...and Challenges of Automated Decision Making or over half a century, the field of artificial intelligence (AI) has promised that computers would relieve managers and professionals of the need to make certain types of decisions. Computer programs would analyze data and make sound judgments whether it be to configure a complex computer, diagnose and treat a patient’s illness, or determine when to stir a big vat of soup with little or no human help. But automated decision making has been slow to materialize. Many early artificial intelligence applications were just solutions looking for problems, contributing little to improved organizational performance. In medicine, for example, doctors showed little interest in having machines diagnose their patients’ diseases. In the business sector, even when expert systems were directed at real issues, extracting the right kind of specialized knowledge from seasoned decision makers and maintaining it over time proved to be more difficult than anticipated. But now, automated decision making is finally coming of age. The new generation of applications, however, differs from prior AI-based decision support systems in several important respects. To begin with, the new systems are easier to create and manage than earlier ones, which leaned heavily on the expertise of knowledge engineers. What’s more, the new applications do not require anyone to identify the problems or to initiate the analysis. Indeed, decision-making capabilities...
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...Chapter 12 Business Intelligence and Decision Support Systems Goals of the Chapter The primary objective of this chapter is to recognize the importance of data, the management issues that relate to it, and its life cycle. Other objectives include relating data management to multimedia and document management, explaining the concept of data warehousing, data mining, analytical processing, and knowledge discovery management. An Overview Section 12.1 – The Need for Business Intelligence – The section serves as an overview of Business Intelligence and its use in business. It discusses the problems associated with disparate data stores where data are not integrated into a single reporting system. The section discusses the technologies involved in Business Intelligence and the vendors involved. It also talks about predictive analytics, alerts and decision support. Section 12.2 – BI Architecture, Reporting and Performance Management – This section discusses the modes of data extraction and integration into a standardized, usable and trustworthy one. It also discusses the different types of reporting systems available to organizations, data mining, query and analysis. The section provides an insight into Business Performance Management (BPM) as a way for business managers to know if their organizations are achieving their strategic goals Section 12.3 – Data, Text and Web Mining and BI Search – This section discusses data mining technology, tools, and techniques. Information types...
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...Chapter 2 IT Infrastructure and Support Systems IT at Work IT at Work 2.1 Western Petro Controls Costs with its Trade Management System For Further Exploration: Which processes are being automated and why? PetroMan is a comprehensive trading system that triggers buying and selling activities and integrates contract management, risk management, accounting, and pipeline scheduler. Using the PetroMan, the company can place bids and automatically capture a contract for refined products; and schedule and confirm deliveries in pipelines. PetroMan also handles the resale of fuels, including electronic invoicing and a credit module that checks and tracks a customer’s credit risk. This tracking is done by hedging large purchasing contracts by selling futures on the New York Mercantile (Commodities) Exchange. By hedging, the company protects itself against the risk of a large drop in oil prices. The software is plugged directly into the primary commodity exchanges--automating the process. Why is controlling risk important? By hedging, the company protects itself against the risk of a large drop in oil prices. The software is plugged directly into the primary commodity exchanges--automating the process. Does PetroMan provide Western Petro with a competitive advantage? Explain. Competitive advantage is defined as the strategic advantage one business entity has over its rival entities within its competitive industry. Achieving Competitive Advantage strengthens and positions...
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...Domino’s Sizzles with Pizza Tracker 1. What kinds of systems are described in this case? Identify and describe the business processes each supports. Describe the inputs, processes, and outputs of these systems. There are three kinds of systems are described in this case. They are the Transaction Processing System (TPS), the Management Information System (MIS), and the Decision Support System (DSS). The Transaction Processing System (TPS) is a computerized system that performs and records the daily routine transactions necessary to conduct business. It is the sales order entry or point of sale (POS) system that captures purchase and payment information. The customer inputs the pizza order that describe the type of pizza crust, the types of pizza toppings, and any side orders. The Transaction Processing System (TPS) then processes the information inputted by the customer and updates Domino’s database with this customer’s pizza order. Next the Management Information System (MIS) helps middle management with administrative activities, controlling, decision- making, and monitoring to see if everything in the process is working well. The Management Information System (MIS) receives transaction data from the Transaction Processing System (TPS) regarding the customer’s order to condense and present this data in reports. Finally the Management Information System (MIS) outputs report information such as type of pizza toppings used, how much time it took to make the pizza, and how long it...
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...Identify a problem within an area of Management responsibility and create a Decision Support System to solve it. INTRODUCTION Managers are often faced with problems that may affect the flow of work. It is crucial that managers find the most suitable way of solving the problems they encounter. Some of the many problems encountered involve decision making, and managers need to come up with the most effective system in order to make decisions in a quick and effortless manner. The decision support system is one such system. According to Laudon et al (2006), decision support systems are “information systems at the organization’s management level that combine data and sophisticated analytical models or data analysis tools to support semi-structured and unstructured decision making”. (p. 462) STATEMENT OF PROBLEM The Entertainers Credit Union Limited has been in existence for twenty years. Its main revenue building products are loans. At present, however, management has noticed a significant downturn in revenues linked directly to a persistent reduction of loans inflow as well as a decline in applications for membership. The marketing team was tasked with the responsibility of researching the source of this worrying trend, and it was discovered that one of the most significant grouses maintained by most members was that the length of time between signing of the Loan Application and getting meaningful feedback on whether their loans were approved or not, took an unbearably...
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...Main Takeaways - Vision is core to perception of marketplace - Improvement in IT and organization structure benefits both the company’s overall business and the customer’s overall satisfaction - IT initiatives must be consistent with company strategy—goal organization and management provide stable benefits to a fast growing, fast moving company - Companies must retain functional organization structure to scale without sacrificing control during high levels of growth - Install resource planning systems that smoothen company processes (don’t mirror old inefficient practices) - “Global Networked Companies” experience higher productivity and profitability - Standardization of Internet business solutions across functional areas leads to increased competitive advantage and shareholder value More in-depth Summary I. Cisco Systems Architecture: ERP and Web-enabled IT a. Company vision i. Pioneer ”New World Network” where voice calls are free over the Internet ii. Cisco = “Internet experts: the Global Internet Company” b. Company background i. Founded by two Stanford scientists in 1984 / went public in 1990 ii. Dominates “Internetworking” Market iii. March 27, 2000, Cisco overtook Microsoft as most valuable business on earth (market cap of $531 billion) iv. Cisco core technologies 1. Began with routers (what make the computer...
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...correct answer is: seeking new ways to avoid government compliance. 2. In the Magpie Sensing case study, the automated collection of temperature and humidity data on shipped goods helped with various types of analytics. Which of the following is an example of prescriptive analytics? Select one: a. warning of an open shipment seal b. real time reports of the shipment's temperature c. location of the shipment d. optimal temperature setting The correct answer is: optimal temperature setting 3. In the Magpie Sensing case study, the automated collection of temperature and humidity data on shipped goods helped with various types of analytics. Which of the following is an example of predictive analytics? Select one: a. real time reports of the shipment's temperature b. optimal temperature setting c. location of the shipment d. warning of an open shipment seal The correct answer is: warning of an open shipment seal Organizations counter the pressures they experience in their business environments in multiple ways. Which of the following is NOT an effective way to counter these pressures? Select one: a. adaptive actions b. retroactive actions c. reactive actions d. anticipative actions Feedback The correct answer is: retroactive actions Question 6 Which of the following activities permeates nearly all managerial activity? Select one: a. decision-making b. planning c. directing d. controlling Feedback The correct answer...
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...Assignment 1 IT521 Decision Support Systems Kaplan University Introduction Decision support system methodologies have existed for almost 50 years, originating in 1965 (Sprague & Watson, 1993). The evolution of what is now more commonly referred to as decision support, sans the ‘systems,’ began with research by Michael Scott Morton (Sprague & Watson, 1993). Decision support can encompass computer systems, or management information systems (MIS), or just work systems that involve people and processes, and the improvement of everyday operations (Sprague & Watson, 1993). What began as an unstructured science of facilitating organizations to make decisions has evolved into newer concepts called automated decision systems (ADS) (Turban, 2011). Decision support systems are used by organizations to facilitate decision-making by management that is either strategic, tactical or operational (Turban, 2011). Within the decision support systems arena, there are three main types of decision support systems: structured, semi-structured and unstructured. By definition, there are 4 phases that evolve in the identification of determining whether a decision support system is unstructured, semi-structured or structured (Turban, 2011). These phases include intelligence, design, choice and implementation (Turban, 2011). In addition, there are five main types used to facilitate the decision-making process within a decision support system model. These include decisions that are driven...
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...layout 5. A process with high variety and low volume is likely to have a: a. Cell layout b. Process layout c. Product layout d. Fixed-position layout 6. Which technology facilitates local area networks (LAN)? a. The Internet b. An intranet c. An ethernet d. An extranet 7. Process technologies are the machines, equipment and devices which help the operation transform materials, information and customers in order to add value ands fulfil the operation's strategic objectives. a. True b. False 8. Set up costs can be high; also system skills are necessary to integrate EDI.To which of the following information processing technologies is this constraint most relevant. a. Internet b. Local area networks c. Extranet d. Decision support systems e. Expert systems 9. Which materials-processing technology gives the advantage of precision, accuracy, and optimum use of cutting tools, which maximises their life and higher labour productivity? a. NC (and CNC) machine tools b. Flexible manufacturing systems (FMS) c. Industrial robots d. Computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM)...
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...DATA You May Not Need Big Data After All by Jeanne W. Ross, Cynthia M. Beath, and Anne Quaadgras FROM THE DECEMBER 2013 ISSUE C ompanies are investing like crazy in data scientists, data warehouses, and data analytics software. But many of them don’t have much to show for their efforts. It’s possible they never will. What’s the problem? To begin with, big data ARTWORK: CHAD HAGEN, GRAPHIC COMPOSITION NO. 2, 2009, DIGITAL has been hyped so heavily that companies are expecting it to deliver more value than it actually can. In addition, analytics-generated insights can be easy to replicate: A financial services company we studied built a model based on an analysis of big data that identified the best place to locate an ATM, only to learn that consultants had already built similar models for several other banks. Moreover, turning insights from data analytics into competitive advantage requires changes that businesses may be incapable of making. One retailer, for example, learned that it could increase profits substantially by extending the time items were on the floor before and after discounting. But implementing that change would have required a complete redesign of the supply chain, which the retailer was reluctant to undertake. The biggest reason that investments in big data fail to pay off, though, is that most companies don’t do a good job with the information they already have. They don’t know how to manage it, analyze it in ways that...
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...then transferred into a hub, or sorting center, via a truck containing other similar packages. Once it reaches the nearest sorting center, which are over two football fields long and have everywhere from five hundred to a thousand workers, the packages are stored via a system on conveyor belt. FedEx uses several types of technology to sort the packages it ships. A dimensional scanner gets the length, width, height and weight of packages to determine their size and eventual cost of shipping. Another multidimensional scanner reads the barcode from any location on the package except the bottom. Then, paddles nudge the packages onto different slides depending on the eventual destination. Some packages require manual sorting instead of this automated method. Once the packages have been sorted, they are placed into boxes together. The boxes are shaped in such a way that they will fit into a plane with maximum efficiency. A FedEx air control center coordinates the arrival of trucks and monitors airport and airplane conditions. Once the planes take off, travel and reach their destination, a FedEx courier delivers the package by hand, and scans again to signify the completion of the transaction. 2. List the types of information systems shown in the video. Can you describe how systems that were...
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...one of the largest retailers in the world based out of the United States with locations in other countries as well. Running an organization the size of Wal-Mart is a humongous task that requires reliance on heavy duty IT systems. Some of the biggest IT systems Wal-Mart uses include a Transaction Processing System, Management Information System, and Decision Support System. Its Transaction Processing System makes all routine daily tasks automated using raw data as its input. It then summarizes, records, and synchronizes this data. It uses a universal product code to ensure accurate pricing, improve efficiency, reduce shrinkage, and enhance communication amongst different channels. The TPS uses a satellite system and electronic scanning of UPC (uniform product code) at the POS or point of scanning (Fishman, 2006). The Management Information System or MIS uses data collected from the TPS by creating performance and evaluation reports used by middle management. These are usually used to explain, and assess information collected for financial purposes and evaluations. The other major IT system Wal-Mart uses is a DSS or a Decision Support System which is used primarily by executive management. Ever since Wal-Mart started using DSS, its profits and customer satisfaction ratings rose dramatically. Its DSS is also commonly known as a data warehouse, a digital hub where its entire customer related information is systematically stored for convenient use and streamlining operations (Ohlinger...
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...Identify three things that you found important in Public-Sector Information Systems and briefly explain why they are important. Answer: Upon study and research there are a number of things which I found very important and fundamental to the Public-Sector Information Systems. 1. The Human Dimension: The Information Technology and Human Knowledge go hand-in-hand and the connection, correlation and the interdependence between the two will lead to improved learning, better decision making, and stronger problem solving skills. Adding the human dimension will make the Public Sector Information Systems truly the people oriented services. 2. Build Organization Resource: Understand the data, draw related information and realize the true benefits by converting it to an organization resource. Distinguishing properly between the Transaction Processing Systems & DSS and treat information accordingly. 3. Distinguish Information: Understand the information, derive the knowledge and distinguish between the structured and the unstructured knowledge. Segregate the concrete information from the abstract and irrelevant information. At the same time it is also very important to ensure ethical use of information. 4. Technological know-how: Collecting and understanding data and deriving information is one aspect of Information System Management. Alongside it is also very important to be technically skilled enough (using IT languages or using the Data Management Tools) to communicate efficiently...
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...levels of operation to collect, process and store data. Management aggregates and disseminates this data in the form of information needed to carry out the daily operations of business. Everyone who works in business, from someone who pays the bills to the person who makes employment decisions, uses information systems. A car dealership could use a computer database to keep track of which products sell best. A retail store might use a computer-based information system to sell products over the Internet. In fact, many (if not most) businesses concentrate on the alignment of MIS with business goals to achieve competitive advantage over other businesses. For most businesses, there are a variety of requirements for information. Senior managers need information to help with their business planning. Middle management need more detailed information to help them monitor and control business activities. Employees with operational roles need information to help them carry out their duties. As a result, businesses tend to have several "information systems" operating at the same time. There are various types of information systems, for example: transaction processing systems, office systems, decision support systems, knowledge management systems, database management systems, and office information systems....
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...| ICT in Business | Assessment 1, Part1 | | | 2 October 2012 | | Table of Contents Q 1. 2 Strategic management 2 Tactical management 2 Operational management 3 Q 2. 3 Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) 3 Decision Support System (DSS) 4 Transaction Processing System (TPS) 4 Q 3. 4 Computer Misuse Act 1990 4 Data Protection Act 1998 4 Research 5 Q 1. There are 3 levels of management: Strategic, Tactical and Operational. All 3 levels of management within the organisation require information with different characteristics to manage the company successfully and to reach the goals. Strategic management is the highest level or Top management (Chief executive, managing Directors). These level deals with organisational growth and all long-term decisions, like expansion, relocation, merger, new IT system introduction. Strategic management always rely on information of 2 other levels of management: of tactical and operational levels. Strategic management of BW is responsible for introduction of new IT systems for whole organisation, as different areas in the business have designed and implemented their own systems and there is no communication between all areas. Planning of new IT systems should involve cost/benefit analysis. Company will require market research about the customers and competitors, feedback from customers and suppliers, so the company require internal and external information. Internal: * Advantages and...
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