making Information Systems Investments Essay Samples

Statement of precise objectives

The Clarion School for Boys, Inc.—Milwaukee Division has the following objectives:
Analysis of current and future environment
Clarion-Milwaukee's current computer system is comprised of 60 IBM personal computers with attached laser printers. Each personal computer contains the latest versions of Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office applications software suite. In addition, five IBM laptops were added to allow the staff to have access to the Internet.
The Information System Task Force was assembled to determine whether the current system is cost-effective. They also aimed to determine what enhancements should be made to the hardware, network, database, and software that will address the staff's requirements. The task force was able to determine that the most common complaint by the staff is the lack of communications throughout the organization. Consequently, a survey was conducted to further understand this problem.
The results of their survey revealed that current information system was not being used extensively by staff. For example, despite their need to use email to communicate with each other, many were not using the AS/400's electronic mail system.
The need for additional computers was emphasized when some of the staff revealed that there were not enough personal computers available for them to use. This problem could be attributed to recent organizational changes. In three years, Clarion-Milwaukee had accepted more students- from 90 to 120. To accommodate the additional students, the number of staff had to be increased as well. Thus, full- and part-time staff had to be increased by almost 30 percent.

Proposed information technology action plan

A proposal was put forward to make some major changes in the current computer system. It was proposed that the AS/400 system should be replaced with a Microsoft-based system.

It was also suggested to have additional 120 personal computers (notebooks), software, and printers to address the staff members' needs.

The management could also look into current trends in ISIS. For example, they could make use of Oracle, an object relational database system, in order to have a more efficient communications platform

Resource and funding needs justification

The reports of the Task Force and LTM. consultants clearly identified that there is a need for a major computer system upgrade. These reports predict that by upgrading AS/400, staff's productivity and communication will significantly be improved.

Implementation plan

There should be an on-going evaluation of computer-based methodologies. Moreover, top management's role should be continually evaluated and redefined. The system should be regularly checked and upgraded in order to ensure optimal performance.

Organizational change Training

Workshops should be held for staff to educate them as to the strategic process of IS planning and to provide an understanding of IS management objectives. Staff should be aware of the necessity to manage all information- including text documents, voice messages, diagrams, and statistics- as valuable assets. Staff should refer to the master plan when making decisions and procedures concerning these assets.
Steps should also be taken to allow top management to be more involved in long-range IS planning. The superintendent, along with the new IS manager, should have a critical role to play in the process.

Bibliography

Information system. (n.d.). Retrieved April 25, 2015, from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/287895/information-system
Oracle Database. (n.d.). Retrieved April 25, 2015, from https://www.oracle.com/database/index.html
The Clarion School for Boys, Inc.—Milwaukee Division: Making Information Systems Investments. (n.d.). In Managing Information Technology (Seventh ed., p. 594).