3.0 The Problems Faced by the Company
When looked at from within, it is apparent that things are not going very well at this organisation and there are a number of issues that are of hampering the effectiveness of the management of information across the organisation. The reason here is the lack of automation of the system and the apparent absence of contemporary technology in the present system. The management of company information is currently undertaken manually and the manual nature of the system means that there are a number of issues relating to speed of delivery of information and reduction of productivity. The present system is ridden with errors and exhibits a high propensity of this could have a devastating impact on the company in the long run.
In this organisation, the dissemination, storage and processing of information is currently done manually and this gives rise to many issues concerning performance efficiency and things get done very slowly and the risk of human error is very high.
In summary, it can be said that the following issues would be the most significant and would cause for the organisation to experience a reduction of performance and might find themselves unable to compete equally in the international sphere:
- Issue concerning speed and efficiency
- Issue concerning the lack of security
- Issue concerning risk of errors
- Issue concerning low efficient of communication potency
With the presence of such issues, it is impossible for this company to become competitive and continue to be profitable in an environment that is very challenging and full of obstacles and threats. Each of these issues discussed above are now discussed in more depth.
3.1 Problems Concerning Speed of Delivery of Information
It is apparent here that the speed of the present system is very unsatisfactory and information travels at a very low speed rate within the organisation and this causes a number of problems concerning efficiency. When information is to be convened from one department to another department, this is done manually or through the use of e-mail and this is certainly time consuming and makes the processes within the organisation to be very slow. The manual storage of company documents means that staff have to make long searches of information in order to be able to find the information that is being sought. Once again, the speed of the process is compromised.
3.2 Problems Concerning Security of the Information
A negative characteristic of this present system of information storage is that it lacks security. The important company documents are currently stored in file cabinets and can be easily accessed by unauthorized persons. The documents could contain important financial information that could be easily accessed by unethical persons and then provided to competitors that would be able to compromise the progress of this car manufacturer. There does not exits any kind of security mechanism to prevent such access and it is high recommended that this problem be overcome through the use of a system that would ensure security and enhanced protection of the information concerning the company.
3.3 Problems Concerning Communication
In relation to communication, the main problem that is faced by this organisation through the use of such an ineffective system. What is noticed at this organisation is that the dissemination of important information across the organisation is deeply flawed. For instance, when the communication takes place between members of the organisation in the top management and other members within the lower levels of the organisation or in the supply chain. The information that is exchanged between these parties are very important for the effective running of the important processes within the company and inefficiency in the communication of such information would lead to inefficiency in the processes of the organisation. The high propensity of errors within the communication system of the organisation poses a risk to the smooth operations and it increases the risks of breakdowns and the communication of flawed information that would result in bad decisions being made or wrong activities being carried out (Laudon and Laudon 2007).
Examining the above, the present system that is of a manual nature is indeed problematic in the sense that it is slow, it causes for errors in communication, lack of security, reduced organisational performance, and inability to become more competitive.
4.0 The Solution to the Problem - The Selected Area of Technology
The problems that have been identified have to be addressed in the most effective way possible and to do this, it is recommended that Avtovaz adopt the use of a management information system in order to be able to manage the dissemination, storage, processing and retrieval of information. In essence, it would mean totally replacing the present system with the new automated system that is likely to solve most of the problems that are being faced by this organisation.
4.1 What is the Management Information System
In this section, the management information system technologies will be explained. Within the sphere of information technology, there exists a number of very different technologies that are specifically designed to accomplish a number of different tasks an in some cases, these tasks are related. Information systems technology is a facet within the sphere of information technology and there also exists many kinds of information system types and the type of information system that is being proposed for Avtovaz is the management information system, which is a type of information system that would be responsible for the storage, processing, retrieval and dissemination of information between and across organisational departments. It also provides information that enables the management to plan and to coordinate business processes at the organisation (Laudon and Laudon 2007), (BPC – MIS, 2009), and (Management Information Systems, 2009).
This kind of management information system would be one that would positively automate the most important tasks at the organisation and it would eliminate the need for human contact in some cases, thereby reducing the risk of human errors from taking place. A system like this is capable of making even the most complicated tasks much easier (Laudon and Laudon 2007).
5.0 Advantages and Disadvantages of the Technology
In this area, the discussion would be on the comprehensively outlining the advantages and the disadvantages of the new technology.
5.1 Advantages of the Technology
5.1.1 Enhancements in Communication
One of the most important benefits of this technology is that it would enhance communication at the workplace and this would be done by making the activities relating to communication much more efficient, very effective and fast as well (BB – Advantages & Disadvantages of Technology, 2009)
5.1.2 Reduction in Costs
This technology would also ensure for a reduction in cost effectiveness through automating the entire process thereby eliminating the need for manual equipment that can be very costly in some cases. This technology would be made much more streamlined or the purposes of ensuring cost effectiveness and an elevation in the level of productivity that ultimately leads to an increase in profits and more efficient working systems conditions (BB – Advantages & Disadvantages of Technology, 2009) and (Management Hub – Information Management Advantages, 2009).
5.1.3 Creating New and Exciting Jobs
The implementation of this technology does permit for there to be new jobs made available and there relate mostly to be need for more technical expertise in the realm of IT. This means that the workforce of the organisation would be diversified further to include more technical experts in the field of IT (BB – Advantages & Disadvantages of Technology, 2009).
5.2 Drawbacks of this Technology
One of the main drawbacks of the implementation of this management information system is that it would cause for certain jobs to be lost as the use of IT would mean that staff that had been commissioned with the responsibility to carry out task in the present system would find their skills becoming obsolete as what they do can now be done through the computer (BB – Advantages & Disadvantages of Technology, 2009). This would also lead to a reduction in confidence and loss of job security among organisational members.
6.0 Impact of Management Information Systems Technology on Avtovaz
The various impacts of this new system will have on the organisation will now be examined in detail.
In essence, the primary impact of this software is that it would enable for a much more comprehensive distribution of information within the organisation. This would have the benefit of enabling important information to be provided to managers that would enable them to make sound decisions and this would put a stop to the inaccuracies and lack of competence in making decision making (Laudon and Laudon 2007). With highly accurate and comprehensive information available at the finger tips of these managers, they would be able to make timely decisions with positive outcomes.
The presence of a system like this would mean that there might no longer be problems relating to underproduction or overproduction, there would be no issue relating to the improper resource allocation and lack of timing in responding to critical situations. The use of a system like this would be very important when it comes to enabling managers be presented with information that is acquired in real time and that can be utilized to accomplish a variety of important organisational activities (Laudon and Laudon 2007).
The system would also ensure that there is a high level of connectivity between various departments and this system would ensure that all the important departments of Avtovaz are connected with one another and this then has the impact of facilitating the smooth transfer of information from one department to another.
The new system also has the impact of saving time for the most important processes within the organsation and it is theorized here that matters like the transfer of data would be made much faster and high efficiency levels can be achieved in comparison to the present inefficient computer system. The new management system would make it possible for comprehensive storage, distribution and processing of important organisation information
From the security aspect of things, it is learnt that the new management information system also has the impact of increasing the security of the information that belongs to the organisation, whereas the old system had left the organization’s information to be vulnerable and having a high likelihood of falling into the wrong hands. However, the new system has the impact of ensuring the security of the company’s information is ensured at all times.
7.0 Functionality of the Technology
This system is very functional in that it is capable of working under extreme conditions and the possibility of information overload is very unlikely for this system. The functionality of the system is evidenced by the fact that the system elevates the level of operational capability, it is easily update and open to the integration of new technologies. It also delivers efficiency of communication between Avtovaz’ organisational members and suppliers as well and it would be powered with a high level of security features (Laudon and Laudon 2007).
8.0 Similarities and Differences with Other Technologies
The three areas of technology that will be examined here would be internet application, ethics and security. Firstly, this system bears the similarities of an internet application in that it would require the internet to be able to be used successfully and efficiently across the organisation. Next, the system does have many security features in order to ensure that the information that is contained on the system is protected from unauthorized access. In relation to ethical issues, the system is designed to promote ethical practices like ensuring confidence of data and to prevent the misuse of data by parties without the authority to access the system and use the information. Hence, it can be said that this system does exhibit similarities of a internet application, a security application and an application to ensure ethical use of data.
9.0 Conclusion
The main issue that was identified as causing for low efficiency levels at Avtovaz was their highly outdated and improperly integrate computer network. The computer system was viewed as being dysfunctional without any sort of semblance and it clearly lacked the ability to provide this organisation with superiority when it comes to the collection, processing and distribution of information within the organisation and between departments. After making an examination of the problem that was faced by Avtovaz, the ideal solution was implement the use of a management information system, which was a type of information system that is designed to improve how the organisation handles its information. This can be said to be a system that is able to manage the important information to the upper management for decision making activities. This system was found to have a number of important advantages and a few disadvantages as well. It was found that the system was very functional and its functionality was something that would enable the organisation to perfect the management of information to achieve is strategic business objectives.
10.0 Reference
Laudon K and Laudon J, 2007, “Management Information Systems – Managing the Digital Firm” Pearson Education International – Tenth Edition
Management Hub – Information Management Advantages, 2009– available at:
Retrieved on – 18-11-2009
BPC – MIS, 2009– available at:
Retrieved on – 18-11-2009
Avtovaz, 2009 – available at:
Retrieved on – 18-11-2009
Management Information Systems, 2009 – available at:
Retrieved on – 18-11-2009
Business Bible – Advantages & Disadvantages of Technology, 2009: available at:
Retrieved on – 18-11-2009