MIS 681

COURSE SYLLABUS

SPRING SEMESTER, 2001

INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Jeff Harper

OFFICE: SB 805

OFFICE PHONE/V-MAIL: 237-2279

FAX: 237-8129

E-MAIL: JeffHarper@indstate.edu

OFFICE HOURS: Monday, 3:00-5:30 pm. Also by appointment.

COURSE DESCRIPTION

A study of systems used to accumulate, classify, and organize information to facilitate managerial decision making. Course emphasis is placed upon the planning, design, and implementation of computer augmented management information systems. 3 credit hours.

COURSE SEQUENCING

MIS 681 is an elective course for students in the MBA program. It may also be used for credit toward the Electronic Commerce concentration.

COURSE MATERIALS

Text: Martin, E. W., Brown, C. V., DeHayes, D. W., Hoffer, J. A., and Perkins, W. C. Managing Information Technology, (3^rd Ed.), Prentice Hall, NJ, 1999.

COURSE EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES

Upon successfully completing this course, a student will be able to do the following:

(1) Identify managerial challenges and opportunities for organizational advancement that may be resolved by the application of current new technologies.

(2) Identify opportunities for and successfully apply various information technologies to gain competitive advantage.

(3) Define and recognize key enabling technologies that may advance organizations now and in the future.

(4) Explain applications as groupware, the Internet, executive information systems, telecommunications, and other organizational support technologies and relate them to solving organization problems.

(5) Make required personal and organizational changes to implement the new technologies in established and in new organizations.

(6) Identify new opportunities and champion the introduction and application of advancing technologies in an organization.

Topic	Minimum Coverage (%)	Maximum Coverage (%)
Organizations in the Information Age: The Role of Information Technology	5	10
Building and Managing the Information Age Organization	10	20
The Virtual Organization	5	10
Electronic Commerce and the Internet	15	30
The Role of the IT Architecture	5	10
Management Support Technologies	15	30
Outsourcing the IT Function	5	10
Managing Technology-Driven Change	15	30

PERSPECTIVES COVERAGE

Ethical and Global Issues - Information technology (IT) has vast potential for both good and bad uses in our society. This fact offers fruitful grounds for discussing issues such an individual=s right to privacy vs the right of an organization to collect data on customer and employees, the means used to gather the data, the ethical use of information which has been collected, and other similar issues. Also, IT offers an organization the means of accomplishing its business with highly increased efficiency, but it often results in rapid change with which employees and suppliers must deal. The obligations of an organization in helping employees deal with such change through education and other means raises ethical issues. As to global issues, IT has the effect of creating a Asmall world@ in which rapid access to data and information from all over the globe. The World Wide Web is a most prominent example of this potential. This global impact is considered throughout the course.

Influence of political, social, legal, and regulatory, environmental, and technological issues - The course deals with the management of technology and how best to develop systems to meet organizations needs. Issues of change and the regulation of the undesirable consequences of this change are covered. The difficulty of writing realistic regulations to deal with a continuously and rapidly changing area is also considered in the course. The questions of regulation also include the practices of companies that by their very products put them in a strong and perhaps monopolistic position in their industry.

Impact of demographic diversity on organizations - Not explicitly covered.

INTEGRATION

Financial reporting, analysis, and markets - Not explicitly covered.

Domestic and global economic environment of organizations - The course includes coverage of the development and implementation of information systems in both global and domestic settings. Issues involving the ability of information systems to assist in the breaking down of barriers between nations and the growing world-wide access to e-mail and the Internet make it clear that organizations operate in a international context in which economic information can be obtained much more readily than in the past.

Creation and distribution of goods and services - Discussion of the different types of information systems found in organizations involves the consideration of both marketing and manufacturing information systems and their use in organizations. Information impacts the whole value chain of organizations, and this point is emphasized throughout the course. The topic of electronic commerce and the Internet allows discussion of new ways of distributing both information about products and selling these products to consumers.

Human behavior in organizations - Issues of privacy and the ownership of information allow discussion of legal and ethical topics regarding organizational personnel. Information technology has a great impact on the way work is done and on the abilities of organizational personnel to change in order to use the technology. Training and organizational change issues are raised by the consideration of development and implementation of technology. New communications technologies make possible many revolutionary forms of work, such as virtual organizations and telecommuting. The coverage of the roll of information systems in such change strategies as reengineering covers workforce issues.

Cross-functional approaches used - Information systems impact on all organization functions and systems. The role of information and information technologies in all of the functional areas of business is covered.

COMMUNICATION COVERAGE

Written communications - Assignments such as research papers and written case analyses emphasize written communications.

Oral communications - Assignments such as presentations of cases or discussion of problems either individually or in groups emphasize oral communications. Students are expected to participate in class discussions.

QUANTITATIVE AND COMPUTER COVERAGE

Quantitative analysis - Not explicitly covered.

Computer skills - The MBA program requires that students have basic computer skills, and the focus of this course is not on the further development of these skills. Rather, the focus is on the capabilities of computer and communications technologies and how managers can effectively lead their organizations in the use of them. Students are exposed to such technologies as groupware and Web page development tools, but these are not the focus of the course.

INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCES

Library Usage - Textbook, library journals, and Internet resources are sufficient to meet student research needs. Articles may be placed on reserve in the library or otherwise made available to students to update topical coverage.

Computer usage - Students utilize computers for assignments involving word processing and spreadsheets. They are also exposed to various specialized software, such as groupware and executive support tools. They often use the Web for research purposes and e-mail for communication with each other and the professor.

Appropriate instructional technology - Students are shown classroom demonstrations software using a mobile cart that allows a computer and LCD panel to be moved to classrooms. Some instructors may opt to take students to one of the computer labs located in the School of Business or elsewhere on campus. Also, the mobile cart may be used to show computerized slides (e.g., PowerPoint) or CD-ROM presentations. The cart can also be used to access the Internet and World Wide Web in the classroom using data jacks found in several classrooms.

COURSE=S RELATIONSHIP TO SCHOOL OF BUSINESS SHARED VALUES

Lifetime learning skills - Students are exposed to changing technology and the impact of this technology on the manner in which work is done in organizations. They are exposed to many examples of an environment in which change is constant. They gain an understanding of how to deal with this change and how to help their employees do the same.

Workplace knowledge and skills - Students learn the capabilities and limitations of numerous IT tools that are useful in solving problems encountered in their work environment. Through class and case discussions, they are exposed to examples of how organizations have been both successful and unsuccessful in confronting IT problems.

Development of values and ethics is provided through coverage of relevant topics, as was discussed in the section on Ethical and global issues under Perspectives Coverage above.

Business community connections are emphasized by using case examples of companies in discussing course topics and by having representatives of companies and companies recruiting on campus speak to classes. Projects also establish connections with real-world application environments.

Teamwork among students is encouraged by having them turn in joint homework assignments and work together on projects. Some in-class exercises also foster teamwork. Also, coverage of team-based work tools, such as Lotus Notes or Microsoft Outlook, provides insight into how these tools are used to facilitate work.

ABOUT THE COURSE

This course is designed to enable students to gain the perspectives and abilities that they will need to manage organizations in what is increasing being known as the information age. As Lynda Applegate points out, the impact of information technology has been felt in the way organizations are designed and in the way that they are managed. Old models of organization and management, while still very much alive, are being gradually challenged and changed, and today's manager must be aware of these changes and develop strategies for integrating the technology that is literally exploding around us into companies in order to gain a competitive advantage and, in a growing number of cases, in order to survive.

The course will be delivered through a combination of lecture, discussion, and small group work. This course is not designed to make computer experts out of students. It is designed to encourage you to think about the growing role and importance of information technology in the business world. Managers need not be power users of hardware and software to effectively lead organizations in the technical aspects of implementing new technology; highly qualified individuals exist who can be hired for this purpose. I do assume that you know the basics of computer literacy: how to use a word processor and a spreadsheet, the basic lingo of computing (RAM, bytes, what a modem is, what to look for in buying a computer, etc.), but this is NOT a hands-on computer course or a course in the nitty-gritty of computing or communication technologies. Interested students should take other courses should they desire such exposure.

GRADING

Grades will be determined by student performance on the following elements:

Examinations (2)	50 %
Topic Paper	30 %
Case Study Reports	20 %

The ranges of points required for each possible grade are as follows:

POINTS	GRADE	POINTS	GRADE	POINTS	GRADE
92‑100	A	83-87	B	74-78	C
88-91	B+	79-82	C+	Below 74	F

EXAMINATIONS

Examinations will be discussion-based and will cover topics discussed in class. A mid-term and final will be administered. Each examination will be graded with equal weight (25%).

TOPIC PAPER

Each student must write a 1500- to 2000-word paper (not including any appendices, tables, figures, etc.) on the application of some type of information technology. The choice of a topic should be consistent with the objectives of the course as stated above. The paper will be graded on content, spelling, grammar, and appropriate use of source citations. The paper must be typed on a word processor, and the computer file containing the paper must be submitted along with the paper. Further information on this aspect of the course will be forthcoming. The topic and a one-page proposal for this assignment must be approved by the instructor. Papers are due the week before finals – no exceptions!