DEFINITION
An
organized approach to the study of the information needs of an organization's
management at every level in making
operational, tactical, and strategic decisions. Its objective is to design and
implement procedures, processes, and routines that provide suitably
detailed reports in an accurate, consistent, and timely manner.
In a management Information system, modern,
computerized systems continuously gather
relevant data, both from inside and
outside an organization. This data is then processed, integrated, and stored in
a centralized database (or data warehouse) where it is constantly updated and
made available to all who have the authority to access it, in a form that suits
their purpose.
A MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM (MIS) provides information that organizations need to manage themselves efficiently and effectively. Management information
systems are not only computer systems. These
systems encompass three primary components: technology, people (individuals,
groups, or organizations), and data (information for decision making). Management
information systems are distinct from other
information systems, in that they are used to analyze and facilitate
strategic and operational activities.12-1
Academically, the term is commonly used to refer to the study of how
individuals, groups, and organizations
evaluate, design, implement, manage, and utilize systems to generate
information to improve efficiency and
effectiveness of decision making, including systems termed decision support
systems, expert systems, and
executive information systems.121 Most business schools (or colleges
of business administration within
universities) have an MIS department, alongside departments of accounting,
finance, management, marketing, and sometimes others, and grant degrees (at
undergrad, masters, and PhD levels) in MIS.
A
management information system gives the business managers the information that
they need to make decisions. Early business computers were used for simple
operations such as tracking inventory, billing, sales, or payroll data, with
little detail or structure. Over time, these computer applications became more complex, hardware storage capacities grew,
and technologies improved for connecting previously isolated applications. As more data was stored and linked, managers
sought greater abstraction as well as
greater detail with the aim of creating significant management reports from the
raw, stored data. Originally, the term "MIS" described applications
providing managers with information about sales, inventories, and other
data that would help in managing the enterprise. Over time, the term broadened
to include: decision support systems, resource management and human
resource management, enterprise resource
planning (ERP), enterprise performance management (EPM), supply chain
management (SCM), customer relationship management (CRM),
project management and database retrieval applications.
An MIS supports a business' long range plans, providing
reports based upon performance analysis in areas
critical to those plans, with feedback loops that improve guidance for every
aspect of the enterprise, including
recruitment and training, MIS not only indicates how various aspects of a
business are performing, but also why and where. MIS reports include
near-real-time performance of cost centers and projects with detail sufficient for individual accountability.
TERMINOLOGY
The
terms MIS, Information system, ERP and, information technology
management are often confused. Information
systems and MIS are broader categories that include ERP. Information
technology management concerns
the operation and organization of information technology resources independent of their purpose.