MANAGING ORGANIZATIONAL DATA AND INFORMATION (DATABASE CONCEPT TRADITIONAL Vs MODERN)

In a file management environment, each application has a specific data file related to it, containing all the data records needed by the application. Records stored in a sequential file structure may be accessed sequentially, or they may be accessed directly via an index (and then sequentially) using an indexed sequential access method. Records stored in a data file structure may be accessed directly without using an index.

The traditional data file organization led to many problems, including data redundancy, data inconsistency, data isolation, data integrity, security, and application/data dependence. Storing data in data files that are tightly to their applications resulted in organizations having hundreds of applications and data files, with little or no coordination among the applications and files, and no overall plan for managing corporate data.        

A database, which is a logical group of related files, eliminates the problems associated with a traditional file environment. In a database data are integrated and related so that one set of software program provides access to all the data. Therefore, data redundancy, data inconsistency and data isolation are minimized and data can be shared among all users of the data. In addition data integrity and security are increased, and application and data are independent of one another.

The database approach does have disadvantages. Databases are expensive and require time and effort to program. Also, databases do provide security for corporate data, but once inside a database, a hacker can cause tremendous damage.

The hierarchical model rigidly structures data into an inverted 'tree' in which records contain a key field and a number of other fields. All records have only one "parent", and each parent may have many "children". Therefore, the hierarchical structure is characterized by one-to-many relationships among data. In the network model, records can be linked to more than one parent, allowing many-to-many relationship among the data. The relational model uses tables to capitalize on characteristics of rows and columns of data that are consistent with real world business situations.

The main advantage of the hierarchical and network database models is processing efficiency. The hierarchical and network structures are relatively easy for users to understand because they reflect the pattern of many (but not all) real-world business relationships. In addition, the hierarchical structure allows for data integrity to be easily maintained.

Hierarchical and network structures have several disadvantages. These designs have low flexibility and are programming intensive, time consuming, difficult to install and difficult to remedy if design errors occur. Nor do they support ad-hoc, English-language-like inquiries for information.

The advantages of relational databases include high flexibility in regard to ad hoc queries, power to combine information from different sources, simplicity of design and maintenance, and the ability to add new data and records without disturbing existing applications. The disadvantages of relational databases include their relatively low processing efficiency.

In multidimensional databases, data are stored in arrays. Similar to tables in the relational database model, arrays group related information in columns and rows. However, multidimensional databases typically consist of at least three dimensions. Due to problems depicting more than three dimensions, most examples artificially limit the dimensions to only three, depicting the resulting database as a cube. Dimensions are the edges of the cube, and represent the primary view of the business data.

Data warehousing approaches can range from simple, the data mart, to complex, the enterprise data warehouse. These approaches differ in scale and complexity.

A data mart is a scaled down version of a data warehouse that focuses on a particular subject area. The data mart is usually designed to support the unique business requirements of a specific department or business process. Because a data mart takes less time to build, costs less, and is less complex than an enterprise data warehouse, it is appropriate when a company needs to improve data access in a targeted area, such as the marketing department.

The enterprise data warehouse provides an enterprisewide, consistent and comprehensive view of the company, with business users employing common terminology and data standards through out the firm. The warehouse reconciles the various departmental perspectives into a single, integrated corporate perspective.

Data mining extracts previously unknown, predictive information from data warehouses. Data mining tools are sophisticated, automated algorithms to discover hidden patterns, correlations, and relationships among organizational data. These tools are used to predict future trends and behaviors, allowing businesses to make proactive, knowledge-driven decisions.

Text mining applies data mining to nonstructured or less structured text files. Text mining helps organization find the "hidden" content of documents across previously unnoticed divisions, and group documents by common themes.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE

COMPUTER HARWARE

Today's computer systems have six major components: the central processing unit (CPU), primary storage, secondary storage, input technologies, output technologies, and communications technologies. The CPU is made up of the arithmetic-logic unit that performs the calculation, the registers that stores minute amount of data and instructions immediately before and after processing, and the control unit that controls the flow of information on the microprocessor chip. Microprocessor designs aim to increase processing speed by minimizing the physical distance that the data (as the electrical impulses) must travel, and by increasing the bus width, clock speed, word length and number of transistors on the chip.

There are four types of primary storage: registers, random access memory (RAM), cache memory, and read-only memory (ROM). All are direct access memory; only ROM is nonvolatile. Secondary storage includes magnetic media (tapes, hard drives and diskettes) and optical media (CD-ROM, DVD, FMD-ROM and optical jukeboxes)

Primary storage has much less capacity than secondary storage and is faster and more expensive per byte stored. Primary storage is located much closer to the CPU than is secondary storage. Sequential-access secondary storage media such as magnetic tape is much slower and less expensive than direct access media (hard drives, optical media).

An Enterprise storage system is an independent, external system with intelligence that includes two or more storage devices. There are three major types of enterprise storage subsystems: redundant arrays of independent disks (RAIDs), storage area networks (SANs) and network-attached storage (NAS). RAID links group of standard hard drives to a specialized microcontroller. SAN is architecture for building special, dedicated networks that allow access to storage devices by multiple servers. A NAS device is a special purpose server that provides file storage to users who access the device over a network.

Supercomputers are the most powerful, designed to handle the maximum computational demands of science and the military. Mainframes are not as powerful as supercomputers, but are powerful enough for use by large organizations for centralized data processing and large databases. Minicomputers are smaller and less powerful versions of mainframes, often devoted to handling specific subsystems. Workstations are in between minicomputers and personal computers in speed, capacity and graphics capability. Desktop personal computers (PCs) are the most common personal and business computers. Network computers have less computing power and storage, relying on a connection to a network for communication, data, processing and storage devices.

Laptop or notebook computers are small, easily transportable PCs. Palmtop computers are handheld microcomputers, usually configured for specific applications and limited in the number of ways they can accept user input and provide output. Wearable computers worn on the user's clothing, free their users' movements. Embedded computers are placed inside other products to add features and capabilities. Employees may wear active badges as ID cards. Memory buttons are nickel-sized devices that store a small database relating to whatever it is attached to. Smart cards contain a small processor, memory and an input/output device that allows them to be used in everyday activities such as personal identification and banking.

Principal input technologies include the keyboard, mouse, trackball, touch screen, stylus, joystick, ATM, POS terminal, bar-code scanner, optical mark reader, optical character reader, handwriting and voice recognition systems, sensor, microphone and camera. Common output technologies include the monitor, impact and nonimpact printers, plotter, voice output, multifunction devices and multimedia.

Multimedia computer systems integrate two or more types of media, such as text, graphics, sound, voice, full-motion video, images and animation. They use a variety of input and output technologies, often including microphones, musical instruments, digitizers, CD-ROM, magnetic tape and speakers. Multimedia systems typically require additional processing and storage capacity.

According to Moore's Law, microprocessor capability increases ever more rapidly. Miniaturization is also increasing. These advancements usher in new generations of faster, more powerful, and more compact computers, as well as new generations of microcontrollers. Organizations must continually appraise the issue of productivity work styles, new product and services, and improves communications against these new options. Adoption decisions are difficult because of heavy past, current and future investment.

COMPUTER SOFTWARE

Software consists of computer programs (coded instructions) that control the functions of computer hardware. There are two main categories of software: systems software and application. Systems software manages the hardware resources of the computer system and functions between the hardware and the application software. Systems software includes the system control programs (operating system) and the system support programs. Application software enables users to perform certain tasks and information-processing activities. Application software may be proprietary or off-the-shelf.

Operating systems manage the actual computer resources (i.e. the hardware). Operating systems schedule and process applications (jobs), manage and protect memory, ensure cache consistency, manage the input and output functions and hardware, manage data and files and provide clustering support, security, fault tolerance, interapplication communications, graphical user interfaces and windowing.

There are five types of operating systems: mobile, desktop, departmental, enterprise and supercomputer. Mobile device operating systems are designed to support a single person using a mobile, handheld device and information appliance. Desktop operating system has the least functionality and enterprise operating systems the most, with departmental operating system in the middle. Desktop operating systems are typically designed for one user, departmental operating systems for up to several hundred users and enterprise operating system can handle thousands of users and millions of transactions simultaneously. Supercomputer operating systems are designed for the particular processing needs of supercomputers.

Proprietary software can be developed in-house to address the specific needs of an organization. Existing software programs can be purchased off the shelf from vendors that sell programs to many organizations and individuals. Or a combination of these two methods can be used, by purchasing off-the-shelf programs and customizing them for an organization’s specific needs.

The major types of application software are spreadsheet, data management, word processing, desktop publishing, graphics, multimedia, communications, speech recognition and groupware. Software suites combine several types of application software (e.g. word processing, spreadsheet and data management) into an integrated package.

Software and programming languages continue to become more user oriented. Programming languages have evolved from the first generation of machine languages that is directly understandable to the CPU to higher levels that use more natural languages and that do not require users to specify the detailed procedures for achieving desired results. This trend ensures that the end users and the information systems staff will become more productive. In addition, software is becoming much more complex, expensive and time consuming to develop. As a result the trend is toward purchasing off-the-shelf software, often in the form of components, rather than developing it in-house. In the future, organizations will tend to buy component-based software modules to reduce cost and development time.

Organizations want packaged applications that support integration between functional modules (i.e. human resources, operations, marketing, finance, accounting etc.) that can be quickly changed or enhanced, and that present a common graphical look and feel. In addition organizations want individual components –software modules- that can be combined as necessary to meet changing business needs. Enterprise software consists of programs that manage a company’s vital operations, such as logistics-coordination, inventory replenishment, ordering, supply-chain management, human resource management, manufacturing, operations, accounting and financial management.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT

BUSINESS IN THE INFORMATION AGE: PRESSURES AND RESPONSES

Businesses in the Information Age must compete in a challenging market place—one that is rapidly changing, complex, global, hypercompetitive and customer focused. Companies must rapidly react to problems and opportunities arising from this modern business environment. The BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT refers to the combination of social, legal, economic, physical and political factors that affect business activities.

The main business pressures in the Information Age are: global competition for trade and labor, the need for real time operations, the changing workforce, customer orientation, technological innovation and obsolescence, information overload, social responsibility, government regulations and deregulation, and ethical issues.

Organizations respond in many ways to the business pressures of competition in the Information Age. Many of their responses are facilitated by information technologies. Major organizational responses are: strategic systems, customer focus and service, continuous improvement efforts, business process reengineering, enterprise resource planning and supply chain management, business alliances and E-commerce.

Information systems in modern organizations provide fast and accurate transaction processing, large-capacity, fast access storage, and fast communication (machine to machine, human to human). They also reduce information overload, span boundaries within and between organizations, provide support for decision making and provide a competitive weapon in the marketplace.

 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE MODERN ORGANIZATIONS

Before we begin the discussion on the topic some terminologies need to be defined. An Information architecture is the "blue print" that provides the conceptual foundation for building the information infrastructure and specific applications. It maps the information requirements as they relate to information resources. The information infrastructure refers to the physical shared information resources (such as a corporate data base) and their linkages, operation, maintenance, and management. The major categories include: (a) the transaction processing system (TPS), which covers the core repetitive organizational transactions such as purchasing, billing or payroll; (b) management information systems (MISs) that support managers in the major functional areas; (c) the general support systems, including office automation, decision support, group support, and executive support; (d) intelligent systems such as expert systems and artificial neural networks; and (e) the integrated system that link the entire organization, such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems.  

Most organizations are structured vertically in what is known as hierarchical structure, from headquarters down to departments and operating units. Information systems follow this structure closely. For instance, an organization typically would have divisional information systems, plant information systems, and departmental information systems.

Information systems are also categorized by the support they provide to certain individuals in organizations, particularly to managers at different levels, to knowledge workers and to data workers (clerical office employees). Knowledge workers are those who find, develop, integrate and maintain organizational knowledge. They are usually the experts in the functional areas.

Information resources are extremely important to an organization, and they must be properly managed by both the Information Systems Department (ISD) and the end users. In general, the ISD manages shared enterprise information resources such as networks, while end users are responsible for departmental informational resources such as PCs. The role of the ISD is becoming more managerial and its importance is rapidly increasing. Steering committees, service-agreements and conflict-resolution units are some of the mechanisms used to facilitate the cooperation between the ISD and end users.