Lecture 1: What is an Information System? 20 th September 2011

What is information? “Information is data endowed with relevance and purpose” (Drucker, 1988) What does this mean? To understand what information means, an understanding of what is meant by data is essential.

So… What is data? What is information? What is the relationship between data and information?

What is Data? Data is raw pieces of material Data does not have meaning attached to it Data is useless on its own – For instance, derryseansullivan could be considered as raw data without meaning, and essentially useless in its current form

Data to Information “Information is data endowed with relevance and purpose” (Drucker, 1988) Data is important to information. When data is processed and given some sort of meaning (i.e. when it is endowed with relevance and purpose) it becomes information. For instance, take the data in the last example and assign it some meaning

Data to Information derryseansullivan (Raw Data) derry sean sullivan Date of Birth: 12/05/2004 Birthplace: Derry First Name: Sean Surname: Sullivan The data above was processed and assigned meaning and now constitutes information

Raw data from a supermarket checkout counter can be processed and organized to produce meaningful information, such as the total unit sales of dish detergent or the total sales revenue from dish detergent for a specific store or sales territory. Figure 1-3 (Laudon & Laudon) Data and Information

Information System Information System can be defined formally as “a set of interrelated components that collect (or retrieve), process, store, and distribute information to support decision making and control in an organization” (Laudon & Laudon) What does this mean? – Think about the definition of information – Data given meaning and relevance

Input -> Processing -> Output An information system contains information about an organization and its surrounding environment. Three basic activities—input, processing, and output—produce the information organizations need. Feedback is output returned to appropriate people or activities in the organization to evaluate and refine the input. Environmental actors, such as customers, suppliers, competitors, stockholders, and regulatory agencies, interact with the organization and its information systems. Figure 1-4 Functions of an Information System(Laudon & Laudon)

Not Just Technology Based Information systems are not just technology based. Think of a local shop without a computer based stock management system. An individual may take details on the stock levels by walking around the shop and checking the shelves. The individual might take certain details about each product such as the product name, the quantity of that item on the shelves, the best before date on each item and so on. Moreover, the individual will employ some type of classification system to help them organise the raw data they collect (i.e. transforming data into information) Can you think of similar non-technology information systems?

Interdependence between Organisations and Information Technology

The Power of Information Systems “Information systems increasingly alter relationships, patterns of communication and perceived influence, authority, and control” (Keen, 1981) Think about this in relation to the hypothetical stock management scenario mentioned earlier. What might the introduction of a technology based information system lead to??