The Development of Management Information Systems :: Business Management Studies

The Development of Management Information SystemsThe role of business teaching systems has changed and expanded overthe last four decades.In the incipient decade (1950s and 60s), electronic data processingsystems could be afforded by only the largest organizations. Theywere used to bear witness and store bookkeeping data such as journalentries, specialized journals, and ledger accounts. This was strictlyan operations support role.By the 1960s management reading systems were used to generate alimited range of predefined reports, including income statements (theywere called P & Ls back then), balance sheets and sales reports. Theywere trying to arrange a purpose making support role, but they werenot up to the task.By the 1970s decision support systems were introduced. They wereinteractive in the sense that they allowed the user to choose mingled withnumerous options and configurations. Not only was the user allowedcustomizing outputs, they also could configure the programs to the irspecific needs. There was a cost though. As part of your mainframeleasing agreement, you typically had to payment to have an IBM systemdeveloper permanently on site.The main development in the 1980s was the introduction ofdecentralized computing. Instead of having one large mainframe ready reckoner for the entire enterprise, numerous PCs were spread aroundthe organization. This meant that instead of submitting a job to thecomputer department for batch processing and waiting for the expertsto perform the procedure, each user had their own computer that theycould customize for their own purposes. Many poor souls fought withthe vagaries of DOS protocols, BIOS functions, and DOS batchprogramming.As people became comfortable with their unused skills, they discoveredall the things their system was capable of. Computers, instead ofcreating a paperless society, as was expected, produced mountains ofpaper, most of it valueless. Mounds of reports were generated justbecause it was possible to do so. This information overload wasmitigated just about in the 1980s with the introduction of executiveinformation systems. They streamlined the process, giving theexecutive exactly what they wanted, and only what they wanted.The 1980s also saw the first commercialized application of artificialintelligence techniques in the form of expert systems. Theseprograms could give advice within a very limited subject area. Thepromise of decision making support, first attempted in managementinformation systems back in the 1960s, had step-by-step, come to