Archive for July, 2010
The Era of Information Technology
Around one hundred and fifty years ago, businesses ran their day to day operations completely different from what businesses of the modern era do to run their day to day operations. People back then worked under candle light doing math calculations on paper, the old fashion way, before electricity came about in the early 20th century. Now, most of the civilized world wouldn’t know what to do with themselves without technology. Imagine not even having a calculator for math or the internet to do research. Yes, I know, it is hard to believe people were able to survive without these advanced tools that we take for granted each day. The advances in communication combined with the evolution of the IT industry has made it possible for people to do business throughout the world in real time. Improvements in IT improve our lifestyles and business by allowing computers to reduce complications and enrich possibilities.
Information Systems and Technology
Today, most organizations in all sectors of industry, commerce and government are fundamentally dependent on their information systems. In industries such as telecommunications, media, entertainment and financial services, where the product is already or is being increasingly digitized, the existence of an organization critically depends on the effective application of information technology (IT).
Information System
An information system is comprised of all the components that collect, manipulate, and propagate data or information. It usually includes hardware, software, people, communications systems, and the data itself. The activities involved include inputting data, processing of data into information, storage of data and information, and the production of outputs such as management reports.
Support Role:
Information systems support business processes and operations by:
Information systems often support and occasionally constitute competitive advantages. Information systems, like business environmental scanning systems, support almost all sustainable competitive advantages. Occasionally, the information system itself is the competitive advantage. One example is Wal-Mart. They used an extranet to integrate their whole supply chain.
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