MIS Concepts & Design

by

Se ma Sirpal e De lhi University Computer Centre

Information is Critical
T e information w have h e is no t what w want, e T e information w want h e is no t the infor mation w need, e T e information w ne d h e e is n t available. o

Information is a Resource
It is scarce It has a cost It has alternative uses There is an opp ortun ity cost factor involved if one do es not process information

Why need Information?

To ensure effective and efficient decision - making leading to prosperity of the Organisation.
.

What is MIS?
Short for Management Information System

MIS

refers broadly to a computer-based system that provides managers with the tools for organizing, evaluating and . efficiently running their departments.

What is MIS?
Right Information To the right person At the right place At the right time In the right form At the right cost

Management Information System

The three sub-components Management, Information and System - together bring out the focus clearly & effectively.
System emphasizing a fair degree of integration and a holistic
view;

Information stressing on processed data in the context in

which it is used by end users;

Management focusing on the ultimate use of such information

systems for managerial decision making.

The Co ncept of MIS

Process ing Logic Computers Data Data Data Human Beings Database
Intellig e ce n Design Choice Jud ement / g Intution Skill / Experience External Environment

Decision

Information

Decision Making
.

MIS
Monitoring / Feedback

Decision Implementation

Performance

Why MIS? Its Role

Increased Business & Management Complexities

Increased Business Complexities

Te chnologi cal Revolution Re sea rch & Development Ex plo sion of Information

Increased Management Complexities

Management Science Techn ologies Decision-making On set of Computers

Functional Uses of MIS

En hance : Quality of our operations Quality of our se rvices We achieve : Efficiency Transparency Sp eedy Dec ision making

Strategic Uses of MIS

Precise development of strategies , plann ing, forecasting and monitoring Problem solving Decision-making Sepa rate wor k from location

Historic Development
The concept of MIS has changed substantially over the years. In the 50 s and 60 s, the m nagem nt saw the potential of a e computers to process large amoun ts of data speedily and accurately. The depar tm nts that wer e involved with such activities e were known as Electronic Data Processing (EDP) depar tm nts. e The focus of EDP was Record Keeping e.g. accounting data Payroll data.

Historic Development
In the 70 s, ther e was a discernible shift from data to information. The focus was not on data but on the analysis of Organisation data. There was a shift in the philosophy. Such a concept came to be widely known as Management Information System.

right information in right time to right people

Historic Development
In the 70 s the top m nagem nt relied on the staff of EDP a e & MIS to supp ly the necessary information. The 80 s saw the Personal Computer (PC) revolution. The Personal Computer & the desk-top m taphor changed e the picture completely. The bigg est pay-off for such direct use was the what-if analysis capability. This led to the em rge of De cision Support e (DSS). Systems

Historic Development
The information and decision hungry m nager s of 80 s saw a a huge potential in the exp er t sy st em s as a result of spectacular growth in the Artificial Intelligence area. Combined with DSS philosophy the exp er t syst em s could supp ly a superior class of managerial information supp ort, kn own as Knowledg e Ba sed Systems (KBS).

Historic Development
The EDP targeted the operational level of managem nt. e The MIS/DSS/KBS tar get the middle management. Att empts wer e m de to provide information to top managem nt a e as well, known as Executive Information System (EIS).

Historic Development
ESS
Executive Sup ort System p

KS/ES
Knowled e g / Expert System

AI
Artificial Intelli gence

DSS
Decision Sup ort System p

MIS
Management Information System

OAS
Office Automation System

TPS
Transaction Processing System

15s 90

2 st Century 1

Historic Development
EDP OAS MIS DSS EIS ES AI Focus on Data Focus on Commun ication Focus on Information Focus on Decision Supp ort Fo cus on Dec ision Supp ort for Top Management Fo cus on Consultation Fo cus on se lf-learning / thinking systems

Characteristics of MIS
Computer Science Management Accounting Management Sci ence / Theory

MIS
Ope ations r Research Organisation Theory Behavioural Sciences

A multi-d isciplinary Subject

Typical MIS Systems

s

Classification through functional disciplines Production Strategic Tactical Operational New Plant Location Production Bott leneck Daily Scheduling Finance Alternative Financing Variance Analysis Payroll Personnel Welfare Policy Marketing Competitor Survey

Performance Advertising App raisal Leave Records Sales Analysis

Organisational Systems & MIS

S

Classification of Management
Strategic decisions

Top

Tactical decisions

Middle

Operational decisions

Operational

right information in right time at right

level

Operational Level accuracy & timeliness of information collection and dissemination is important Tactical & Strategic Level relevance is the watch-word

Efficiency at Operational level Effectiveness at tactical & strategic level

Mapping organisational level and structure into the design of any MIS is very important for its successful implementation.

The Technology Component

Information Technology (IT) has changed the organisations function and carry out their activites. way

Computers have fundamentally changed MIS from an abstract concept to concrete system that provide efficiency and transparency in the Oraganisation.

The Technology Component

Computer Hardware CPU
Arithmetic Logic Unit

Primary Storage

Control Unit

D ta Bus a Ad ress Bus d Control Bus

Input Devices

Output Devices

Secondary Storage

The Technology Component

S f tware Categories o
App lication Software S stem Software y

Hardware

The Technology Component

Data Commun icati on consists of
D ta Commu ication a n

Data Process ing & Transactions

Transaction is a fundamental organisational function

Data Transmiss ion

Transmiss ion : Media, networ ks and paths Processing :Gett ing/delivering the right mess age to the right receiver Control : Routing mess ages, structure maintenance.

Database Technology
At the heart of the Info rm atio n S ste ms y of an Organisation is the central repository of Organi sa tion Data.

Databases
Data - raw facts/details DATABASE- A share d collection of logically related data. Models real-world enterprise.

B Entities B students, courses, instructors Relationships B Sum n is currently taking MB101 a B Vijay is currently taking MB102 B Abhishek is currently taking MB103 but took MB101 last semester

Databases

Database Management System (DBMS): large software package designed to stor e and manage databases
.

Datab ases are everywhere:

Your wallet is full of DB records

Drivers license Credit cards Gym membership Indivi dual checks Rs. 500 notes (w/serial numbers) Maybe even pho tos (ids on back)

Why We Need DBMS?

There is an information explosion in todays society Need to keep acc urate records Advantages of using a DBMS fall into three main categories: Proper maintenance of the data Providing access to the data Maintaining security of the data

Traditional Approach
App lications developed in an ad-hoc and opportunistic mann er Data requirements for app lications derived independently Data files developed for individual app lications App lication programs are data dependent

File s Dedicated to App lication Programs

reservation data loan data a overdue letters

reservation program

loan program

overdue loans program

reservation file

loan file

book file

person file

Database Approach
Centralization of information management Data shared by different grou ps of users and application programs Integrity constraint handling Advanced facilit ies for backup and recovery

Da ta Sharing in a Database Environment

reservation data loan data a overdue letters

reservation program

loan program

overdue loans program

DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

reserv ation

book loan person

Interacting with a Database

DBMS Database

Application Programs

End Users

Advantages
Sharing of data Enforceme nt of security Enforceme nt of development and maintenance standards Reduction of redun dancy Avoidance of inconsistency across files Maintenance of integrity Data independence

3-levels Architecture
EXTERNAL LEVEL (individual view) VIEW 1 VIEW 2

CONCEPTUAL LEVEL (community view)

Structural Properties & Constraints

INTERNAL LEVEL (storage view)

Logical Representation of Stored Records

Com plete DBMS

Hardware Software
Utilities

Data Users Procedures

Hardware
The actual com ter system used for kee ping pu and accessing the database. Large organization usually has a network with a central server and many client programs run ning on desktops. Smaller organizations may have the DBMS and its clients reside in a single computer.

Software
The actual DBMS.
Allows the users to com unicate with the m database. Controls access Includes utilities Repo rt writers App lication development tools Examp les of DBMS software Microsoft SQL Server Oracle Corporation Personal Oracle IBM DB2

Data
The da taba se should contain all the da ta nee ded by the organization. Emphasis is on the relevant da ta pertaining to one or more objects or entities . Entity: a thing of significance about which information nee ds to be known. The characteristics tha t des cribe or qua lify an entity are called att ributes of the entity.

Data continued
For each att ribute, the set of possible values that the att ribute can take is called the domain of the attribute. The domain of the date of birth would be all the dates that might be reasonable in the st udent body. No date in the 1700s would be expected. Undergraduate class levels would probably be restricted to Part I Part II Part III No other values would be allowed.

Users
Each type of user nee ds different software capabilities: The database administrator (DBA) is the person or group in charge of implementing the database system withi n the organization. The end users are the people wh o sit at workstations and interact directly with the system. The app lication program ers interact with the m database by accessing the data from program s writt en in high-level languages su ch as Visual Ba sic etc.

Procedures
An integral part of any system is the set of proce dures that control the behavior of the system. The actual practices the users follow to obtain, enter, maintain, and retrieve the data. For example, in a payroll system, how are the hours worked received by the clerk and entered into the system? Exact ly wh en are monthly repor ts generated and to whom are they sent?

Data Models
Models generally allow people to conceptualize an ab stract idea more easily
Mo del airplanes Mo del homes

A da ta model is a way of explaining the logical layout of the da ta an d the relationship of various parts to each ot her an d the whole.
Di fferent data models have been used throughout the years.

Classification of DBMS
1 . Classical DBMS 2. Hierarchical Network Relational

New Directions E ten e d Relational x d Object-Oriented Distributed

Data Models continued

The Relational Database Model:
Relational dat abase management sys tems, where all data are kept in tables or relations. More flexible & easy to use. Almo st any item of data can be accessed more quick ly than the other models. Retrieval tim is reduced so that interactive e access becomes more feasible.

This is wha t is referr ed to as Relational Databa se Management Sy stem (RDBMS) s

Object Oriented Database OODBMS

Handle big and complex data that relational databases could not. Joining of object-oriented program ing with database m technology, which provides an integrated app lication development system.

Object Oriented Database OODBMS

Object Relational - ORDBMS

RDBMS extended to include Object Oriented concepts and structures. Handle new types of data such as audio, video, and image files that relational databases wer e not equipp ed to handle. Advantages of ORDBMS it allows organizations to continu e using their existing syst em s, without having to m ke major a changes. it allows users and program ers to st art using m object-oriented syst ems in parallel.

ACID properties
ACID properties are an important concept for datab ases. The acronym stands for Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, and Durability. A single logical operation on the data transaction. is called a

Example : transfer of funds from one account to another. The ACID properties guarantee transactions are proc essed reliably. that such

ACID properties
At om icity guarantees that one account won't be debited if the other is not credited as well. Consistency a transaction can' t brea k the rules, or integrity constraints, of the database. If an integrity constraint states that all accounts must have a positive balance, then any transaction violating this rule will be aborted. Isolation This m ns that no operation outside the ea transaction can ever see the data in an intermediate s tate; Dura bility refers to the guarantee that once the user has bee n notified of success, the transaction will persist, and not be undone.

MIS Design

The Concept of

Systems is of
MIS

pivotal impor tance in

What is a System?
S stems are y problems. created to solve

S stems y approach is an org anized way of dealing with a problem.

s

Defining a System
A collection of components tha t wo rk together to realize som e objective form a system s Three Major Components
.

Fox Example
Human bod y - a complete natural system. National system - politi cal system s , economic system educational system ,

Syste m Life Cycle

Organisational process of developing and maintaining systems. He lps to establish a system project plan.

Phases of SDLC

System Study
problem identification and project initiation backgro und analysis inference or findings
.

Feasibility Study
Workabilit y, Mee ting users requirements, Effective use of resources Co st effectiveness .
s

Sy stem Analysis
Specification of the new system Fun ctional hierarchy Identify Data items
.

Sy stem Design
preliminary or general design Structure or detailed design
Tools and techniques used for designing: Flowchart Data flow diagram (DFDs) Data dictionary St ruct ured English Decision table Decision tree

Coding
Codi ng the new system into computer program ing language. m Defined pro cedures transformed into control specifications Program ing pha se - computer m instructions.

Testing
A tes run o th e system t f Unit testing Sy stem tes ting Bl ack box tes ting White box tes ting

Implementation
theor y is turned into practice Parallel run Pilot run User training

Maintenance
The review of the system is done for: knowing the required changes or the add itional requirements studying the performance
If a majo ch g r an e to a system is ne ded, a new project is e set u to carr y out the chang e. T p he new project will then proce d thro g e u h all th ab ve life cycl e phases. e o

Information System & Quality

ATMs Computerised Railway Boo kings Telephone Network

W do not expectg them to fail! e

Quality

Quality indicates t h degree of e excellence of a p oduct o service r r

What is Software Quality?

Ability o a So tware to be fit f f fo its purp ose . r

Quality Factors
Reliability Corr ectness Maintainability Security Reusability Portability User-friendliness

Management Role in Software Quality Ass urance

Establish & maintain the requirement specification Establish & implement a process for developing the Software Establish & maintain an evaluation process

Quality Model
Quality Factor

Requirements Checklist

Design Checklist

Coding Checklist

Testing Checklist

Quality Fac tor th u ghout t he Software Li fe Cycle ro

Information Security & Control

I.T and Computers have bought Information Age

The sp ead o In ernet & r f t rela tiv ease of access made e easier Information Breach

Information Breach

Unauthorised reading of data Unauthorised modification of data Unauthorised destruction of data

Wh y break I.T. System Security?

Revenge Money Notoriety The challenge of doing IT

Information Security
Your future is not secure if you r infor m tion is not secure a

Info m tion Resou ces need to be r a r guard , pro te cted and controlled ed

Security Threats

The External Threats The Internal Threats

Security Threats
The External Threats
Organisations conn ection to Internet

Corporate Network

Firewall

Internet

Priv ate Acc es s

Public Acc es s

Security Threats
The Internal Threats Pass words User Termination Access Reviews Authorisation levels User information Routine maintenance Software upd ates Virus checking / checks Physical considerations Audit Trails
The Gre atest S curit y e Thre ats Come from within

We m y never be able to a eliminate all the secu ty risks ri

But w can m k it very very e a e hard fo r them to d so. o

Imp e ent sh ort ter m. Plan long-term. l m