Chapter 7 - Storing Organizational Information - Database

RELATIONAL DATABASE FUNDAMENTALS

 -    Information is everywhere in an organization

-  Information is stored in databases

Ø   Database – maintains information about various types of objects (inventory), events (transactions), people (employees), and places (warehouses)

 -     Database models include;

Ø   Hierarchical database model – information is organized into a tree-like structure (using parent/child relationships) in such a way that it cannot have too many relationships.

         Ø  Network database model – a flexible way of representing objects and their relationships

        Ø  Relational database model – stores information in the form of logically related two-dimensional tables

ENTITIES AND ATTRIBUTES

-    Entity – a person, place, thing, transaction, or event about which information is stored

Ø  The rows in each table contains the entities

-    Attributes (fields, columns) – characteristics or properties of an entity class

Ø  The columns in each table contain the attributes

KEYS AND RELATIONSHIPS

-    Primary keys and foreign keys identity the various entity classes (tables) in the database

Ø  Primary key – a fields (or group of fields) that uniquely identities a given entity in a table

Ø  Foreign key – a primary key of one table that appears an attribute in another table and acts to provide a logical relationships among the two tables 

RELATIONAL DATABASE ADVANTAGES

-    Database advantages from a business perspective include;

Ø  Increased flexibility

Ø  Increased scalability and performance

Ø  Reduced information redundancy

Ø  Increased information integrity (quality)

Ø  Increased information security

INCREASED FLEXIBILITY

-     A well-designed database should;

Ø  Handle changes quickly and easily

Ø  Provide users with different views

Ø  Have only one physical views

§  Physical view – deals with the physical storage of information on a storage device

Ø  Have multiple logical views

§  Logical view – focuses on how users logically access information

INCREASED SCALABILITY AND PERFORMANCE

-      A database must scale to meet increased demand, while maintaining acceptable performance levels

Ø  Scalability – refers to how well a system can adapt to increased demands

Ø  Performance – measures how quickly a system performs a certain process or transaction

REDUCED INFORMATION REDUNDANCY

-      Databases reduce information redundancy

Ø  Redundancy – the duplication of information or storing the same information in multiple places

-     Inconsistency is one of the primary problems with redundant information

INCREASED INFORMATION SECURITY

-      Information is an organization asset and must be protected

-      Databases offer several security features including;

Ø  Password – provides authentication of the user

Ø  Access level – determines who has access to the different types of information

Ø  Access control – determines types of user access, such as read-only access

DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

-     Database management systems (DBMS) – software through which users and application programs interact with a database

DATA-DRIVEN WEB SITES

-       Data-driven Web sites – an interactive Web site kept constantly updated and relevant to the needs of its   customers through the use of database

DATA-DRIVEN WEB SITE BUSINESS ADVANTAGES

-         Development

-         Content Management

-         Future Expandability

-         Minimizing Human Error

-         Cutting Production and Update Costs

-         More Efficient

-         Improved Stability

DATA-DRIVEN BUSINESS INTELLIGENT

-         BI in a data-driven Web site

INTEGRATING INFORMATION AMONG MULTIPLE DATABASES

-      Integration – allows separate systems to communicate directly with each other

Ø  Forward integration – takes information entered into a given system and sends it automatically to all downstream systems and processes

          Ø  Backward integration – takes information entered into a given system and sends it automatically to    all upstream systems and processes

 -          Building a central repository specifically for integrated information

Question?

1.       Define the fundamental concepts of the relational database model

2.       Evaluate the advantages of the relational database model

3.       Compare relational integrity constraints and business critical integrity constraint

4.       Describe the benefits of a data driven Web site

5.       Describe the two primary methods for integrating information across multiple database

Chapter 6 – Valuing Organizational Information

ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION

• Information is everywhere in an organization
• Employees must be able to obtain and analyze the many different levels, formats and granularity of organizational information to make decisions
• Successfully collecting, compiling, sorting and analyzing information can provide tremendous insight into how an organization is performing
•  Levels, formats and granularity of organizational information

THE VALUE OF TRANSNATIONAL AND ANALYTICALLY INFORMATION

• Transaction information verses analytically information
• 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  THE VALUE OF TIMELY INFORMATION
  
  -   Timeliness is an aspect of information that depends on the situation
  -   Real-time information – immediate, up-to-date information
  -   Real-time system – provides real-time information in response to query requests
  
  
  THE VALUE OF QUALITY INFORMATION
  
  
  -    Business decisions are only as good as the quality of the information used to make the decisions
  -   You never want to find yourself using technology to help you make a bad decision faster
  -   Characteristics of high-quality information include;
  
  
  
  
  
  -   Low quality information example;
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  UNDERSTANDING THE COSTS OF POOR INFORMATION
  
  
  -   The four primary sources of low quality information include;
  
  

  - Online customers intentionally enter inaccurate information to protect their privacy 

  - Information from different systems have different entry standards and formats 

  - Call center operators enter abbreviated or erroneous information by accident or to save time 

  - Third party and external information contains inconsistencies, inaccuracies and errors

  
  
  -   Potential business effects resulting from low quality information include;
  
  

  - Inability to accurately track customers

  - Difficulty identifying valuable customers 

  - Inability to identify selling opportunities 

  - Marketing to nonexistent customers 

  - Difficulty tracking revenue due to inaccurate invoices 

  - Inability to build strong customer relationships

  
  
  UNDERSTANDING THE BENEFITS OF GOOD INFORMATION
  
  
  -   High quality information can significantly improve the chances of making a good decision
  -   Good decisions can directly impact an organization’s bottom line
  
  
  Question?
  
  
  1.       Explain how information differs throughout an organization
  2.       Assess the impact of flow-quality information and the benefits of high-quality information on an organization

Chapter 5 – Organizational Structures that Support Strategic Initiatives

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES

• Organizational employees must work closely together to develop strategic initiatives that create competitive advantages.
• Ethics and security are two fundamental building blocks that organizations must base their businesses upon.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Information technology is a relatively new functional area, having only been around formally for around 40 years.
• Recent IT – related strategic positions:

             -   Chief Information Officer (CIO)

             -   Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

             -   Chief Security Officer (CSO)

             -   Chief Privacy Officer (CPO)

             -   Chief Knowledge Officer (CKO)

 Chief Information Officer (CIO) – oversees all uses of IT and ensures the strategic alignment of IT with business goals and objectives.

-  Broad CIO functions include;

•  Manager – ensuring the delivery of all IT projects, on time and within budget.
• Leader – ensuring the strategic vision of IT is in line with the strategic vision of the organization.
• Communicator – building and maintaining strong executive relationships.

  Average CIO compensation by industry

Industry	Average CIO Compensation
Wholesale/Retail/Distribution	$ 243,304
Finance	$ 210,547
Insurance	$ 197,697
Manufacturing	$ 190,250
Medical/Dental/Health Care	$ 171,032
Government	$ 118,359
Education	$   93,750

·         What concerns CIOs the most

Percentages %	CIOs Concerns
94	Enhancing customer satisfaction
92	Security
89	Technology evaluation
87	Budgeting
83	Staffing
66	ROI analysis
64	Building new applications
45	Outsourcing hosting

o     Chief Technology Officer (CTO) – responsible for ensuring the throughput , speed, accuracy, availability and reliability of IT

o    Chief Security Officer (CSO) – responsible for ensuring the security of IT systems

o   Chief Privacy Officer (CPO) – responsible for ensuring the ethical and legal use of information

o   Chief Knowledge Officer (CKO) – responsible for collecting, maintaining and distributing the organization’s knowledge

THE GAP BETWEEN BUSINESS PERSONNEL AND IT PRSONNEL

•  Business personnel possess expertise in functional areas such as marketing, accounting and sales
•  IT personnel have the technological expertise
• This typically causes a communications gap between the business personnel and IT personnel

IMPROVING COMMUNICATIONS

• Business personnel must seek to increase their understanding of IT
• IT personnel must seek to increase their understanding of the business
•  It is the responsibility of the CIO to ensure effective communication between business personnel and IT personnel

ORGANIZATIONAL FUNDAMENTALS – ETHICS AND SECURITY

•  Ethics and security are two fundamental building blocks that organizations must base their businesses on to be successful
• In recent years, such event as the 9/11 have shed new light on the meaning of ethics and security

ETHICS 

• Ethics – the principles and standards that guide our behavior toward other people
• Privacy is a major ethical issues;

• Privacy – the right to be left alone when you want to be to have control ever your own personnel possessions and not to be observed without your consent

• Issues affected by technology advances

Intelligent property	Intangible creative work that is embodied in physical form
Copyright	The legal protection afforded an expression of an idea, such as a song, video game and some types of proprietary documents
Fair use doctrine	In certain situations, it is legal to use copyrighted material
Pirated software	The unauthorized use, duplication, distribution or sale of copyrighted software
Counterfeit software	Software that is manufactured to lock like the real thing and sold as such

•  One of the main ingredients in trust is privacy
• Primary reasons privacy issues lost trust for e-business

1.	Loss of personnel privacy is a top concern for Americans in the 21st century
2.	Among Internet users, 37 percent would be “a lot” more inclined to purchase a product on a websites that had a privacy policy
3.	Privacy/security is the number one factors that would convert Internet researchers into Internet buyers

SECURITY – HOW MUCH WILL DOWNTIME COST YOUR BUSINESS??

Sources of Unplanned Downtime
Bomb threat	Hacker	Snowstorm
Burst pipe	Hail	Sprinkler malfunction
Chemical spill	Hurricane	Static electricity
Construction	Ice storm	Strike
Corrupted data	Insects	Terrorism
Earthquake	Lightning	Theft
Electrical short	Network failure	Tornado
Epidemic	Plane crash	Train derailment
Equipment failure	Frozen pipe	Smoke damage
Evacuation	Power outage	Vandalism
Explosion	Power surge	Vehicle crash
Fire	Rodents	Virus
Flood	Sabotage	Water damage (various)
Fraud	Shredded data	Wind

·         How much will downtime cost your business??

PROTECTING INTELLECTUAL ASSETS

·         Organizational information is intellectual capital – it must be protected

·         Information security – the protection of information from accidental or intentional misuse by persons inside or outside an organization

·         E-business automatically crates tremendous information security risks for organization

Percentage of IT Budget Spent on Information Security

Average Reported Computer Security 

Expenditure/Investment per Employee 

Question?

1.       Define the primary IT roles along with their associated responsibilities

2.       Explain the gap between IT and business professionals

3.       Explain why ethics and security are fundamental building blocks of business today