MIS-200, Chapter 2, Review Questions Assignment
Due Date: September 25, 2019
Name: ID ID
True/False
1) Transaction processing systems are most commonly encountered at the senior
management level of an organization. False (They serve the operational level).
2) TPS help managers monitor the firm's relations with the external environment.
True (They track transactions with customers and suppliers).
3) The decision to grant credit to a customer is normally made by a senior manager.
False (This is a routine operational or middle-management task).
4) Transaction processing systems are the basic business systems that serve the operational
level of the organization. TRUE
5) Deciding whether to introduce a new product line is the responsibility of an operational
manager. False (This is a strategic decision for senior management).
6) ESSs are designed to incorporate data about external events, but they also draw
summarized information from internal MIS and DSS. TRUE
7) Information supplied by an enterprise system is structured around cross-functional
business processes. TRUE
8) Knowledge management systems are used to gather and distribute the firm's essential
operational data, such as sales reports. False (KMS manage expertise; MIS/TPS
manage operational data).
9) Senior management is responsible for directing the day-to-day activities of the
[Link] (Operational management handles day-to-day tasks).
10) Operational-level manufacturing systems deal with the firm's long-term manufacturing
goals, such as where to locate a new plant. False (Facility location is a strategic-
level decision).
Multiple Choices
11) The five basic entities that make up any business are suppliers, customers, employees,
products and services, and:
A) its environment.
B) manufacturing and production.
C) sales and marketing.
D) invoices and payments.
12) Which of the following is a cross-functional business process?
MIS-200, Chapter 2, Review Questions Assignment
Due Date: September 25, 2019
Name: ID ID
A) Hiring an employee
B) Identifying a customer
C) Fulfilling a customer order
D) Creating an invoice
13) The three principal levels of hierarchies within a business organization are:
A) management, knowledge workers, and service workers.
B) senior management, middle management, and operational management.
C) management, data workers, and operational management.
D) senior management, operational management, and workers.
14) A computerized system that performs and records the daily dealings necessary to conduct
business is classified as a(n):
A) executive support system.
B) management-level system.
C) decision support system.
D) transaction-processing system.
15) Which type of system would you use to change a production schedule if a key supplier
was late in delivering goods?
A) ESS
B) TPS
C) MIS
D) DSS
16) These systems are designed to summarize and report on the company's basic operations.
A) Management information systems
B) Decision support systems
C) Executive information systems
D) Transaction processing systems
17) Which type of system would you use to forecast the return on investment if you used
new suppliers with better delivery track records?
A) ESS
B) TPS
C) MIS
D) DSS
18) ________ systems integrate and share information from suppliers, manufacturers,
MIS-200, Chapter 2, Review Questions Assignment
Due Date: September 25, 2019
Name: ID ID
distributors, and logistics companies.
A) Collaborative distribution
B) Supply-chain management
C) Reverse logistics
D) Enterprise planning
19) ________ systems provide information to coordinate all of the business processes that
deal with customers in sales, marketing, and service to optimize revenue, customer
satisfaction, and customer retention.
A) CRM
B) MIS
C) ESS
D) CPS
20) Buying or selling goods over the Internet is called:
A) e-commerce.
B) e-business.
C) an intranet.
D) an extranet.
21) The principal liaison between the information systems groups and the rest of the
organization is a(n):
A) programmer.
B) information systems manager.
C) systems analyst.
D) CIO.
Discussion Questions
1) You have been hired by Inspiration Inc., to help improve their profit margin. Inspiration
Inc. is a business communications consultancy that services many clients in different
industries throughout the U.S. The end products of the company are customized
recommendations for the best use of a client's existing resources for improving internal
communications, typically delivered via documentation in different media. The company
has approximately 100 consultants, all of whom are located in their central headquarters
in Chicago. What system do you recommend to improve the company's business
processes and increase their profit margin?
MIS-200, Chapter 2, Review Questions Assignment
Due Date: September 25, 2019
Name: ID ID
For Inspiration Inc., a professional services firm with 100 consultants, I
recommend implementing a Knowledge Management System
(KMS) combined with Professional Services Automation
(PSA) software.
Primary Recommendation: Knowledge Management System
(KMS)
Since the company’s "products" are customized documentation and
recommendations, their most valuable asset is the collective expertise of
their 100 consultants.
Eliminate Redundancy: A KMS allows consultants to store and retrieve
past research, templates, and successful communication strategies. This
prevents "reinventing the wheel" for similar clients in different industries,
significantly reducing the labor hours required for each project.
Improve Quality: By accessing a central repository of "best practices,"
consultants can deliver higher-quality, consistent results, which
supports product differentiation and justifies premium pricing.
Course Hero +2
Supporting Recommendation: Professional Services
Automation (PSA)
To directly address profit margins, PSA software (like BigTime, ProjectFlow,
or Certinia) integrates the following business processes into one "quote-to-
cash" platform:
Resource Management: With all 100 consultants in one location, a PSA
provides visibility into who is over-allocated or under-utilized.
Optimizing utilization rates—the percentage of time spent on billable work
—is the fastest way for a consultancy to increase profit.
MIS-200, Chapter 2, Review Questions Assignment
Due Date: September 25, 2019
Name: ID ID
Time and Expense Tracking: Automating these captures "revenue
leakage" (unbilled hours) and ensures expenses are accurately passed to the
client.
Real-Time Profitability Dashboards: Managers can monitor "budget vs.
actuals" during a project rather than waiting until it's over, allowing them to
catch scope creep before it erodes the margin.
TechForce Services +3
How This Increases Profit Margin
[Link] Costs: Reduced administrative overhead and more efficient use of
consultant time lower the "cost of goods sold" (consultant labor).
[Link] Revenue: Improved document quality and faster delivery times
enhance the firm's reputation, leading to better client retention and the
ability to charge higher fees.
TechForce Services +2
Would you like a comparison of specific PSA software
tiers (e.g., Asana vs. Productive) to see which fits a mid-sized team of 100
best?
2) You are consulting on software purchases for a young translation agency, whose
headquarters are in New Jersey, but who works with translators located globally.
Headquarters needs to share documents with translators, and groups of translators
working on the same documents also need to communicate with each other, in real time if
possible, as many people are working in different time [Link] is your process for
determining the most appropriate collaboration software. (2) And in this particular case,
what features will you be looking for?
To find the right fit for a New Jersey-based agency managing a global
workforce, I would follow a structured selection process focused on bridging
the gap between time zones.
1. Process for Determining Software
MIS-200, Chapter 2, Review Questions Assignment
Due Date: September 25, 2019
Name: ID ID
My approach involves four key stages to ensure the tool fits the actual
workflow:
Requirements Gathering: Interview the New Jersey team and a sample of
global translators to identify "pain points" (e.g., file version confusion,
missed messages).
Infrastructure Audit: Assess the internet reliability and hardware used by
translators in different regions to ensure the software isn't too "heavy" for
slower connections.
Vendor Shortlisting & Scoring: Compare tools based on a matrix of cost,
security, ease of use, and integration with Translation Memory (TM) tools.
Pilot Program: Run a "live" translation project with a small group of users
to test real-time syncing and notification reliability before a full rollout.
2. Essential Features for this Case
Because your team is dispersed across multiple time zones, I would
prioritize these specific features:
Co-Authoring & Version Control: Since groups work on the same
documents, the software must allow simultaneous editing (like Google
Docs or Microsoft 365) and provide a clear version history to prevent data
loss.
Asynchronous & Synchronous Communication: A mix of real-time
chat (for overlapping shifts) and threaded comments (for those waking up
later) is vital to keep context tied to specific parts of a document.
Time Zone Awareness: Calendars and notification settings that
automatically adjust to the user's local time to prevent 3:00 AM pings.
Cloud-Based Accessibility: A "Single Source of Truth" where the latest
document version lives in the cloud, eliminating the need to email files back
and forth.
MIS-200, Chapter 2, Review Questions Assignment
Due Date: September 25, 2019
Name: ID ID
Robust Security/Permissions: Granular access controls so translators
only see the specific documents they are assigned, protecting
client confidentiality.
Centralized Task Management: A dashboard showing project status
(e.g., "In Translation," "Editing," "Final Review") so headquarters can monitor
progress without constant status meetings.
3) How can a good CRM system increase profits for a company?
A high-quality Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system increases
profits by simultaneously driving revenue growth and
achieving operational cost savings. By centralizing customer data into a
"single source of truth," companies can sell more effectively to existing
clients while reducing the administrative burden on their teams.
A1CRM +1
1. Driving Revenue Growth
Maximizing Customer Lifetime Value: It is significantly cheaper (60–
70% success rate) to sell to existing customers than to acquire new ones (5–
20% success rate). CRMs identify these opportunities through:
Upselling & Cross-selling: Analyzing purchase history to suggest
premium upgrades or complementary products at the optimal time.
Automated Renewals: Ensuring recurring revenue is captured by
automatically triggering invoices or reminders before contracts expire.
Higher Conversion Rates: Lead scoring and prioritization allow sales
teams to focus on "hot" leads most likely to close, which can increase
conversion rates by up to 300%.
Improved Retention: A mere 5% increase in customer retention can boost
profits by 25% to 95%. CRMs track "at-risk" accounts, allowing proactive
intervention before they churn.
MIS-200, Chapter 2, Review Questions Assignment
Due Date: September 25, 2019
Name: ID ID
Veloxity CRM +8
2. Operational Cost Reductions
Increased Productivity: Automating routine tasks—such as data entry,
follow-up emails, and meeting scheduling—can boost sales productivity
by 34% and reduce administrative tasks by 35%.
Lower Marketing Costs: Targeted, segmented campaigns ensure
marketing spend is directed toward high-potential leads rather than generic
"blasts," reducing overall marketing costs by up to 32%.
Reduced Human Error: Centralized data prevents costly mistakes like
double-billing, duplicate outreach, or lost customer information.
[Link] +3
3. Strategic Decision Making
Accurate Forecasting: Real-time dashboards improve sales prediction
accuracy by 42%, allowing for better resource allocation and budget
planning.
Inventory Optimization: Integrating CRM with production data helps
avoid overproduction or costly stockouts by aligning inventory with predicted
customer demand.
MIS-200, Chapter 2, Review Questions Assignment
Due Date: September 25, 2019
Name: ID ID