Database Systems and Business Intelligence - Principles of Information Systems - page 182

A huge amount of data is entered into computer systems every day. Where does all
this data go and how is it used? How can it help you on the job? In this chapter, you
will learn about database systems and business intelligence tools that can help you
make the most effective use of information. If you become a marketing manager, you
can access a vast store of data on existing and potential customers from surveys,
their Web habits, and their past purchases. This information can help you sell prod-
ucts and services. If you become a corporate lawyer, you will have access to past cases
and legal opinions from sophisticated legal databases. This information can help you
win cases and protect your organization legally. If you become a human resource
(HR) manager, you will be able to use databases and business intelligence tools to
analyze the impact of raises, employee insurance benefits, and retirement contribu-
tions on long-term costs to your company. Regardless of your field of study in school,
using database systems and business intelligence tools will likely be a critical part of
your job. In this chapter, you will see how you can use data mining to extract valuable
information to help you succeed. This chapter starts by introducing basic concepts
of database management systems.

Why Learn About
Database
Systems and
Business
Intelligence?

A database is an organized collection of data. Like other components of an information
system, a database should help an organization achieve its goals. A database can contribute
to organizational success by providing managers and decision makers with timely, accurate,
and relevant information based on data. For example, at Creative Artists Agency (CAA), a
successful Hollywood talent agency, a database helps agents organize information about
clients. 1 With clients such as Tom Cruise, Julia Roberts, and Brad Pitt, a talent agency must
prevent mistakes and misunderstandings. CAA's database can store various types of infor-
mation about each client. For example, the database informs agents about movies in which
Tom Cruise is acting, movies he is producing, products he is endorsing, and any other
pertinent information about the actor's career. Using the database, an agent could find all
clients that are associated with a particular product or film, or all the products and films
associated with one client. Databases also help companies generate information to reduce
costs, increase profits, track past business activities, and open new market opportunities.
In some cases, organizations collaborate in creating and using international databases. Six
organizations, including the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC),
International Energy Agency (IEA), and the United Nations, use a database to monitor the
global oil supply.
A database provides an essential foundation for an organization's information and
decision support system. Without a well-designed, accurate database, executives, managers,
and others do not have access to the information they need to make good decisions. For
example, the city of Albuquerque, New Mexico, provides its citizens with access to a database
that provides information on “water bills and usage, crime statistics in specific neighbor-
hoods, and election campaign contributions.” 2 The database provides citizens with direct
access to valuable information and frees city workers from having to supply the information.
A database is also the foundation of most systems development projects. If the database
is not designed properly, the systems development effort can be like a house of cards, col-
lapsing under the weight of inaccurate and inadequate data. Because data is so critical to an
organization's success, many firms develop databases to help them access data more efficiently
and use it more effectively. This typically requires a well-designed database management
system and a knowledgeable database administrator.
A database management system (DBMS) consists of a group of programs that manip-
ulate the database and provide an interface between the database and its users and other
application programs. Usually purchased from a database company, a DBMS provides a
single point of management and control over data resources, which can be critical to main-
taining the integrity and security of the data. A database, a DBMS, and the application
programs that use the data make up a database environment. A database administrator
(DBA) is a skilled and trained IS professional who directs all activities related to an organi-
zation's database, including providing security from intruders. A security breach at an Ivy

database management system
(DBMS)
A group of programs that manipu-
late the database and provide an
interface between the database and
the user of the database and other
application programs.

database administrator (DBA)
A skilled IS professional who directs
all activities related to an
organization's database.