Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
•
For any type of decision, information needs are specified, including sources, access,
interpretation, and quality assessment, as well as persons engaged in decision making.
•
Business processes and information flows are defined.
•
Ways of reengineering the business model to satisfy the IRM principles, including
specification of the Information Systems and Technologies useful for the given case,
are defined.
•
The price of implementation of the Information System, including training of personnel,
is evaluated.
•
The overall performance of a company if it applies these procedures, compared to
existing practices, is assessed.
•
Feasibility is assessed, and recommendations are defined.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PERFORMED
RESEARCH
This training approach, described in the previous section, was applied for the first time
in the 1999-2000 academic year. Feedback from students was positive. Some students from
this class shared that they had implemented the recommendations reached in class with
significant success in their companies. This encouraged me to continue with the same training
model and to research alumni performance.
Two groups of students, one trained according to the initial model (trained in the period
of 1996-1999), and the other (trained after 1999), working for companies with similar size and
type of activities, in similar key managerial positions, were identified and approached (Table
1). This actually excludes large- or medium-sized enterprises, state's owned institutions, and
branches of international companies.
Further research includes identifying and applying to both groups a set of measurable
criteria, which will allow clear identification of the benefits of the two approaches and will
serve to further improve the training model. The criteria reflect objectives of the IRM course.
Comparison was performed according to the following criteria:
C1:
Existence of proper organization of internal information, facts, suppliers and supplies,
delivery, claims, etc., to allow traceability of events
C2:
Existence of proper organization of collecting and evaluating relevant external infor-
mation
Table 1. The two groups of companies
Type of Activities
“Initial” Model
“Real-Live Cases” Model
S1: Providing
intellectual
services
Consulting: assets evaluation
for enterprises privatization
Consulting:
Personnel
Agency
S2: Providing material
services
Garage
Home renovation
T: Trade
Species for meat production
Electrical supplies
P: Production
Software
Software
