Information Systems Essay

The Dual Nature of Information Systems
FedEx
$32 billions family, the largest express transportation company and delivers millions of packages and millions of pounds of freight to 220 countries and territories each day.
Uses interconnected information systems to coordinate more than 140,000 employees, hundreds of aircrafts, and tens of thousands of vehicles worldwide.
Information Systems for Competitive Advantage
The systems were not developed solely because managers in these organizations waned to do things faster, but to help gain and sustain some competitive advantage.
Firms ability to do something better, faster, cheaper, or uniquely when compared with rival firms in the market.
Strategic
A way of thinking in which plans are made to accomplish specific goals.
Why Information Systems Matter??
Nicholas Carr
“IT Doesn’t Matter”
Argued that information technology becomes more persuasive
Becomes more standardized and ubiquitous, more of a commodity that is absolutely necessary for every company.
I.T be focused on cost reduction and risk mitigation.
Investing in I.T. for differentiation/competitive is futile.
I.S. Ethics
Luddites opposed technological progress during industrialization, neo-Luddites oppose in information systems.
Fearing negative impacts such as social decay, increased consumerism, or loss of privacy.
Computer Ethics
Issues and standards of conduct as they pertain to the use of information systems.
Information Privacy
What information an individual should have to reveal to others in the workplace or though other transactions, such as shopping online.
Make purchase online, vendors are NOT required by law to respect your privacy.
Can track what pages you look at, what products you examine in detail, which products you choose to buy, method of payment, where product was delivered
Can sell it to other vendors, producing spam mail, calls from telemarketers.
Review the privacy policy you do business with and refuse to do business with those that do not have clear policy, or don’t respect your privacy.
Choose Websites that are monitored by Independent Organizations.
Avoid having “Cookies” left on your machine.
Visit sites “anonymously”
Use Caution when requesting Confirmation E-mail.
Information Accuracy
Ensuring the authenticity and fidelity of information as well as with identifying who is responsible for informational errors that harm people.
People shouldn’t blame the computer is errors are found. After all, people designed it, built it and entered data into it in the first place.
Information Property
Who owns information about individuals and how that information can be sold and exchanged.
The information that is stored in thousands od databases by retailers, credit card companies, and marketing research companies??
The company that maintains the database of customers, or subscribes legally owns the information and is free to sell it.
Information Accessibility
Focuses on defining what information a person or organization has the right to obtain about others and how this information can be accessed and used.
Electronic Communications Privacy Act 1986
Made it difficult for anyone to eavesdrop on phone conversations.
Digital Divide
Gap between those individuals in our society who are computer literate and have access to information resources like the Internet and those who do not.
MAJOR ethical challenges facing society today.
“access to raw materials and money fueled the industrial revolution.” (But in the informational society, the fuel, the power, is knowledge.
Once Laptop per Child(OLPC)
Distribute low-cost laptop computer to children in developing countries around the world.

The Rise of Outsourcing
Downsizing- (rightsizing) looking for way to streamline business functions and to slash costs and replace people.
Often use the IS function and technology as the lever for shrinking the organization, by reducing personnel head count and making the organization more

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