ADMN641 - Information Systems Design and Integration

Syllabus 

General Information

Semester:            Spring 1999
Class Location:  http://tychousa.umuc.edu:5080/
Days and Time:   Begins: Sunday January 31  Ends:  Saturday May 8
Instructor:            John H. Saunders, PhD, Certified Knowledge Engineer
E-mail:                 jsaunders@erols.com (or as backup only saunders@ndu.edu)

Course Description

This course is organized around the the life-cycle perspective of the information system, from inception through systems development and integration, to system operation and maintenance.  An overriding concern is the integration of information systems with management systems of an organization . Major phases, procedures, policies, and techniques in the information system life cycle are discussed in detail.

Course Objectives

Upon successful completion of this course, the student should be able to:
  1. Identify and analyze the role of computer based information systems in the successful management of organizations.
  2. Describe the major types of information systems in organizations, and how they support managerial decision making and strategy.
  3. Appropriately apply traditional as well as innovative software development life cycle methodologies to the construction, integration, operation and maintenance of information systems.
  4. Recognize the moral dimensions of information systems problems, and apply specific ethical principles to determine an appropriate course of action.

    5.  

Required Text and Materials

Laudon, Kenneth, and Laudon, Jane (1998). Management information systems: New approaches to organization and technology (5th edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ. Prentice Hall.

American Psychological Association. (1994). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (4th ed.). Washington, D.C.

Readings from periodical articles are assigned throughout the semester. The full text of these articles is available through the World Wide Web or UMUC's Information and Library Services' Web site, and the student is responsible for the materials contained in these articles.
 

Recommended Books and Materials

McNurlin, Barbara and Sprague, Ralph. (1998). Information Systems Management in Practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ. Prentice Hall.
 

Course Requirements

Mini-Projects - There are two group simulations to help students improve their understanding of the concepts discussed in the course. These assignments will be posted on Sunday of the week indicated in the schedule, and the answers will be due by midnight two weeks after the posting date. Student should refer to the Management Flight Simulators for Information Systems development document for further guidance on these assignments.

Class Participation - The student is required to participate regularly in the discussions each week. Evaluation of a student’s participation will be based on quality and quantity, but you should not rely on one criterion to make up for shortcomings in the other. In other words, high quantity will not make up for poor quality, and vice versa.

There will be ample opportunities to participate. Each Sunday morning or earlier materials will be posted expanding on the readings for the week. Also, questions will be posed. The student is expected to participate in discussions around the questions.

Research Project or Organizational Analysis - The student may elect to either complete a research topic as outlined below or to perform an analysis of an information system or systems and the elements and influences surrounding them within an organization of their choosing. Refer to the - Additional Information section of the syllabus - Organizational Analysis Paper Track requirements for details on completing that study. The organizational analysis papers will be reviewed each week to provide feedback to the student on his or her progress. Feedback will not be provided for the research paper.

The purpose of the research project is to give the student an opportunity to bring the information and concepts he or she has learned in the course to bear on a topic, issue, or project with which he or she is concerned. The research project will be a review of the recent literature in a topical area of interest to the student. The project should review the literature, distill the primary and fundamental issues, discuss the various possible solutions to the issues raised, identify where the "trends" are taking us, and formulate a position. The student should expect to consult several books and a host of articles to perform an adequate literature search. Sources on the Web are acceptable, but the student is expected to be more explicitly critical of such information.

The research project should have a body of approximately 25 pages (apart from title page, table of contents and references). The paper should be typed using the APA Style Guide standard format.

Papers are to be submitted electronically, as WordPerfect or Microsoft Word files, by noon (Eastern Standard Time) on the Monday of the 12th week of class.

Final Examination - There will be a final exam consisting of essay questions, to test your ability to integrate the materials covered in the course.

Grading

Your course grade will be comprised of the following:
 
Requirement Portion of Grade
Mini-Projects 30% (2 x 15%)
Research Project / Organizational Analysis 30%
Class Participation 10%
Final Exam 30%

Grades will be assigned in accordance with the Standard of Academic Work found in the University of Maryland Graduate School Catalog.

The course grade of "B" represents the benchmark for the Graduate School.  It indicates that the student has fulfilled all course requirements and demonstrated competency in the subject matter of the course.  Only those students who fully meet this standard and who demonstrate exceptional comprehension of the course subject matter, merit an "A".  Students who do not meet the benchmark standard of competency will earn the course grade of "C".  In those cases where there is substantial failure, the student will earn an "F".

Statement on Writing Requirements:

Effective managers and leaders are also effective communicators. Written communication is an important element of the total communication process. The Graduate School recognizes and expects exemplary writing to be the norm for course work. To this end, all papers, individual and group, must demonstrate graduate-level writing ability and comply with the format requirements of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. Careful attention should be given to source citations, proper listing of references, the use of footnotes, and the presentation of tables and graphs.

Policy on Academic Integrity (Plagiarism)

"Plagiarism is the intentional or unintentional presentation of another person's idea or product as one's own. Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to the following: copying verbatim all or part of another's written work; using phrases, charts, figures, illustrations, or mathematical or scientific solutions without citing the source; paraphrasing ideas, conclusions, or research without citing the source; and using all or part of a literary plot, poem, film, musical score, or other artistic product without
attributing the work to its creator. Students can avoid unintentional plagiarism by carefully accepted scholarly practices. Notes taken for papers and research projects should accurately record sources of material to be cited, quoted, paraphrased, or summarized, and papers should acknowledge these sources in footnotes."

(The penalties on plagiarism include a zero or a grade of F on the work in question, a grade of F in the course, suspension with a file letter, suspension with a transcript notation, or expulsion.)

Disabled Students

Students with disabilities who need to register or request services should contact the Staff Support Team four to six weeks in advance of registration to request and register for services. Call (301)985-7930 or (301)985-7858 (TDD).
 

Course Schedule

Notes:
Session Date Topics Assignments
(L=Laudon & Laudon)
Full citations of other readings are in the next section
1
  Jan 31 - Feb 6 Introductions 
Housekeeping 
Approaches to information systems 
Types of information systems (operational, tactical, strategic)		 L - 1,2 
Lecturette 1
Post introductions
2
 Feb 7 - Feb 13 Integration of information systems and management systems 
  • Strategic information systems
  • Business process reengineering and alternatives
 L - 3,4 
Lecturette 2
Bacon (1992) 
3
 Feb 14 - Feb 20 Information systems planning and selection 
  • Planned organizational change
  • Business value of information systems
  • Systems prioritization
 L - 11 
Lecturette 3
4
 Feb 21 - Feb 27 The software development life cycle: Traditional model and alternatives L - 12 
Lecturette 4
Plyler and Kim (1993) 
Group Exercise 1 Start
5
 Feb 28 - Mar 6 Feasibility studies and project management 
Systems analysis and design		 L - 13 
Lecturette 5
Koch, Fryer and Field (1997) 
6
 Mar 7 - Mar 13 Systems implementation; Risk Management; Performance Measures L - 14 
Lecturette 6
Baskerville and Stage (1996) 
Group Paper 1 Due 
Group Exercise 2 Start
7
 Mar 14 - Mar 20 Implementing software packages and outsourcing Lecturette 7
Grover and Cheon (1996) 
Koch (1997) 
Saarinen and Vepsalainen (1994)
8
 Mar 21 - Mar 27 Systems maintenance 
  • Purpose and scope
  • Legacy systems
  • Repair or replace
  • Lessons learned from the Y2K bug
 Lecturette 8
Burch and Grupe (1993) 
Williamson (1996) 
Group Paper 2 Due
9
 Mar 28 - Apr 3 Organizing the IS department  Lecturette 9
Clark & Cavanaugh (1997) 
10
 Apr 4 - Apr 10 Security and ethics: Protecting against intrusion and ensuring system availability: Privacy issues; Legal and ethical issues L - 5, 17 
Lecturette 10
Wood-Harper et al (1996)
11
 Apr 11 - Apr 17 Knowledge management 
Enhancing decision making		 L  - 15,16 
Lecturette 11
12
 Apr 18 - Apr 24 The future of systems development Lecturette 12
Ryan (1993) 
Research projects due
13
 Apr 25 - May 1 Discussion of student research projects Final exam posted
14
 May 2 - May 8 Semester wrap-up Final exam due

Additional Readings List

Bacon, C. J. (1992). The use of decision criteria in selecting information systems providers. MIS Quarterly, 16(3), 335. Web location: Proquest

Baskerville, R. L., & Stage, J. (1996). Controlling prototype development through risk analysis. MIS quarterly, 20(4), 481-504. Web location: Proquest

Burch, J. G., & Grupe, F. H. (1993). Improved software maintenance management. Information Systems Management, 10(1), 24-32. Web location: Ebsco

Clark, C. E., Cavanaugh, N. C., & et al. (1997). Building change-readiness capabilities in the IS organization: Insights from the Bell Atlantic experience. MIS Quarterly, 21(4), 31. Web location: Proquest

Grover, V., & Cheon, M. J. (1996). The effect of service quality and partnership on the outsourcing of information systems functions. Journal of Management Information Systems, 12(4), 89-116. Web location: Ebsco

Grupe, F. H., & Symonds, M. L. (1992). Integrating commercial software packages. Information Systems Management, 9(4), 33-40. Web location: Ebsco

Koch, C. (1997, ). Crossing no man's land. CIO Magazine, December 1, 1997. Web location: http://www.cio.com/archive/120197_crossing_content.html

Koch, C., Fryer, B., & Field, T. (1997, ). Project management: Do or die. CIO Magazine, October 15, 1997. Web location: http://www.cio.com/archive/101597_inprintcio.html

Lederer, A. L., & Sethi, V. (1996). Key prescriptions fo strategic information systems planning. Journal of Management Information Systems, 13(1), 35-59. Web location: Ebsco

Plyler, R. W., & Kim, Y.-g. (1993). Methodology myths: Four tenets for systems developers. Information Systems Management, 10(2), 39-44. Web location: Ebsco

Ryan, H. W. (1993). Pursuing an engineering discipline. Information Systems Management, 10(1), 62. Web location: Ebsco

Saarinen, T., & Vepsalainen, A. P. J. (1994). Procurement strategies for information systems. Journal of Management Information Systems, 11(2), 187. Web location: Proquest

Williamson, M. (1996, ). Will your systems survive the year 2000? CIO Magazine, September 15, 1996. Web location: http://www.cio.com/archive/091596_survive_content.html

Wood-Harper, A. T., Corder, S., Wood, J. R. G., & Watson, H. (1996). How we profess: The ethical systems analyst. Communications of the ACM, 39(3), 69. Web location: Proquest