Managing Information System

By

Tony Miles

MIS involves the analysis, design, development, implementation, and management of computer-based systems. The objective is to combine technical computer competencies and knowledge of business operations to achieve a systematic perspective for the successful integration of computers and information technologies into an organization. (http://www.bus.ucf.edu/mis/public/downloads/pdf/What%20is%20MIS.pdf)

MIS has two forms of information, formal and informal.

Formal information is the information that stems from the routine processing of the basic data of the transactions of the business. This is largely historical, even if its only few minutes old. Information about the future can be included in the form of forecasts and plans, and the data can be manipulated in sophisticated computer models to aid prediction. Although formal information is extremely useful, it has limitations.

Decision-making involves more than just assembling data and selecting the best result. If formal data set against some standard of choice were the only thing required then managers would not be needed.

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English: The relationship between Information Scie...

West Point cadets at U.S. Army Africa, 07-2010

Informal information is a company store of knowledge and experience they use as a foundation for how they process formal information. It is informal because it is extremely unlikely that even the managers themselves could present their gut feelings in a formal way. It is also informal because much of it has been and still is accumulated in an informal and often accidental way.

Conversations, telephone calls, snippets from television, newspaper articles and so on. The sources of useful information are unlimited. The company grapevine is perhaps the best-known and most reliable informal information system. These information flows cannot be ignored: they are potent and effective, and they are the basis of most really good decision-making.

Generally, MIS deals with information that is systematically and routinely collected in accordance with a well-defined set of rules. MIS plays a major role in a...