Agreement Breaking Essay Example For Students

Understanding Breaking Essay With regards to the issue of whether it is alright for somebody the knowinglyaid somebody in breaking an understanding I feel it relies upon the dangers in question forpeople not recognizing what the individual needs to state. For instance, in the event that I had anagreement with an associate to not tell anybody that I had malignant growth I would be veryangry on the off chance that somebody constrained that individual into telling everybody. In any case, on the otherhand in the event that I made that individual vow not to enlighten anybody regarding a potential threat toall different laborers and somebody constrained them into saying something it would befar better for all the laborers to think about a potential risk regardless of whether I did notwant them to know. At the end of the day the satisfaction that originates from the workersknowing there is an issue and having the option to fix it would out of sight my angertowards the individual who broke the understanding. On account of huge tobacco I thinkthere is a distinction. Individuals definitely realize that smoking is awful for you and cancause lung malignancy yet they keep on smoking. The possibility that in light of the fact that the peoplenow realize that enormous tobacco modifies the degrees of nicotine in their cigarettesdoes not mean individuals will be sufficiently irate to stop. The main motivation behind why it wouldbe essential to realize that huge tobacco balanced the degrees of nicotine in theircigarettes would be so as to sue them for the way that they intentionally attempt toget individuals dependent on an item that will execute them. However, that cash ought to begoing to one spot and that is pay for all the specialists bills of thepeople biting the dust of lung malignant growth from being dependent. Utilitarianism would have toagree that the satisfaction of the individuals that dont need to pay more charges tosupport the individuals on Medicare or government assistance who are kicking the bucket of malignancy from smokingfar out gauges the loss of bliss of the laborers of huge tobacco. Plus, bigtobacco has enough cash to pay the entirety of the claims and still prove to be the best. The pitiful thing is the legislature is essentially turning out to be enormous tobacco in light of the fact that withevery claim the costs of cigarettes goes up, however does that imply that smokinghas diminished? No, it has really begun to increment among youngsters, morethan 1.2 million Americans more youthful than 18 began smoking in 1996, up from708,000 in 1988, as indicated by numbers discharged by the Center for Disease Controlin the fall of 1998. Utilitarianism may really support not blowing the whistleon huge tobacco since all that is going on is the administration is only takingadvantage of cigarette addicts and that makes them no superior to enormous tobacco. Iknow that I am no more joyful now than before enormous tobacco lost the entirety of their lawsuitsbecause me, and a large number of different Americans, have not seen any of that money;whether through tax reductions or, being in the Seattle territory, street support. Ithink the hit cigarette smokers take to their wallets, by the expansion inprices, makes for more despondency than joy. Kant would state, no anagreement can't be broken in light of the fact that then you would never settle on an understanding ingood confidence. In the event that everybody circumvented breaking their understandings the world would bea horrible spot; accordingly, in all conditions understandings must be kept nomatter what. On the off chance that airing a story on large tobacco may harm you monetarily Ithink you do should be guided by the open intrigue. Yet, on account of bigtobacco I dont think it was that large of an arrangement on the grounds that the open definitely knowsthat cigarettes are compelling and that they will murder you. Regardless of whether bigtobacco alters the levels in their cigarettes isn't that enormous of an arrangement whenthe different parts of cigarettes are as of now notable. The story just seemedbig for the individuals who could benefit from it. You would need to gauge how muchof the open intrigue is in question before settling on the choice, and in the caseof tobacco the open knows all that it has to know to make an intelligentdecision of whether to smoke or not. .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 , .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 .postImageUrl , .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 .focused content zone { min-tallness: 80px; position: relative; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 , .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5:hover , .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5:visited , .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f 5:active { border:0!important; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 .clearfix:after { content: ; show: table; clear: both; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 { show: square; progress: foundation shading 250ms; webkit-change: foundation shading 250ms; width: 100%; darkness: 1; change: mistiness 250ms; webkit-progress: haziness 250ms; foundation shading: #95A5A6; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5:active , .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5:hover { obscurity: 1; progress: murkiness 250ms; webkit-change: obscurity 250ms; foundation shading: #2C3E50; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 .focused content territory { width: 100%; position: relative; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 .ctaText { fringe base: 0 strong #fff; shading: #2980B9; text dimension: 16px; textual style weight: intense; edge: 0; cushioning: 0; text-adornment: underline; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 .postTitle { shading: #FFFFFF; text dimension: 16px; textual style weight: 600; edge: 0; cushioning: 0; wi dth: 100%; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 .ctaButton { foundation shading: #7F8C8D!important; shading: #2980B9; outskirt: none; fringe range: 3px; box-shadow: none; text dimension: 14px; textual style weight: striking; line-stature: 26px; moz-fringe sweep: 3px; text-adjust: focus; text-enrichment: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-stature: 80px; foundation: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/modules/intelly-related-posts/resources/pictures/straightforward arrow.png)no-rehash; position: total; right: 0; top: 0; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5:hover .ctaButton { foundation shading: #34495E!important; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5 .focused content { show: table; stature: 80px; cushioning left: 18px; top: 0; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5-content { show: table-cell; edge: 0; cushioning: 0; cushioning right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-adjust: center; width: 100%; } .u933166055ae3091a7d6b73fa887ae8f5:after { content: ; show: square; clear: bot h; } READ: Francesco Petrarch's White Does Francesco Pe Essay

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How to Use Behavioral Activation to Treat Depression

How to Use Behavioral Activation to Treat Depression PTSD Coping Print 8 Tips for Using Behavioral Activation to Treat Depression By Matthew Tull, PhD twitter Matthew Tull, PhD is a professor of psychology at the University of Toledo, specializing in post-traumatic stress disorder. Learn about our editorial policy Matthew Tull, PhD Medically reviewed by Medically reviewed by Steven Gans, MD on August 05, 2016 Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital. Learn about our Medical Review Board Steven Gans, MD Updated on June 10, 2019 How Stress Impacts Your Health Overview Signs of Burnout Stress and Weight Gain Benefits of Exercise Stress Reduction Tips Self-Care Practices Mindful Living Hero Images / Getty Images Behavioral activation is a basic coping strategy, as well as a short-term treatment, that can have a tremendous effect on your mood. When you feel depressed or anxious, you may be less likely to do the things you enjoy or avoid other potentially pleasurable activities. The consequences of this are often a worsening of mood, feeling more detached from others, and an increase in anxiety. In addition, as you feel more and more isolated, you may begin to be at risk for depression. If youre already getting treatment for depression and/or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), studies show that behavioral action can be an effective part of that treatment. How Behavioral Activation Works Behavioral activation is designed to increase your contact with positively rewarding activities. In behavioral activation, you identify specific goals for the week and work toward meeting those goals. These goals take the form of pleasurable activities that are consistent with the life you want to live. For example, if you want to live the life of a compassionate person, you might choose goals focused on volunteering, helping a friend out, or donating to charity. Particularly when you notice yourself feeling anxious or depressed, you should work on an activity. This teaches you that your behavior can affect your mood. Tips to Enhance Behavioral Activation Although behavioral activation is a pretty simple coping skill, it can be difficult to do, especially when youre not feeling motivated. However, there are some ways you can make your behavioral activation more effective. Here are some tips for super-charging behavioral activation. Identify Activities That Are Uniquely Important to You When implementing  behavioral activation, sometimes people identify activities that are important to other people. Basically, people identify activities based on what they think they should be doing as opposed to what they want to do. If you come up with activities that arent important to you, its going to be difficult to foster motivation and to really feel connected to the activities youre engaging in. When youre picking your activities for behavioral activation, try to think of whats uniquely important to you. What matters to you? What kind of life do you want to build for yourself? Come up with specific activities that really matter to you and that are about your values and desires. This will help give you that extra boost of motivation when your mood is down or youre experiencing high levels of anxiety. Make Sure Activities Are Specific and Progress Is Measurable Come up with specific activities where you can measure your progress. That is, can you quickly determine whether or not you have accomplished a task? If the answer is no, then the activity you identified is likely too vague. For example, lets say that you came up with the activity, Get organized. What does this mean? What do you want to organize? If you organize your bills, does this mean that you have accomplished this task, or is there more to organize? Instead, you may want to come up with the activity, Organize my kitchen. This is an activity that is specific and its completion can easily be measured. When activities are specific and measurable, it can give you more direction in doing behavioral activation. List Activities From Easiest to Hardest Although behavioral activation may sound easy, it can be hard to do when youre feeling down or very anxious. Therefore, you want to make sure you can see progress quickly. If youre experiencing very low motivation or high levels of anxiety, the most important thing is to get moving to make sure that avoidance behavior doesnt set in. You can do this by ranking your list of activities from easiest to hardest. Once you have this list set up, choose a couple of activities that are going to be very easy for you to accomplish. In doing so, you can make sure that you get active but also dont stress yourself out too much. Its important that behavioral activation doesnt become overwhelming or a source of stress for you. By starting out with some easy activities, you can also foster motivation that can eventually make it easier to tackle the harder activities. Come up With a Variety of Activities You also dont want behavioral activation to become boring. Mix it up when it comes to the activities that you choose. Come up with a variety of activities across a number of different life areas, such as work, relationships, personal care, and family/friends. The more variety you have, the more balanced your life will become and the more likely your motivation to continue to use behavioral activation as a coping strategy for your PTSD and depression will continue. Enlist the Support of Others If youre finding that its difficult to be motivated when it comes to behavioral activation, ask others for support. Establish a contract with a friend or family member. Let him or her know about your activities and what you would like to accomplish during the week. Your friend or family member can then help you accomplish that activity or check in with you during the week to see how your progress is going. He or she can also serve as a cheerleader for you, increasing your motivation. Get Support From the Best Online Help Resources for Depression Be Mindful Even when people are active and engaging in pleasurable activities, they can still exhibit avoidance behaviors. They may be stuck in their heads, worrying, or ruminating about the past. This is going to make it difficult to connect with the positive aspects of engaging in a meaningful activity. Being mindful ?and present when youre engaging in behavioral activation can ensure that you fully experience and engage in your chosen activities. How to Use Mindfulness for PTSD Take Things Slow Behavioral activation is an excellent way of addressing some of the symptoms of PTSD, including avoidance behavior and symptoms of emotional numbing. In addition, behavioral activation can reduce your risk for depression and, if you have depression, help treat it. Although behavioral activation may sound simple enough, it can be difficult to do, especially if youre experiencing low motivation or a high level of anxiety. Therefore, its important to set reasonable goals and take things slow. Start off with just a few activities and from there, slowly build up the number of activities you engage in each week. Even engaging in a small number of activities can have a big impact on your mood. Reward Your Progress Finally, remember to reward yourself for the progress that you make. Recognize your accomplishments. Doing so can increase your motivation to keep moving forward, especially during those times when your mood is down. With one step at a time, you can use behavioral activation to build a more meaningful and fulfilling life.

10 Tips to Avoid Chigger Bites

Chiggers are mites: tiny insects about 1/50th of an inch long. Theyre nearly invisible except, as occasionally happens, they cluster together on your skin. They are red in color; juveniles have six legs, and adults have eight. Seen under a magnifying glass, they look something like tiny red spiders. Chiggers love moist grassy areas, including lawns and fields. They are transferred to human beings through contact with grass, brush,  and vegetation. Chiggers dont carry disease, but they can cause severe itching. About Chiggers and Chigger Bites Chigger mites go through four life stages: eggs, larvae, nymphs, and adults. Only the larvae are parasitic, which is why they are so tiny and hard to see. Chiggers lay their eggs on the soil, and when the eggs hatch in warm weather, the larvae move around on the ground and low-lying vegetation until they find a host — that is, an animal on which to feed. Most interaction with humans starts with feet, legs, or arms that brush against vegetation. Unlike mosquitoes, which bite where they land, chiggers may move around the skin to find a good place to eat. Belts and tight clothing prevent them from moving further, so chigger bites are often found around the waist or near elastic waistbands. Other favorite locations are spots where the skin is thin: near the groin, behind the knees, or in the armpits. One prevalent myth is that chiggers burrow into the skin; this is not true. Instead, they  inject enzymes into the skin that destroy the surrounding tissue. The chiggers then ingest the dead tissue. Because this activity is likely to cause intense itching for the host, chiggers are usually unable to feed for long; if left undisturbed, though, they can feast for days. Unlike ticks and mosquitoes, chiggers do not carry disease, which means that contact with them isnt dangerous per se. Unfortunately, however, chigger bites are incredibly itchy. Even worse, chiggers usually move in large groups, so its unlikely youll experience just a single chigger bite. Assuming you walk outdoors during the warmer months of the year — late spring, summer, and early fall — its difficult to completely avoid the risk of chigger bites. You can, however, minimize risk by following these tips. Use an Insect Repellent Containing DEET on Both Skin and Clothing Apply DEET liberally to your shoes, socks, and pant legs. Treat your waist area and shirt if youll be in tall vegetation. Carefully apply the repellent by hand to your face, neck, and ears; you dont want DEET in your eyes or mouth.  Adults should apply DEET products to young children. You may need to reapply DEET after several hours. Note:  DEET is not the same formulation as DDT, and it is safe to apply directly on the skin when used as directed. It is important, however, to wash hands and avoid the use of DEET on the face. Apply Permethrin to Clothing, Hiking Boots, and Your Backpack Permethrin products should never be used directly on the skin, but they remain  effective on clothing through several washings. Permethrin is sold under the names Permanone and Duranon. Alternatively, outfit yourself in bug repellent  apparel.  ExOfficio  sells a line of clothing that is pretreated with permethrin. The treatment lasts through up to 70 washings. Permethrin is generally safe to use, but some people are allergic. If youre not sure, test a small area of skin before using permethrin-treated clothing. Wear Long Pants With Sneakers or Hiking Boots Tuck your pant legs into your socks, and keep your shirt tucked into your waistband. In areas where chiggers are abundant, you might even want to wrap some duct tape around your ankles, over the top of your socks. You may look a little silly, but it works. Choose Tightly Woven Fabrics for Working or Walking in Chigger-Prone Areas Because chiggers are so tiny, they can actually work their way through your clothing to get to your skin. If you know youll be exposed to chiggers while outdoors, wear the tightest woven fabrics you can find. The smaller the space between threads, the harder it will be for chiggers to penetrate your clothes and bite you. Stay on the Trail Chiggers hang out in vegetation, waiting for a passing host. When your leg brushes the vegetation, the chigger transfers to your body. Walk on designated trails and avoid blazing your own through meadows or other high vegetation areas. Youll avoid chiggers and leave a minimal impact on the wild places we love. Avoid Chigger-Infested Places In some places, chiggers may be too abundant to avoid, even with the best repellents and long pants. If an area looks like prime chigger habitat, avoid it. If you think you may have chiggers in your yard, do a sampling test to find out. If You See Chiggers on Your Body, Wash Them off Immediately If you wander into a chigger patch by mistake and can actually see the chiggers on your skin, the best thing you can do to avoid bites is to wash the chiggers off your body immediately. Take a hot, soapy bath or shower right away. Chiggers usually take a little time to settle on a place to feed, so just washing them off quickly can make a big difference. Wash Any Chigger-Infested Clothing in Hot, Soapy Water If youve picked up chiggers while hiking or working in the yard (or even suspect youve attracted chiggers), strip down quickly and put all of your clothing in the wash. Launder the clothing in hot, soapy water. Dont wear that clothing again until it has been washed and dried. Eliminate Chigger Habitat in Your Yard Chiggers live in moist, shady areas with thick vegetation. You can effectively eliminate almost all chiggers in your yard by simply minimizing such habitat from your landscape. If thats not possible, of course, its best to stay out of thickly vegetated areas.

Ethical View on Wikileaks - 1003 Words

WikiLeaks Case Study 1 WikiLeaks have taken the spot light and have taken a bold stand again against financial power houses to expose classified information and allow the world to see the truth behind the operations of an American powerhouse bank. The debate is to decide whether or not is right for the financial sector to have a say on which political group can operate, or even withhold services as a tool to manage risk. In the case between WikiLeaks and Bank of America, the director of WikiLeaks Julian Assange has announced his intention to â€Å"take down† a major American bank and reveal an â€Å"ecosystem of corruption.†He announced information was gathered directly from an executive’s hard drive and would be leaked to the media for the†¦show more content†¦After measuring all pros and cons, it would be in the best interest WikiLeaks serves the global community by revealing classified, secret, and private information to the media, in hopes of people discovering the truth behind closed doors. WikiLeakes takes the Utilitarian approach serve the global community as a whole, and the outcome is there are more satisfied viewers and followers and then dissatisfied individuals. WikiLeaks has the ability to reach out to millions of followers and provide vital information about public and private organizations and place them in the media. A Consequentialist approach would be deciding if they disclose classified information, what will be the outcome? The outcome will be satisfied consumers and dissatisfied businesses. Therefore, the consequences of their actions have been evaluated before information is made to the public, and yet they decide to disclose the information because the educational value will pose as a greater benefit. They have the choice to analyze all information and decide if they plan to make it public or not. We evaluate the decision by the following statement, â€Å"an action is right if it provides the most happiness and the least happines s for the greatest amount of people.† In the long run, there will be more people positively affected by gaining valuable information, than those upset that information have been leaked to the public. InShow MoreRelatedEthical Use Of The World Wide Web1619 Words   |  7 PagesEthical Use of the World Wide Web For or Against Hacktivism, A Fierce Tug-of-War On November 28, 2010, a statement from the White House said, â€Å"We condemn in the strongest terms the unauthorized disclosure of classified documents and sensitive national security information† (Statement by the Press Secretary). Meanwhile, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and American ambassadors around the world were contacting foreign officials to alert them to the unexpected disclosure (Shane and Lehren). EarlierRead MoreWikileaks Ethics1556 Words   |  7 PagesWikileaks 2006 saw the formation of what would soon become a world player in journalism. Julian Assange created Wikileaks as a whistle-blowers resource, a place where those with something important to share could do so without retribution and with full anonymity. Information dumps from the United States government, corporations, and even private groups and individuals drew mixed results and painted a strange picture of this organization. Its proponents tout it as returning to journalismsRead MoreWhistleblowing Case1640 Words   |  7 Pagescase is the case of WikiLeaks.2 WikiLeaks is an international non-profit organization which aims to publish online submissions of classified information, news leaks 3 from anonymous news sources and whistleblowers.4 It unleashed the wrath of the U.S. government and a wave of recrimination and reprisals against WikiLeaks and its key figures. Twitter was the only Internet Company to support WikiLeaks while others cut off essential resources to WikiLeaksâ⠂¬â„¢ survival. The goal of WikiLeaks is to bring importantRead MoreWikileaks Case Study Essay2235 Words   |  9 PagesCase Facts: †¢ WikiLeaks is an international, online, self-proclaimed not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of undisclosed and secret information, news leaks, and highly classified media from anonymous sources and whistleblowers. †¢ The head of the online organisation, which was founded in 2006, is Australian born, Julian Assange. †¢ Its purpose is to provide whistleblowers with a domain to publish their case to the public and preserve their identity (Lennon 2010). †¢ Exposes variousRead MoreWikileaks : A Not For Profit Media Organization3513 Words   |  15 Pages â€Æ' INTRODUCTION WikiLeaks established in 2006 is a not-for-profit media organization. As per their website, their goal is â€Å"to bring important news and information to the public. We provide an innovative, secure and anonymous way for sources to leak information to our journalists. WikiLeaks has worked to report on and publish important information. We also develop and adapt technologies to support these activities. The broader principles on which our work is based are the defense of freedom of speechRead MoreEthics And Ethics Of A Public Service1075 Words   |  5 Pagesthe servers of the large corporations and governments. They claim that their efforts to achieve honesty and ethical practices within governments and corporations is warranted and is a public service. The general public is still trying to determine whether this practice of hacking into private servers that are owned by governments and corporations is ethical activism. Hacktivism is an ethical practice because it exposes the fail ings within corporations and governments. Ethics refers to the practiceRead MorePrivacy And The Fundamental Right1507 Words   |  7 Pagesin technology. Seems like nothing is safe on internet when we talk about privacy either we use facebook still some strangers are stealing our personal information or on Google searches,google itself steal our email as well as passwords during street view project(Mark Weinstein,2013). In my opinion anything we publish on social media or online are not safe at all. No matter how strongly social media promise for keeping our private still they are invading our privacy. I personally experienced many timesRead MoreVisible M Ethics And A World Without Secrets1399 Words   |  6 Pageselement to his essay, as he is only half invested in transparency as a whole between civilians and the body that governs them, that comes off as somewhat unconvincing as the two arguments contradict each other. Singer’s premise that educated and ethical citizens are the solution to a repressive government is a strong, yet controversial claim. However, I believe that the reality of this statement relies on human nature, something that can be unpredictable. Many governments have covered up their actionsRead MoreAmazon Stakeholders3710 Words   |  15 Pageshttp://mashable.com/2010/12/01/amazon-wikileaks/ http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/12/01/amazon-severs-ties-wikileaks/ http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/12/01/wikileaks-relying-amazon-servers/ http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/12/amazon-and-wikileaks-first-amendment-only-strong http://www.facebook.com/pages/Boycott-Amazon-for-Dumping-Wikileaks/174975139187861 http://knowledge.insead.edu/CrisisCommunications080609.cfm?vid=54 Whistleblower website WikiLeaks has been kicked off Amazon.com’sRead MoreThis Report Purpose Is To Provide A Point Of View About1352 Words   |  6 PagesThis report purpose is to provide a point of view about two different Technological information leaking cases. It provides a clear explanation about the criminal charges against Edward Snowden, a former CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) employee, a former contractor for the United States government, he copied and leaked classified information from the NSA organization without permissions in 2013. Snowden was charged with three different felonies on June 2013, as he stole a governmental property unauthorized

Chapter One Overview of Information Systems Free Essays

string(79) " of knowledge is computer literacy; the other is information systems literacy\." 1. 1 Introduction When Rutherford B. Hayes, the 19th president of the United States, saw a demonstration of the telephone in the late 1800s, he reportedly commented that while it was a wonderful invention, businessmen would never use it. We will write a custom essay sample on Chapter One Overview of Information Systems or any similar topic only for you Order Now Hayes believed that people had to meet face to face to conduct substantive business affairs, and he was not alone in that assessment. Few of Hayes’s contemporaries could foresee the profound changes that would be ushered in by the telephone and other technologies of the day, including steam engines, production machinery; transportation technologies such as railroads and automobiles, and communication technologies such as the telegraph and telephone. As we are in the 21st century, we are once again experiencing an intense period of technology-enabled innovation, creativity, and excitement that has been spurred by the information and telecommunications technologies and associated changes in our life, work and society. We are now in  the information/knowledge age — a time when information and knowledge are power. Leading industrial countries are transforming from industrial-based economies to information/knowledge-based economy. Information is everywhere. Information and knowledge have become critical, strategic assets for most organizations. We live in an â€Å"information society,† where power and wealth increasingly depend on information and knowledge as central assets. It is a new world of doing business. Business and other organizations all over the world are focusing on information and knowledge as their key strategic resources. All firms today, large and small, local and global, use information systems to achieve important business objectives, such as operational efficiency, customer and supplier intimacy, better decision making, and new products and services. A continuing stream of information technology innovations from the Internet to wireless networks to digital phone is continuing to transform the business world. These innovations are enabling entrepreneurs and innovative traditional firms to create new products and service, develop new business models, and transform the day-to-day conduct of business. In the process, some old businesses, even industries, are being destroyed while new businesses are springing up. In 2005, journalist Thomas Friedman wrote an influential book declaring the world was ‘flat’ by which he meant that the Internet and global communications had greatly reduced the economic and cultural advantages of developed countries. U. S. nd European countries were in a fight for their economic lives, competing for jobs, markets, resources, and even ideas with highly educated, motivated populations in low-wage areas in the less developed world. The globalization trend of the world economy greatly enhances the value of information systems to the organizations. In today’s global business environment, information technology is creating new opportunities for organi zational coordination and innovation. Organizations require powerful information and communication systems to manage business on an international scale. Manufacturers are using information systems to order supplies and distribute goods faster than ever before; financial institutions are employing them to transfer billions of dollars around the world electronically; investors are using them to make multimillion-dollar decisions. This globalization presents you and your business with both challenges and opportunities. The challenge for you as a business student is to develop high-level skills through education and on-the-job experience that cannot be outsourced. Information systems will continue to change our business, society and lives. Information system and technologies will also play large roles in your career. Along with the changes in business come changes in job and careers. No matter whether you are a finance, accounting, management, marketing, operations management, or information systems major, how you work, where you work, and how well you are compensated will all be affected by business information systems. When interviewing potential employees, business firms often look for new hires who know how to use information technologies and systems for achieving bottom-line business results. It is widely recognized that understanding information systems is essential for managers and employees because most organizations need information systems to survive and prosper. Employees will depend on the information systems to increase their productivity. Management will use the information systems to improve their decision-making processes. Thus the knowledge of information systems and the ability to put this knowledge to work can result in a successful personal career. The knowledge and skill you learn from this subject will be valuable throughout your business career. 1. Computer Literacy and Information System Literacy Today, computers are everywhere: at work, at school, and at home. Many daily activities either involve the use of or depend on information from a computer. Computer advances impact all individuals, families, organizations, and schools (see Figure 1-1). Computers already are an essential part of people’s daily lives, as much as the automobile, television, and telephone. Computers are taking on many new roles — providing vast information resources, fast communications, effective learning tools, and powerful support for activities in businesses, schools, and homes. Information systems and technologies have become a vital component of successful businesses and organizations. They thus constitute an essential field of study in business administration and management. Almost any career in your future will involve a computer in some way. You probably recognize that it will not be easy to get through the rest of your life without knowing about computers and information systems. In today’s technology-rich world, a great demand for computer and information systems professionals exists and continues to grow. The computer and information systems industries offer many rewarding careers and jobs, but require a unique combination of hands-on computing skills, creative problem solving ability, and an understanding of business needs. In preparing yourself to enter today’s fast-paced, ever-changing, and information-intense business environment, you need to understand the new thinking in business. Managers and professionals such as engineers, scientists, or architects are collectively known as knowledge workers, since their main contribution to the activities in which they are involved is their knowledge and skills. The term literacy has been used to describe two types of knowledge that are key to succeed as a knowledge worker in today’s information/knowledge-based business environment. One kind of knowledge is computer literacy; the other is information systems literacy. You read "Chapter One Overview of Information Systems" in category "Papers" The knowledge and understanding of computer systems and the ways they function are called computer literacy. Computer literacy focuses primarily on knowledge of information technology. This knowledge includes an understanding of computer terminology, recognition of the strengths and weaknesses of the computer, and an ability to use the computer. It also stresses computer equipment and devices (hardware), programs and instructions (software), databases, networking, and telecommunications. The requirements that determine computer literacy change as technology changes. As you study about computers, you will become aware of their importance, their versatility, and their pervasiveness in our society. There is no better way to understand computer systems than through interacting with one. So being computer literate also means being able to use computers for some type of applications. However, no one expects you to become a computer expert. Today, information systems provide the communication and analytic power that firms need for conducting trade and managing businesses on a global scale. In addition to understanding computers, the modern knowledge worker should have information systems literacy. From an organizational perspective, an information system is an organizational and management solution, based on information technology, to a challenge posed by today’s dynamic environment. To fully understand information systems, you must understand the broader organization, management, and information technology dimensions of information systems (see Figure 1-2). Figure 1-2 Organization, management, and information technology dimensions of information systems Information systems are integral part of organizations. The key elements of an organization are its people, structure, operating procedures, politics, and culture. Organizations are composed of different levels and specialties. Different levels and specialties in an organization create different interests and points of view. Information systems come out of this cauldron of differing perspectives, conflicts, compromises, and agreements that are a natural part of all organizations. Management’s job is to make sense out of the many situations faced by organizations, make decisions, and formulate action plans to solve organizational problems. Managers perceive business challenges in the environment, they set the organizational strategy for responding and allocate the human and financial resources to achieve the strategy and coordinate the work. The business information systems in organizations reflect the hopes, dreams, and realities of the managers. Information technology is one of many tools managers use to cope with change. Information technology infrastructure provides the foundation or platform on which the firm can build its specific information systems. Each organization must carefully design and manage its information technology infrastructure so that it has the set of technology services it needs for the work it wants to accomplish with information systems. Let us use UPS’s package tracking system to identify the organization, management, and technology elements. The organization element anchors the package tracking system in UPS’s sales and production functions (the main product of UPS is a service–package delivery). It specifies the required procedures for identifying packages with both sender and recipient information, taking inventory, tracking the packages en route, and providing package status reports for UPS customers and customer service representatives. The system must also provide information to satisfy the needs of managers and workers. UPS’s management is responsible for monitoring service levels and costs and for promoting the company’s strategy of combining low-cost and superior service. Management decided to use automation to increase the ease of sending a package via UPS and of checking its delivery status, thereby reducing delivery costs and increasing sales revenues. The technology supporting this system consists of handheld computers, barcode scanners, wired and wireless communications networks, desktop computers, UPS’s central computer, storage technology for the package delivery data, UPS package tracking software, and software to access the World Wide Web. The result is an information system solution to the business challenge of providing a high level of service with low prices in the face of mounting competition. Therefore, information systems literacy is knowledge of how and why data, information, knowledge, computer, and information technology are used by organizations and individuals. It includes not only knowledge of computer technology but also aspects of the broader range of information technology. Information systems literacy can involve knowledge of how and why people use information technology; knowledge of organizations, decision-making approaches, management levels, and information needs; and knowledge of how organizations can use information systems to achieve their goals. Thus, the key aspect of information systems literacy is knowing how to deploy information technology to help an organization achieve its business goals and to gain a competitive advantage. In general, knowing about various types of hardware and software is an example of computer literacy. Knowing how to use hardware and software to increase profits, cut costs, improve productivity, increase customer satisfaction, and improve management decision-making is an example of information systems literacy. Information system literacy includes a ehavioral as well as a technical approach to studying information systems. The field of management information systems (MIS) tries to achieve this broader information systems literacy. One of the main objectives of this course is to lay the foundation for information systems literacy. 1. 3 Data and Information Today, information is one of an organization’s most important and valuable resources. Organizational information systems contain informat ion about people, places, things, ideas and events within the organization and in the environment surrounding it. By information we mean data that have being processed into a form that is meaningful and useful to the recipient. Data are therefore the raw facts for producing information. The relation of data to information is that of raw material to finished product. The information systems process data in unusable form into a usable form that is information for intended recipient. As the simplified example shown in Figure 1-3, the student name, ID number, semester, curse codes, and course grades all represent data. The computer processes the data to produce the grade information (report). | | Figure 1-3 The process of transforming data into information| Organizational activities require information. Producing products, assigning workers, making sales, billing amounts due, and providing customer services are examples of activities that use information. Data represents real-world facts, such as an employee’s name, weekly sales, customer numbers, or product inventory. Data items are organize d for processing purpose into data structures, file structure, database, and data warehouse. Data are simply raw facts and has little value beyond its existence. Information systems manipulate and process data to create information. The information in an information system take a variety of forms including text, numbers, pictures, sounds, animations and videos. The value of information is described most meaningful in the context of a decision. In other words, the value of information is directly linked to how it helps decision-makers achieve their organization’s goals. If there were no current or future choices or decisions affected by a piece of information, the information would be unnecessary. It is cited frequently in explaining why information systems that collect vast amounts of data often fail to satisfy managerial information needs. The value of information might be measured in following three dimensions: * Content — information should be accurate, relevant, and complete * Time — information should be timely and current * Form — information should be provided at the appropriate level of detail and in the most appropriate form. More specifically, information should have certain characteristics to make it valuable. The characteristics of valuable information include being accurate, verifiable, timely, organized, meaningful, useful, and cost effective. * Accurate information is correct information. Inaccurate information often is worse than no information, because inaccurate information can lead to incorrect decisions. For example, you assume that your transcript correctly list your grades. If your transcript incorrectly reports low grades in your major courses, a potential employer might deny you an interview. * Verifiable information means that the information can be confirm by the user. For example, before relying on the cumulative GPA on your transcript, a potential employer might want to check that the GPA is calculated correctly. The potential employer can verify the accuracy of the accumulated GPA by calculating it from the individual semester GPA values. * Timely information has an age suited to its use. Your transcript, for example, has value for a potential employer only if the employer receives it in time to make a hiring decision. Although most information loses its value with time, some information, such as information on trends, gains value as time passes and more information is obtained. Your transcript, for example, gains value as you complete more coursework because it reflects your work ethic and dedication over a time period. * Meaningful information is relevant to the person who receives it. Because certain information is meaningful only to specific individuals or groups, unnecessary information should be eliminated. * Cost-effective information costs less to produce than the value of the resulting information. Most organizations periodically review the information they produce in reports to determine if the reports provide valuable information. Based on that review, the companies can determine whether to continue, scale back, or even eliminate these reports. The need for timely information can change for each business decision. Some decisions require weekly or monthly information while other decisions require daily information. Timeliness is an aspect of information that depends on the situation. In some industries such as insurance and construction, information that is a few days or weeks old can be relevant, while in other industries such as 911 centers and stock trading information that is a few minutes old can be almost worthless. Real-time information means immediate, up-to-date information. Real-time systems provide real-time information in response to query requests. Many organizations use real-time systems to exploit key corporate transactional information. Real-time systems provide valuable information for supporting corporate strategies such as customer relationship management. The growing demand for real-time information stems from organizations’ need to make faster and more effective decisions, keep smaller inventories, operate more efficiently, and track performance more carefully. Nevertheless, timeliness is relative. Organizations need fresh, timely information to make good decisions. Information also needs to be timely in the sense that it meets employees’ needs, but no more. If employees can absorb information only on an hourly or daily basis, there is no need to gather real-time information in smaller increments. Many people request real-time information without understanding one of the biggest pitfalls associated with real-time information’s continual change. Imagine the following scenario: Three managers meet at the end of the day to discuss a business problem. Each manager has gathered information at different times during the day to create a picture of the situation. Each manager’s picture may be different because of this time discrepancy. Their views on the business problem may not match since the information they are basing their analysis on is continually changing. This approach may not speed up decision making, and may actually slow it down. Organizations must evaluate the timeliness of the information required for each business decision. Organizations do not want to find themselves using real-time information to make a bad decision faster. Information and knowledge are becoming the foundation for many new products and services. Information/ knowledge-intense products such as computer games require a great deal of knowledge to produce. Entire new information-based services have sprung up, such as Lexis, Dow Jones News, and America Online. These fields are employing millions of people. Information technology constitutes more than 75 percent of the invested capital in service industries such as finance, insurance, and real estate. Knowledge is used more intensively in the production of traditional products as well. In the automobile industry, both design and production now rely heavily on knowledge and information technology. 1. 4 Information Systems 1. 4. 1 The Concept of System System concepts underlie the field of information systems. A system is a set of elements or components that operate together to accomplish an objective. Many examples of systems can be found in the physical and biological sciences, in modern technology, and in human society. A system (sometimes called a dynamic system) has three basic interacting components or functions: *   Input involves capturing and assembling elements that enter the system to be processed. For example, raw materials, energy, data, and human effort must be secured and organized for processing. * Processing involves transforming processes that convert input into output. Examples are a manufacturing process, the human breathing process, or mathematical calculations. * Output involves transferring elements that have been produced by a transformation process to their ultimate destination. For example, finished products, human services, and management information must be transmitted to their human users. The system concept becomes even more useful by including two additional components: feedback and control. A system with feedback and control components is sometimes called a cybernetic system, that is, a self-monitoring, self-regulating system. * Feedback is data about the performance of a system. For example, data about sales performance is feedback to a sales manager. * Control involves monitoring and evaluating feedback to determine whether a system is moving toward the achievement of its goal. The control function then makes necessary adjustments to a system’s input and processing components to ensure that it produces proper output. For example, a sales manager exercises control when reassigning salespersons to new sales territories after evaluating feedback about their sales performance. 1. 4. 2 Information Systems An information system is a specialized type of system and can be defined in a number of different ways. An information system can be defined technically as a set of interrelated information technology components that collect (or retrieve), process, store, and distribute data and information and provide a feedback/control mechanism to meet an objective. From a business perspective, information systems can be defined as a combination of hardware, software, and telecommunications networks which people build and use to collect, create, and distribute useful data and information, typically in organizational settings. Information systems support managers and workers make decisions, control operations, analyze problems, visualize complex subjects, and create new products and services. An information system contains information about an organization and its surrounding environment. The basic activities of input, processing and output in an information system produce the information that organization need for decision-making and operations. An information system also requires feedback and control components to meet an objective (see Figure 2-4). | Figure 1-4 An information system| In an information system, input is the activity of gathering and capturing raw data from within the organization or from its external environment. For example, in producing paychecks, the number of hours worked for every worker must be collected before the pay amounts can be calculated and checks can be printed. Processing involves converting or transforming data into more meaningful form. Processing can involve making calculations, making comparisons and taking alternative actions, and storing data for future use. In the payroll example, the required processing may first involve calculating gross pay. If weekly hours worked are greater than 40 hours, overtime pay must be determined. Then deductions are subtracted from gross pay to get net pay. Output involves producing useful information in a proper form such as reports, paychecks or documents, and transferring the processed information to the user. In some cases, output from one information system can become input for another. Information systems also provide feedback/control mechanism to allow people to evaluate the performance of the systems and make necessary changes to input or processing activities. Information technologies (IT) are tools used to build information systems. Information technologies include hardware, software, database, networks, and other related components. Information systems use and integrate these technologies to meet the information needs of different users. The information technology, then, must support the goal of the information system, which is to provide accurate, timely, relevant, complete, well-formatted information that users value. Computer architecture ensures a fit between information systems and technologies. Computers are valuable tools. As technology advances and computers extend into every facet of daily living, computers have become an essential part of organizational information processing because of the power of the technology and the volume of data to be processed. When we use the term information systems, we are referring to computer-based information systems (CBIS) — organizational information systems that rely on computer technology to collect, process, store and disseminate information. A CBIS is composed of hardware, software, database, telecommunications, people, and protocols/procedures, as shown in Figure 1-5. | | | Figure 1-5 The components of an information system| In a computer-based information system, hardware consists of physical computer equipment and associated devices used to perform input, processing, and output activities. Software is a broad term given to the instructions that direct the operation of the hardware. Database contains all data utilized by application software. Telecommunications is the electronic transmission of signals for communications and enables organizations to link computer systems into effective networks. Information systems personnel include all the people who develop, program, operate, manage, use and maintain the information systems. Protocols are standards and guidelines used for designing and deploying information systems. Procedures include strategies, policies, methods, and rules for developing, managing and using the information systems. Although computer-based information systems use computer technology to process raw data into meaningful information, there is a sharp distinction between a computer system and an information system. Electronic computers and related software programs are the technical foundation, the tools and materials, of modern information systems. Computer systems provide the equipment and software for processing, storing and distributing information. Knowing how computer systems work is important in esigning solutions to organizational problems, but computer systems are only part of an information system. Computers and programs alone cannot produce the information a particular organization needs. To understand information systems, you must understand the problems they are designed to solve, their architectural and design elements, and the organizational processes that lead to th ese solutions. In other words, to be information systems literate as opposed to computer literate, you must understand the broader organization, management, and technology dimensions of information systems. 1. 4. Enterprise System Architectures System architecture refers to the arrangement of software, hardware, and tasks in an information system needed to achieve a specific functionality. To support the volume and complexity of today’s users and application requirements, information technology needs to take a fresh approach to enterprise system architectures by constructing smarter, more flexible environments that protect from system failures and crashes. Enterprise system architectures include the plans for how an organization will build, deploy, use, and share its data, processes, and IT assets. A unified enterprise system architecture will standardize enterprisewide hardware and software, with tighter links to the business strategy. A solid enterprise system architecture can decrease costs, increase standardization, promote reuse of IT assets, and speed development of new systems. The right enterprise system architecture can make IT cheaper, strategic, and more responsive. Enterprise system architectures are never static; they continually change. Organizations use enterprise system architects to help manage change. An enterprise system architect is a person grounded in technology, fluent in business, a patient diplomat, and provides the important bridge between IT and the business. An enterprise system architect is expensive and generally receives a salary of $180,000 per year on average. Companies that have created solid enterprise system architectures are reaping huge rewards in savings, flexibility, and business alignment. Basic enterprise architectures contain three components, as shown in Figure 2-6. | | |   Ã‚   Figure 1-6 Three components of enterprise system rchitecture| Information Architecture Information architecture identifies where and how important information, like customer records, is maintained and secured. A single backup or restore failure can cost an organization more than time and money; some data cannot be recreated, and the business intelligence lost from that data can be tremendous. Three primary areas an enterprise information architecture should focus on include back up and recovery, disaster recovery, and information security. Each year businesses lose time and money because of system crashes and failures. One way to minimize the damage of a system crash is to have a backup and recovery strategy in place. A backup is an exact copy of a system’s information. Recovery is the ability to get a system up and running in the even of a system crash or failure and includes restoring the information backup. Organizations should choose a backup and recovery strategy that is in line with its business goals. If the organization deals with large volumes of critical information, it will require daily backups, perhaps even hourly backups, to storage servers. Deciding how often to back up information and what media to use is a critical business decision. If an organization decides to back up on a weekly basis, then it is taking the risk that, if a total system crash occurs, it could lose a week’s worth of work. If this risk is unacceptable, then the organization needs to move to a daily backup strategy. Some organizations find the risk of losing a day’s worth of work too high and move to an hourly backup strategy. Two techniques used to help in case of system failure are fault tolerance and failover. Fault tolerance is a computer system designed that in the event a component fails, a backup tolerance can be provided with software, or embedded in hardware, or provide by some combination. Failover is a backup operational mode in which the functions of a computer component are assumed by secondary system components when the primary component becomes unavailable through either failure or scheduled downtime. A failover procedure involves automatically offloading tasks to a standby system component so that the procedure si as seamless as possible to the end user. Disasters such as power outages, floods, and even harmful hacking strike businesses every day. Organizations must develop a disaster recovery plan to prepare for such occurrences. A disaster recovery plan is a detailed process for recovering information or an IT system in the event of a catastrophic disaster such as a fire or flood. A comprehensive disaster recovery plan takes into consideration the location of the backup information. Many organizations store backup information in an off-site facility. A hot site is a separate and fully equipped facility where the company can move immediately after a disaster and resume business. A cold site is a separate facility that does not have any computer equipment, but is a place where employees can move after a disaster. Security professionals are under increasing pressure to do the job right and cost-effectively as networks extend beyond organizations to remote users, partners, and customers, and to cell phones, PDAs, and other mobile devices. Regulatory requirements to safeguard data have increased. Concerns about identify theft are at an all-time high. Hacking and other unauthorized access contribute to the approximately 10 million instances of identity theft each, according to the Federal Trade Commission. A good information architecture includes a strong information security plan, along with managing user access and up-to-data antivirus software and patches. Managing user access to information is a critical piece of the information architecture. There is little doubt that security is a top priority for business managers, regardless of the size of their company. The main focus for most managers is preventing hackers, spammers, and other malcontents from entering their networks, and they are looking to enhance their network-security-management, intrusion-detection, content-filtering, and anti-spam software. Infrastructure Architecture Infrastructure architecture includes the hardware, software, and telecommunications equipment that, when combined, provide the underlying foundation to support the organization’s goals. As an organization changes, its systems must be able to change to support its operations. If an organization grows by 50 percent in a single year, its systems must be able to handle a 50 percent growth rate. Systems that cannot adapt to organizational changes can severely hinder the organization’s ability to operate. The future of an organization depends on its ability to meet its artners and customers on their terms, at their pace, any time of the day, in any geographic location. The following are the five primary characteristics of a solid infrastructure architecture: 1. Flexibility: Organizations must watch today’s business, as well as tomorrow’s, when designing and building systems. Systems must be flexible enough to meet all types of busines s changes. For example, a system night be designed to include the ability to handle multiple currencies and languages, even though the company is not currently performing business in other countries. When the company starts growing and performing business in new countries, the system will already have the flexibility to handle multiple currencies and languages. If the company failed to recognize that its business would someday be global, it would need to redesign all its systems to handle multiple currencies and languages, not easy once systems are up and running. 2. Scalability: Scalability refers to the ability of a system to increase in size as demand warrants. If an organization grows faster than anticipated, it might all types of performance degradations, ranging from running out of storage space to a slowdown in transaction speeds. Capacity planning determines the future IT infrastructure requirements for new equipment and additional network capacity. Performing a capacity plan is one way to ensure the IT infrastructure is scalable. There are three steps you can take to meet the demands for service at your system: scale hardware vertically, scale hardware horizontally, and improve the processing architecture of the system. Vertical scaling refers to increasing the processing poser of individual components. Horizontal scaling refers to employing multiple computers to share the workload and increase the ‘footprint’ of the installation. Improving the processing architecture is a combination of vertical and horizontal scaling, combined with artful design decisions. 3. Reliability: Reliability ensures all systems are functioning correctly and providing accurate information. Reliability is another term for accuracy when discussing the correctness of systems within the context of efficiency IT metrics. 4. Availability: High availability refers to a system or component that is continuously operational for a desirably long length of time. Availability is typically measured relative to 100 percent operational. A widely held but difficult-to-achieve standard of availability for a system is known as ‘five 9s’ (99. 999 percent) availability. Systems, however, must come down for maintenance, upgrades, and fixes. One challenge organizations face is determining when to schedule system downtime if the system is expected to operate continually. Many organizations overcome this problem by having redundant systems, allowing the organization to take one system down by switching over to a redundant system. 5. Performance: Performance measures how quickly a system performs a certain process or transaction. Not having enough performance capacity can have a devastating, negative impact on a business. People usually use IT metrics to measure the system architecture. Efficiency IT metrics measure the performance of the IT system including throughout, speed and availability. Effective IT metrics measure the impact of the IT system on business processes and activities including customer satisfaction, conversion rates, and sell-through increases. Application Architecture Application architecture determines how applications integrate and relate to each other. Advances in integration technology are providing new ways for designing more agile, more responsive enterprise architectures that provide the kind of value businesses need. With these new architectures, IT can build new business capabilities faster, cheaper, and in a vocabulary the business can understand. Web services promise to be the next major frontier in computing. Web services contain a repertoire of Web-based data and procedural resources that use shared protocols and standards permitting different applications to share data and services. The major application of Web services is the integration among different applications. Before Web services, organizations had trouble with interoperability. Interoperability is the capability of two or more computer systems to share data and resources. If a supply chain management system can share data with a customer relationship management system, interoperability exists between the two systems. Web services encompass all the technologies that are used to transmit and process information on and across a network, most specifically the Internet. A Web service is really a piece of reusable software code. A software developer can quickly build a new application by using many of these pieces of reusable code. For example, a ‘Deposit’ Web service for a banking system might allow customers to perform the task of depositing money to their accounts. The Web service could be used by a bank teller, by the customer at an ATM, and by the customer performing an online transaction through a Web browser. The trick to building Web service is finding the right level of granularity. An open system is a broad, general term that describes nonproprietary IT hardware and software made available by the standards and procedures by which their products work, making it easier to integrate them. The designs of open systems allow for information sharing. In the past different systems were independent of each other and operated as individual islands of control. The sharing of information was accomplished through software drivers and devices that routed data allowing information to be translated and shared between systems. Open system integration is designed to: * Allow systems to seamlessly share information. The sharing of information reduces the total number of devices, resulting in an overall decrease in cost. * Capitalize on enterprise architectures. This avoids installing several independent systems, which creates duplication of devices. * Eliminate proprietary systems and promote competitive pricing. Utilization of open systems allows users to purchase systems competitively. 1. 5 The Role of Information Systems in Business 1. . 1 Business Environment Business students frequently ask, â€Å"Why do we need to study information technology? † The answer is simple: Information technology is everywhere in business. Information technology plays a critical role in reducing costs, improving productivity and generating growth by facilitating communication and increasing business intelligence. Information technology is supplying the foundation for new business models, new business processes, and new ways of distributing products, services and knowledge. Companies are relying on information technology and telecommunications to conduct more of their work electronically, seamlessly linking factories, offices, sales forces, managers, customers, and suppliers around the globe. Understanding information technology provides great insight to anyone learning about business. Business students who understand technology have an advantage in business. | | | Figure 1-7 Seven major factors that affect today’s business environment| Before discussing the role of information systems in organizations, let’s xamine some of the most important factors shaping today’s new business. These and other factors have altered the environment of business and posed new challenges to business firms and their management. To you, these factors can be translated into a substantial career opportunity, if you understand them and prepare yourself through education to take advantage of them. Figure 2-7 lists seven important factors including globalizat ion, competition, information as a key resource, organization restructuring, end-use computing, electronic commerce, and virtual workplace. Emergence of the global economy means that business today is global business. The success of firms today and in the future depends on their ability to manage business globally. Business globalization greatly enhances the value of information systems to organizations and offers new opportunities to business. Organizations need powerful information systems and communications systems to conduct trade and manage businesses on a global scale. Obviously, globalization has increased competition. Information technology is another reason competition is heating up. Globalization and information technology bring new threats to domestic business firms. Customers now can use global communication and information systems to shop in a worldwide marketplace, obtaining price and quality information reliably 24 hours a day. To become competitive participants in international markets, firms need powerful information and communication systems. In the information age, information is so important that businesses must have information to be successful. The need to capture and record information about what customers want has led to many databases and data warehouses. These databases and data warehouses contain valuable information to help firms to throb with the pulse of marketplace. These databases and data warehouses of great economic value are based on new information technologies. Today, many organizations are restructuring in a variety of ways. The explosive growth in computing power and networks is turning organizations into networked enterprises, which allow organizations to redesign and reshape their structures, scope of operations, control mechanisms, work practices, work flows, products, and services. Many organizations have reduced the number of levels in their organizational hierarchies. In these flatter organizations, employees are empowered to make more decisions than in the past. Contemporary information technology can make more information available to line workers so they can make decisions that previously had been made by managers. Companies can use information and communications technologies to organize in more flexible ways, increasing their ability to respond to changes in the marketplace, to take advantage of new business opportunities, and to reduce the cost of obtaining products and services from outside the firm. Many organizations use information technology to recast the management process, providing powerful new capabilities to help managers plan, organize, lead, and control. One important trend is using information technology for enterprise resource planning. For example, more and more firms are using the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. The ERP system is a business information system that integrates all facets of the business, including planning, purchasing, manufacturing, sales, finance and human resources. The ERP system creates an integrated database to coordinate business activities within and across functional areas by sharing consistent information, and automates many business processes. Information and telecommunications technologies are creating new ways of conducting business electronically both inside and outside the firm. The Internet is emerging as the primary technology platform for electronic commerce. Electronic commerce is the computerized process of buying and selling goods and services through the Internet, networks, and other digital technologies. The Internet links millions of organizations and individuals into a single network, creating the foundation for a vast electronic marketplace. An electronic market is an information system that links together many buyers and sellers to exchange information, products, services, and payments. Many organizations are increasingly apply Internet technology to facilitate the management and coordination of other business processes within the firm — publishing company’s policies and work procedures, scheduling work flow, reviewing production plan, revising design documents, and so on, which is called electronic business. Information and telecommunications technologies have eliminated distance as a factor for many types of work in many situations. Many companies are using networked information systems to coordinate their geographically distributed capabilities. Works can be done wherever the employees are located. The term virtual workplace describes a technology-enabled working arrangement where work can be done at virtually any geographical location as along as the work site is linked to one or more of the firm’s fixed locations by some type of telecommunications capability. Some companies are even using networked information systems to coordinate with other organizations such as suppliers, distributor, or even competitors as virtual organizations to create and distribute new products and services without being limited by traditional organizational boundaries or physical location. Intensive use of information technology in business firms, coupled with equally significant organizational redesign, has created a new type of business: the fully digital firm. The digital firm can be defined along several dimensions. A digital firm is one where nearly all of the organization’s significant business relationships with customers, suppliers, and employees are digitally enabled and mediated. Core business processes are accomplished through digital networks spanning the entire organization or linking multiple organizations. Key corporate assets–intellectual property, core competencies, and financial and human assets–are managed through digital means. In a digital firm, any piece of information required to support key business decisions is available at anytime and anywhere in the firm. Digital firms sense and respond to their environments far more rapidly than traditional firms, giving them more flexibility to survive in turbulent times. Digital firms offer extraordinary opportunities for more global organization and management. By digitally enabling and streamlining their work, digital firms have the potential to achieve unprecedented levels of profitability and competitiveness. A few firms, such as Cisco Systems, Dell Computer Corporation or Google, are close to becoming fully digital firms, using the Internet to drive every aspect of their business. In most other companies, a fully digital firm is still more vision than reality but this vision is driving them toward digital integration. For today’s managers, information technology is not simply a useful handmaiden, an enabler, but rather it is the core of the business and a primary management tool. There are four major systems that help define the digital firm. Supply chain management systems seek to automate the relationship between suppliers and the firm to optimize the planning, sourcing, manufacturing, and delivery of products and services. Customer relationship management systems attempt to develop a coherent, integrated view of all the relationships a firm maintains with its customers. Enterprise systems create an integrated enterprise-wide information system to coordinate key internal processes of the firm, integrating data from manufacturing and distribution, sales, finance, and human resources. Finally, knowledge management systems seek to create, capture, store, and disseminate firm expertise and knowledge. Collectively, these systems represent the areas where corporations are digitally integrating their information flows and making major information system investments. For example, building only cars that customers order and building them in record time has been every automaker’s dream. Now, it appears that Toyota Motor Corporation is coming close to making that dream come true. Toyota is using new software tools and Internet technology to drive its processes for designing and manufacturing automobiles and to integrate them with customers and suppliers. The company is moving toward a digital firm organization. In many organizations, end users are developing a growing percentage of information systems with little or no formal assistance from technical specialists. This phenomenon is called end-user computing. Information technology education programs at both the college and pre-college level and easy-to-use of both computer hardware and software have made more and more managers and employees have good computing knowledge and skills. End user computing involves you, as a future knowledge worker, in more than just developing a budget using spreadsheet software, creating a presentation using presentation graphics software, or using a system that someone else developed. It requires you to take an active role in developing systems that support your specific needs or the needs of a team. 1. 5. 2 Functional Areas in Business Understanding information technology begins with gaining an understanding of how businesses function and IT’s role in creating efficiencies and effectiveness across the organization. Typical businesses operate by functional areas. Each area undertakes a specific core business function. These functional areas are interdependent (see Figure 2-8). For example, sales must rely on information from operations to understand inventory, place orders, calculate transportation costs, and gain insight into product availability based on production schedules. For an organization to succeed, every department or functional area must work together sharing common information. Information technology can enable departments to more fficiently and effectively perform their business operations. | Figure 1-8 Common functional areas in business| To perform the MIS function effectively, almost all organizations today, particularly large and medium-sized ones, have an internal IT department. The plans and goals of the IT department must align with the plans and goals of the organization. Information technology can enable an organization to increase efficiency in manufacturing, retain key c ustomers, seek out new sources of supply, and introduce effective financial management. Information technology is a relatively new functional area, having been around formally in most organizations only for about 40 years. Job titles, roles, and responsibilities often differ from organization to organization. Most organizations maintain positions such as chief executive officer (CEO), chief financial officer (CFO), and chief operations officer (COO) at the strategic level. Recently there are more IT-related strategic positions such chief information officer (CIO), chief technology officer (CTO), chief security officer (CSO), chief privacy officer (CPO), and chief knowledge officer (CKO). The CIO is responsible for overseeing all uses of information technology and ensuring the strategic alignment of IT with business goals and objectives. The CTO is responsible for ensuring the throughput, speed, accuracy, availability, and reliability of an organization’s information technology. The CSO is responsible for ensuring the security of IT systems and developing strategies and IT safeguards against attacks from hackers and viruses. The CPO is responsible for ensuring the ethical and legal use of information within an organization. The CKO is responsible for collecting, maintaining, and distributing the organization’s knowledge. The CKO designs programs and systems that make it easy for people to reuse knowledge. All the above IT positions and responsibilities are critical to an organization’s success. While many organizations may not have a different individual for each of these positions, they must have leaders taking responsibility for all these areas of concern. It is not always easy for managers to make the right choices when using IT to support business initiatives. Most managers understand their business initiatives well, but are often at a loss when it comes to knowing how to use and manage IT effectively in support of those initiatives. Managers who understand what IT is, and what IT can and cannot do, are in the best position for success. Individuals anticipating a successful career in business must understand information technology including: * Information technology basics. * Roles and responsibilities in information technology. * Measuring information technology’s success. 1. 5. 3 The Role of Information Systems in Business In 2007, American business invested over $1 trillion in information systems hardware, software and telecommunications equipment, more than half of all capital investment in the United States. In addition, they spent another $250 billion on business and management consulting and services, much of which involves redesigning firms’ business operations to take advantage of these new technologies. More than half of all business investment in the United States each year involves information systems and technologies. In 2007, more than 40 million U. S. usinesses had cot-com Internet sites registered. E-commerce and Internet advertising are booming. Companies today manage their operation and inventories in near real time in order to reduce their production and overhead costs and get to market faster. What makes information systems so essential today? Why are businesses investing so much in information systems and technologies? They do so to achieve the following six important business objectives: 1. Operational Excellence: Businesses continuously seek to improve the efficiency of their operations in order to achieve higher profitability. Information systems and technologies are some of the most important tools available to managers for achieving higher levels of efficiency and productivity in business operations, especially when coupled with changes in business practices and management behavior. 2. New Products, Services and Business Models: Information systems and technologies are a major enabling tool for firms to create new product and services, as well as entirely new business models. A business model describes how a company produces, delivers, and sells a product or service to create wealth. . Customer and Supplier Intimacy: Information systems can help a business know its customers and serves them well, the way they want to be served, the customers generally respond by returning and purchasing more. This raises revenues and profits. Likewise with suppliers: the more a business engages its suppliers, the better the suppliers can provide vital inputs. This lowers costs. 4. Improved Decision Making: Many business managers operate in an information fog bank, never really having the right information at the right time to make an informed decision. Instead, they rely on forecasts, best guesses, and luck. The result is over- or underproduction of goods, misallocation of resources, and poor response times. Information systems and technologies have made it possible for managers to use real-time data from the marketplace when making decisions. 5. Competitive Advantage: Information systems and technologies can help a business achieve a competitive advantage: doing things better than its competitors, charging less for superior products, and responding to customers and suppliers in real time. 6. Survival: Business firms invest in formation systems and technologies because they are necessities of doing business. Sometimes these necessities are driven by industry-level changes. Many federal and state statutes and regulations create a legal duty for companies to retain records. Firms turn to information systems and technologies to provide the capability to respond to these information retention and reporting requirements. Information systems directly affect how top management draw up long-tern planning, how managers make decisions, and what products and services are produced and how. In fact, information systems play a strategic role in the life of the firm. Figure 2-9 illustrates the relationship between businesses and information systems. | Figure 1-9 Growing interdependence between businesses and information systems| There is a growing interdependence between business strategy, organizational structure, operation rules and procedures, and production on the one hand, and IT infrastructure, IT strategy and information system management on the other. A change in any of these components often requires changes in other components. Existing information systems can act as a constraint on businesses. Often, what the organization plans to do in next five years depends on what its information systems will permit it to do. Developing new products and service, increasing market share, becoming the high-quality or low-cost producer, providing better customer service, and increasing employee productivity depend more and more on the scope and quality of information systems in the organization. Businesses are not in the business of processing information for its own sake. Instead they rocess information in order to improve organizational performance and produce profits. From a business perspective, an information system is an important instrument for creating value for the organization. There are many ways in which information systems can contribute to firm value, including increasing the firm’s return on its investments, enhancing the company’s strategic position, or increasing the market value of the firm ’s stock. Information processing activities support management decision making, enhance the execution of business processes and as a result increase business value. Every business has an information value chain, shown in Figure 2-10, in which raw information is systematically acquired, and then transformed through various stages that add value to that information. From this perspective, information systems are part of a series of value-adding activities for acquiring, transforming, and distributing information that managers can use to improve decision making, enhance organizational performance, and ultimately increase firm profitability. | Figure 1-10 Business information value chain| How to cite Chapter One Overview of Information Systems, Papers

Growth in Australian Agriculture Sectors - MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Growth in Australian Agriculture Sectors. Answer: Introduction Australia produces various agricultural products. The major agricultural product in Australia include wheat, beef and wool. The main commercial crops produced in Australia are oilseeds, grains, legumes, and crops like sugar, rice, grapes, potatoes and bananas. The sector has made significant contribution in export. Agriculture in Australia provides employment to large number of people. The large agricultural sector gives the nation a comparative advantage in the international market. Australian agriculture constitute rapid growth because of its ability to adapt technological innovation. Since green revolution, the production of crops increased by more than double (australianimmigrationbook.com.au. 2017). The efficient agriculture industry in Australia keep the farmers globally competitive. Essence of the chosen article The chosen article stresses on the fact that natives in Australia have become unaware of the sources of food and fibre. The economic contribution of farms sector cannot be ignored. Agriculture is an essential component in daily meals. Agriculture has significant contribution in economic property of Australia. The sector alone provide nearly 1.6 million jobs in Australia. In the supply chain of agriculture numerous there are numerous employment opportunities. The valuation of primary sector in Australian economy is increasing beyond its expectation. The approximate value of this sector in 2016 records increase of 2.4 percent. The sector has marked an outstanding performance in the farm production by 27.6% over the years. In the last quarter of 2016, agriculture has accounted 10 times of its average contribution to the Australian economy. Half of the countrys growth is contributed by this sector. The sector helps to maintain a standard growth rate for the economy. Depending on agricultural Australia is successful in maintain a positive-growth rate. The speculative growth of Australian agriculture accelerates the economic growth rate. The positive effect of Australian agriculture is reflected in the region Tasmania. In 2015-16, Tasmania recorded 3 percent value of Australian agriculture, occupying only 1 percent of nations land (themercury.com.au 2017). Despite significant growth and economic contribution of agriculture, there is a general misconception among people regarding this vital sector. It is generally assume that agriculture benefits only people directly related to this sector. The sector provides job supports to sectors including retail, logistics, food service, finance and more. To increase awareness of people regarding the crucial sector, National Agricultural Day is celebrated in Australia. The production growth of Australian agriculture draws support from people for this sector. The increasing productivity of in agriculture attributed from implementation of advanced technology. The innovative nature of Australian farmers helps to overcome challenges faced in production, geographic location and resource constraint (theconversation.com 2017). Application of innovative technology and efficient farm production plays an important role to fight the difficulties arising in the sector and ensure farming to remain as important as it is in the future. Economic theories and concept Productivity growth in Agriculture Productivity growth measures output per unit of input. Given fixed amount of input if output increases then a productivity growth is realized. Demand and supply are mostly discussed microeconomic concepts. Both demand and supply has direct relation with price. With an increase in price supply, increases and a price decline cause a decrease in supply (Mar, Hyslop and Fabling 2017). However, there are factors other than prices that causes a change in supply captured by a shift in the supply curve. Advancement of technology is one factor that causes an increase in supply. The Agricultural sector in Australia is now recognized as an innovative and efficient industry of the nation. Using limited input, the nation can produce a large amount of output (Sheng et al. 2015). The smooth flow of supply helps to keep prices at an affordable level. Figure 1: Productive growth and increased supply (Source: As created by Author) The above figure explains how the productivity growth raises supply and keep the food prices at a low level. The increase in supply is indicated from a rightward shift of the supply curve from SS to S1S1 (Varian 2014). This brings the prices down from P* to P1. Increasing demand for food and growth of food In addition to supply another force affecting agricultural market is the force of demand. Demand changes in response to several factors. Food is fundamental need for human survival and this makes agriculture as the primary sector of the economy. With increasing population, the demand for food is growing rapidly (futuredirections.org.au 2017). Australia is one of the major suppliers of food in world. A significant share of food demand in most of the Asian countries are met by Australia (Chandler 2014). Besides, the export demand increased domestic demand puts heavy pressure on the agricultural demand. Figure 2: Increase in demand and impact on price (Source: As created of Author) As shown in figure 2, the pressure on demand creates an upward pressure on price. To control the price supply must be increased and this is possible only through increasing productivity growth. Recommendation Agriculture is a vital sector in Australia. In addition to fulfilling domestic food demand Australia exports the surplus in different nation across the world. Despite of being an important sector, Agriculture receives lowest amount of subsidy. The government should assist Agriculture in forms of subsidy to help farmers and bears the cost for improving productivity and inputs. People in Australia often gets unware of the importance of this sector. The sector not only meet food demand of the nation but also benefits people outside the primary sector. Therefore, government should increase awareness among people regarding the economic importance of agriculture. Conclusion The report considers the growth of agriculture in Australia. Australia has a strong agricultural sector. This sector not only supplies food to people in the nation but also has a significant contribution in export earnings. The sector is responsible for employing numerous people in its supply chain management and other related industries. However, people often get disconnected from economic importance of the sector. Hence, awareness should be increased. Also, government assistance is minimal for agriculture. Government should help the sector to flourish more and contribute to nations prosperity. References Australianimmigrationbook.com.au. (2017).An Overview of Australian Agriculture | The Australian Immigration Book. [online] Available at: https://www.australianimmigrationbook.com.au/business/overview-australian-agriculture [Accessed 5 Dec. 2017]. Chandler, L., 2014. Australian agricultures role in meeting increased Asian demand.Ethics, efficiency and food security: Feeding the 9 billion, well, pp.32-41. Future Directions International. (2017).Consumption Patterns and Food Demand in Australia to 2050 - Future Directions International. [online] Available at: https://www.futuredirections.org.au/publication/consumption-patterns-and-food-demand-in-australia-to-2050/ [Accessed 5 Dec. 2017]. Mar, D.C., Hyslop, D.R. and Fabling, R., 2017. Firm productivity growth and skill.New Zealand Economic Papers,51(3), pp.302-326. Sheng, Y., Zhao, S., Nossal, K. and Zhang, D., 2015. Productivity and farm size in Australian agriculture: reinvestigating the returns to scale.Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics,59(1), pp.16-38. The Conversation. (2017).Agriculture in Australia: growing more than our farming future. [online] Available at: https://theconversation.com/agriculture-in-australia-growing-more-than-our-farming-future-22843 [Accessed 5 Dec. 2017]. Themercury.com.au. (2017).Missing the essential ingredient. [online] Available at: https://www.themercury.com.au/news/opinion/talking-point-missing-the-essential-ingredient/news-story/3869366f5bea84da7a35689d6766cff7 [Accessed 5 Dec. 2017]. Varian, H.R., 2014.Intermediate Microeconomics: A Modern Approach: Ninth International Student Edition. WW Norton Company.