outside specialist.

Vendors providing outsourcing services are generally grouped into two models: Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and Application Service Provider (ASP). In the BPO model, major resources and assets are transferred from the company to the vendor. Under the ASP model, on the other hand, vendors concentrate on providing selected services for multiple clients. But as Osmond told Employee Benefit News, many variations exist within these two models. "Each vendor has a particular focus and/or point of entry to the market, particularly in the ASP space," Osmond stated. "There is also a wide range of pricing models and option. The good news is that there is a seemingly endless combination of service, pricing, and delivery, providing a solution for most situations. The bad news is that it can be difficult to compare vendors on an apples-to-apples basis."

BENEFITS OF OUTSOURCING for SMALL BUSINESSES

Outsourcing — the practice of using outside firms to handle work normally performed within a company — is a familiar concept to many entrepreneurs. Small companies routinely outsource their payroll processing, accounting, distribution, and many other important functions — often because they have no other choice. Many large companies turn to outsourcing to cut costs. In response, entire industries have evolved to serve companies' outsourcing needs.

But not many businesses thoroughly understand the benefits of outsourcing. It's true that outsourcing can save money, but that's not the only (or even the most important) reason to do it. As many firms discovered during the outsourcing "mania" of the early 1990s, outsourcing too much can be an even bigger mistake than not outsourcing any work at all. The flat economy caused many companies into huge layoffs and subsequently outsourced functions that were better kept in-house. Wise outsourcing, however, can provide a number of long-term benefits:

Control capital costs. Cost-cutting may not be the only reason to outsource, but it's certainly a major factor. Outsourcing converts fixed costs into variable costs, releases capital for investment elsewhere in your business, and allows you to avoid large expenditures in the early stages of your business. Outsourcing can also make your firm more attractive to investors, since you're able to pump more capital directly into revenue-producing activities.

Increase efficiency. Companies that do everything themselves have much higher research, development, marketing, and distribution expenses, all of which must be passed on to customers. An outside provider's cost structure and economy of scale can give your firm an important competitive advantage.

Reduce labor costs. Hiring and training staff for short-term or peripheral projects can be very expensive, and temporary employees don't always live up to your expectations. Outsourcing lets you focus your human resources where you need them most.

Start new projects quickly. A good outsourcing firm has the resources to start a project right away. Handling the same project in-house might involve taking weeks or months to hire the right people, train them, and provide the support they need. And if a project requires major capital investments (such as building a series of distribution centers), the startup process can be even more difficult.

Focus on your core business. Every business has limited resources, and every manager has limited time and attention. Outsourcing can help your business to shift its focus from peripheral activities toward work that serves the customer, and it can help managers set their priorities more clearly.

Level the playing field. Most small firms simply can't afford to match the in-house support services that larger companies maintain. Outsourcing can help small firms act "big" by giving them access to the same economies of scale, efficiency, and expertise that large companies enjoy.

Reduce risk. Every business investment carries a certain amount of risk. Markets, competition, government regulations, financial conditions, and technologies all change very quickly. Outsourcing providers assume and manage this risk for you, and they generally are much better at deciding how to avoid risk in their areas of expertise.

Once a company has made the decision to outsource, there are still a number of factors it must consider in making a successful transition and forming a partner relationship with the vendor. First, the company should determine what sort of outsourcing relationship will best meet its needs. "Decide what's important," urged the Journal of Accountancy. "If a function is not strategic to your business—for instance, payroll services or health insurance needs in a recruiting agency with only ten employees—consider outsourcing it to an expert provider." Some businesses share strategic decision-making with their vendors, while others only outsource on a limited, as needed basis.

As Ethel Scully noted in National Underwriter, the company needs to obtain the support of key personnel during this time. Many companies encounter resistance from employees who feel that their jobs are threatened by outsourcing. Scully suggested forming a team consisting of an outsourcing expert, representatives from senior management and human resources, and the managers of all affected areas of the company to help address employee concerns about the decision.

Once your business has decided which functions to outsource, it should initiate a search process that utilizes referrals from other companies and service-provider directories. You can then begin contacting potential vendors and ask specific questions about the services they provide and their abilities to meet your company's unique and specific needs. Ideally, the vendor you select will have experience in handling similar business and will be able to give all of its clients' needs the priority they deserve. "Consider the service company's knowledge of the entirety of your business, its willingness to customize service, and its compatibility with your firm's business culture, as well as the long-run cost of its services and its financial strength," said service provider Carl Schwenker in Money. During this period, you should also reexamine your own company culture and business needs to make sure that the outsourcing arrangement under consideration is a good fit. Many outsourcing experts counsel businesses to select vendors that can effectively integrate all their outsourced business functions so that they do not have to find individual vendors for each function.

Finally, you should select a vendor you trust in order to develop a mutually beneficial partner relationship. It is important to develop tangible measures of job performance before entering into an agreement, as well as financial incentives to encourage the vendor to meet deadlines and control costs. The contract should clearly define responsibilities and performance criteria, outline confidentiality rules and ownership rights to new ideas or technology. It should also include a means of severing the relationship if the service does not meet your expectations. Since the vendor is likely to have more experience in preparing outsourcing agreements than a small client company, it may also be helpful to consult with an attorney during contract negotiations.

References:
file:///C:/Users/ImpulsE/Desktop/assign8/Outsourcing.htm
file:///C:/Users/ImpulsE/Desktop/assign8/outsourcing1.htm
http://www.outsource2india.com/why_outsource/articles/benefit_outsourcing.asp
http://www.allbusiness.com/human-resources/workforce-management-hiring/1084-3.html

Assignment7:identify at least 3 areas related to ICT on 2009 SONA and identify how these areas can improve our quality of life.

2009-10-01T07:17:00.000-07:00

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo made her 9th State Of The Nation Address (SONA) last July 27, 2009. I think this is the her State Of The Nation Address because this is her last term. Actually I did not watch the President’s 2009 State Of the Nation Address but I have read the full text of her SONA. In her SONA the President mention many things like Philippine’s economic plan, how the nation’s dept is decreasing and all of her achievements this last nine years. I think the State Of The Nation Address 2009 is what the ICT players awaits. Because the President mention many things associated with Information and Communications Technology.

Some of them are the following:

* Telecommunication load issue
* Creating government’s Information and Communications Technology sector
* Election Automation

The President talks about the telecommunication issue. This is a wake-up call for the telecommunications company here in the Philippines. “Sa telecommunications naman, inatasan ko ang Telecommunications Commission na kumilos na tungkol sa mga sumbong na dropped calls at mga nawawalang load sa cellphone. We need to amend the Commonwealth-era Public Service Law. And we need to do it now….”. The Commonwealth-era Public Service Law is about Public Service Commission that has jurisdiction over all public services which, by definition, includes wireless communications systems. This is one of the things that affect Filipino’s everyday life. Like many Filipino, I also experience this kind of situation when your cell phone load disappears just like that. The telecommunication service provider really is the one to blame for this stolen load. Fortunately the government found a remedy for this problem. Now the expiry date of the cell phone load is being extended. Many Filipino will benefit from this.

The President also mentions the creation of the Information and Communications Technology sector of the government. “Kung noong nakaraan, lumakas ang electronics, today we are creating wealth by developing the BPO and tourism sectors as additional engines of growth. Electronics and other manufactured exports rise and fall in accordance with the state of the world economy. But BPO remains resilient. With earnings of $6 billion and employment of 600,000, the BPO phenomenon speaks eloquently of our competitiveness and productivity. Let us have a Department of ICT….”. At last! The President made the urge to create the government’s ICT department. Actually based on what I have heard, the creation of the government’s ICT department was planned long before, but at least now that plan will be implemented. Even though Philippines is not very updated in terms of technology, we should strive hard to cope up with other countries in this field, and we should take advantage of its benefits. The government is developing BPO.

BPO is a form of outsourcing that involves the contracting of the operations and responsibilities of a specific business functions (or processes) to a third-party service provider. Originally, this was associated with manufacturing firms, such as Coca Cola that outsourced large segments of its supply chain. In the contemporary context, it is primarily used to refer to the outsourcing of services.

BPO is typically categorized into back office outsourcing - which includes internal business functions such as human resources or finance and accounting, and front office outsourcing - which includes customer-related services such as contact center services.

BPO that is contracted outside a company's country is called offshore outsourcing. BPO that is contracted to a company's neighboring (or nearby) country is called nearshore outsourcing.

Given the proximity of BPO to the information technology industry, it is also categorized as an information technology enabled service or ITES. Knowledge process outsourcing(KPO) and legal process outsourcing (LPO) are some of the sub-segments of business process outsourcing industry.

This will help many Filipinos find jobs here and abroad.

Next is the automated election. “As the process of fundamental political reform begins, let us address the highest exercise of democracy…voting! In 2001, I said we would finance fully automated elections. We got it, thanks to Congress…”. Making the election fully automated was planned since 2001. Have a fully automated election is not easy that’s why it takes many years to plan and finance the things to be done. But I think the plan on having an automated election will not be implemented because of many issues that the government is facing about this election automation. Although election automation might not be implemented, having an automated election will greatly lessen the election process and may also help lessen cheating.

Assignment6

2009-09-30T22:28:00.000-07:00

If the University President hired me as an IT consultant, I will suggest innovation and technology to improve the internet connectivity of the University.

The term innovation refers to a new way of doing something. It may refer to incremental and emergent or radical and revolutionary changes in thinking, products, processes, or organizations. Following Schumpeter (1934), contributors to the scholarly literature on innovation typically distinguish between invention, an idea made manifest, and innovation, ideas applied successfully in practice. In many fields, something new must be substantially different to be innovative, not an insignificant change, e.g., in the arts, economics, business and government policy. In economics the change must increase value, customer value, or producer value. The goal of innovation is positive change, to make someone or something better. Innovation leading to increased productivity is the fundamental source of increasing wealth in an economy.

Innovation is an important topic in the study of economics, business, design, technology, sociology, and engineering. Colloquially, the word "innovation" is often synonymous with the output of the process. However, economists tend to focus on the process itself, from the origination of an idea to its transformation into something useful, to its implementation; and on the system within which the process of innovation unfolds. Since innovation is also considered a major driver of the economy, especially when it leads to increasing productivity, the factors that lead to innovation are also considered to be critical to policy makers. In particular, followers of innovation economics stress using public policy to spur innovation and growth.

Those who are directly responsible for application of the innovation are often called pioneers in their field, whether they are individuals or organisations.

Goals of innovation

Programs of organizational innovation are typically tightly linked to organizational goals and objectives, to the business plan, and to market competitive positioning.
For example, one driver for innovation programs in corporations is to achieve growth objectives. As Davila et al. (2006) note,

"Companies cannot grow through cost reduction and reengineering alone . . . Innovation is the key element in providing aggressive top-line growth, and for increasing bottom-line results" (p.6)

In general, business organisations spend a significant amount of their turnover on innovation i.e. making changes to their established products, processes and services. The amount of investment can vary from as low as a half a percent of turnover for organisations with a low rate of change to anything over twenty percent of turnover for organisations with a high rate of change.
The average investment across all types of organizations is four percent. For an organisation with a turnover of say one billion currency units, this represents an investment of forty million units. This budget will typically be spread across various functions including marketing, product design, information systems, manufacturing systems and quality assurance.

The investment may vary by industry and by market positioning.

One survey[citation needed] across a large number of manufacturing and services organisations found, ranked in decreasing order of popularity, that systematic programs of organizational innovation are most frequently driven by:

1. Improved quality
2. Creation of new markets
3. Extension of the product range
4. Reduced labour costs
5. Improved production processes
6. Reduced materials
7. Reduced environmental damage
8. Replacement of products/services
9. Reduced energy consumption
10. Conformance to regulations
11.
These goals vary between improvements to products, processes and services and dispel a popular myth that innovation deals mainly with new product development. Most of the goals could apply to any organisation be it a manufacturing facility, marketing firm, hospital or local government.

Failure of innovation

Research findings vary, ranging from fifty to ninety percent of innovation projects judged to have made little or no contribution to organizational goals. One survey regarding product innovation quotes that out of three thousand ideas for new products, only one becomes a success in the marketplace.[citation needed] Failure is an inevitable part of the innovation process, and most successful organisations factor in an appropriate level of risk. Perhaps it is because all organisations experience failure that many choose not to monitor the level of failure very closely. The impact of failure goes beyond the simple loss of investment. Failure can also lead to loss of morale among employees, an increase in cynicism and even higher resistance to change in the future.

Innovations that fail are often potentially good ideas but have been rejected or postponed due to budgetary constraints, lack of skills or poor fit with current goals. Failures should be identified and screened out as early in the process as possible. Early screening avoids unsuitable ideas devouring scarce resources that are needed to progress more beneficial ones. Organizations can learn how to avoid failure when it is openly discussed and debated. The lessons learned from failure often reside longer in the organisational consciousness than lessons learned from success. While learning is important, high failure rates throughout the innovation process are wasteful and a threat to the organisation's future.

The causes of failure have been widely researched and can vary considerably. Some causes will be external to the organisation and outside its influence of control. Others will be internal and ultimately within the control of the organisation. Internal causes of failure can be divided into causes associated with the cultural infrastructure and causes associated with the innovation process itself. Failure in the cultural infrastructure varies between organizations but the following are common across all organisations at some stage in their life cycle (O'Sullivan, 2002):

1. Poor Leadership
2. Poor Organization
3. Poor Communication
4. Poor Empowerment
5. Poor Knowledge Management
Common causes of failure within the innovation process in most organisations can be distilled into five types:
1. Poor goal definition
2. Poor alignment of actions to goals
3. Poor participation in teams
4. Poor monitoring of results
5. Poor communication and access to information
6.
Effective goal definition requires that organisations state explicitly what their goals are in terms understandable to everyone involved in the innovation process. This often involves stating goals in a number of ways. Effective alignment of actions to goals should link explicit actions such as ideas and projects to specific goals. It also implies effective management of action portfolios. Participation in teams refers to the behaviour of individuals in and of teams, and each individual should have an explicitly allocated responsibility regarding their role in goals and actions and the payment and rewards systems that link them to goal attainment. Finally, effective monitoring of results requires the monitoring of all goals, actions and teams involved in the innovation process.

Innovation can fail if seen as an organisational process whose success stems from a mechanistic approach i.e. 'pull lever obtain result'. While 'driving' change has an emphasis on control, enforcement and structure it is only a partial truth in achieving innovation. Organisational gatekeepers frame the organisational environment that "Enables" innovation; however innovation is "Enacted" – recognised, developed, applied and adopted – through individuals.

Individuals are the 'atom' of the organisation close to the minutiae of daily activities. Within individuals gritty appreciation of the small detail combines with a sense of desired organisational objectives to deliver (and innovate for) a product/service offer.

From this perspective innovation succeeds from strategic structures that engage the individual to the organisation's benefit. Innovation pivots on intrinsically motivated individuals, within a supportive culture, informed by a broad sense of the future.

Innovation, implies change, and can be counter to an organisation's orthodoxy. Space for fair hearing of innovative ideas is required to balance the potential autoimmune exclusion that quells an infant innovative culture.

== Measures of innovation == xyxyxyx There are two fundamentally different types of measures for innovation: the organizational level and the political level. The measure of innovation at the organizational level relates to individuals, team-level assessments, private companies from the smallest to the largest. Measure of innovation for organizations can be conducted by surveys, workshops, consultants or internal benchmarking. There is today no established general way to measure organizational innovation. Corporate measurements are generally structured around balanced scorecards which cover several aspects of innovation such as business measures related to finances, innovation process efficiency, employees' contribution and motivation, as well benefits for customers. Measured values will vary widely between businesses, covering for example new product revenue, spending in R&D, time to market, customer and employee perception & satisfaction, number of patents, additional sales resulting from past innovations. For the political level, measures of innovation are more focussing on a country or region competitive advantage through innovation. In this context, organizational capabilities can be evaluated through various evaluation frameworks, such as those of the European Foundation for Quality Management. The OECD Oslo Manual (1995) suggests standard guidelines on measuring technological product and process innovation. Some people consider the Oslo Manual complementary to the Frascati Manual from 1963. The new Oslo manual from 2005 takes a wider perspective to innovation, and includes marketing and organizational innovation. These standards are used for example in the European Community Innovation Surveys.

Other ways of measuring innovation have traditionally been expenditure, for example, investment in R&D (Research and Development) as percentage of GNP (Gross National Product). Whether this is a good measurement of Innovation has been widely discussed and the Oslo Manual has incorporated some of the critique against earlier methods of measuring. This being said, the traditional methods of measuring still inform many policy decisions. The EU Lisbon Strategy has set as a goal that their average expenditure on R&D should be 3 % of GNP.

The Oslo Manual is focused on North America, Europe, and other rich economies. In 2001 for Latin America and the Caribbean countries it was created the Bogota Manual

Many scholars claim that there is a great bias towards the "science and technology mode" (S&T-mode or STI-mode), while the "learning by doing, using and interacting mode" (DUI-mode) is widely ignored. For an example, that means you can have the better high tech or software, but there are also crucial learning tasks important for innovation. But these measurements and research are rarely done.

A common industry view (unsupported by empirical evidence) is that comparative cost-effectiveness research (CER) is a form of price control which, by reducing returns to industry, limits R&D expenditure, stifles future innovation and compromises new products access to markets.[8] Some academics claim the CER is a valuable value-based measure of innovation which accords truly significant advances in therapy (those that provide 'health gain') higher prices than free market mechanisms.[9] Such value-based pricing has been viewed as a means of indicating to industry the type of innovation that should be rewarded from the public purse.[10] The Australian academic Thomas Alured Faunce has developed the case that national comparative cost-effectiveness assessment systems should be viewed as measuring 'health innovation' as an evidence-based concept distinct from valuing innovation through the operation of competitive markets (a method which requires strong anti-trust laws to be effective) on the basis that both methods of assessing innovation in pharmaceuticals are mentioned in annex 2C.1 of the AUSFTA.[11][12]

Technology is a broad concept that deals with human as well as other animal species' usage and knowledge of tools and crafts, and how it affects a species' ability to control and adapt to its environment. Technology is a term with origins in the Greek technología (τεχνολογία) — téchnē (τέχνη), 'craft' and -logía (-λογία), the study of something, or the branch of knowledge of a discipline.[1] However, a strict definition is elusive; "technology" can refer to material objects of use to humanity, such as machines, hardware or utensils, but can also encompass broader themes, including systems, methods of organization, and techniques. The term can either be applied generally or to specific areas: examples include "construction technology", "medical technology", or "state-of-the-art technology".

The human species' use of technology began with the conversion of natural resources into simple tools. The prehistorical discovery of the ability to control fire increased the available sources of food and the invention of the wheel helped humans in travelling in and controlling their environment. Recent technological developments, including the printing press, the telephone, and the Internet, have lessened physical barriers to communication and allowed humans to interact freely on a global scale. However, not all technology has been used for peaceful purposes; the development of weapons of ever-increasing destructive power has progressed throughout history, from clubs to nuclear weapons.

Technology has affected society and its surroundings in a number of ways. In many societies, technology has helped develop more advanced economies (including today's global economy) and has allowed the rise of a leisure class. Many technological processes produce unwanted by-products, known as pollution, and deplete natural resources, to the detriment of the Earth and its environment. Various implementations of technology influence the values of a society and new technology often raises new ethical questions. Examples include the rise of the notion of efficiency in terms of human productivity, a term originally applied only to machines, and the challenge of traditional norms.

Philosophical debates have arisen over the present and future use of technology in society, with disagreements over whether technology improves the human condition or worsens it. Neo-Luddism, anarcho-primitivism, and similar movements criticise the pervasiveness of technology in the modern world, opining that it harms the environment and alienates people; proponents of ideologies such as transhumanism and techno-progressivism view continued technological progress as beneficial to society and the human condition. Indeed, until recently, it was believed that the development of technology was restricted only to human beings, but recent scientific studies indicate that other primates and certain dolphin communities have developed simple tools and learned to pass their knowledge to other generations.

There are many innovative way to improve internet connectivity. We must find new ways in order to improve connection like downloading software to that speeds up internet connection. The university also needs new technology in order to meet the goal of improving the University’s internet connection. By buying new networking hardware and by proper networking set-up, surely will enhance the internet connectivity of the University.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Innovation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Techonology

ASSIGNMENT 2. :D

2009-09-30T22:19:00.000-07:00

For our second assignment, we were tasked to have another interview again to our recently visited company. Last week, we had a visit at Sony, near Aljem’s Inn at Magallanes. To be consistent, I would still be referring to that organization / company.

What IS/IT change?
“Information systems and organizations influence one another. Information systems are built by managers to serve the interests of the business firm. At the same time, the organization must be aware of and open to the influences of information systems to benefit from new technologies.The interaction between information technology and organizations is complex and is influenced by many mediating factors, including the organization’s structure, business processes, politics, culture, surrounding environment, and management decisions. You will need to understand how information systems can change social and work life in your firm. You will not be able to design new systems successfully or understand existing systems without understanding your own business organization.”

In organizations without a formal information technology (IT) change management process, it is estimated that 80% of IT service outage problems are caused by updates and alterations to systems, applications, and infrastructure. Consequently, one of the first areas to address to improve service reliability is to track all changes and systematically manage change with full knowledge of the risks of the change and the potential organizational impact. While tracking change events is fairly well understood and is a common practice, consistently and reliably predicting the impact of change requires a disciplined, standards-based approach to assessing risk and likelihood of impact, a technique not usually found in off-the-shelf change tracking tools. –PNNL, Joanne R. Hugi

At Sony, the following are the risks in there IS / IT change:
- network connection
- One main Source
- Security Risks
- Financial Risks

To evaluate my learning about the recent interview, first, the network connection. During an IS / IT change, happens every time especially when an interruption to the signal occurs. No one can ever determine nor estimate when and where the interruption will happen, as according to the interviewee. Some of the said possible reasons (internet based) were it may be that you have simply made a typing mistake, and there is an error in the name of the remote host computer. In this case you should also receive an error stating that the host is unknown. Second, There may be problems with the configuration or physical setup of the network connection. Verify that other network connections are functioning. And, there may also be a temporary problem with the remote host computer. If this is the case, you should wait for a while and try to connect again later. You can contact the administrator of the remote host computer for additional information.

One Main Source. Actually, as said by the interviewee, the main server of their Information System is at Manila. If changes will occur, it would be hard for the personnel somewhere far at Manila to make communication with the main office. Also, Data Recovery would also be prolonged if their would be an IS change, IT personnel in charged especially if it is outsourcing, would feel different and likely would not use the new implemented system.

Security Risks. With regards to the security risks in an organization, when change will occur, it would be a new start al over again. From the firewall, to the anti-viruses used. Security risk is often, quantitatively, represented as any event that compromises the assets, operations and objectives of an organization. 'Event', in the security paradigm, comprises those undertaken by actors intentionally for purposes that adversely affect the organization.

Financial Risks. It involves large amount of capital to tests what are the suitable IS/IT in a particular business. Also the cost of the training of the employee in order for them to know about the new system and we should also consider the cost of the new hardware or software if there is a need to change the old. Due to the changing phases of systems, new techniques and technologies business enterprise has invested in Information Technology (IT) /Information System (IS) to hasten and creating a systematize transactions. Some technologies adopted are not suitable to the environment or the needs of the organizations. Moreover embracing new technologies or system usually starts in a trial and error process so the risk factor here is financial risk since not all technologies/system can be use every time we fail.

Reference:
http://www.prenhall.com/behindthebook/0132304619/pdf/Laudon%20Feature%203.pdf

Assignment 5.

2009-09-30T21:12:00.000-07:00

A barrier is defined as “any condition that makes it difficult to make progress or to achieve an objective” (WordNet, 1997). The objective under scrutiny in this study is increased technology integration. The understood and yet unspoken connotation of a barrier is that its removal acts as an aid towards the achievement of the objective. Therefore, the study of barriers as they pertain to technology integration is essential because this knowledge could provide guidance for ways to enhance technology integration. Ertmer (1999) echoed this sentiment, in stating that by providing “teachers with knowledge of barriers, as well as effective strategies to overcome them, it is expected that they will be prepared to both initiate and sustain effective technology integration practices” (Conclusion section, ¶ 4).

To best demonstrate the existence of barriers to technology integration independent of the environment, it is essential to examine the recent history of technology in the classroom. This allows one to see that as the main barrier – lack of technology access – was removed, other barriers still remained. Nevertheless, common sense dictates that in institutions that lack sufficient access to technology, effective technology integration would be a daunting, if not impossible task. It appears that Maddux’s (1998) claim that “it is essential that computers be placed in classrooms. Until that happens, true integration is unlikely to take place” remains true.

In SONY Davao, the following are their BARRIERS:
- MONEY
- IT Support
- Training
- IT Infrastructure
- Time
- Priorities
- Changing Technologies
- Planning
- Fear

In Money, even if the SONY is a very known company internationally, still the Money is a major factor for the company during their Information System implementation. The Company already has plans in the past to implement what they have right now yet, for an organization like my visited company, it is not that easy to release vast amounts of cash just to provide what their company needed during those days. As our interviewee said, technology nowadays especially the systems produced via outsourcing changes every time. What he really mean by that was, if you want to cope up with your rivals, an organization also must be meticulous with the system that they are using especially with an organization like Son, wherein they are so engaged, even selling products of technology that changes every now and then.

IT Support. I noticed that at the main branch only has limited IT personnel. In fact, the one that we had interview is the only IT assigned in the certain branch. I can say that IT support is one of the barriers during their Information System implementation because, a certain organization can not automatically implement their information system without or lacking support from the IT people. Maybe the company is hesitant to recruit or hire IT people because of the cost that they would pay. I am not that sure about that though.

Training. I think the training here is particular with their personnel and the management. Training with regards on how to manipulate the certain Information system that created because most of the time, it is the personnel who objects first on the flow of the system. Maybe because they can not cope up that easily with the occurred changes or maybe because they do not want the system itself. Its not that they take no notice of the technology but still maybe they prefer the old system.
Lack of training can create problems during the IS implementation. Man hours will be wasted, errors will become visible, and timeline will exceed. To solve this, the management should require proper training to every personnel involved to eliminate possible damages.

IT Infrastructure. When we speak of Information Technology infrastructure, I think it refers to the physical attributes of a hardware. Like a desktop computer for example. Whenever an innovation occur, it is not just the software that innovates, but also the hardware. There are times when the hardware can not cope up with the system requirement of a software, reason why, infrastructure such as platforms and specs are considered as one of the barrier during Information system implementation.

Time. Time can be the worst enemy during an IS implementation. Certainly, no organization can handle time. Timeline exceeds whenever great damages are encountered. As stated above, lack of training can be one of the reasons why an organization exceeds their duration. There are many controllable and uncontrollable factors that can ruin the timeline. To address this, the organization or team must develop and evaluate more strategies and plans that will speed up their implementation.

Priorities. There are times when an organization finds another priority. Instead to quicken up implementation, they find another target or another apple of the eye which delays the work.

Changing Technologies. Due to constant change of technology nowadays, the company finds it hard to cope up every now and then, in an organization like sony, they must follow the trend of today. Because of this, the organization / company finds hard to decide the final plans for the system because they may tend to look for much newer trend.

Planning. Planning too long can be a hindrance to IS implementation. Staff assigned may make changes every now and then. Afterwards, consultations to the management must be done. Reason why, the IT people assigned to implement the said IS can not make a move because of changing plans and decisions most of the time. Other good example is, when the organization plans not too well. Without any consultations from the experts that makes the implementation mush faster, but the result? Repetition of work. So, to address this, the organization must have a timeline for planning. Six months would be enough I think.

Fear. Fear of insults, discriminations, and other ill factors that will lead the people involved in the implementation in vain. Also, lack of trust from the colleagues that will lead to fear of what would be outcome if the implementation would take place which is not a good attitude. If you are involved in changing your IS, you must have the confidence that you can make it and trust to your co-workers in order for the team to be united.

http://www.zu.ac.ae/lthe/vol2no1/lthe02_05.pdf

Green Campus Computing / Assignment 4

2009-07-20T22:29:00.000-07:00

1. Computing Goes Green on Campus

Task force aims to reduce environmental impact

BY ANDREW VOWLES

An article from uoguelph.ca website that promotes green campus computing.
They introduce new energy conservation strategies and new environmentally friendly
computer purchasing policy. Besides saving energy, the task force expects its efforts
will help in reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with campus computing.

*Awareness campaign. Focus groups will look at awareness of energy use and conservation
in computing and potential barriers to green computing. The campaign will offer ideas to students, faculty and staff on basic computing practices, from reminders about turning off monitors to use of power-saving features and settings.

*Energy conservation strategies. A survey in January of information technology managers
across campus yielded information about current power-management practices among computer users. That information will be used to develop standard practices and power consumption settings designed to save energy. Those procedures, involving University IT staff and Physical Resources, are expected to be ready for implementation by spring.

http://www.uoguelph.ca/atguelph/07-02-14/newscomputing.shtml

2. Green Computing and Higher Education

This program promotes the new 3 Rs.
Reduce your carbon footprint, Reuse and Recycle.

Many campuses are looking to CIOs to conserve energy and to
promote more sustainable solutions in labs and data centers.

http://ready2net.csumb.edu/site/x21966.xml

3. GREEN COMPUTING

Personal Computers are one of the fastest going electricity loads in business and academic area.

How can the campus adopt the concept of green campus computing?
This site contains waste minimization procedure that campuses could follow.
*Like electrical conservation tips
*Paper conservation tips
*Purchasing and use of equipment tips.

http://www.p2000.umich.edu/energy_conservation/ec7.htm

Assignment 3.

2009-07-15T00:28:00.000-07:00

My thoughts on the incoming automated elections here in the Philippines. Naturally, as a TECHIE guy, I would be really happy and glad that our country is planning to make elections more easier and faster using technology. But then, we cannot assume that the result would be automatically perfect since that as I can see, Comelec is indeed, in a hurry. But as I have known, the Malacanang already released massive amount just to support this luxurious activity of Comelec. In relation with this, I am posting some of the details regarding with this new technology as can be found in the internet and the issues involved with it.

What Election Automation means for the Philippines?

“The Devil Will be in the Details and in the Execution”
In principle, election automation will remove the potential for human error/cheating from the ballot review and ballot counting. It can give near instant feedback of the election results. As soon as voting closes, it should be technically possible to get the election results within an hour.
I think it will have the following positive effects:

1. Remove the potential for human error and cheating at ballot reading and tallying

2. Remove the delay and potential for cheating between ballot tallying and preparation of election returns

3. Remove the delay and potential for cheating during tallying of election returns

4. Make elections much cheaper to execute

5. Reduce election violence significantly.

You’re probably wondering why automating the elections could reduce related violence significantly. Well, you won’t have to gun people down if there are no ballots being delivered to polling centers. Though, due to the dual nature of our planned automation (manual polling will continue in less developed parts of the country), such violence won’t disappear entirely.

“I Think it Will Bring Discontinuous Change”
1. Quick counts will become obsolete. If the results can be reported on the same day, there will be no market for quick counts. (NAMFREL has recently announced no quick counts for 2010 -Editor)

2. Labor will no longer be needed for several days/weeks to manage and monitor elections. the resulting creative destruction will affect teachers, poll-watchers, men of arms, media people, advertising, and the peripheral economy that they patronize during election period.

3. Guns and goons will give way to geeks and gold. Attempts at cheating will shift to hacking the transmittal of election results from far flung areas to Manila, as well as hacking the tallying of results in Manila. this could have the happy side-effect of pushing the computer and internet revolution into far flung provinces, as money flows to reward technical know-how every six years.

4. Quick direct from population feedback will become a viable option—referendum questions like charter change can be realistically executed in a short period of time if elections become so cheap and quick to do.

“There are Risk Factors”
1. Software - The software used all throughout the process, from ballot reading all the way to returns tallying, must be open for public scrutiny. It may not be proprietary and secret.

2. Devices - Ballots and computers used throughout may fail. Backup/contingency plan must exist and be robust. Sabotage could be the way cheating will be introduced, in order to force reverting to manual process.

3. Architecture - Transmittal and reporting of results could be susceptible to hacking. instant public visibility of results as counted at source and as transmitted at receipt will mitigate threats of hacking.

4. User - Voting needs to be simple and straightforward. Many Filipinos are not computer literate, and barely literate. PEBKAC errors can lead to many spoiled ballots, which may either be invalidated like in the US, or can be used as a pretense to revert to manual.

REFERENCES:

http://technogra.ph/20090309/sections/analysis/what-election-automation-means-for-the-philippines/
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/273714
http://www.nowpublic.com/world/2010-philippine-automated-election-jeopardy
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2008/june/29/yehey/opinion/20080629opi2.html

COMDDAP

2009-07-15T00:25:00.000-07:00

COMDDAP is abbreviation for Computer Manufacturers, Distributors and Dealer Association of the Philippines. COMDDAP is an association of the country's top information technology businesses. Its primary objective is to promote the sustainable development of the of the country's information technology industry through voluntary collaboration of its member companies. It is the goal of COMDDAP to be able to provide its members general views and updates from different sectors - private and government, and highly regarded individuals to further uplift the morale and knowledge of its organization.

COMDDAP’s vision is to promote and elevating the standards of Information technology (IT) in the Philippines fueled a group of prominent computer companies. Its initial member-companies represent the world's leading makers and providers of computer products, solutions and peripherals.

COMDDAP counts among its achievements the holding of the Annual COMDDAP exhibit, more popularly known as the COMDDAP EXPO, which has become a consistent crowd drawer and has in itself set new records in terms of the quality of exhibit area, exhibitors, visitors, and venues. In fact, COMDDAP EXPO in 1999 marked the first exhibit to have adapted an upgraded booth shell schemes

The annual COMDDAP endeavor encourages its participants to launch their products and services, as well as hold seminars with a variety of topics in the areas of technology, trends, applications, and information management.

COMDDAP's biggest leap was being able to cross boarders or go regional by bringing the exposition down south in Cebu and Davao City, and to even greater heights in the cities of Baguio and Naga, and most recently, in Iloilo City.

Last July 2-4, 2009 COMDDAP just held an EXPO in Davao City at Grand Ballroom, Apo View Hotel. I was there at the exhibit and was able to register for the seminar. To be sure I register for July 2 and July 3 seminar incase I can’t attend the July 2 seminar I can still attend the seminar for the next day. And as expected at the first day of the expo I was late and the seats are already full when I arrive. So I decided to attend the seminar for July 3. Since I won’t be able to attend the seminar at the first day of the expo I roam around and watch the participating companies of the expo exhibit their technologies and services. I was amazed by the technologies that they exhibit at the expo. It is a proof that IT industry here in the Philippines is growing fast. While I was roaming around I passed at the booth of NVIDIA, I was stunned as NVIDIA exhibits two of their powerful gaming PC. With Core 2 Quad CPU and I think it has 2 NVIDIA XFX 512bit graphic cards, 160GB DDR2 RAM and an nvidia mother board with three graphic card slot. It is a very great PC with high processing capability and great graphics. It is a dream computer for gamers like me. Hehehe.

July 3, 2009, second day of COMDDAP EXPO, I was able to arrive earlier than yesterday. I attended the seminar for HP (Hewlett Packard) thin client, Microsoft Windows Server 2008 and Open Source software.

Mr. Leonard Zapa, the market development manager of HP here in the Philippines presents one of their fast growing products, the HP thin client. The HP thing client is one great innovation from HP. I was amazed by the thin client’s capability. Thin client applied the concept of virtualization; it is like the client side of the server has been virtualized. Thin client solved many issues like security and loss of data. And you can also save more money in using thin client because it has less electricity consumption and less maintenance. The thin client runs on windows embedded OS. HP thin client is a computing device like a desktop. But the thin client is a device without a hard drive and it only displays data and application from remote servers or blade PC. It is more secured because the only data that it transmits to the server are the mouse and keyboard input. You can also install some application on the thin client because it has flash memory or something (I forget the exact term). If ever the thin client got infected with a virus all you have to do is to restart the device and the deep freeze will work and the device resets to its previous status without the virus. You will not need anti virus or something because the data in you server side will not be affected by the virus. Your data will be more secured with this device. There are many thin client devices and each has different features.

After the discussion is the question and answer portion. Mr. Leonard Zapa prepared some interesting prizes like flash drives and t-shirts from HP Philippines for those who can answer the questions correctly. Some of my schoolmates and classmates had won the prize. To bad for me I wasn’t called.

After the discussion about the HP thin client was all about Microsoft Windows Server 2008. The discussion on Microsoft Windows Server 2008 is not really that interested. Because the topic about the Windows Server 2008 is very technical and it won’t easily be understood in just one discussion only except if you had worked on Windows Server before and knows about some of its feature and how it works. But for me and my classmates it is not really that interested. But still I was able to listen to some of what the speaker discussed. The Microsoft Windows Server 2008 is a NOS or Network Operating System for servers. The speaker discussed about the installation process of the different directory roles in server and some of the new features of Windows Server 2008. I was able to list down the different active directory roles which are the Active Directory Domain Services (ADDS), the Active Domain Certificate Services (ADCS), Active Domain Federation Services (ADFS), Active Domain Lightweight Directory (ADLD), and Active Domain Rights Management Services (ADRM). I forgot the function of these active directory roles because it is more technical that’s why it is not easy to absorb in just discussion. And the speaker talks very fast. After the discussion is the question and answer portion again. One thing that took my attention was the Microsoft Jacket that is one of the prizes that will be given away by the speaker. To I didn’t win a prize again.

After the Microsoft Windows Server 2008 is the topic about Open Source Software. I wasn’t able to start the discussion because I ate my snack first. When I came back the speaker was talking about the different open source software and how it work and different businesses and web sites that uses open source software. This is the topic that took my attention. Because open source software really help makes the work easy and less expensive. I now know some of the sites in where to download some of the open source software.

Assignment 1.

2009-06-25T00:56:00.000-07:00

Samrt Communication Inc. is one of philippine's leadeing wireless service provider. A wholly owned subsidiary of the country’s dominant telecommunications carrier, PLDT(Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company). SMART operates a nationwide cellular network, a fixed wireless broadband service and a satellite phone service. It has the most extensive and modern digital communications GSM network and infrastructure in the country, covering over 99 percent of the population. Smart also provides world-first wireless data services including services such as Smart Money, Smart Load and Smart padala.

Smarts mission is to be the true measure and standard of leadership in everything we do. By interviewing IT personel about their IS, they refer me to where i can get some articles and information.

After reading articles about the company and site visit, here are some their good IT/IS practices.

Online Customer Services-smart provides online cumstomer services through their site, such as payment centers. in their website smart provides the customer information about the location of the nearest smart payment center in your area. Smart also provides customer care services, now you can get information you need with customer service channels through your mobile phones, the world wide web or through automated service machine. This one great innovation from Smart. http://smart.com.ph/corporate/support/SmartConnect

Online Load Retailer's transactions-Smart is one of the Philippines leading wireless service provider, with 36.9 million subscibers on its GSM network. We all know that in order to use smart services you got to have a load first. And there so many smart load retailers everywhere. Smart also provides services for smart load retailers. Now smart load retailers can access their transections such as load wallet inquiry, request for blocking of load wallet due to lost or stolen sim and request for statement of account online through smart web connect. http://smart.com.ph/corporate/newsroom/SmartShopPR.htm

fast online developement-As we all know smart is in the business of wireless service provider, to give customer an easy way of buying their products, at june 10, 2009 Smart open the Smart Shop. The smart shop is a virtual store of smart communications inc. is now online and ready to serve. Smart shop offers Smart Buddy prepaid phone kits, Smart Bro Prepaid broadband kits, Plug ‘N Talk USB-type communication device and other smart communication products. For me this one of the IT developement for Smart because of this smart sales will eventually grow. https://shop.smart.com.ph/pages.php?pageid=8

online security-All those things that have been mentioned above talks about online transactions. Having payment transactions online is a great risk for customers. But dont worry because that problem is taken care of. It is assured that your transactions and account are secured. . https://shop.smart.com.ph/pages.php?pageid=8

IT system upgrade-During 2001 Smart doubled its GSM switching capacity and increased by three-fold its text messaging capacity, in line with its target to increase its subscriber capacity to 10 million in 2002. By end December 2001, SMART’s network capacity had risen to eight million subscribers from four million at year-end 2000 and 240 million text messages daily from 92 million text messages daily for the same period. Total subscribers using SMART’s GSM network as of end-September 2001 already numbered 5.4 million.As year goes Smart's subscriber greatly increases. As the business grow rapidly, the servers which ran its core pre-paid billing application ran out of capacity. In upgrading the billing platform, Smart wanted to take advantage of the greater performance available with Unix based servers, such as the HP Superdome. http://www.hp.com/products1/servers/case_studies/case_studies/superdome/smartsuperdome_ss.pdf

Davao Light and Power Company is the third largest privately-owned electric utility in the Philippines. It holds the franchise for distributing electric power to Davao City, the largest city in the world in terms of land area, as well as Panabo City and the municipalities of Carmen, Dujali, and Sto. Tomas in Davao del Norte. On September 29, 2000, the franchise was renewed for another 25 years by virtue of Republic Act 8960. kilowatt-hours to 247,341 customers with a peak demand of 245 megawatts (MW). Among the country’s most efficiently run power utilities, its systems loss rate of 8.13% is well below the government mandated cap of 9.50%.
Davao Light maintains a 53.8 MW standby diesel power plant with a capability of 40 MW for sustained operations. As needed, it is activated to stabilize voltage as well as augment the power supply of its primary generating sources. It makes use of a fully functional automated mapping and facilities management (AM/FM) system to track the location of electric distribution assets in its franchise. Also in place is a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system, a facility that allows remote real-time data gathering and control of equipment in all power substations. High-end computers, sophisticated software, and other devices are being used to speed up meter reading, streamline billing, provide efficient and prompt response to customer inquiries, generate management information, and analyze electrical grid information. Special attention has been devoted to improving Davao Light’s service standards. Innovative re-engineering efforts have cut down service cycle times. Outsourcing of tasks and reallocating manpower and other resources has allowed the utility to improve productivity while keeping costs relatively stable. Current efforts focus on teamwork, service excellence, professionalism, and innovation in preparation for a deregulated and competitive environment. Now and in the future, Davao Light is committed to deliver reliable and efficient service at reasonable rates.
Davao lights mission is to be the country’s leader in providing electric power and related services by becoming a world-class electric distribution company.

easy payment services-Now you can pay your Davao Light Bills* using your MEGALINK ATM card in any MEGALINK ATM nationwide. 24/7, at no extra cost! http://www.davaolight.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=59&Itemid=80

online outage advisory-although power interuption here in davao rarely happens, its still important to informpeople whenever a power interruption occur. Now people will be easily updated earlier whenever a power interruption will happen through their website. http://www.davaolight.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=47&Itemid=84

online job recuitment-the company uses the web to discover future employees. They uses their site for urgent job hiring. In there they post information about the requirements for job application. This is a good strategy for the company to immedietly replace vacant emplyee position, so that the company could work properly.

Managerial Roles

2009-06-23T00:53:00.000-07:00

Ten Managerial Roles in Mintzberg's Model

Interpersonal Roles
arising from formal authority and status and supporting the information and decision activities

*Figurehead
Social, inspirational, legal and ceremonial duties must be carried out. The manager is a symbol and must be on-hand for people/agencies that will only deal with him/her because of status and authority.

*Leader
This is at the heart of the manager-subordinate relationship and managerial power and pervasive where subordinates are involved even where perhaps the relationship is not directly interpersonal. The manager
-defines the structures and environments within which sub-ordinates work and are motivated.
-oversees and questions activities to keep them alert.
-selects, encourages, promotes and disciplines.
-tries to balance subordinate and organisational needs for efficient operations.

*Liaison
This is the manager as an information and communication centre. It is vital to build up favours. Networking skills to shape maintain internal and external contacts for information exchange are essential. These ontacts give access to "databases"- facts, requirements, probabilities.

Informational Roles
information processing roles

*Monitor
the manager seeks/receives information from many sources to evaluate the organisation's performance, well-being and situation. Monitoring of internal operations, external events, ideas, trends, analysis and pressures is vital. Information to detect changes, problems & opportunities and to construct decision-making scenarios can be current/historic, tangible (hard) or soft, documented or non-documented.This role is about building and using an intelligence system. The manager must install and maintain this information system; by building contacts & training staff to deliver "information".

*Disseminator
the manager brings external views into his/her organisation and facilitiates internal information flows between subordinates (factual or value-based).

The preferences of significant people are received and assimilated. The manager interprets/disseminates information to subordinates e.g. policies, rules, regulations. Values are also desseminated via conversations laced with imperatives and signs/icons about what is regarded as imprtant or what 'we believe in'.

There is a dilemma of delegation. Only the manager has the data for many decisions and often in the wrong form (verbal/memory vs. paper). Sharing is time-consuming and difficult. He/she and staff may be already overloaded. Communication consumes time. The adage 'if you want to get things done, (it is best to do it yourself' comes to mind. Why might this be a driver of managerial behaviour (reluctance or constraints on the ability to delegate)?

*Spokesman
the manager informs and lobbies others (external to his/her own organisational group). Key influencers and stakeholders are kept informed of performances, plans & policies. For outsiders, the manager is an expert in the field in which his/her organisation operates.

Decisional Roles
decision roles: making significant decisions

*Entrepreneur
he/she designs and initiates much of the controlled change in the organisation. Gaps are identified, improvement programmes defined. The manager initiates a series of related decisions/activities to achieve actual improvement. Improvement projects may be involved at various levels. The manager can

-delegate all design responsibility selecting and even replace subordinates.
-empower subordinates with responsbility for the design of the improvement programme but e.g. define the parameters/limits and veto or give the go-ahead on options.
-supervise design directly.

Senior managers may have many projects at various development stages (emergent/dormant/nearly-ready) working on each periodically interspersed by waiting periods for information feedback or progress etc. Projects roll-on and roll-off,

*Disturbance Handler
is a generalist role i.e. taking charge when the organisation hits an iceberg unexpectedly and where there is no clear programmed response. Disturbances may arise from staff, resources, threats or because others make mistakes or innovation has unexpected consequences. The role involves stepping in to calm matters, evaluate, re-allocate, support - removing the thorn - buying time. The metaphors here are

*Resource Allocator
the manager oversees allocation of all resources (£, staff, reputation). This involves:

-scheduling own time
-programming work
-authorising actions

With an eye to the diary (scheduling) the manager implicitly sets organisational priorities. Time and access involve opportunity costs. What fails to reach him/her, fails to get support.

The managerial task is to ensure the basic work system is in place and to programme staff overloads - what to do, by whom, what processing structures will be used.

Authorising major decisions before implementation is a control over resource allocation. This enables coordinative interventions e.g. authorisation within a policy or budgeting process in comparison to ad-hoc interventions. With limited time, complex issues and staff proposals that cannot be dismissed lightly, the manager may decide on the proposer rather than proposal.

To help evaluation processes, managers develop models and plans in their heads (they construe the relationships and signifiers in the situation). These models/constructions encompass rules, imperatives, criteria and preferences to evaluate proposals against. Loose, flexible and implicit plans are up-dated with new information.

*Negotiator
takes charge over important negotiating activities with other organisations. The spokesman, figurehead and resource allocator roles demand this.

resource:
http://www.bola.biz/mintzberg/mintzberg2.html
COMMUNITY COLLEGE CHIEF BUSINESS OFFICERS by WILLIAM DALE MCINNIS

Leadership roles

2009-06-23T00:00:00.000-07:00

Six IS leadership roles

Chief architect-

The chief architect designs future possibilities for the business. The primary work of the chief architect is to design and evolve the IT infrastructure so that it will expand the range of future possibilities for the business, not define specific business outcomes. The infrastructure should provide not just today's technical services, such as networking, databases and desktop operating systems, but an increasing range of business-level services, such as workflow, portfolio management, scheduling, and specific business components or objects.

Change leader-

The change leader orchestrates resources to achieve optimal implementation of the future. The essential role of the change leader is to orchestrate all those resources that will be needed to execute the change program. This includes providing new IT tools, but it also involves putting in the place teams of people who can redesign roles, jobs and workflow, who can change beliefs about the company and the work people do, and who understand human nature and can develop incentive systems to coax people into new and different behaviors.

Product developer-

The product developer helps define the company’s place in the emerging digital economy. For example, a product developer might recognize the potential for performing key business processes (perhaps order fulfillment, purchasing or delivering customer support) over electronic linkages such as the Internet. The product developer must "sell" the idea to a business partner, and together they can set up and evaluate business experiments, which are initially operated out of IS. Whether the new methods are adopted or not, the company will learn from the experiments and so move closer to commercial success in emerging digital markets.

Technology provocateur-
The technology provocateur embeds IT into the business strategy. The technology provocateur works with senior business executives to bring IT and realities of the IT marketplace to bear on the formation of strategy for the business. The technology provocateur is a senior business executive who understands both the business and IT at a deep enough level to integrate the two perspectives in discussions about the future course of the business. Technology provocateurs have a wealth of experience in IS disciplines, so they understand at a fundamental level the capabilities of IT and how IT impacts the business.

Coach-
The coach teaches people to acquire the skillsets they will need for the future. Coaches have to basic responsibilities: teaching people how to learn, so that they can become self-sufficient, and providing team leaders with staff able to do the IT-related work of the business. A mechanism that assists both is the center of excellence - a small group of people with a particular competence or skill, with a coach responsible for their growth and development. Coaches are solid practitioners of the competence that they will be coaching, but need not be the best at it in the company.

Chief operating strategist-
The chief operating strategist invents the future with senior management. The chief operating strategist is the top IS executive who is focused on the future agenda of the IS organization. The strategist has parallel responsibilities related to helping the business design the future, and then delivering it. The most important, and least understood, parts of the role have to do with the interpretation of new technologies and the IT marketplace, and the bringing of this understanding into the development of the digital business strategy for the organization.

resources:

http://csdl2.computer.org/comp/proceedings/hicss/2000/0493/07/04937055.pdf

Proceedings of the 33rd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2000
Norwegian School of Management
petter.gottschalk@bi.no

My subject called MIS

2009-06-20T01:20:00.000-07:00

MIS is a system planned for collecting, processing, storing and disseminating data in the form of information needed to carry out the functions of management. It is a computer system designed to help managers plan and direct business and organizational operations.

The subject is called MIS because it is a study Management Information System. Today the term MIS is used broadly in a number of contexts and includes: decision support system, resource and people management applications, project management and database retrieval application.

Before business computers where used for practical business of computing the payroll and keeping track of accounts payable and accounts receivable. As application were developed that provides managers with information about sales, inventories and other data that would help in managing the enterprise, the term MIS arose. There are four keys in management: plan, direct, organize and control. According to Philip Kotler "A marketing information system consists of people, equipment, and procedures to gather, sort, analyze, evaluate, and distribute needed, timely, and accurate information to marketing decision makers." The area of study called MIS is sometimes reffered to as Information Technology Management.

The system is called Management Information System because it is a system that organize information about resources, people, projects and other data that would help the company managers to direct the people and to control the resources and help decision makers in making plans to make the business grow.

sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Management_information_system

MIS BLOG

2009-06-19T23:58:00.000-07:00

Management Information System

I'm Jan Ray P. Suriba student of University of Southeastern Philippines. This is my official blog spot for Management Information System(MIS) subject led by Mr. Randy S. Gamboa.