2. Read the definitions and find corresponding words or expressions.

1. be based or founded upon something

2. to use a computer to control the way something is done, to store information etc

3. partner, colleague

4. of, relating to, or using the World Wide Web

5. to organize something according to a system

6. to make something happen

7. capable of existing together in harmony or designed to work with another device or system without modification

8. essential to the existence, development, or success of something

9. ultra-low

10. specialized software applications that enable group members to share information and also communicate with each other more easily

11. assign the responsibility for a bad or unfortunate situation or phenomenon to someone or something

3. Answer the questions.

1. What is the difference between R.Grant’s and P.Drucker’s opinions on

1. accounting systems

2. total quality management?

2. How does Peter Drucker explain the fact that IT has almost no influence on business management?

3. What is required by top management for the fulfillment of their tasks, according to the text?

4.

A. Speak on the top management tasks as you understand them: what they are and what you consider necessary for their implementation.

B. Discuss P.Drucker’s opinion on IT having almost no influence on business management. Do you agree with the guru? Why? \ Why not?

TEXT 5

1. Find the topic sentences of the paragraphs. Management Attitude about cis Resources and Their Use

1. Top-level management attitudes towards CIS functions often reflect the corporate image and also the prevailing practices within a given industry. That is, industry practices can provide an environment that requires a certain, minimal level of commitment to CIS. Beyond that, the aggressive or conservative posture from which management views its organization shapes the extent to which the company becomes leader or follower. For example, the insurance field is one in which CIS capabilities have become an integral part of the products and services offered to the marketplace.

2. Given this environmental requirement, it follows that all insurance companies will make a heavy commitment to CIS resources. However, bullish companies within this industry will tend to go beyond minimal requirements. An aggressive insurance organization might, for instance, develop special distributed processing packages for agencies or branch offices. Others might offer telephone inquiry services directly to the public, and so on.

3. In general, if the overall company attitude is bullish, management takes a liberal approach to supporting information services and resources. Bullish executives expect a CIS function to be a state-of-the-art activity, and to use the most advanced hardware and software. Interactive, user-friendly, rather than batch processing applications, tend to be in the forefront for a bullish company. The CIS department constantly seeks opportunities to add new and innovative applications to its list of services. New ways to use the technology are evaluated constantly. Thus, a bullish company may build its new applications upon a series of databases that implement advanced data modeling and database concepts.

4. In an aggressive company, computer equipment may be diversified. That is, while many companies choose to deal with a single equipment vendor, an aggressive company tends to tailor purchases to application requirements – regardless of vendor. This independence often can lead to support of a wide range of equipment by different manufacturers, including a mainframe from one manufacturer, magnetic disk and tape storage from another vendor, and terminals from still another vendor. Companies with this positive, aggressive attitude toward CIS usually are cost conscious about equipment purchases. The CIS function in these companies typically produces detailed evaluations of equipment of competing manufacturers before decisions are made.

5. An aggressive, dynamic corporate policy toward CIS functions often leads to decentralization of computing services. That is, several computing facilities may operate at remote work centers. These remote centers can be distant from or within the same building as the central CIS facility. For example, consider a chain of retail grocery stores. Each store has its own stand-alone computer that is linked by communication lines with a central mainframe at the corporate headquarters. Thus, each store has the capability to support real-time transaction and inventory control activities, and to send revenue and expense data to the central facility. In other types of industries, decentralization involves interactive information systems with terminals on the desks of most managers. Then, user-friendly application development packages are provided to encourage exploration of alternative solutions to problems and provide the basis for management decision support activities.

6. Planning in an aggressive company can be exciting and challenging – particularly challenging. The willingness of management to take risks on new technologies or methods has been found to create a level of excitement not present in more methodical approaches. CIS personnel are expected to keep abreast of state-of-the-art hardware and software developments. In this environment the CIS department often has to react quickly to change, whether changes are anticipated or unexpected.

7. In a nongrowth (bearish) company, it is generally assumed that existing computer equipment is adequate to handle required applications. Equipment often is made by a single manufacturer and is not necessarily the most advanced model or design available. Application software tends not to change frequently. Implementation of new hardware and application software generally follows long and careful investigation and extensive testing.

8. Decentralized computing capabilities rarely are implemented by bearish companies. If distributed systems are implemented, control over computing and applications development tends to remain with the centralized facility. There is little management commitment to maintaining a state-of-the-art support system.

9. Planning in a low growth or conservative organization takes on the corporate image – there tends to be less change, and changes that do occur are more gradual, less dynamic. Consider the situation stemming from purchasing policies: Since corporate policy dictates that equipment be purchased from a single vendor, there are few alternatives to explore.

Jerry L. Koory, Don B. Medley

Management Information Systems: Planning and Decision Making

South-Western Publishing Co., 1987, pp. 38 – 40