Chapter 2: Global E-Business and Collaboration

Summary:

Business in the modern age relies heavily on information technology and information systems to optimize efficiency and improve business processes. This chapter begins by explaining what business processes are and how they are related to information systems, which are the set of interrelated components that collect, process, store, and distribute information to support decision making and control in an organization.

We are provided further elaboration of Management Information Systems (MIS) as they are used by middle management to monitor current performance and predict and control future performance. MIS data is mainly used for the routine decision making of day-to-day operations. In contrast, Decision-Support Systems (DSS) are utilized to help guide more non-routine decision making. Finally, Executive Support Systems (ESS) exist to provide long-term, strategic information to senior management to help address decision making that frequently requires high-level judgment and innovative solutions due to a lack of established procedure for uncommon situations. These are most commonly presented to executives in the form of a web Portal, utilizing an organizations intranet to provide relevant and personalized data, or a digital dashboard, a single-screen visual representation of key performance indicators. All of these systems form what is known as Business Intelligence, an all-encompassing term for the data and software tools that help managers and organizations make more informed decisions.

With the vast amount of data gathered by these systems, how can a business manage all the information effectively, if at all? Well, you introduce more systems to manage the systems of course! The systems are called Enterprise Applications. The four major types of enterprise applications are: enterprise systems, supply chain management systems, customer relationship management systems, and knowledge management systems. Each of these manages a specific set of functions and business processes to streamline the performance of the organization.

Albert Einstein once said “Nothing great was ever accomplished alone.”  Even in the E-World we live in, where many have minimal human business interactions because of the proliferation of E-Business, E-Commerce, and E-Government, collaboration is an integral part of accomplishing our goals. Collaboration is especially important today because of the overall change in the nature of work and the ease and availability of information through the internet. The text describes how most research on collaboration supports the position that teams are more efficient and get better results than individuals. The sharing of ideas also increases the likelihood of innovation.

As is the norm for this chapter, there are, of course, systems to support collaboration. These include the mundane and user friendly (email, Instant Message, social network sites) to the more complex (Google Doc’s, telepresence, virtual meetings, MS SharePoint).

Ultimately, all these systems and their information must be managed somehow. Aside from the smallest of organizations, most firms have an Information Systems Department assigned to manage these services. It is up to this department and the efforts of its Chief Information Officer, Chief Security Officer, Chief Privacy Officer, and Chief Knowledge Officer, or any other variation of these, to ensure that the Information Technology (IT) performs its intended functions.