Role of Management Information

Systems
By Jenny Landis-Steward, eHow Contributor

Role of Management Information Systems

Management Information Systems (MIS) provide regular information to managers to

allow them to make decisions based on data rather than guesses. Certain data and
analysis can play a very useful role in making good decisions about where and when
to use human and other resources to achieve the mission of an organization. Managers
with quality MIS are able to make decisions from an informed stance rather than a
haphazard one. MIS can answer questions such as: Would it be better to add staff at
the beginning or end of a manufacturing process? How do we choose the most
efficient way to use our space? Do we need more patient exam rooms or a bigger lab?
How much inventory should I store and when do I order more stock? What hours
have the most customers, so I'll have an adequate staff to serve them?

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Health and Capacity of the Whole System

1.

Microsoft Office Clip Art

The world is developing an increasingly global market and economy.

Managers know that one tool they need is regular, clear and consistent
information to help them in guiding their organization. This does not happen
by chance. A system needs to be thoughtfully created with the purpose of
providing useful information in the simplest and most elegant way possible.
The basic management information system measures inputs and/or outputs,
 allowing managers to analyze the relationship between them and make
decisions based on the outcomes they desire.

We are familiar with these types of systems in our daily life. For instance, a
speedometer tracks the speed of a car by being attached to the motion of the
tires. It is a speed-measuring system used to make decisions. If I have to be
somewhere in half an hour and it's 15 miles away and I'm going 70 miles an
hour, by checking the speedometer I realize I can slow down or take a scenic
route, or even stop for a cup of java.

A Prius has a chart on the dashboard that lets you know second by second the
miles per gallon you are using, so you can change your driving pattern to get
higher mileage. The graphic is one management information system that helps
the driver make decisions about her driving. It also is part of a larger system of
vehicles emitting greenhouse gases. Since better mileage equates with fewer
emissions, it allows an individual to influence his small contribution to global
warming.

The body is a living system; someone trying to gain or lose weight measures
food intake through calorie counts or points and gets on a scale to track the
outcome.

Key Information
2. The amount of information available for analysis is almost infinite, so it is
important to choose the critical information that will let managers see their
situation clearly. When airlines and hotels developed management information
systems that included the revenue lost in not selling empty seats or rooms,
they developed ways to get some value from the rooms by offering them to
latecomers at deep discounts. The key information for these managers was not
the end of the month profit or gross sales, but the occupancy rate by time of
year, day of week, routes, and so on.

When a McDonalds store manager is setting his employees' schedules for the
coming week or month, he needs to know when sales are usually highest, and
if there are daily or weekly variations in that data. Do more people come in
between 6 and 7:30 a.m. Monday through Friday than on Saturday or Sunday?
Maybe the factory down the road quit running a shift and that impacted sales
at the time those workers go to or from work.

Retail managers need to balance inventory on hand with rate of sales and type
of goods sold. Health care managers need to know how many hours a
physician or other essential care provider can work safely and provide staffing
to allow adequate coverage.

Public Sector
3. Legislators want to know that if they invest a large amount of taxpayer money
in streetcars, they won't be reviled for having it placed in low-demand routes,
 or that the streetcar manufacturer used poor materials that wear out way too
quickly. Legislators have staff and public servants who provide them with
information. Lobbyists are also very glad to provide the information that will
support the role of their special interest.

Soup kitchen managers need to know now much food to prepare, so they don't
have hungry people on the one hand or an excess of food that goes to waste on
the other. They need to know the clientele they serve and if there are some
special needs that need attention.

One of the current uses of management information in the public sector is to

notice that there is disparity between the number of people in certain groups
and their over- or underrepresentation in other populations--for instance, that a
higher percentage of low-income children drop out of school, or that there are
more Native American youth in foster care than their percentage of the
population would indicate.

MIS and the Organization's Purpose

4. Organizations exist for reasons. Legislators review the needs and demands of
the citizens to decide how to allocate tax revenues to promote the sometimes
competing economic and social goals of the state. Perhaps the reason for the
legislature is to seek the greatest good for the greatest number, Some others
operate from the position that the goal is to assure that the needs of the most
vulnerable in the population are not ignored.

Airlines exist to get people to distant locations efficiently and safely and make
a profit for the shareholders. The balancing of those three goals is critical. For
example, in the desire for higher profits, or even fiscal solvency, the airlines
have created closer seating arrangements and annoyingly cheap snacks.

It is essential that the information system designed for management helps

them support the organization's purpose. Toyota is legendary for its
management system in which any employee can stop the assembly line to
make an improvement to the process.

Putting It All Together

5. Management steers the organization to achieve the organization's purpose. To
have the information necessary to make changes in resource allocation or
personnel use, management needs key indicators as to how the process is
working. A management information system provides regular information
about the health and function of the organization. The MIS needs to provide
timely, accurate, clear and consistent information that gives managers a view
of the entire organization.
Physical Structure of
Management Information
System
By Alfred Sarkissian, eHow Contributor
updated: December 1, 2009

A management information system (MIS) is an organized

combination of people, hardware, communication networks and
data sources that collects, transforms and distributes information in
an organization. An MIS helps decision making by providing timely,
relevant and accurate information to managers. The physical
components of an MIS include hardware, software, database,
personnel and procedures.

Hardware
1. All physical components of a computer system compose the computer
hardware. Important components include the central processing unit,
input/output devices, storage units and communication devices.
Communication can be over fiber-optic cables or wireless networks.

Software
2.Software provides the interface between users and the information
system. Software can be divided into two generic types: system software
and applications. The system software comprises of the operating
system, utility programs and special purpose programs. Applications are
developed to accomplish a specific task. For users of MIS it is much
more important to understand the software than the hardware. Software
maintenance can take 50 to 70 percent of all personnel activity in the MIS
function. When the organization moves to implement an advanced
information system the hardware and software environment becomes
more complex.

Database
3.A database is a centrally controlled collection of organized data.
Central control reduces redundancy and duplication of data. Data is
stored in an organized and structured way to facilitate sharing and
improve availability to those who need it. The database improves
efficiency of storage by elimination of redundant files and improves
efficiency of processing by providing all required data in a single file
rather than separate files. This also improves efficiency of information
retrieval.
 Procedures
4.Three types of procedures are required for an MIS to operate
effectively: user instructions, instructions for input preparation and
operating instructions for MIS personnel who maintain the MIS.

Personnel
5.The personnel in the MIS function include computer operators,
programmers, systems analysts and managers. Human resource
requirements should be assessed by considering both the present
system needs and the future system growth. The quality of MIS
personnel is a key factor in its effectiveness. An MIS manager needs a
combination of both managerial and technical skills.

Read more: Best Way - Physical Structure of Management Information

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The Importance of a Human

Resource Information System
By an eHow Contributor

The Human Resources Information System provides details on

administration, payroll, recruitment, and training. This system is
expected to deliver valuable results to your human resources
division and your organization as a whole. It is an essential tool
that aids management in making strategic decisions.

History
1. From 1960 to 1970, major companies were in search of a centralized
personnel management system. Software programs were then created in
large computers to facilitate storage of data mainly for payroll purposes.
The Human Resource Information System, also known as Human
Resource Management System, emerged as the preferred main system
for managing human resource data, using the new client server
technology instead of the old mainframe system. By the 1980s, HRIS
was equipped with new tools and capabilities that assisted the
compensation scheme and helped manage manpower. The system
became more sophisticated by 2000 when it became a tool for
performance learning management.
Description
2.HRIS is usually fused with information technology to focus on human
resource management. Human resource refers to the company's
employees. This system consolidates computerized employee data into
one data bank. It also updates prior and future decisions according to the
company's human resource management plan. HRIS also makes it
possible for online users to view an employee's history with the company,
personal profile and benefits.

Types
3.There are two ways of implementing HRIS. The first is the
administrative use. This refers to the storing and consolidating of
employee records that is used for daily operation. Administrative HRIS is
always integrated with information technology. The second
implementation is called Strategic HRIS which mainly aids the decision-
making process. It involves using the administrative information to
analyze an employee's value to the company. This is then important to
those involved in the recruitment and retention of people.

Components
4. HRIS is an umbrella network that covers the crucial components of
human resource. These components are payroll, time and labor
management, benefits for the employees and HR management. HRIS
automates the entire payroll process. It records employees' attendance. It
also automatically generates pay checks and tax reports and deductions.
It does the calculation for you in terms of deductions and taxes. HRIS
also tracks the employees' progress. It stores information with regard to
the employee's time and work efficiency. HRIS traces the benefits availed
by these employees and ensures that such benefits are timely and
effective.

Importance
5.HRIS as a whole mainly improves information sharing and
communication between the company and the employees. HRIS made it
easy for the human resources department to smoothly operate all
components. With the accurate and objective tracking of compensation
and benefits, employees' morale and motivation increases. The Human
Resource Information System reduces cost and time spent on manual
data consolidation. It allows the HR management managers to focus
more on making decisions and projects rather than paperwork. The
system hopes to give the HR management division a more strategic role
in the company, as the information taken from HRIS can be the basis for
employee training schemes and work efficiency projects.
Read more: The Importance of a Human Resource Information System |
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resource-information-system.html#ixzz0z1YUXZyp

How to Plan for Management

Information System
By JannS, eHow Contributor
updated: October 13, 2009

A management information system is a robust series of programs

and databases that can run on a variety of computer platforms.
System applications are typically financial in nature, and include
accounting, human resource and payroll applications among
others. In their book, "Management Information Systems: A
Contemporary Perspective "by Kenneth C. Lauden and Jane Price
Lauden, they state it is "a set of procedures that collects (or
retrieves), processes, stores, and disseminates information to
support decision making and control" (see References 3). If you
are planning to install a new management information system for a
small or large business, the complexity of planning is significantly
different between the two, but at a high level the steps are similar.
Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions
1.1

Determine the budget. If it's for a small business, this is a simpler

process than for a large corporation, where strategic planning and budget
committees are typically involved, and budgets are based on prior-year
expenses and budgets. Smaller companies may rely more on trade
journals, user reviews and initial phone calls to possible vendors for a
ballpark estimate.

2.2

Identify the business needs. For small businesses, this may be as simple
as purchasing off-the-shelf software that produces reports. Do you need
to produce an income statement each month, or a regular report of
expenditures for tax purposes? Determine if you want to interface to the
Internet, or have other interfaces in mind, such as to a business checking
account or to a spreadsheet. In all cases, the business needs are defined
 by required data input (manual or automated); processes to add, change
or delete data; outputs such as reports or data files that are then
exported to another system; and interfaces to other systems, so the data
include critical data from those systems.

3.3

Evaluate hardware and software requirements. Install this new system on

a computer that has the correct configuration. Understand the
specifications beforehand to ensure that the destination computer has
enough disk space and memory. The new system needs to be
compatible with your operating system. If you are running on a network,
ensure the version you are getting is compatible with the type of network
you have. In many cases, small and large companies are now moving to
web-based solutions where these considerations become secondary.

4.4

Evaluate additional expenditures for support, maintenance, and training.

New systems will not be useful for decision-making if the vendor does not
provide reliable support when needed, or if the support is too
expensive.There might be regular updates required to keep the tax tables
current for instance, or extra expenses for training .When you do proper
planning before making a decision on a management information system,
the end result is more likely to be one that best helps you solve your
business needs

Read more: How to Plan for Management Information System | eHow.com

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