Comprehensive Study Guide for Management Information Systems and Business Intelligence

Core Information System Concepts and Definitions

• Profiling: The use of computers to combine data from multiple sources and create digital dossiers of detailed information on individuals.
• Privacy: The claim of individuals to be left alone, free from surveillance or interference from other individuals or organizations.
• Cookies: Small text files deposited on a computer hard drive when a user visits websites.
• Bugs: Software programs that keep a record of users’ online clickstreams.
• Database: A collection of data organized to serve many applications efficiently by centralizing the data and controlling redundant data.
• DBMS (Database Management System): Software that enables an organization to centralize data, manage them efficiently, and provide access to the stored data by application programs.
• Blockchain: Distributed database technology that enables firms and organizations to create and verify transactions on a network.
• Big Data: Data sets with volumes so huge that they are beyond the ability of typical DBMS to capture, store, and analyze.
• Firewall: Prevents unauthorized users from accessing private networks.
• Identity Theft: The theft of key pieces of personal information in order to obtain merchandise and services in the name of the victim or to obtain false credentials.
• Token: A physical device, similar to an identification card, that is designed to prove the identity of a single user.
• Phishing: Setting up fake websites or sending email messages that look like those of legitimate businesses to ask users for confidential personal data.
• Disintermediation: The removal of organizations or business process layers responsible for intermediary steps in a value chain.
• Electronic Data Interchange (EDI): The direct computer-to-computer exchange between two organizations of standard business transactions.
• FinTech: Start-up innovative financial technology firms and services.
• Wisdom of Crowds: The belief that large numbers of people can make better decisions about a wide range of topics or products than a single person or even a small committee of experts.
• Intelligent Agent: Software program that uses a built-in or learned knowledge base to carry out specific, repetitive, and predictable tasks for an individual user, business process, or software application.
• Robotics: The use of machines that can substitute for human movements as well as computer systems for their control, sensory feedback, and information processing.
• Virtual Reality (VR) Systems: Interactive graphics software and hardware that create computer-generated simulations that provide sensations that emulate real-world activities.
• Augmented Reality (AR): A technology for enhancing visualization. It provides a live direct or indirect view of a physical real-world environment whose elements are augmented by virtual computer-generated imagery.
• Informational Role: Managers act as the nerve centers of their organizations, receiving the most concrete, up-to-date information and redistributing it to those who need to be aware of it.
• Business Intelligence (BI): Applications and technologies to help users make better business decisions.
• Predictive Analytics: The use of data mining techniques, historical data, and assumptions about future conditions to predict outcomes of events, such as the probability a customer will respond to an offer or purchase a specific product.
• Geographic Information System (GIS): System with software that can analyze and display data using digitized maps to enhance planning and decision-making.

Ethical and Social Issues in Information Systems (Chapter $4$)

• Core Concepts of Ethical Responsibility:

  • Responsibility: This means that you accept the potential costs and obligations for the decisions you make.
  • Accountability: A feature of social institutions that means mechanisms are in place to determine responsibility for an action.
  • Liability: Related to legal systems, it extends the concept of responsibility to the area of law.
  • Due Process: A societal practice of having laws that are known and understood, along with the ability to appeal to higher authorities to ensure that the laws are applied correctly.

• Review Questions and Answers:

  1. What term describes accepting potential costs and obligations for decisions? Answer: Responsibility.
  2. What feature of social institutions determines responsibility for actions? Answer: Accountability.
  3. What practice involves known laws and the ability to appeal? Answer: Due process.
  4. If an employee justifies taking office supplies because it is a "tiny loss," but you argue that the loss would be massive if everyone did it, which principle are you invoking? Answer: Kant's Categorical Imperative.
  5. How would the Utilitarian Principle evaluate a man stealing to feed a starving family? Answer: His action is acceptable because the higher social value is the survival of the family.
  6. What is the definition of Immanuel Kant's Categorical Imperative? Answer: If an action is not right for everyone to take, it is not right for anyone to take.
  7. Which principle involves taking the action that produces the least harm? Answer: Risk Aversion Principle.
  8. What is the use of computers to assemble data from different sources for electronic dossiers? Answer: Profiling.
  9. What new data analysis technology finds hidden connections between data in disparate sources? Answer: NORA (Non-Obvious Relationship Awareness).
  10. What does the FTC FIP principle of Notice/Awareness state? Answer: Web sites must disclose their information practices before collecting data.
  11. Where are cookies created during website visits stored? Answer: On the user's computer.
  12. In which model of informed consent can personal information be collected until the consumer specifically requests otherwise? Answer: Opt-out.
  13. Which law protects the creators of intellectual property from having their work copied by others? Answer: Copyright law.

Foundations of Business Intelligence: Databases and Information Management (Chapter $6$)

• Traditional File Environment Issues: Traditional file management generates several problems, including data redundancy, data inconsistency, program-data dependence, inflexibility, poor security, and a lack of data sharing and availability.

• Database Management Systems (DBMS): Software that permits centralization of data and data management so businesses have a single consistent source for data needs. The most critical feature is its ability to separate the logical and physical views of data.

• Data Mining: A key tool of business intelligence that helps users analyze large amounts of data to find hidden relationships. It produces information such as:

  • Associations: Occurrences linked to a single event.
  • Sequences: Events linked over time.
  • Classification: Patterns describing the group to which an item belongs.

• Review Questions and Answers:

  1. Which of the following is NOT typically a problem in a traditional file environment? Answer: Data sharing (Note: Traditional environments struggle with data sharing).
  2. What is a characteristic or quality describing a database entity? Answer: Attribute.
  3. What creates confusion that hampers the integration of data from different sources? Answer: Data redundancy.
  4. What occurs when the same data is duplicated in multiple database files? Answer: Redundancy.
  5. What is it called when the same attribute in related data files has different values? Answer: Data inconsistency.
  6. A field identified as holding the unique identifier of a table's records is a: Answer: Primary key.
  7. What specialized language do programmers use to add and change data in a database? Answer: Data manipulation language.
  8. What does Big Data NOT refer to? Answer: Datasets with fewer than $10^{9}$ records.
  9. What technology would you use to analyze social media data for an online retailer? Answer: Hadoop.
  10. What is a data warehouse composed of? Answer: Historic and current internal data.
  11. Which is NOT a technology used to manage big data (according to specific context)? Answer: Cloud computing (Note: While used, others like Hadoop and in-memory computing are more specific tools listed).
  12. What tool enables users to obtain rapid online answers to ad-hoc questions? Answer: OLAP (Online Analytical Processing).
  13. What tool allows users to find hidden relationships in data? Answer: Data mining.
  14. Which tools analyze large unstructured data sets like emails or memos? Answer: Text mining.

Securing Information Systems (Chapter $8$)

• Key Security Concepts:

  • Security: Policies, procedures, and technical measures used to prevent unauthorized access, alteration, theft, or physical damage to information systems.
  • Controls: Methods, policies, and organizational procedures ensuring asset safety, accounting accuracy, and operational adherence to standards.

• Review Questions and Answers:

  1. What prevents unauthorized access or theft? Answer: Security.
  2. What refers to methods used to ensure the safety of assets and reliability of records? Answer: Controls.
  3. Which of these does NOT pose a security threat to wireless networks? Answer: SQL injection attacks (Note: These target databases, while SSIDs and radio frequencies are specific to wireless).
  4. What is an independent computer program that copies itself over a network? Answer: Worm.
  5. What is it called when a salesperson clicks on a competitor's ads to drive up costs? Answer: Click fraud.
  6. The "Mitglieder" program downloaded in $2004$ via ICQ is an example of what? Answer: Trojan horse.
  7. What is the term for redirecting a Web link to a different address? Answer: Spoofing.
  8. What type of malware is a keylogger? Answer: Spyware.
  9. How do hackers create a botnet? Answer: By causing other people’s computers to become "zombie" PCs following a master computer.
  10. What is an attack using numerous computers to inundate a network from many launch points? Answer: DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service).
  11. What are bogus wireless access points called? Answer: Evil twins.
  12. What are application controls? Answer: They can be classified as input controls, processing controls, and output controls.
  13. What analysis rates the likelihood of a security incident and its cost? Answer: Risk assessment.

E-Commerce: Digital Markets, Digital Goods (Chapter $10$)

• Unique Qualities of E-Commerce:

  • Marketspace: A marketplace extended beyond traditional boundaries, removed from temporal and geographic locations.
  • Richness: The integration of video, audio, and text marketing messages into a single consumer experience.
  • Information Density: The total amount and quality of information available to all market participants.
  • Information Asymmetry: Exists when one party in a transaction has more information than the other.
  • Dynamic Pricing: Varying a product's price according to the supply situation of the seller.
  • Disintermediation: Beneficial to consumers because it leads to lower costs.

• Review Questions and Answers:

  1. What is a marketplace removed from temporal/geographic locations? Answer: Marketspace.
  2. What dimension integrates video, audio, and text? Answer: Richness.
  3. What quality results from lowered costs of information storage and improved data quality? Answer: Information density.
  4. What is the effort required to locate a suitable product? Answer: Search costs.
  5. What is information density? Answer: The total amount and quantity of information available to all market participants.
  6. Selling the same goods to different groups at different prices is: Answer: Price discrimination.
  7. What occurs when one party has more transaction information than the other? Answer: Information asymmetry.
  8. What is varying price based on supply? Answer: Dynamic (or flexible) pricing.
  9. Compared to digital markets, traditional markets have: Answer: Higher transaction costs.
  10. Primary benefit of disintermediation for consumers? Answer: Lower costs.
  11. What type of e-commerce is eBay? Answer: C2C (Consumer-to-Consumer).
  12. Which model creates a digital environment for people with like interests? Answer: Community provider.
  13. What do market creators do? Answer: Provide a digital environment where buyers and sellers can establish prices for products.

Managing Knowledge and Artificial Intelligence (Chapter $11$)

• Knowledge Management Systems (KMS):

  • Enterprise-wide KMS: General purpose, firm-wide efforts to collect, store, and distribute digital content.
  • Knowledge Work Systems (KWS): Specialized systems for engineers and scientists to create new knowledge.
  • Intelligent Techniques: Tools like data mining, neural networks, and intelligent agents.

• Key Technologies:

  • 3D Printing: Also called additive manufacturing; it creates solid objects layer by layer.
  • Learning Management System (LMS): Tools for management, delivery, tracking, and assessment of employee learning.
  • Taxonomy: A scheme for classifying information so it can be easily accessed.
  • Neural Networks: Find patterns and relationships in very large amounts of data.

• Review Questions and Answers:

  1. Relationship between collaboration and knowledge management? Answer: Knowledge is useful only when shared with others.
  2. The flow of events or transactions captured by a system is: Answer: Data.
  3. Changing organizational behavior by responding to new experience is: Answer: Organizational learning.
  4. What are the three major types of KMS? Answer: Enterprise-wide KMS, knowledge work systems, and intelligent techniques.
  5. Systems for engineers and scientists are called: Answer: KWS.
  6. Which is NOT a component of an enterprise content management system? Answer: KWS (as it is a separate type of system).
  7. System used to archive digital video and sound clips? Answer: Digital asset management system.
  8. What is a MOOC? Answer: A type of online course.
  9. Tools for management and tracking of employee learning? Answer: Learning Management System (LMS).
  10. A scheme for classifying information? Answer: Taxonomy.
  11. Which is NOT true about $3D$ printing? Answer: It is only usable to make prototypes (Note: It is used for production as well).
  12. Technology that enhances perception by combining live views with computer images? Answer: AR (Augmented Reality).
  13. Apple’s Siri is an example of: Answer: Intelligent agents.

Enhancing Decision Making (Chapter $12$)

• Types of Decisions:

  • Structured: Follow a definite, repeatable procedure (e.g., operational day-to-day tasks).
  • Unstructured: No well-understood or agreed-on procedure (e.g., deciding to introduce a new product line).
  • Semistructured: Have elements of both.

• Mintzberg’s Managerial Clasiffications:

  • Interpersonal Roles: Figurehead, Leader, Liaison.
  • Informational Roles: Nerve center, Monitor, Disseminator, Spokesperson.
  • Decisional Roles: Entrepreneur, Disturbance Handler, Resource Allocator, Negotiator.

• Review Questions and Answers:

  1. Decisions with no agreed-on procedure are: Answer: Unstructured.
  2. If you follow a definite procedure, the decision is: Answer: Structured.
  3. Which phase of decision making involves recognizing a problem? Answer: Intelligence.
  4. The role of "liaison" is: Answer: Interpersonal.
  5. The role of "entrepreneur" is: Answer: Decisional.
  6. Decisions for managing day-to-day activities involve: Answer: Operational intelligence.
  7. Which system displays data using digitized maps? Answer: GIS.
  8. What is a pivot table? Answer: A spreadsheet tool that displays two or more dimensions of data in a convenient format.
  9. Leading methodology for executives to understand important information? Answer: Balanced scorecard method.
  10. Management-defined measures used for internal evaluation? Answer: KPIs (Key Performance Indicators).
  11. Management methodology using strategy to generate targets and measure progress? Answer: BPM (Business Performance Management).
  12. Deciding whether to introduce a new product line is: Answer: Unstructured.
  13. Mintzberg’s three categories of roles are: Answer: Interpersonal, informational, and decisional.

Summary of Ethical Guidelines and Moral Dimensions

• The Six Candidate Ethical Principles:

  1. The Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
  2. Immanuel Kant's Categorical Imperative: If an action is not right for everyone to take, it is not right for anyone.
  3. Descartes' Rule of Change: If an action cannot be taken repeatedly, it is not right to take at all.
  4. The Utilitarian Principle: Take the action that achieves the higher or greater value.
  5. The Risk Aversion Principle: Take the action that produces the least harm or the least potential cost.
  6. The Ethical "No Free Lunch" Rule: Assume that virtually all tangible and intangible objects are owned by someone else unless there is a specific declaration otherwise.

• The Five Moral Dimensions of the Information Age:

  1. Information Rights and Obligations: What rights do individuals and organizations possess regarding information about themselves?
  2. Property Rights and Obligations: How will intellectual property rights be protected in a digital society?
  3. Accountability and Control: Who will be held liable for harm to information and property rights?
  4. System Quality: What standards of data/system quality should be demanded to protect rights and safety?
  5. Quality of Life: What values and cultural practices should be preserved in a knowledge-based society?

Applied Case Studies in MIS

• Case 1: FashionToday (Privacy Breach):

  • Scenario: Yara, a shopper at FashionToday, receives a text for a size-specific line (FTXL) and later an ad for weight-loss supplements from an affiliate (Herbs4Life).
  • Evaluation: FashionToday violated Yara’s privacy by sharing her profile with third parties without specific subscription/consent, breaching the ethical bond between company and customer.

• Case 2: Columbiana (E-Commerce Growth):

  • Scenario: The government of an island nation wants to increase tourism and agricultural exports.
  • Evaluation: An e-commerce presence allows millions of web users to see vacation offerings and easily find hotel rates/book reservations, significantly increasing visibility and market reach.

• Case 3: U.S. Pharma Corp (Knowledge Portal Design):

  • Scenario: A global pharmaceutical firm needs to share research with internal sites and external bodies (FDA, WHO).
  • Solution Elements: The home page must be user-friendly, precise, and attractive. Key design tenets include simplicity, readability, easy navigation, consistency, and appropriate use of color and design.

• Case 4: Subaru (Data-Driven Decisions):

  • Scenario: Dealerships track car mileage for service reminders and other purposes.
  • Corporate Level Decisions: Management can determine the mileage performance of cars (valuable to customers), track the condition of manufactured products, and gather feedback.
  • Local Level Decisions: Dealerships can schedule service appointments and remind customers of safety/pollution tests to ensure vehicle maintenance.