For an organisation to be able to function successfully in today’s highly competitive business environment it needs to ensure that it can process data and information from both the internal and external environment and then to be able to gain knowledge from this and to use this knowledge to create strategies and to make informed decisions about the present and future managing of the organisation.
To be able to do this an organisation uses Management Information Systems (MIS) and these are technological systems which can be utilised by the organisation to support the human decision making process. Whilst there is a wealth of information on the internet or on websites, MIS differ from this. MIS are not just about accessing data, they are about using this data to create systems which support and help the decision making process. “MIS are systems, which make available the right information to the right person at the right place, at the right time, and in the right form”. Source: www. answers. com. co. uk. Accessed 28th April 2010).
Due to the explosion of technology over the last couple of decades every company now uses IT to be able to not only function effectively but to be able to compete and IT has allowed many more companies to compete globally as well as nationally, therefore it can be argued that the amount of data and information that is needed to be gathered and processed for a business to be able to function is far greater than ever before and to be able to do this systems had to be developed that could hold and analyse this amount of data. As more and more data was stored and linked managers began to analyse this information into further detail, creating entire management reports from the raw, stored data.
The Term Paper on INFORMATION SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
INTRODUCTION In recent years, there has been an abundance of new technologies in the information systems field. These new technologies have altered the very development process itself. Information systems have gone from being a series of one level databases to three dimensional reality, virtual reality, and multimedia systems. In the early days of information systems, the demands were for ...
The term “MIS” arose to describe these kinds of applications, which were developed to provide managers with information about sales, inventories, and other data that would help in managing the enterprise. An ‘MIS’ is a planned system of the collecting, processing, storing and disseminating data in the form of information needed to carry out the functions of management”. (Source: www. businessdictionary. om. Accessed 28th April 2010).
So it can be argued that the main function of an MIS is to assist managers in the decision making process within their organisation. The decisions that may be effected are such issues as; aiding in deciding strategies for the company, developing the company’s aims and objectives, assessing the strengths and weaknesses of the company which in turn will allow them to benchmark themselves against competitors, assessing the external environment (e. g. in times of recession) and keeping track of the financial position of the company.
So it can be argued that MIS are an excellent tool for managers as they allow them to be able to analyse huge amounts of data that would be impossible for a human mind to retain and then to assist them as a tool for decision making. It can also be argued that because the decisions being taken are based on such a huge amount of information that has been gathered and analysed then some elements of risk can be eliminated in the process of the decision making. However it must be remembered that MIS do not make the decisions themselves but are an aid to the process. While MIS systems cannot create business strategies by themselves they can assist management in understanding the effects of their strategies, and help enable effective decision-making”. (Source: www. answers. com. Accessed 28th April 2010).
Because MIS allow scenarios to be created form the information that has been gathered managers can use these scenarios to help them to try and predict the outcome of any decisions that they may make, and as mentioned previously this helps to eliminate some of the risks involved in business decision making.
The Research paper on Case study on Implementation of quality systems through information technology systems in Athal Company
... system through update of information system software. The process of full implementation, handling, monitoring, operating the system for the Athal Company ... were using the manual system. The company decision to implement the new quality assurance system was because of increased ... it to retain and attract more customers making the company more competitive and commanding a wider ...
So for example, managers can input data about price changes they may wish to make and evaluate any changes that this may have on sales and whether it will be beneficial to the company or otherwise. “This enables more informed decision making within an enterprise than would be possible without MIS ”. (Source: www. ehow. com. Accessed 29th April 2010).
Using MIS also allows the company to react much more quickly to the ever changing business environment both internally and externally.
For example before the use of such systems the information would have to be gathered and processed manually by the employees and then it would have taken time to evaluate and analyse the results and to apply these results to different scenarios. Now this information can be fed into the MIS which allows for the company to make faster decisions and to keep in pace with external environment. The IT journal MIS Quarterly says that the main advantages that MIS systems give to a company are; that they allow a company to develop its core competencies that will allow it to compete with its rival competitors.
The journal goes on to say that “every market leading enterprise will have at least one core competency – that is, a function they perform better than their competition. By building an exceptional management information system into the enterprise it is possible to push out ahead of the competition. MIS provide the tools necessary to gain a better understanding of the market as well as a better understanding of the enterprise itself”. They also allow a company to enhance its supply chain management.
MIS allow the procedures of production to be assessed more quickly and therefore any problems can be addressed faster and this should lead to a “more streamlined production process”, and that with better information on the production process the company should then be able to have a more efficient management of its supply chain,” including everything from the sourcing of materials to the manufacturing and distribution of the finished product”.
Finally MIS Quarterly says that MIS allow the company to react much faster to the ever changing external environment “enabling them to push out ahead of the competition and produce a better service and a larger piece of the pie”. There are four main types of MIS and these are; Executive Information System (EIS), Decision Support System (DSS), Databases and Expert Systems. An EIS system is considered to be a specialised form of a DSS and it is designed to allow managers and executives’ flexible access to internal and external information and is designed to be used by someone who may not have extensive computer literacy knowledge.
The Essay on Information Technology: Structures of Data
The home page of the ITPRC Web site introduces it as “The Information Technology Professional’s Resource Center” (ITPRC, 2007). Originally created in 1999, the avowed purpose of the Web site is to provide a one-stop shop for IT professionals for technical information on data networking. The purpose is laudable because data networking is a vital function which underlies many of the devices and ...
It is designed to convert useful competitive external information and to convert it into forms of data which will be of the most use to whoever is accessing it. Steven Alter in Information Systems (1999, p172) says that EIS systems are designed to “focus on providing executives with the background knowledge they need, as well as to help with understanding the causes of exceptions and surprises”.
So it can be argued that EIS systems are designed to equip executives with knowledge so that they can discuss decision making options with their managers and be prepared to consider every permutation of a future business situation. The advantages of EIS systems are that; they are relatively easy to understand, provide timely information that can be interpreted quickly and makes the decision making processes more efficient. However they continually need to have the right data input and it can take a high amount of technical staff to ensure that the system keeps up with all the current business issues.
Steven Alter (1999,p172) gives the example of the EIS system at the U. S aerospace company Lockheed needing nine people to maintain it, a manager, two computer analysts and six information analysts. This also implies that the running costs for this type of system are going to be high. An example of a company successfully implementing an EIS system is that of Chemopetrol, a petrochemical producing company from the Czech Republic (Source: www. chemopetrol/cz.
Accessed 28th April 2010) that installed an EIS system (the Oracle system) in 1997 and found that the benefits included “ better control over whole company, decreasing of prices diffusion, the clean of data coming into the EIS, new working procedures, the shortcut of preparation time of reports, and the created vision of further development at Chemopetrol”. The company also reported that the most impressive benefit of the system was that at company board meetings the top executives could “just sit down, pull out their laptops and discuss, without any paper, all reports and data by using this application”. Source: www. hrc. cz. Accessed 28th April 2010).
The Term Paper on Big Data in Companies
Big data (also spelled Big Data) is a general term used to describe the voluminous amount of unstructured and semi-structured data a company creates — data that would take too much time and cost too much money to load into a relational database for analysis. Although Big data doesn’t refer to any specific quantity, the term is often used when speaking about petabytes and exabytes of ...
A Decision Support System (DSS) is a system that is that can be used in a business situation where there are high levels of uncertainty or risk. They are interactive soft-based systems that provide information such as models and data manipulation tools that can help management to make decisions in “semi-structured and unstructured situations where no one knows exactly how the decision should be made”. (Alter, S, 1999, p173).
DSS store previous data and allow managers to analyse the consequences of the different decision alternatives that are available. DSS also supports repetitive and nonrepetitive decision making within a business context. For example, they have defined procedures and formats that users can use if they want to but still allow the user to decide how and when to use the information and they also support nonrepetitive decision making as they provide the user with models, data and interface methods that the user can analyse and use however they wish to.
Information Systems (Alter,S, 1999,p175) gives the example of a repetitive use of a DSS could be an insurance firm helping a customer to choose a policy from a set of options and choosing the one that is most suitable for the client’s needs and a nonrepetitive use could be that of marketing managers using a DSS to analyse weekly databases containing information on such issues as sales and customer reactions to a product’s features and then using this information to devise future marketing strategies. DSS have many features that are similar to EIS but are used in different ways.
DSS presents a vast amount of data that can be analysed by managers and interpreted in many different ways and therefore the user has to feel comfortable with having to this work themselves whereas managers using EIS are usually receiving the results of information that has been analysed by others. Therefore it can be argued that EIS are most likely to be used by the top executives of a company who wish to see the results of decision making whereas DSS will be used by the managers who are responsible for deciding on the future strategies for the company. Executives who use EIS often receive the results of analyses done by others but rarely spend time doing analytical work themselves”. (Alter,S, 1999,p175) A database management system (DBMS) is a system that allows users to retrieve data from databases, perform transactions, to collect data and to create databases that employees can access and use and to generally allow data to be stored in a way that is structured and manageable for the use of the employee and the company in general.
The Essay on Information Systems 7
INFORMATION SYSTEMS In a general sense, the term information system (IS) refers to a system of people, data records and activities that process the data and information in an organization, and it includes the organization's manual and automated processes. In a narrow sense, the term information system (or computer-based information system) refers to the specific application software that is used ...
Depending on the level and position of the employee only some of the information on the database may be retrievable and some of the information may be on a “need to know” basis for the employee. For example, a manager of a distribution warehouse may have a code which allows them greater access to the database than the employees who load the Lorries for despatch. According to “Information Systems” (p123), DBMS allow data to become a useful resource rather than just a set of meaningless facts.
They organise data into an effective system, check for errors when data is collected, discourage redundant data, encourage efficiency by providing alternative ways of organising a database, improve security of data by controlling access and finally provide ways in which to improve the databases as business conditions change. There are many different types of databases and these include; Operational databases which store the information which is needed to facilitate the operational running of a company so therefore they contain the information which should help the company to run efficiently.
For example to improve its response times to customer service calls Tesco’s PLC employed Asian firm Datacraft to improve its operational database and since the update the new database has “helped to increase the visibility of operations across Tesco contact centre. Tesco operations team used to take at least five days to analyse the contact centre data and report their findings to business team. With the help of this new database, this process has become instantaneous.
The Essay on System Elements-Data Roles In System Development
The design of a system varies in response to the expected audience for the perticulare application. Some systems are intended for back rooms, some for the front office, and some are for the general public. They are designed for technical users, others for end users. Some are intended to work standalone in real-time control applications, others for an environment of timesharing and pervasive ...
This enabled the operations and the business team to appropriately staff agents to meet their customer’s requirements” (Source:www. datacraft. asia. com Accessed 30th April 2010).
Analytical databases which store information which has been analysed and is felt to be the most needed by the end user. These are also known as Management databases and Information databases. Data Warehouse Databases are databases which store information from previous or the current year and can be called on to be used at any time by the end user.
They are useful tools for a company to be able to formulate strategies with. Information Technology Consultant Bernard Boar argues that successful strategies can only be devised by learning from previous knowledge and experience and Data Warehouse Databases provide this. By consulting the database management can compare information and modify it to help with gaining a competitive edge. “To continually and abruptly change business direction and gain a competitive edge requires both judgment and knowledge.
Hard won experience provides the former and data warehousing provides the latter. ” (Source: www. carelton. com. au. Accessed 30th April 2010).
He also gives the example of U. S firms Kmart and Wal-Mart using Data Warehouse databases to “track, analyse and time sales promotions”. Distributed Databases are databases that are used by the departments of regional offices and branches of a company. They may contain data that is relevant to both the company as a whole or specifically to that office or user.
They are used because a company that may be national or international will incur data transmission costs every time data has to be updated. Also it can be argued that a national or multinational company that operates in many different regions needs to keep up to date with the regional aspects of its operations in order for the company to continue its success as a whole. “To make smart decisions, seize opportunities and run their business effectively, companies need accurate and timely information made available across their enterprise.
Inaccessible and inconsistent data leads to bad decisions, dissatisfied customers and operational errors”. (Source: wwwsolacesystems. com. Accessed 30th April 2010).
End-User Databases are designed to be used at the end users work station, for example employee using information off a spreadsheet to compile sales figures. External Databases can be accessed by can be accessed by anyone and may be free or may occur a fee. For example a student may read an abstract for free of provider of journals (e. g. Emerald) or they may wish to purchase the right to read and download the whole document.
Hypermedia Databases are a set of connected pages containing media such as text, graphics; video, photographic images and computer generated graphics and can be used by a company or individual to create a website for themselves or for a company. Navigational Databases contain links that will lead the user to other information so for example, in- car satellite navigation systems have a database of links that when a destination is entered into the system it links everything together and gives the correct directions.
Expert / Neural systems deal with specific areas of knowledge usually in a specific domain and can be described as Artificial Intelligence. They can be used to bolster already functioning information systems due to their large amounts of knowledge. Expert systems can be accessed by any user but information is on a need to know basis therefore the level accessed will depend on the employee’s position within the company. These are often used in such areas as; tax advice, education systems and the Legal profession.
Neural Networks are also an example Artificial Intelligence and the networks . are modelled on the functions of the human brain. The system learns from experience and therefore constantly is obtaining knowledge. They are used for identifying patterns, making predictions and can cope with unspecified data as well as adapting to new situations. They are used to provide expert levels of knowledge to other employees for the purpose of problem solving and because of this are used in very specific areas, such as doctors working together and using the information to find a cure for an illness.
To create successful strategies for the company top executives will use MIS such as Executive Information Systems. These systems are designed to allow executives to use data and information that has already been collected and analysed by managers within the company, and then to use this information to help create the future strategies for the company. Data warehouses can also be used on a strategical level as they contain relevant information about the past operations of a company therefore can be used to help forecast future trends and outcomes of any planning that may take place.
Another example of an information system being used as a strategy tool is that of supermarket loyalty cards as they collect information on external customers’ behaviour and allow the company to use this information to plan for future strategies. Clifton, HD et al in Business Information Systems (2000,p46-47) give the example of strategically using the information a loyalty card gives a company to rearrange the supermarket shelves, e. g. he information brings to notice that on a Friday night packs of beer were bought at the same time as packets of savoury snacks, therefore the supermarket arranges the goods to be displayed close together to encourage this consumer behaviour and increase sales. Decision Support Systems are also used at a strategical level as they are systems that contain a complex amount of information that has to then be analysed by managers, and then the information helps to facilitate strategic decision making.
The reason that these types of MIS are used for strategical purposes are that they gather all the data and feedback from the operational movements of the company and allow managers to solve problems, improve the efficiency of the company, promote learning, help to give managers more control by providing a large amount of information that can be easily accessed and then create scenarios of the different outcomes that may happen if a strategy is to be implemented. This helps managers to create strategies that will hopefully give the company a competitive edge over their rivals. The main differentiating factor between strategic information systems and other information systems is the fact that strategic information systems change the external business practices of the company and therefore are much more visible than the effects of other systems”. (Clifton, HD et al, 2000, p46).
At an operational level a company can use such systems as databases which log all the information that a company should be aware of for the efficient day to day running of the company.
Clifton, HD et al (2000,p15) give the example of using a database to collect information such as the amount of complaints a company might receive in a week or the amount of 999 calls a local authority might receive in a day. This information can then be used to address any problems that have occurred, e. g. the emergency services may arrange for more paramedics to be available at certain times of the day which will then improve response times to the calls. Another example of operational information systems are Transaction Process systems.
Examples of these are supermarket checkout tills which are the frontline of the business but are essential in the day to day operational running of the organisation. At a tactical level a company could use a Knowledge Management System. These systems are used to collect, store and disseminate knowledge and information to the company which they can use to improve the products or services that they are supplying. Tactical information can be, for example, cash flow projections and sales analyses and forecasts and this information can then be used by a company to help it to compete against its rivals.
Another example of a system that can be used at a tactical level is that of groupware systems. These are systems that are designed to allow colleagues to be able to function and interact together and for them to be able to tactically work together in order to complete a task or function. Groupware features include group scheduling, email, access to databases and options for employees to be able to share work files. It can be argued that using groupware to allow a department to work efficiently together is going to give the company a tactical edge over a company who does not.
A department that works tactically well together will provide the relevant information that is needed at the top level of the company,” A tactical information system gathers, agglomerates and transform the records generated by transactional and lower level systems and provide its results to executive level for decision making activities” ( Source:www. portal. acm. org. Accessed 4th may 2010).
Although MIS facilitate the running of an organisation it can be argued that, unless the appropriate technology is chosen in the beginning and the employees are trained to use the information provided effectively, then the MIS will be of little value.
It can also be argued that the most significant starting point for the collection of information is that of the frontline operations, the level where the organisation interacts with the consumer. So at an operational level the organisation can use an IS such as a Transaction Process System. For example a supermarket checkout is now a vital part of the MIS for the whole organisation. It records details such as amount of stock sold, when stock needs to be reordered, amount of sales and what times the store is at its busiest.
Although TPS are at the lowest level of the MIS used it can be argued that they are one of the most important. They provide the information that the company needs to be able to function effectively at an operational level. Although the higher levels of MIS such as a DSS are used to plan and choose future strategies they cannot do this unless they have accurate operational information data to work with, and so TPS take and record this data and feed it back up the hierarchal chain for the top level managers to work with.
Once this operational level of data and information has been collected it is then passed up through the company and is used at a tactical level. Departments can use the Groupware systems to coordinate their actions implement the information in the way that is going to be of benefit to the organisation. So the middle management of a company can take the information that has been collected by a TPS and use KM systems or Groupware systems to collaborate all the information and use it to improve the Supply Chain Activities of the organisation.
MIS effect both the internal and external environment of the organisation. Although the systems give the company the information it needs to provide the right product or service for the customer it also enables the company to analyse the activities that they perform well and to have the chance to outsource the activities that can be performed better by an external source. Therefore the tactical systems such as Groupware take the information provided by the operational systems such as TPS and allow the company to operate its SCA in the most productive and cost efficient way possible.
Steven Alter (1999,p52) talks about how MIS allow companies to be both effective and efficient in their production cycle and it can be argued that this is important as not only should a company provide a product or service that the customer wants but should provide it in a way which will be the most profitable for company. “Effectiveness involves doing the right things, whereas efficiency involves doing things in the right way”, (Alter, S, 1999, p52).
After the tactical levels the information is then passed on to the top level decision makers who use the information to make the long term strategic decisions for the future of the company with the aid of an EIS or a DSS. Whereas an EIS usually contains information that has already been analysed a DSS will take the information provided by both the operational and tactical information systems and managers must then analyse and then use this information to plan the strategic future movements of the company.
Once these strategies have been decided the strategic information and plans are then passed back down the hierarchal chain and are implemented through the tactical levels of the company right down to the frontline operational levels. It can be argued that information flow between the information systems should be a constant two way flow as this will enable the company to keep up to date with both its internal and external environment and this will help the company to retain its competitive edge and increase its value chain. Information systems are designed to play a major role in the organisations competitive strategy. These systems interact to typically increase the customer’s perceived value by providing information and services with products, customizing products, eliminating delays, improving reliability, making products easier to use, bypassing intermediaries and reducing transaction times”, (Alter,S, 1999,p199).
It can be argued that one of the most effective information systems over the last couple of decades is the introduction of loyalty cards by many companies.
These cards not only reward customers to increase their loyalty but provide a wealth of information and data that the company can use in its operational, tactical and strategic information systems to increase the success of the company. For example Tesco’s PLC now has nearly 20 million customers who have a club card and its data gathering office in London’s Docklands has to process approximately 6 million transactions per day. (Source: business. timesonline. co. uk. Accessed 6th May 2010).
No longer are people categorised by where they live or their educational status. Instead, they are filtered into sophisticated sub-groups that reveal, for example, whether they have a baby or a pet, and whether they like to cook a lot or can’t cook at all”. Carolyn Bradley, the head of UK marketing for Tesco says that “the Club card is becoming more and more important, it is certainly a potent weapon in the battle to maintain market share in this hotly contested sector and that every little bit of data helps Tesco rule retail”, ( business. imesonline. co. uk. Accessed 6th May 2010).
It can be argued that although an organisation needs to have appropriate information systems in place to be able to function competitively they may be of little use if there are no clear channels of communication throughout the company. Communication is vital to the organisation as this is the means by which all the information that has been gathered and collated within the information systems is passed on to every member of the company.
There is no point in using data to plan strategies if this information is not communicated effectively throughout the organisation so that employees are informed and can perform their jobs effectively. Communication is important on many levels. “Communicating with your employees is central to managing your workforce. Introducing proper procedures for informing and communicating with your employees can take time and money but you will benefit from improved products, productivity and competitiveness”. (www. businesslink. gov. uk Accessed 12th May 2010).
There are many types of communication media that a company may use and these include; e-mail, company websites, databases, face to face interactions, meetings, telephone, memos, written media (letters) and verbal communication. There are many main benefits of effective communications. If employees can understand the aims and objectives of the company they will be able to relate this to the role they are expected to perform and use the knowledge to work effectively and if positive feedback is communicated back to them this should lead to increased levels of job satisfaction and commitment.
Communicating positive feedback should also lead to a higher morale throughout the company which should lead to higher performance targets. Good communication channels will also help to provide more accurate information being passed on to employees which will lead to less misunderstandings and better work performances within the company which will allow the company to be more competitive in the external environment. Clear communication channels should also allow the company to make more effective management decision making as they will be able to make decisions based on accurate information rather than misunderstandings.
Good communications throughout the company should also lead to good relationships between management and employees as it will help everyone to be able to function effectively as a team and lead to improved company performance through the company’s ability to communicate new ideas throughout the organisation, Unless you communicate the values of your organisation/business to your employees, how can you expect them to be effective employees? (www. communication-skills-4-confidence. com Accessed 12th May 2010).
Communication between management and employees should also lead to a rapport being established as it can be argued that effective communication will allow them to be able to work together within a trusting environment,”poor communications can result in misunderstandings and mistrust. Not having feedback can lead to low morale and substandard work”, (www. businesslink. gov. uk Accessed 12th May 2010).
It can argued that the way in which an organisation uses communications is not only important internally but externally as well. Effective external communication should ttract customers towards a company and communicate information to them on which they can base their preferences whether to purchase from them or not. “Communication can include elements such as logos, adverts in newspapers, TV and other media, as well as the company’s image. This helps to determine brand positioning. This is how customers view the company in relation to its rivals and helps to create customer loyalty”, (www. thetimes100. co. uk Accessed 12th May 2010).
So it can be argued that effective external communication will allow a company to create a loyal customer base.
In such a competitive market place consumers are flooded with a wealth of information and so the easier it is for them to understand this information the easier it will be for them to choose a company to purchase from. “Gaining the loyalty of customers is not just about giving them products and services it is also about communicating openly and transparently with them”. (www. vodafone. com Accessed 12th May 2010).
So it can be argued that having effective communication channels in place will allow an organisation to not only have an efficient and effective workforce but will allow them to create a loyal customer base as well. Communication is the tool that organisations use to persuade employees and consumers to act in a desired way”, (Schiffman, L and Kanuk, L, 2007, p276).
As mentioned previously there are many types of communication channels that an organisation can utilise and it can be argued that it depends on the information to be communicated as to which one would be the most effective. Information can be communicated verbally throughout a company and the advantages of this are that it is personal and cost effective.
By talking face to face to an employee should lead them to feeing involved in the work process and therefore more committed. Also it may be more appropriate if the information to be communicated is of a personal nature such as work performance. A conversation will allow interaction and should lead to any conflicts being resolved more easily than if dealt with in a less personal way. However if the information is important communicating it verbally may lead to the risk of it being forgotten as it is passed down the line.
An organisation can use written media, such as a letter, which may be more appropriate when dealing with formal situations. For example if Personnel have to deal with an employee’s continual absence, after verbal warnings a letter will be appropriate if the situation is not resolved as the organisation will have to have proof that it is dealing legally correctly with the situation should it lead to a tribunal for example. An organisation can also use meetings to communicate which are beneficial as they allow opinions and ideas to be shared and if organised effectively allow a wide range of topics to be discussed if necessary. Face-to-face interactions allow people in the workplace to discuss issues thoroughly and are more conducive to identifying and addressing potential problems and solutions as well as discovering alternative approaches. What’s more, nonverbal cues can be read during real-life meetings to assess true reactions to an idea or opinions”. (Jerry S Wilson, senior vice president, Coca-Cola).
However if they are not planned or managed effectively they can lead to conflicts if there are differences of opinion and this will lead to a meeting being a wasted time resource.
An organisation can also use memos to communicate to its employees and these are useful if there is an internal message that needs a permanent record of being communicated, so for example if a meeting is being organised a memo should be sent to everyone who will be attending so that they have the time and place officially communicated to them. This should then lead to less time wasting as there is no excuse for forgetting about the meeting. However a memo may seem impersonal and may not be appropriate if the content could be misunderstood or taken in the wrong way by the receiver.
Information can also be communicated using presentations. These allow a lot of information to be conveyed to the audience and if well planned can be visually stimulating which should lead to a bigger degree of interest, for example using an interesting power point to aid the presentation. A presentation may be appropriate to communicate information such as explaining a new system of operating in a department, for example introducing a new database system. However if they are not planned well they may just lead to a lack of understanding and confusion.
Reports can also be used as a communication tool and these are useful in providing a permanent record of information and data that can be continually referred to by employees. A report could be used when an organisation needs to inform its employees of the outcome of a work situation, for example, for recording how successful or otherwise a marketing strategy has performed. The report can then be studied by employees and used as a tool for planning future tasks. Lastly the telephone can be used as a communication tool and can be a quick and fairly personal ay of giving information to someone, however the person being called may not be available and there is no permanent record of the information being given. It can be used to get a quick response to a request such as ringing the maintenance department if another department has a technical problem that needs to be dealt with swiftly.
Other issues that affect the type of communication method used are; “need for record, direction of the information flow, number of people to be reached, confidentiality, nature of the information, length, complexity, speed of transfer, cost of the medium”, (www. ized. co. uk Accessed 12th May 2010) So it can be argued that to be effective all of the above methods of communication need to be used in the most appropriate way and in the way that is relevant to the nature of the information being communicated. Alter, S (1999, p150) argues that context of the information being communicated is important because some information needs a social presence and some does not.
For example, telling an employee they have been promoted is extremely personal and should be done face to face. Other information can simply be facts that do not require a personal touch. In some situations, getting the message across requires a strong feeling of social presence. In others, such as the communication of data between departments, social presence is unimportant”. ( Alter, S 1999,p150).
It can be argued that digital technology has revolutionised the business environment and has made it possible for organisations to function on a global scale much more effectively. For example, an organisation can use the internet to communicate with the external global environment and use it as a tool for the growth of the company.
The internet has also enabled companies to be able to communicate with its customers much more effectively than before. For example, the use of online shopping allows companies to reach consumers on a global scale such as the clothing retailers New Look. They have utilised digital communication to enable them to have grown from a high street retailer into a multinational chain with outlets in such international destinations as Kuwait, Russia, Singapore and Saudi Arabia. The use of digital communication tools such as the internet has also enabled them to become “number 2 in womenswear and accessories and number 1 in footwear with more than 9. million consumers buying womenswear from New Look in 2009 – that’s nearly 40% of the UK’s population”. (Source: www. newlook. com Accessed 13th May 2010).
It can be argued that without the use of digital communication New Look would have found it far more difficult to reach such a far reaching audience and so its impact on the company has been vital to its external growth. The use of internal digital communication has also been effective to organisations, with the use of such tools as e-mail, the internet, mobile phones and video conferencing being used to allow the company to function effectively and efficiently. Digital communication has become a valuable tool and is increasingly being aligned alongside traditional mediums to engage and interact with stakeholders and employees”, (www. communicationmagazine. co. uk Accessed 13th May 2010).
Digital communication has also enabled organisations to be able to communicate with both employees and customers 24 hours a day and it can be argued that this has enabled companies to be able to operate 24/7 if they wish to do so.
For example, supermarket websites allow customers to purchase at any hour of the day and internal digital communication tools allow employees to be able to process the order which in turn allows the organisation to be able to operate at any hour. It can be argued that if a company does not embrace the digital communication tools that are available to them then they will be unable to compete with companies that do, “Digital communication channels are both time and cost effective, and listening to and engaging in them is essential for your brand’s reputation”. (www. ommunicatemagazine. co. uk Accessed 13th May 2010).
Some examples of the technology available to organisations in the modern business environment are; the internet, mobile phones, e-mail, video conferencing, lap top computers and company websites. Organisations can utilise these methods to enhance their operations in many different ways. Externally they can use them to reach their target audiences by such methods as; advertising by using websites which allows them to reach a global audience which in turn should lead to company growth and an increase in profits.
Also they can use their websites as a sales promotion tool, such as supermarkets giving online discounts on certain products. They can also use their websites to create customer loyalty programmes tailored to the individual shopper which should then in turn lead to a more pleasant online shopping experience for the customer. Websites can also be used for direct marketing by the company, for example, using the data gathered from customers’ online accounts to identify their preferences and then recommending products that may be suitable for them.
Digital technology can also be used to connect with the media which can allow the company to share its culture and beliefs with the external environment using such methods as online press releases and contact pages on their websites. This allows customers to be able to identify with companies that they may prefer to purchase off if their beliefs match the company’s. Technology also allows a company to provide customer service and support by allowing a company and a customer to have contact through such mediums as email and online messaging.
It can also enhance public relation campaigns by providing global access to the company’s activities and policies. Internally technology can be used for market research as a company can gather data on its customers and on its rivals in the market place. This should enable the company to retain its competitive edge within its business environment. Technology can be used by a company to create its corporate identity by such methods as having its logo and brand identity on its website and emails etc.
It can be argued that whilst interpersonal skills will always be essential for effective management, as advocated by Tom Peters in his Management By Walking Around theory, new technology will always have to be embraced if an organisation wishes to maintain its competitive edge within its business environment,”Traditional communications channels remain important and effective in all organisations, but the growing influence of new technology cannot be overlooked and needs to be included in the mix of tools for communicating about and forming consensus on important organisational issues.