Management Information Resources

arafatmy's picture
Course Code: 
132323
Course Outline: 

Management Information Resources  132323/50

Instructor        : Maher Arafat

Time                : S. T. Th.        @ 13’00 to 14’00        Room 14G0129

Office Hours   : S.T.Th. 9-10 and 11-12

                        : M.W.    11-12:30

Information Resources Management, is a course concerned with the planning and control issues associated with information resources, in effect, it guides the student to construct a solid understanding on the offerings information technology can provide for modern organization (what IT can do) and the proper implementation of IT (ensuring that it was done). The course focuses on the use of information resources from a top management perspective while also considering End-user's and information systems professionals' views.The course aims to assist organizations and professionals in enhancing the overall knowledge and understanding of effective information resources management in the 21st century and beyond.
“Organizations today face increasingly complex challenges in identifying the most appropriate information systems applications in which to invest, implementing them on time and within budget, realizing their anticipated benefits in response to top management's needs, and then maintaining and upgrading them.  To meet these challenges successfully, today's managers need not only a firm understanding of the basics of information technology - hardware, software, database management, and the like -  they also need to grasp the application of planning and control principles to the use of that technology.
     Information Resources Management is a course concerned with the planning and control issues relevant to information resources.  In effect, it guides the student first in asking what information technology should do for an organization and second in ensuring that it was done.  The course focuses on the use of information resources from a top management perspective while also considering end users' and information systems professionals' views.  
     In effect, anyone today who has felt dissatisfaction with the service provided by vendors, consultants, or other computer professionals has likely has suffered from flaws in the organization's information resources management.  Such a person would gain by a better understanding the planning and control of information resources from this course.”

Objectives:

The objectives of this course are to prepare students better to: 
1.    Understand and analyze major issues related to the management of information resources. Sample issues include :
·         the role of information technology in the management of the organization; 
·         organizational learning and the assimilation of information technology; 
·         the make-or-buy decision; the relationship between top, user, and information technology management; 
·         the role of information technology in business competition; 
·         strategic alliances and planning and control in interorganizational systems; 
·         centralization vs. decentralization of management planning and control; 
·         responsibilities of users and information systems professionals; 
·         design of an information systems department; 
·         the use of chargeback for control; 
·         managing computer center operations; 
·         planning methodologies. 
2.   Evaluate the current state of the management of information resources within an organization.     The teaching approach uses the case method in which students evaluate existing organizations' practices and experiences and contrast them with prescription.  The approach is augmented by having students analyze a local organization by asking related questions of a practicing manager.
3.   Participate in the management of information resources within an organization.
     The intended outcome of this course is that the student be better prepared to participate in the planning and control of information resources either as a manager, user, or information systems professional. More specifically, the student should be better able to understand the information management challenges the organization faces and how he or she can provide assistance in meeting those challenges.

-          Recognize the relationships between business pressures, organizational responses and information systems.

-          List the new technology development in the areas internetworked and web-based systems.

-          Discuss information infrastructure and architecture.

-          Identify the different types of information technology architecture and outline the process necessary to establish information architecture.

-          Understand contemporary computing environment.

-          Study some examples of information technology infrastructure such as: EDI, e-commerce and m-computing.

-          Discuss the importance, evaluation and approaches to IT Planning.

-          Describe approaches for evaluating IT investment and explain why is it difficult to do it.

-          List and briefly describe methods of justifying traditional and modern methods of justifying IT investment.

-          Understand the role of IS department and its relationships with end-users.

Topics include:

-          Related Concepts definitions and common understanding.

-          Information and Information attributes.

-          Information systems Definition and examples.

-          The relationship between Information and Decision Making process.

-          Business pressure, organization. Response and IT support.

-          Components of Information Systems.

-          The structure of the IS components in the organization.

-          The relationships between IS components and how these components will achieve the organizational objectives.

-          Technology development in web-based and internetworked systems.

-          The underlying infrastructure in the modern digital firms.

-          IT planning and control.

-          Business Processes: operational solution , Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP)

-          BP reengineering, SCM, CRM

-          IS department and its relationship with end-users.

-          Management of these IS resources towards optimizing the organizational functions and decision making process.

Instruction Methodology

Based on the principle of “Learning by Doing”, we will try to adopt the methodology constructivism and learner centered approach of instruction in an interactive learning environment.

In this course, we’ll stress on the fact that “The learner is responsible for his own learning”, therefore the learners are encourages to change their learning attitudes to develop skills to diagnose and solve their educational problems. To this end, we believe that, the use of Student Portfolio is appropriate, therefore; it is required by all students to demonstrate their learning progress. The work on the portfolio will be part of the learner’s final grade, as an additional assessment tool. A Portfolio: is simply intended to helps learners to document all skills and reflection on learning and accomplishments, Or “a purposeful collection of student work that exhibits the student’s efforts and progress that can provide a view of the knowledge a learner has actually achieved and the application of the acquired knowledge during in an area of study

This course will be delivered by BLENDING (mixing) traditional F2F and e-Learning method of teaching and learning using the Online Course Container OCC as The Learning or Content Management System (LMS), www.najah.edu/occ where most of the course web activity will take place like email, chat, forums and on-line materials. OCC can provide all students with the opportunity to maintain interaction with the instructor and can benefit from interacting with other students as a platform to collaborate with team members and work ON-LINE. Students who already don’t have an OCC account are required to visit the university site and register for an OCC account using his/her official student number.

Assessment and grading system:

1st Test ( 2 Exams )

20%

2nd Test ( 2 Exams )

20%

On-line activities and Lab assignments

10%

In-class Group activity and PORTFOLIO and Presentation

10%

Final Test

40%

Portfolio Assessment Criteria:

  1. Completeness
  2. Personal ingenuity and reflection
  3. Resourcefulness
  4. Originality and creativeness

Books and references:

Advancing the Concepts and Practices of Information Resources Management in Modern Organizations

http://www.irma-international.org/

-          Corporate Info. Strategy and mgmt, text and cases, Lynda Applegate McFarlan, Austin

-          Corporate IS mgmt text and cases, McFarlan, Applegate, McKenney