Info Systems and Organizational Strategy
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ScribdTranslationsInfo Systems and Organizational Strategy
Translated by
ScribdTranslationsINFORMATION SYSTEMS, ORGANIZATIONS AND STRATEGY
Information systems and organizations influence each other. That is why managers
They build information systems to serve the interests of organizations themselves.
time, they must be aware of the influence of information systems and adopt
an open attitude towards them to benefit from new technologies.
The interaction between information technology and organizations is very complex and receives the
influence of many mediating factors, such as structure, business processes, the
politics, culture, environment, and administrative decisions
Bidirectional Relationship Between Organizations and Information Technology
The bidirectional relationship is mediated by many factors, such as the decisions made or
managers stop taking, organizational culture, structure, policies, processes of
businesses and the environment.
ORGANIZATION
What is an Organization?
It is a social structure, formal, stable, that takes resources from the environment and processes them to
produce goods and services.
It is a formal legal entity because it must comply with laws and has rules and procedures.
interns.
Behavioral perspective of organizations
This perspective highlights group relationships, values, and structures. The people who
workers in organizations develop customary ways of working, they adhere to relationships
they exist and reach agreements with subordinates and superiors on how it will be done
work, in what quantity and under what conditions. Most of these agreements and feelings do not
is not explained in any formal regulation.
Building new information systems or rebuilding existing ones means much more than a
technical rearrangement of machines or workers implies that some information systems
modify the balance of rights, privileges, obligations, responsibilities, and feelings
of the organization that has been established over time.
Characteristics of organizations
- They are bureaucracies with well-defined divisions of labor and specialization.
- The authority is limited to specific actions determined by rules or procedures.
- They seek to hire and promote their employees based on their technical qualities and their
professionalism.
- It adheres to the principle of efficiency
- Standard Operating Procedures
- Political resistance to implement organizational change, especially the development of
new information systems.
- Resistance to technological changes that threaten common cultural assumptions.
Organizational environments
Organizations reside in environments from which they obtain resources and to which they provide.
goods and services. Organizations are open to the social and physical environment in which they operate.
They develop and depend on it. Without financial and human resources, the company would not exist.
Information systems play an important role because they help organizations to
perceiving the changes in their environments and acting upon them. Information systems are
key instruments for exploring the environment, as they help managers to identify the
external changes (new technologies, products, tastes) that may require a response from
the organization.
ECONOMIC IMPACT OF IT
IT changes the relative costs of capital such as the costs of information. It is possible
consider information systems technology as a factor of production that can be
replace traditional capital or labor.
As the cost of information technology decreases, it also replaces others.
Forms of capital, such as buildings and machinery, that remain relatively expensive.
As time goes by, we can expect investments in IT to increase due to its
descending cost in relation to other capital investments
IT also influences the cost and quality of information, and changes the economy of it.
last. It also helps companies reduce their size, as they can decrease the
transaction costs.
According to transaction cost theory, companies and individuals seek
to save on transaction costs, as well as in production. Using the markets is
expensive due to the implicit costs of locating and communicating with distant suppliers, supervising the
compliance with contracts. Buy insurance, obtain product information.
Traditionally, companies had tried to reduce transaction costs through
vertical integration, growing, hiring more employees or buying their own
suppliers and distributors.
Information technology, especially the use of networks, can help businesses.
lower their market participation costs making it worthwhile for companies
contract suppliers instead of using their internal resources.
Agency Cost Theory on the Impact of Information Technology on
Organization
Organizational Impact of IT
IT facilitates the flattening of hierarchies by broadening the distribution of information for
empower lower-level employees and increase administrative efficiency. It drives the
rights to decision-making at the lower levels of the organization because employees
from these levels, they receive the information they need to make decisions without supervision.
Thanks to receiving more accurate information in a timely manner, decisions are made more quickly.
and, consequently, fewer managers are required. Administrative costs are reduced as a
percentage of income and hierarchy becomes much more efficient.
IMPLICATIONS OF THE DESIGN AND UNDERSTANDING OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS
In order to report tangible benefits, information systems must be built with a
clear understanding of the organization in which they will be used. In our experience, the factors
important organizational factors that must be taken into account when planning a new system are the
next:
The environment in which the organization must operate
The structure of the organization: hierarchy, specialization, routines
The culture and policies of the organization
Organization type and its leadership style
The main stakeholders that affect the system and the attitudes of workers
that they will use it
Lost positions of tasks, decisions, and business processes for which it is designed.
information system
USE OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS TO ACHIEVE A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
It is said that companies that perform better than others have a competitive advantage.
about these. In any case, they have better performance in terms of income growth,
profitability or increase in productivity. But why do some companies perform
better than others and how do they achieve that competitive advantage? The model of competitive forces of
Porter is an answer to these questions.
What should a company do when faced with all these competitive forces? How
Can you use information systems to counteract some of these forces?
There are four general strategies that are frequently implemented through the
technology and information systems
Low-cost leadership
Product differentiation
Focus on a market niche
Strengthening familiarity with clients and suppliers