Exam 2: Systems Integration

Information systems support the major functional areas of a business including manufacturing, finance, accounting, human resources, and marketing.

The manufacturing area has basically the same information needs and reporting requirements as the marketing area.

Functional department heads will probably lose control of the data they produce in an integrated system.

As organizations get more ________ and more virtual, information sharing and communication problems get worse.

How does changing from a functional view to a process view of the business impact the structure of the organization?

The current classification of organizations into departments like Accounting and Human Resources shows how the organizational structure evolved by breaking complex tasks into smaller, manageable tasks.

How have organizations evolved into vertical silos over the years? What impact does this have on information sharing?

Organizations have horizontal and vertical divisions.

The distributed system architecture is very complex requiring careful planning and design.

Until recently, information systems and organizations have evolved into functional silos.

Lower-level managers rarely focus on the day-to-day operations of the organization.

Functional silos deliver value through their cross-functional performance but are evaluated for their functional performance.

One step in the systems integration process is to develop a policy on whether older, ________ systems will be supported and maintained.

Early business organizations focused on breaking complex work tasks into ________ tasks that could be more easily managed and controlled.

ERP systems allow organizations to integrate heterogeneous systems into one with an integrated database system.

Mid-level managers typically focus on planning the long-term strategy of the organization.

How have organizations evolved into horizontal silos over the years? What impact does this have on information sharing?

Describe three different benefits of integrating systems.

When systems are integrated they can share information in real-time.

________ tools are good for short-term integration of existing applications in the organization.