Chapter 1 Business Information Systems: An Overview
Objectives
• Explain why information technology matters • Define digital information and explain why digital systems are so powerful and useful • Explain why information systems are essential to business • Describe how computers process data into useful information for problem solving and decision making • Identify the functions of different types of information systems in business
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Objectives (continued)
• Describe careers in information technology • Identify major ethical and societal concerns created by widespread use of information technology
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Does Information Technology Matter?
• Hackett Group study: “Does IT Matter? Hackett Concludes the Answer is Yes”
– World’s best performing companies spent 7% more per employee on IT than typical companies – They recouped the investment fivefold in lower operational costs
• Today’s business professionals must know how to develop and use IT
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The Power of Digital Systems
• Binary counting system uses only two digits: 0 and 1 • Digital systems:
– Computers and devices that use the binary system – Can represent any information as a combination of zeros and ones
• Information can be represented, stored, communicated, and processed digitally
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The Power of Digital Systems (continued)
• Digital information is stored and communicated by means of electromagnetic signals
– Extremely fast – Digital copy is an exact copy of the original
• Accuracy and speed make digital systems powerful, useful, and important
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The Purpose of Information Systems
• Businesses use information systems
– To make sound decisions – To solve problems
• Problem: any