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The digital revolution has made data the single most important asset to companies worldwide. Big Data refers to the massive data sets that are analyzed to predict patterns and are too large to be processed by traditional softwares. Companies rely on big data to inform business decisions and to allow them to identify trends that would otherwise be near impossible to recognize. 

Transactional databases are responsible for documenting events and day to day activities within an organization, while analytical databases uses that information to draw conclusions or make predictions. The latter are explicitly designed to process large data sets.

There are 3 types of data analytics:

1. Predictive → using past data to predict future trends and patterns; think the purchase suggestions advertised to you that eerily fit your interests
2. Descriptive → quantitative business information ie. sales numbers
3. Prescriptive → used to formulate options for future courses of action or how to mitigate future risks

For the Business: Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) → ERP is a type of software or digital system that facilitates the management of operational activities, like accounting or procurement by integrating all their information and operations into one database. ERP’s accessibility allows for faster and clearer communication within the organization, increases report accuracy, and streamlines the process to make it simpler and less error-prone.

For the Customer: Customer Relationship Management (CRM) → CRM is the utilization of customer data by a company to improve the relationship with said customers. Companies collect information about customers’ basic information, customer service transcripts, purchasing habits, and much more, and use this insight to generate positive customer experiences. A satisfied customer is a returning customer, and they will be inclined to spend more or make a positive referral. Understanding their customers also allows companies to target advertisements to specific audiences by offering suggestions based on factors like customer history, geographical data, what similar customers purchased, what time of day, and many more.

ERP has an internal focus, while CRM has an external focus

An Entity Relationship Diagram is a visual representation of the relationship between entities in a process and creates a structured database. They can be used to document existing databases, develop new ones, or identify any issues within those that already exist. Being able to interpret the steps in a system in different ways allows for a greater understanding of the operations.

There are two types of ERD notations:

Chen’s notation → this notation is visually similar to swimlanes in its’ use of shapes to create a diagram. Entities are indicted by rectangles and represent a noun. Circles are used to describe the attributes of an entity (adjectives or characteristics). Diamonds are used to describe the relationship between symbols (verb).

Crow’s Foot notation → this notation creates a box for each entity, then lists the attributes below in the same box. Entities contain a unique identifier called the primary key (PK) that cannot be shared between multiple values. Relationships can be one-to-one, one-to-many, or many-to-many, and is determined by whether there is a crow’s foot represented at the end of the connectors.

 

Swim lane diagrams are a way to visually represent all the steps of an information system in chronological order, who does what and at which stage. It’s a type of flow chart categorized by lanes (hence the name), and each lane represents a different actor in the system. These actors can be individuals, groups, divisions, or any similar entity, so long as the actor named is responsible for the steps in the assigned lane. 

Steps in the diagram take a shape: Circle → start & end ; Rectangle → an activity in process ; Diamond → a decision that needs to be made ; Arrow → direction of the flow of the process ; Cylinder → stored data

Swimlanes are particularly useful to companies for identifying possible redundancies in the process, inefficiencies, or general problem areas. Visual representation in a logical manner makes it easier for our brains to process the information.

Information systems are databases used for the collection, storage, and analysis of information within an entity. Systems surround us and MIS teaches us how to use information technology in order to streamline business processes and create solutions. The manner in which we are able to manipulate information creates value, and systems create automated processes that help us process and analyze that information.

Systems can be developed internally or externally. The latter can be done via outsourcing or cloud computing, which has become increasingly popular and provides high scalability, though also comes with a partial loss of control and heightened security risks.

Internal development can be done via Life Cycle Development, however this method is time consuming as it contains 6 stages, lots of documentation, and has become the less popular option. Instead, companies are turning to Rapid Application Development to deploy their systems. RAD format is as follows: a prototype of a system is launched, and then modified based on user feedback. RAD is an example of an agile SDLC.