Author : neeraj sharma classification of mis
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| PGDCA Paper : PGDCA-6 46 respond to new competitive pressures, many are implementing enterprise-wide systems that integrate information and business processes from different functional areas. Such systems typically require a significant amount of organizational and management change and raise many management challenges. Information system classification schemes have a practical use. Even though there is overlap, each system category emphasises certain features that maybe relevant in many situations. The practical use of system classifications is in identifying a number of widely usable features that are typically associated with particular system types. 4.2 Classification of Information Systems Because there are different interests, specialties and levels in an organization, there are different kinds of systems. No single system can provide all the information an organization needs. Figure 4.1 illustrates one way to depict the kinds of systems found in an organization. In the illustration, the organization is divided into strategic, management, knowledge and operational levels and then is further divided into functional areas such as sales and marketing, manufacturing, finance, accounting and human resources. Systems are built to serve these different organizational interests. Four main types of information systems serve different organizational levels: operational level systems, knowledge-level systems, management-level systems and strategic-level system Operational-level systems support operational managers by keeping track of the elementary activities and transactions of the organization such as sales, receipts, cash deposits, payroll, credit decisions and the flow of materials in a factory. The principal purpose of systems at this level is to answer routine questions and to track the flow of transactions through the organization. How many parts are in inventory, what happened to Mr. A’s payment To answer these kinds of questions, information generally must be easily available, current, and accurate. Examples of operational-level systems include a system to record bank deposits from automatic teller machines or one that tracks the number of hours worked each day by employees on a factory floor Knowledge-level systems support the organization’s knowledge and data workers. The purpose of knowledge-level systems is to help the business firm integrate new knowledge into the business and to help the organization control the flow of paperwork. Knowledge-level systems, especially in the form of workstations and office systems are among the most widely used applications in business today Management-level systems serve the monitoring, controlling, decision- making and administrative activities of middle managers. The principal question addressed by such systems is Are things working well Management- level systems typically provide periodic reports rather than instant information |