Accounting Information Systems Solution Trial Exam

Table of contents

Multiple Choice

Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.

  1. Which of the following types of organizing the information systems function would you be most likely to find in a small company with 20 employees?  A) represented within each major division of the company B) as departments within each functional area C) as a separate, centralized department D) none of the above
  2. Decisions that are unique, rapidly changing, and not easily specified in advance are best suited to which type of system?  A) MIS B) ESS C) DSS D) TPS
  3. Buying or selling goods over the Internet is called A) an extranet. B) an intranet. C) e-business. D) e-commerce.
  4. _ uses a set of integrated applications to address all aspects of the customer relationship. A) MIS B) CLE C) CRM D) CLU
  5. You work for a highly successful advertiser that is just about to expand nationally. Of utmost importance will be finding a way to store and disseminate their clients’ continually updated branding guides, which include multiple image files and text documents, to all of the firm’s branches. What system will best serve these needs? A) an extranet with KMS capabilities B) a CRM C) a TPS with KMS capabilities D) an intranet with KMS capabilities
  6. Which type of system would you use to forecast the return on investment if you used new suppliers with better delivery track records?  A) MIS B) ESS C) DSS D) TPS
  7. The Smart Site Solution system used by Johnny’s Lunch to help identify the best locations to open new franchises is best categorized as a _ A) POS system B) KMS C) CRM D) DSS
  8. Which of the following occupations would NOT be categorized as an “interaction” job?  A) engineer B) business manager C) operations manager D) sales representative

  9. The CPO is responsible for _ A) overseeing the use of information technology in the firm. B) making better use of existing knowledge in organizational and management processes. C) ensuring that the company complies with existing data privacy laws. D) enforcing the firm’s information security policy.

  10. Decision-support systems are often referred to as business _ systems. A) analysis B) intelligence C) information D) modeling

  11. An information system for _would NOT be categorized as a KMS. A) distributing documents B) documenting the expertise of company specialists C) discovering new sales channels for a product D) enabling the discovery of new product applications

  12. What is the most important function of an enterprise application? A) enabling a company to work collaboratively with customers and suppliers B) enabling business functions and departments to share information C) ncreasing speed of communicating D) enabling cost-effective e-business processes

  13. The principal liaison between the information systems groups and the rest of the organization is a(n)_ A) CTO. B) systems analyst. C) programmer. D) information systems manager.

Short Answer

Write the word or phrase that best completes each statement or answers the question.

  1. The _ function is responsible for attracting, developing, and maintaining the firm’s workforce.

True/ False

Write ‘T’ if the statement is true and ‘F’ if the statement is false.

  1. ESSs are designed primarily to solve specific problems.

  2. Decision-support systems help managers make decisions that are unique, rapidly changing, and not easily specified in advance. 

  3. ESSs are designed to serve the middle management of the organization.

  4. Operational management is responsible for directing the day-to-day operations of the business and therefore needs transaction-level information. 

  5. Decision-support systems use internal information as well as information from external sources. 

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Management Information Systems Case Study Narrative Essay

  • Problems with upgrades from Quick books to new accounting software package? How could they have avoided?

These problems could have been avoided if when they made the initial decision for replacement of QuickBooks, they should have advised with a finance person before the change and or never made the change in the first place. Quick books was user friendly for the staff, and the newly implemented accounting system was more sophisticated and complicated accounting system than what everyone was used to. Nobody knew how to extract financial or operational data to make critical business decisions. Problems developing reusable reports were also a problem, this became too time consuming.

  • Why did SAP’s Business One prove to be a better choice for Wolf Peak than the new accounting software? Give Examples.

SAP was designed specifically for Wolf Peak’s Business, and offered affordable promises and provided rapid return on investments, provided accurate up to the minute view of the business. SAP was a simple environment therefore the employees learned SAP Business One quickly and used it effectively. SAP’s Journey team came to the business to implement and demonstrate how the system worked. The benefits far outweighed the initial costs of original accounting software that was purchased after QuickBooks. XL Reporter is a program that comes with SAP Business One that lets the company builds custom reports that proved extremely helpful. Wolf Peak is now expanding SAP into the warehouse for inventory and management as well as CRM Customer Relationship Management. Overall SAP Business One is fulfilling and assisting all aspects of Wolf Peak’s business.

  • Should most SME’s use an integrated business software suite like Sap Business One instead of specialized accounting and other business software packages? Why or Why not?

Reports that used to take months to create can now be created quickly by Business One. Business one creates an environment where the decision makers can get the information they want on a timely basis in a format they understand and can actually use. This program delivers useful information to make good solid business decisions for success. I believe that no individual brand or software is the superior. It is obvious that SAP Business One was a perfect match for Wolf Peak, but in the end, whatever works and proves success for the company’s employees and bottom line is the exact software match for the company. Overall it seems that an easy learning curve and information extraction is best for businesses.

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Oz/Management Information Systems

Oz/Management Information Systems, 6th edition Part Case Projects Part 1, “The Information Age” 1. Review the Gardeners+ part- and chapter-opening cases. Make a list of the inputs, processing, and outputs the owners must do. Now, armed with your list, go online to research a computer system—computer, printer, and any peripheral equipment—that you think will meet Gardeners+’s needs. Place that information in a spreadsheet that could be attached to the “Financial” section of Gardeners+’s business plan.

Remember, the banker will review the plan to determine the business’s funding needs. 2. Gardeners+ constantly needs to review its business to come up with new ideas to compete in the gardening business. Review Figure 2. 1 on page 43 of the book, which lists eight ways to gain a competitive advantage. You, Amanda, Mary, and Ed will be meeting to generate some strategic plans for maintaining Gardeners+’s existing business and expanding into new areas. Do some research online or in business magazines to see how technology is being used in the gardening industry.

Brainstorm some new uses for technology, too. For example, restaurants could give customers electronic menus and allow them to check items off electronically on a tablet PC. Come up with two new ideas for Gardeners+ to remain competitive. 3. Chapter 3 focuses on the use of information technology in various business functions. Review the business functions that Gardeners+ needs to carry out and make a list. Go online to research an application that will support as many of Gardeners+’s functions as possible. Explain why you believe this application is a good choice.

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How Humanitarian Logistics Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Supply Chains

Howden How Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Logistics How Humanitarian Logistics Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Supply Chains: A View from the Field Michael Howden Humanitarian Consultant michael. howden@gmail. com ABSTRACT Humanitarian logistics represents a broad range of activities taking place within humanitarian organizations, the bulk of these activities are also components of a broader humanitarian supply chain – the network involved with providing physical aid to beneficiaries.

Humanitarian logistics information systems improve information flows, which integrates logistics units more efficiently with non-logistics units within the humanitarian supply chains and provides better feedback to donors, ensuring more effective operations. Humanitarian logistics activities occur across the disaster management cycle. Humanitarian logistics information systems not only improve logistics activities in each phase, but can improve the continuity of humanitarian operations by sharing information throughout the transition of different disaster management cycle phases.

Through collaboration between organizations, humanitarian logistics information systems also have the potential to reduce corruption and the market distortion which can occur during humanitarian operations. Keywords Humanitarian Operations, Logistics, Supply Chain Management, Information Systems, Disasters, Disaster Management AUTHOR’S BIOGRAPHY Michael Howden completed a Bachelor of Computer Systems Engineering from the University of Auckland and originally worked as a software engineer in New Zealand.

He has worked for International Rescue Committee in Indonesia, Pakistan and Uganda developing and implementing their global logistics database ProLogs and for Save the Children US in Indonesia, developing logistics software and systems which were components of a broader supply chain management system. INTRODUCTION Within humanitarian operations logistics is required to procure, store and distribute supplies for the assistance of beneficiaries. In order to function effectively humanitarian logistics must coordinate with other actors and be considered throughout the lifep of humanitarian operations.

This paper will explore how humanitarian logistics information systems can: 1. Integrate logistics units into the broader humanitarian supply chain throughout the organization. 2. Enhance logistics activities and provide continuous support across the preparedness, response, transition, recovery and mitigation phases of disaster management cycle. 3. Create new possibilities for collaboration between humanitarian organizations. In these ways humanitarian logistics information systems can also improve the efficiency and effectiveness of humanitarian operations.

HUMANITARIAN LOGISTICS INFORMATION SYSTEMS IN THE HUMANIATARIAN SUPPLY CHAIN Humanitarian Logistics Humanitarian organizations can include government agencies such as United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID), multilateral agencies such as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Program (WFP), non-government organizations (NGOs) such as Save the Children and Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) and members of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

Many humanitarian Proceedings of the 6th International ISCRAM Conference – Gothenburg, Sweden, May 2009 J. Landgren and S. Jul, eds. Howden How Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Logistics organizations will engage in long term development activities as well as disaster management activities supporting people affected by disasters. This paper will only discuss humanitarian logistics as it is applied in disaster management. Humanitarian organizations usually include logistic units which can have different functions depending on the organizations or even the disaster and can include: Procurement • Warehousing • Fleet Management • Transportation (of both supplies and people) • Asset Management • Building Management • Security • Information Technology (IT) • Radio Communications Humanitarian operations consist of a diverse range of activities, therefore logistics in this context can have a broader scope than in the commercial sector. Areas such as security and IT may be considered under logistics due to respective military or technical experience of logisticians, either currently or historically within an organization.

Humanitarian Supply Chains In this paper a humanitarian supply chain refers to the network created through the flow of supplies, services, finances and information between donors, beneficiaries, suppliers and different units of humanitarian organizations for the purpose of providing physical aid to beneficiaries (Mentzer et al. 2001). Humanitarian supply chains include functionalities which do not typically fall into the field of humanitarian logistics.

Managing relationships with donors, performing needs assessments, planning for supplies required and monitoring and evaluating the impact of distributed supplies, are usually the responsibility of non-logistics program units. Figure 1 presents a summary of the major flows within both humanitarian supply chains and humanitarian logistics. Proceedings of the 6th International ISCRAM Conference – Gothenburg, Sweden, May 2009 J. Landgren and S. Jul, eds. Howden How Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Logistics Figure 1.

Humanitarian Logistics and Humanitarian Supply Chain Flows This paper will focus on the value of information systems for logistic units of NGOs within the humanitarian supply chain. Integrating Logistics into Supply Chain Management With the exception of organizations which specialize in disaster response or distribution, such as Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) and World Food Program (WFP) respectively, the core business of humanitarian organizations tend towards health, education, protection and economic development.

Logistics units are only considered as a function to support these activities of humanitarian organizations. Logistics units have traditionally been marginalized within organizations (Rickard, 2003) and logisticians have been “pigeonholed” in the field, making it hard to move into management positions (Chaikin, 2003). This has contributed to a silo mentality in regards to logistics within humanitarian organizations. Better integrating logistics with other units within the organization will form stronger humanitarian supply chains.

In order to integrate logistics into broader humanitarian supply chains, a clear distinction is required between the two. In Indonesia, one major NGO moved all logistics functionality into a supply chain management unit. In the terms logistics and supply chain management are used interchangeably (Rickard, 2006) and personal discussions with humanitarian professional have revealed the there is not a clear distinction between the terms logistics and supply change management, and some have regarded any differences are semantics.

In literature on humanitarian organizations there is a shift from logistics to supply chain management (Thomas and Kopczak, 2005) Humanitarian supply chains include units implementing programs, managing grants with donors, controlling budgets and monitoring activities which must coordinate with logistics units. Humanitarian supply chains cannot be built by solely increasing the capacity or responsibility of individual units, but are formed by Proceedings of the 6th International ISCRAM Conference – Gothenburg, Sweden, May 2009 J. Landgren and S. Jul, eds. Howden

How Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Logistics the creation of stronger links between units within the supply chain. Humanitarian logistics information systems can improve the flow of information with other units, in a mutually constructive manner, improving the effectiveness of the humanitarian supply chain. Humanitarian logistics information systems can: • Enhance needs assessments by ensuring that field staff know what supplies are available for beneficiaries, either in local warehouses, pre-positioned emergency stocks or from local and international markets. Share lists of supplies available in both local and international markets, including prices and lead times, logisticians to empower program staff to better plan their procurement activities. • Keep program staff informed of procurement activities will help to develop an understanding of the constraints within logistics and create trust. • Provide budget holder more accurate financial information regarding funds which are committed within the procurement process, to avoid the over or under spending of budgets. •

Provide warehouse inventory reports to program staff to allow them to take more responsibility for their supplies, and ensure that they are utilized effectively. • Share information on the distribution of supplies to allow program staff to better monitor and evaluate activities and avoid the need for duplicate record keeping between logistics and programs. • More accurately divide logistics overhead costs such as warehouse rental, transportation and logistic staff wages into program budgets according to the activities logistics is supporting.

Information empowers program units to become more engaged consumers of logistic services. In this way information systems can integrate logistics into humanitarian supply chains and improve the effectiveness and efficiency of humanitarian operations. The improved information flow from humanitarian logistics information systems will also contribute to the overall effectiveness of the humanitarian operation. The Value of Information in the Humanitarian Supply Chain Information plays a significant role in humanitarian supply chains.

In humanitarian supply chains is that the end recipient of aid (the beneficiary) is decoupled from the commercial transaction and has no direct influence over what supplies they receive (Gray and Oloruntob, 2006). The key decision makers within the humanitarian supply chain are the donors who are funding the operation and many NGOs regard the donor as the customer in the humanitarian supply chain (Beamon and Balcik, 2006). In commercial supply chains, the end recipient decides what supplies they require, and fulfillment can be easily evaluated by monitoring the receipt of these supplies.

In humanitarian operations as supplies are determined by external assessments of the needs of the beneficiary, evaluating fulfillment become more difficult, as additional analysis must be done to determine if these needs have been met by the supplies. Figure 2. Donors, Humanitarian Organizations and Beneficiaries within the Humanitarian Supply Chain Humanitarian logistics information systems can provide accurate and timely information on what supplies are required, what supplies have been delivered to beneficiaries and in which locations.

With this information Proceedings of the 6th International ISCRAM Conference – Gothenburg, Sweden, May 2009 J. Landgren and S. Jul, eds. Howden How Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Logistics evaluation units should be able to determine if those supplies have met the needs of the beneficiary. This feedback ensures that donors and humanitarian organizations are engaged and responsive to the beneficiaries, and supporting aid according to the beneficiaries needs.

HUMANITARIAN LOGISITCS IN THE DISASTER MANAGEMENT CYCLE Response, Transition, Recovery, Mitigation and Preparedness The operations of humanitarian organizations in disaster management can be separated into four major phases: response, recovery, mitigation and preparedness (Haddow and Bullock, 2004). During humanitarian operations there will be overlap between activities from different phases, and a separate transition phase can be considered between the response and recovery phase (Asian Development Bank, 2004).

Humanitarian supply chains must provide supplies to beneficiaries in each of these phases (Kovacs and Spens, 2007) and these activities require logistic support (Perry, 2007), although the volume, variety of supplies and urgency will change according to the phase. Humanitarian logistics information systems improve the effectiveness of logistics units throughout the disaster management cycle and can provide continuity throughout the phases. Figure 3. Disaster Management Cycle (Haddow and Bullock, 2004). Preparedness

The preparedness phase involves building the capacity to respond to a disaster, such as working with communities to ensure they know evacuation options, pre-positioning emergency response supplies and building organizational capacity to respond to disasters. These activities are ongoing and are implemented prior to the onset of a crisis. Pre-positioned emergency response supplies tend to be less varied, as they are specific life supporting items, such as food, medical supplies, water and sanitation equipment, shelter, household kits, etc.

The necessities of life are less dependent on the social, cultural or economic context of the disaster, therefore it is easier to standardize the supplies required. Also, because it is not known if these supplies will be available in local markets, or if markets may be disrupted by the disasters, they will need to be procured internationally. Both Medecins Sans Frontieres and the Red Cross have standard catalogues of items for emergency response. These items can be procured internationally, with pre-existing arrangements with vendors, and are also pre-positioned in warehouses globally, ready to be deployed. Chomilier, Samii van Wassenhove, 2003; Coyne, 2006). Organizationally NGOs need to ensure that they not only have staff trained to respond to emergencies, but that they have the systems and process in place to support these staff. 80% of the disaster response phase consists of Proceedings of the 6th International ISCRAM Conference – Gothenburg, Sweden, May 2009 J. Landgren and S. Jul, eds. Howden How Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Logistics logistics activities (Kovacs and Spens, 2007) therefore in the preparedness phase organizations should focus on building the capacity of logistics units. Response

The response phase occurs immediately after the disaster, and activities are focused primarily on saving lives and preventing further damage. Humanitarian operations are most reliant on logistics during the response phase as they distribute food, medical supplies and other necessities of life to affected populations, and lives will be dependent on the speed of logistics activities. The response phase may last from days to months, depending on the scale of the disaster. While the humanitarian logistics is most significant during the response phase, it is important to consider its role throughout the entire disaster management phase.

Transition During the transition phase NGOs begin to look at providing ongoing assistance, such as temporary shelter and revitalizing basic social services (ref ADB). NGOs will also plan strategically to transition from implementing response activities to longer term recovery and mitigation programs. Logistics activities, such as identifying suppliers to in either local or international markets to provide supplies for longer term programs, ensure a smooth transition. Recovery The recovery phase involves aiding communities to return to their conditions prior to the disaster.

These activities may include training people and distributing supplies for livelihood building, reconstructing houses, buildings and infrastructure and may be carried out over a period of months to years. Across both the recovery and following mitigation phases the supplies are no longer essential for the lives of affected population and are therefore no longer required at such a high rate or with such short lead times. The activities across these phases are largely dependent on the social, cultural, economic and geographical conditions of the affected communities. These may vary hugely between different disasters.

Humanitarian organizations supported fishermen affected by 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami by distributing new boats and fishing equipment whereas the needs of landlocked communities recovering from 2005 Kashmir Earthquake were quite different. Humanitarian organizations will also attempt to procure supplies locally in order to support local communities and avoid flooding local markets through the influx of external supplies. The recovery phase represents a significant proportion of the duration and funding of a humanitarian operation and may last from 5-10 years (ADB reference).

In April 2005 the Government of Indonesia established a 5 year time frame for reconstruction after the Indian Ocean Tsunami, and activities are still ongoing at the start of 2009, indicating the long duration of the recovery phase. Recovery phase activities such as reconstruction and distributing supplies are essential for restoring the lives of affected people and require significant logistic support. Mitigation Mitigation involves increasing the resilience of communities to natural hazards to reduce the impact of disasters they cause. According to the specific vulnerability of the community these activities may include lanting mangroves to protect coastlines against cyclones, constructing dams and reinforcing buildings. Humanitarian organizations implementing these activities will require logistics support, although not typically at as large a scale as in the other phases. Proceedings of the 6th International ISCRAM Conference – Gothenburg, Sweden, May 2009 J. Landgren and S. Jul, eds. Howden How Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Logistics Summary Phase Preparedness Response Transition Recovery Mitigation Period Long Term Continuous Days – Months Months – Years Long Term Continuous Logistics Volume Low High Medium Low Supplies

Required Specific standard supplies prepositioned for disaster response Specific standard supplies: Food, medical supplies, water and sanitation equipment, shelter, household kits, etc. Varied supplies depending on the context of the disaster: reconstruction material, livelihoods equipment Varied supplies Urgency Low High: Lead times for supplies can make the difference between life and death. Medium: There may be government and donor pressure to complete recovery activities Low Procurement of Supplies Local International Local-International Local Table 1. Humanitarian Logistics Throughout the Disaster Management Cycle

Humanitarian organizations are required to provide physical aid to beneficiary throughout the disaster management cycle. Although these activities differ in volume, variety of supplies and urgency, there is enough commonality that standard processes and systems can be used by logistics units throughout the disaster management cycle. This avoids the overhead of developing multiple standards and implementing new systems when transitioning between phases. It is therefore important to consider humanitarian logistics as operating in each of the phases of the disaster management cycle. Humanitarian Logistics beyond the Response Phase

A large amount of literature on humanitarian logistics and supply chain management focuses on the response phase of a disaster and pre-positioning of supplies done in the preparedness phase (Beamon, 2004; Beamon and Balcik, 2008; Maspero and Ittman, 2008; Oloruntoba, 2007; Rodman, 2004; Thomas, 2003; Thomas et al, 2005). This could be influenced by a number of factors: • This is the phase in which logistics plays the largest role in proportion to the humanitarian operation. • The key focus of the response phase is the preservation of lives therefore improved logistics can be directly linked to lives saved.

During other phases of disaster management, the outputs become more varied, such as providing trainings to teachers and medical professionals. Therefore impacts, such as better education levels and healthcare in communities harder to measure. • The disaster response is the phase that creates the most media coverage, therefore may be the phase which experts outside of the humanitarian domain get the most exposure to and are most familiar with. Media coverage could also create a perception of more status with disaster response. This paper has shown that the field of humanitarian logistics is more broadly focused than just disaster response.

More focus needs to be placed on the role of humanitarian logistics in the transition, recovery and mitigation phases of disaster management. It could be argued that humanitarian organizations already have a higher capacity for disaster response than for disaster recovery. In Indonesia the Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Agency (BRR) claimed that in the response to the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami: “No one died of starvation, there were no deaths due to a lack of medical care or disease, law and order was maintained and major infrastructure—including telecommunications and electricity—was restored within a few weeks time. In contrast during the recovery phase there have been delays, underperformance and corruption. Humanitarian logistics information systems can improve logistics activities in each of the phases of disaster management and also help to provide continuity to logistics operations throughout the disaster management cycle. Proceedings of the 6th International ISCRAM Conference – Gothenburg, Sweden, May 2009 J. Landgren and S. Jul, eds. Howden How Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Logistics

Humanitarian Logistics Information Systems across the Disaster Management Cycle Humanitarian logistics information systems must be able to operate across the entire disaster management cycle. In order to be applicable for all phases, they must be scalable to manage the large volumes of supplies during the response phase, as well as the high diversity of supplies across the recovery and mitigation phases and manage the flow of information from the preparedness phase to the response phase, and during the transition phase.

A single humanitarian logistics information system which integrates information from all phases within the disaster management cycle will assist an organization in the complex task of transitioning their activities between the different phases. Preparedness NGOs prepare for disasters by pre-positioning emergency response supplies. It is equally important to implement humanitarian logistics information systems which can be utilized by logisticians responding to disasters.

Logisticians must be trained to use these information systems and simulations should be run in preparation for their use in disaster response. Humanitarian logistics information systems should also be used to record what emergency response supplies are available at the onset of the disaster. In response to Cyclone Nagris in Myanmar one major NGO was better able to more efficiently send air shipment of emergency prepositioned supplies by having maintained records of the their volume and weight.

This allowed the logistician to arrange the optimal charter flights required to transport the supplies. Response Humanitarian logistics information systems can eliminate the need for duplicate data entry and offer more timely and accurate information during the response phase (Lee and Zbinden, 2003). This not only increases the efficiency and effectiveness of the disaster response, but also assists in later phases of the disaster management cycle. After the response to the 2005 Kashmir Earthquake one NGO had a number of emergency response supplies remaining.

However, due to a lack of proper information systems, it was unknown which donor funded the items, and what the donor’s regulations were regarding their use. As a result, they were unable to be distributed in response to flooding in Pakistan the following year. Where warehouse inventory reports are not maintained, it is common for surplus stock from emergency response not to be utilized and to go to waste. Transition Once the response phase is complete, humanitarian logistics information systems will enable organizations to know what supplies have been distributed, and what supplies are remaining.

This will allow them to utilize surplus supplies in recovery activities or return them to pre-positioned stock and know what supplies were required, to better plan for the next disaster response. The transition phase will also typically involve the replacement of short term emergency response teams with longer term staff. If information regarding what supplies are currently stored in warehouses is not recorded, it may be forgotten as staff leave, and the supplies may remain unutilized.

Humanitarian logistics information systems can ensure that new staff are aware of what supplies are currently available, so they are able to utilize them. Recovery The recovery phase takes place over a period of years, which offers enough time for conditions to stabilize, and also the availability of funding, for humanitarian organizations to plan strategically and develop information systems. During disaster response humanitarian logistics operate in a realm of uncertainties and rapidly changing conditions. This is not an appropriate environment to develop, test or implement new systems.

There are already enough unknown variables present, without introducing new systems or software, which may contain bugs or functionality which needs refining. Implementing new systems requires the investment of time and resources, and doing this during a disaster response will detract from the primary goal of the humanitarian operation – saving lives. Developing humanitarian logistics information systems during the recovery phase provides the opportunity to involve the staff of the organization, which is essential, as the solution will be more appropriate to their needs and they will have ownership over it.

New systems can be implemented through trainings and simulations, however it is more effective as having systems which have implemented within the operations of the organization and socialized with staff in the field. In this respect the recovery phase can offer a suitable environment to develop and test new information systems for humanitarian logistics which can then be applied to disaster response activities. In 2007 one major NGO developed a warehouse database in Indonesia to support their recovery activities following the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.

In September 2007, they were able to deploy the same database in Proceedings of the 6th International ISCRAM Conference – Gothenburg, Sweden, May 2009 J. Landgren and S. Jul, eds. Howden How Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Logistics response to an earthquake in Indonesia. A staff member who was already using the database to manage supplies for the tsunami recovery effort was then easily able to use it to manage the distribution of emergency supplies in the area due to their familiarity with the system. Mitigation

Although logistics activities occur at a lower scale during the mitigation phase such as the procurement of supplies to reinforce buildings, it is important to ensure that humanitarian logistics information systems are still utilized by organizations, to ensure that they become standard practice with logistics units. This continuous use will institutionalize the systems within the organization and ensure the sustainability of their use across the disaster management cycle. HUMANITARIAN LOGISTICS INFORMATION SYSTEMS BETWEEN ORGANIZATIONS

Humanitarian supply chains could be viewed more widely to include the multiple organizations providing physical aid to beneficiaries in the same region. Humanitarian logistics information systems have the potential to enable better information sharing between organizations which can enhance the overall humanitarian operation (King, 2005). One area which could be improved by information systems is local procurement. Procurement is vulnerable to corruption through collusion between organization staff and vendors and the payment of bribes to choose specific vendors.

Analysis of procurement data is capable of revealing trends and irregularities, indicative of corruption, such as consistently purchasing from specific vendors or certain purchasers always receiving higher than average quotes. This analysis would be more effective using procurement data from different humanitarian organizations in the same region, as comparisons could be made between prices, to monitor if one organization is paying significant more for similar items, which could indicate corruption within that organization.

Humanitarian organizations often rely on local markets to provide supplies, however the large amount of purchasing activity following a disaster can often lead to inflation over supply and stock-outs. Complex analysis of purchasing trends from multiple humanitarian organizations, and improved information sharing with local vendors, could mitigate this, by spreading requirements over multiple vendors and informing them of expected demand. This could also allow humanitarian organizations to sustainably support and stimulate local markets.

Although there are many challenges in encouraging collaboration between humanitarian organizations, better humanitarian logistics information systems could facilitate collaboration by creating more incentives to do so. CONCLUSION Humanitarian logistics units are actors in a broader humanitarian supply chain and information systems can help to build logistics capacity of while also building better links with other units, better integrating logistics in the humanitarian supply chain.

Humanitarian logistics information systems can improve the effectiveness of humanitarian supply chains by providing timely and accurate information regarding what supplies are required and have been delivered, enabling donors to be more responsive to the needs of beneficiaries. Humanitarian logistics operates across the disaster management cycle. Humanitarian logistics information systems can improve logistics activities in each of the phases and also help to provide continuity to humanitarian operations throughout the entire cycle.

Humanitarian logistics information systems could also provide opportunities for better corruption prevention and market control through collaboration between different humanitarian organizations. Humanitarian logistics information systems can strengthen logistics units and integrate them with other units and across to the disaster management cycle to create more efficiency and effectiveness of humanitarian supply chains REFERENCES 1. Asian Development Bank (2004) Disaster and Emergency Assistance Policy, At: http://www. adb. rg/Documents/Policies/Disaster_Emergency/Disaster_Emergency. pdf, accessed 20 February 2009 2. Beamon, B. M. (2004), Humanitarian relief chains: issues and challenges, Proceedings of the 34th International Conference on Computers and Industrial Engineering, San Francisco, CA. 3. Beamon, B. M. and Balcik, B. (2008) Performance measurement in humanitarian relief chains, International Journal of Public Sector Management, 21, 1, 4-25 Proceedings of the 6th International ISCRAM Conference – Gothenburg, Sweden, May 2009 J. Landgren and S. Jul, eds. Howden

How Information Systems Can Improve Humanitarian Logistics 4. Chomilier, B. , Samii, R. and van Wassenhove, L. (2003) The central role of supply chain management at IFRC, Forced Migration Review, 18, 18-19. 5. Coyne, J. (2006) Humanitarian Logistics: Musing Aloud, Monday Developments, 24, 20, 12-13. 6. Gray, R and Oloruntoba, R (2006) Humanitarian aid: an agile supply chain? , Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 11, 2, 115–120 7. Haddow, G. D. and Bullock J. A. (2004) Introduction to Emergency Management, ButterworthHeinemann, Amsterdam 8. King, D. 2005), Humanitarian Knowledge Management, Proceedings of the Second International ISCRAM Conference, Brussels, Belgium, 1-6 9. Kovacs, G. and Spens, K. M. (2007) Humanitarian logistics in disaster relief operations, International Journal of Physical, 37, 2, 99-114 10. Maspero, E. L. and Ittman, H. W. (2008) The rise of humanitarian logistics, 27th Annual Southern African Transport Conference 2008, South Africa. 11. Mentzer, J. T. , DeWitt, W. , Keebler, J. S. , Min, S. , Nix, N. W. Smith, C. D. and Zacharia, Z. G. (2001) Defining Supply Chain Management, Journal of Business Logistics 22,2 12.

Oloruntoba, R (2007) Bringing Order Out Of Disorder: Exploring Complexity in Relief Supply Chains, Proceedings 2nd International Conference on Operations and Supply Chain Management: Regional and Global Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Bangkok, Thailand. 13. Perry , M. (2007) Natural disaster management planning A study of logistics managers responding to the tsunami, International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, 37, 5, 409-433 14. Rickard, J. (2003) A logistician’s plea, Forced Migration Review, 18, 9. 15. Rickard, J. (2006) Humanitarian Logistics: Musing Aloud, Monday Developments, 24, 20, 6-7. 6. Rodman, W. K. (2004) Supply Chain Management in Humanitarian Relief Logistics, Thesis, Department of Operational Sciences, Air Force Institute of Technology, Air University 17. Thomas, A. (2003). Humanitarian Logistics: Enabling Disaster Response, The Fritz Institute. 18. Thomas, A. and Kopczak, L. (2005) From Logistics to Supply Chain Management: The path forward in the humanitarian sector, Technical Report, Fritz Institute, San Francisco, CA, USA. Proceedings of the 6th International ISCRAM Conference – Gothenburg, Sweden, May 2009 J. Landgren and S. Jul, eds.

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Marketing Information Systems

E-commerce made its first major impact by registering on the economic horizon in 1998. In that year, Amazon made $1 billion.  In an article in The Economist on the 19th of August 2006, Amazon.com is credited as being the pioneer in teaching the world how to shop online. Today, Amazon’s product range is anything from […]

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Human Resource Information Systems

Office automation has become a reality. Stand-alone personal computers are universally used for word processing, and spread sheets have become the workhorses of office life. As a result, electronic records are being created virtually everywhere in the world. Wherever computers are used to carry out a function records are being generated. Records provide the primary […]

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Computer Ethics and Information Systems

“Computer Ethics and Information Security” a. Introduction The consideration of computer ethics fundamentally emerged with the birth of computers. There was concern right away that computers would be used inappropriately to the detriment of society compromising information security, or that they would replace humans in many jobs, resulting in widespread job loss. Ethics- Guidelines or rules of conduct that govern our lives, work, behavior and communication in both public and private undertaking. Ethics are a set of moral principles that govern an individual or a group on what is acceptable behaviour while using a computer.

Computer ethics is a set of moral principles that govern the usage of computers. One of the common issues of computer ethics is violation of copyright issues. Duplicating copyrighted content without the author’s approval, accessing personal information of others are some of the examples that violate ethical principles. Security – is the degree of protection to safeguard a nation, union of nations, persons or person against danger, damage, loss, and crime. Security as a form of protection are structures and processes that provide or improve security as a condition.

Information security means protecting information and information systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, perusal, inspection, recording or destruction Computer Ethics- is a branch of practical philosophy which deals with how computing professionals should make decisions regarding professional and social conduct. b. Discussion Computer Ethics Ethics deals with placing a “value” on acts according to whether they are “good” or “bad”. Every society has its rules about whether certain acts are ethical or not.

These rules have been established as a result of consensus in society and are often written into laws. When computers first began to be used in society at large, the absence of ethical standards about their use and related issues caused some problems. However, as their use became widespread in every facet of our lives, discussions in computer ethics resulted in some kind of a consensus. Today, many of these rules have been formulated as laws, either national or international. Computer crimes and computer fraud are now common terms. There are laws against them, and veryone is responsible for knowing what constitutes computer crime and computer fraud. The Ten Commandments of computer ethics have been defined by the Computer Ethics Institute. Here is our interpretation of them: 1) Thou shalt not use a computer to harm other people: If it is unethical to harm people by making a bomb, for example, it is equally bad to write a program that handles the timing of the bomb. Or, to put it more simply, if it is bad to steal and destroy other people’s books and notebooks, it is equally bad to access and destroy their files. ) Thou shalt not interfere with other people’s computer work: Computer viruses are small programs that disrupt other people’s computer work by destroying their files, taking huge amounts of computer time or memory, or by simply displaying annoying messages. Generating and consciously spreading computer viruses is unethical. 3) Thou shalt not snoop around in other people’s files: Reading other people’s e-mail messages is as bad as opening and reading their letters: This is invading their privacy. Obtaining other people’s non-public files should be judged the same way as breaking into their rooms and stealing their documents.

Text documents on the Internet may be protected by encryption. 4) Thou shalt not use a computer to steal: Using a computer to break into the accounts of a company or a bank and transferring money should be judged the same way as robbery. It is illegal and there are strict laws against it. 5) Thou shalt not use a computer to bear false witness: The Internet can spread untruth as fast as it can spread truth. Putting out false “information” to the world is bad. For instance, spreading false rumors about a person or false propaganda about historical events is wrong. ) Thou shalt not use or copy software for which you have not paid: Software is an intellectual product. In that way, it is like a book: Obtaining illegal copies of copyrighted software is as bad as photocopying a copyrighted book. There are laws against both. Information about the copyright owner can be embedded by a process called watermarking into pictures in the digital format. 7) Thou shalt not use other people’s computer resources without authorization: Multiuser systems use user id’s and passwords to enforce their memory and time allocations, and to safeguard information.

You should not try to bypass this authorization system. Hacking a system to break and bypass the authorization is unethical. 8) Thou shalt not appropriate other people’s intellectual output: For example, the programs you write for the projects assigned in this course are your own intellectual output. Copying somebody else’s program without proper authorization is software piracy and is unethical. Intellectual property is a form of ownership, and may be protected by copyright laws. ) Thou shalt think about the social consequences of the program you write: You have to think about computer issues in a more general social framework: Can the program you write be used in a way that is harmful to society? For example, if you are working for an animation house, and are producing animated films for children, you are responsible for their contents. Do the animations include scenes that can be harmful to children? In the United States, the Communications Decency Act was an attempt by lawmakers to ban certain types of content from Internet websites to protect young children from harmful material.

That law was struck down because it violated the free speech principles in that country’s constitution. The discussion, of course, is going on. 10) Thou shalt use a computer in ways that show consideration and respect: Just like public buses or banks, people using computer communications systems may find themselves in situations where there is some form of queuing and you have to wait for your turn and generally be nice to other people in the environment. The fact that you cannot see the people you are interacting with does not mean that you can be rude to them. Ethical Issues :- •Computers in the Workplace Computer Crime • Privacy and Anonymity • Intellectual Property •Professional Responsibility •Globalization Computers in the Workplace. Computers can pose a threat to jobs as people feel they may be replaced by them. However, the computer industry already has generated a wide variety of new jobs. When computers do not eliminate a job, they can radically alter it. In addition to job security concerns, another workplace concern is health and safety. It is a computer ethics issue to consider how computers impact health and job satisfaction when information technology is introduced into a workplace.

Computer Crime. With the proliferation of computer viruses, spyware, phishing and fraud schemes, and hacking activity from every location in the world, computer crime and security are certainly topics of concern when discussing computer ethics. Besides outsiders, or hackers, many computer crimes, such as embezzlement or planting of logic bombs, are committed by trusted personnel who have authorization to use company computer systems. Privacy and Anonymity. One of the earliest computer ethics topics to arouse public interest was privacy.

The ease and efficiency with which computers and networks can be used to gather, store, search, compare, retrieve, and share personal information make computer technology especially threatening to anyone who wishes to keep personal information out of the public domain or out of the hands of those who are perceived as potential threats. The variety of privacy-related issues generated by computer technology has led to reexamination of the concept of privacy itself. Intellectual Property. One of the more controversial areas of computer ethics concerns the intellectual property rights connected with software ownership.

Some people, like Richard Stallman, who started the Free Software Foundation, believe that software ownership should not be allowed at all. He claims that all information should be free, and all programs should be available for copying, studying, and modifying by anyone who wishes to do so. Others, such as Deborah Johnson, argue that software companies or programmers would not invest weeks and months of work and significant funds in the development of software if they could not get the investment back in the form of license fees or sales.

Professional Responsibility and Globalization. Global networks such as the Internet and conglomerates of business-to-business network connections are connecting people and information worldwide. Such globalization issues that include ethics considerations include: •Global laws •Global business •Global education •Global information flows •Information-rich and information-poor nations •Information interpretation The gap between rich and poor nations, and between rich and poor citizens in industrialized countries, is very wide.

As educational opportunities, business and employment opportunities, medical services, and many other necessities of life move more and more into cyberspace, gaps between the rich and the poor may become even worse, leading to new ethical considerations. Common Computer Ethics Fallacies Although computer education is starting to be incorporated in lower grades in elementary schools, the lack of early computer education for most current adults led to several documented generally accepted fallacies that apply to nearly all computer users.

As technology advances, these fallacies will change; new ones will arise, and some of the original fallacies will no longer exist as children learn at an earlier age about computer use, risks, security, and other associated information. There are more than described here, but Peter S. Tippett identified the following computer ethics fallacies, which have been widely discussed and generally accepted as being representative of the most common. The Computer Game Fallacy. Computer users tend to think that computers will generally prevent them from cheating and doing wrong.

Programmers particularly believe that an error in programming syntax will prevent it from working, so that if a software program does indeed work, then it must be working correctly and preventing bad things or mistakes from happening. Even computer users in general have gotten the message that computers work with exacting accuracy and will not allow actions that should not occur. Of course, what computer users often do not consider is that although the computer operates under very strict rules, the software programs are written by humans and are just as susceptible to allowing bad things to happen as people often are in their own lives.

Along with this, there is also the perception that a person can do something with a computer without being caught, so that if what is being done is not permissible, the computer should somehow prevent them from doing it. The Law-Abiding Citizen Fallacy. Laws provide guidance for many things, including computer use. Sometimes users confuse what is legal with regard to computer use with what is reasonable behavior for using computers. Laws basically define the minimum standard about which actions can be reasonably judged, but such laws also call for individual judgment.

Computer users often do not realize they also have a responsibility to consider the ramifications of their actions and to behave accordingly. The Shatterproof Fallacy. Many, if not most, computer users believe that they can do little harm accidentally with a computer beyond perhaps erasing or messing up a file. However, computers are tools that can harm, even if computer users are unaware of the fact that their computer actions have actually hurt someone else in some way. For example, sending an email flame to a large group of recipients is the same as publicly humiliating them.

Most people realize that they could be sued for libel for making such statements in a physical public forum, but may not realize they are also responsible for what they communicate and for their words and accusations on the Internet. As another example, forwarding e-mail without permission of the author can lead to harm or embarrassment if the original sender was communicating privately without expectation of his message being seen by any others. Also, using e-mail to stalk someone, to send spam, and to harass or offend the recipient in some way also are harmful uses of computers.

Software piracy is yet another example of using computers to, in effect, hurt others. Generally, the shatterproof fallacy is the belief that what a person does with a computer can do minimal harm, and only affects perhaps a few files on the computer itself; it is not considering the impact of actions before doing them. The Candy-from-a-Baby Fallacy. Illegal and unethical activity, such as software piracy and plagiarism, are very easy to do with a computer. However, just because it is easy does not mean that it is right.

Because of the ease with which computers can make copies, it is likely almost every computer user has committed software piracy of one form or another. The Software Publisher’s Association (SPA) and Business Software Alliance (BSA) studies reveal software piracy costs companies multibillions of dollars. Copying a retail software package without paying for it is theft. Just because doing something wrong with a computer is easy does not mean it is ethical, legal, or acceptable. The Hacker’s Fallacy.

Numerous reports and publications of the commonly accepted hacker belief is that it is acceptable to do anything with a computer as long as the motivation is to learn and not to gain or make a profit from such activities. This so-called hacker ethic is explored in more depth in the following section. The Free Information Fallacy. A somewhat curious opinion of many is the notion that information “wants to be free,” as mentioned earlier. It is suggested that this fallacy emerged from the fact that it is so easy to copy digital information and to distribute it widely.

However, this line of thinking completely ignores the fact the copying and distribution of data is completely under the control and whim of the people who do it, and to a great extent, the people who allow it to happen. Hacking and Hacktivism Hacking is an ambivalent term, most commonly perceived as being part of criminal activities. However, hacking has been used to describe the work of individuals who have been associated with the open-source movement. Many of the developments in information technology have resulted from what has typically been considered as hacking activities.

Manuel Castells considers hacker culture as the “informationalism” that incubates technological breakthrough, identifying hackers as the actors in the transition from an academically and institutionally constructed milieu of innovation to the emergence of self-organizing networks transcending organizational control. A hacker was originally a person who sought to understand computers as thoroughly as possible. Soon hacking came to be associated with phreaking, breaking into phone networks to make free phone calls, which is clearly illegal.

The Hacker Ethic. The idea of a hacker ethic originates in the activities of the original hackers at MIT and Stanford in the 1950s and 1960s. Stephen Levy outlined the so-called hacker ethic as follows: 1. Access to computers should be unlimited and total. 2. All information should be free. 3. Authority should be mistrusted and decentralization promoted. 4. Hackers should be judged solely by their skills at hacking, rather than by race, class, age, gender, or position. 5. Computers can be used to create art and beauty. . Computers can change your life for the better. The hacker ethic has three main functions: 1. It promotes the belief of individual activity over any form of corporate authority or system of ideals. 2. It supports a completely free-market approach to the exchange of and access to information. 3. It promotes the belief that computers can have a beneficial and life-changing effect. Such ideas are in conflict with a wide range of computer professionals’ various codes of ethics. Ethics Codes of Conduct and Resources

Several organizations and groups have defined the computer ethics their members should observe and practice. In fact, most professional organizations have adopted a code of ethics, a large percentage of which address how to handle information. To provide the ethics of all professional organizations related to computer use would fill a large book. The following are provided to give you an opportunity to compare similarities between the codes and, most interestingly, to note the differences and sometimes contradictions in the codes followed by the various diverse groups. Information Security

Information security means protecting information and information systems from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, perusal, inspection, recording or destruction Information Security Attributes: or qualities, i. e. , Confidentiality, Integrity and Availability (CIA). Information Systems are decomposed in three main portions, hardware, software and communications with the purpose to help identify and apply information security industry standards, as mechanisms of protection and prevention, at three levels or layers: physical, personal and organizational.

Essentially, procedures or policies are implemented to tell people (administrators, users and operators)how to use products to ensure information security within the organizations. Confidentiality Confidentiality is the term used to prevent the disclosure of information to unauthorized individuals or systems. For example, a credit card transaction on the Internet requires the credit card number to be transmitted from the buyer to the merchant and from the merchant to a transaction processing network.

The system attempts to enforce confidentiality by encrypting the card number during transmission, by limiting the places where it might appear (in databases, log files, backups, printed receipts, and so on), and by restricting access to the places where it is stored. If an unauthorized party obtains the card number in any way, a breach of confidentiality has occurred. Confidentiality is necessary (but not sufficient) for maintaining the privacy of the people whose personal information a system holds. [citation needed] Integrity

In information security, integrity means that data cannot be modified undetectably. [citation needed] This is not the same thing as referential integrity in databases, although it can be viewed as a special case of Consistency as understood in the classic ACID model of transaction processing. Integrity is violated when a message is actively modified in transit. Information security systems typically provide message integrity in addition to data confidentiality. Accessibility For any information system to serve its purpose, the information must be available when it is needed.

This means that the computing systems used to store and process the information, the security controls used to protect it, and the communication channels used to access it must be functioning correctly. High availability systems aim to remain available at all times, preventing service disruptions due to power outages, hardware failures, and system upgrades. Ensuring availability also involves preventing denial-of-service attacks. Authenticity In computing, e-Business, and information security, it is necessary to ensure that the data, transactions, communications or documents (electronic or physical) are genuine.

It is also important for authenticity to validate that both parties involved are who they claim they are. Non-repudiation In law, non-repudiation implies one’s intention to fulfill their obligations to a contract. It also implies that one party of a transaction cannot deny having received a transaction nor can the other party deny having sent a transaction. Electronic commerce uses technology such as digital signatures and public key encryption to establish authenticity and non-repudiation. c. Conclusion

Impact of Computer Ethics on Information Security The relationship between information security and computer ethics does not look, on the surface, readily obvious, and even appears remote. It is, however, credible. Culture, customs, trust and privacy that characterize security fall within the realm of ethics. Computer ethics alert information security management to ethical considerations and warn potential offenders of ethical consequences in situations where the technical tools or the legal measures fail.

In these cases, an ethical decision may be helpful in bringing about a solution. Furthermore, this conclusion is consistent with the following premises with respect to technical controls, computer laws and computer ethics: •Premise 1: The information security management community has applied control tools to meet the information security objectives of safeguarding confidentiality against unauthorized access, upholding integrity and maintaining availability. However, detecting computer crime is difficult, because the act is either traceless or difficult to trace.

Quantifying the damage is problematic since the victims all too often withhold reporting the crime for reasons including fear of recrimination and bad publicity. 8 Therefore, the technical control tools are ineffective, with respect to legal issues. •Premise 2: Computer laws have been enacted in various nations at an ever-increasing rate since the late 1980s, when business and the society at large were forced to face the magnitude and severity of damage not experienced prior to computer crimes. There has been a dramatic increase in specialized legislation to combat criminal behaviors related to computer crime, which include traditional crimes committed with the use of a computer and a variety of new, technologyspecific criminal behaviors spawned by the rapid emergence of computer technologies and the exponential expansion of the Internet. 10 However, despite the additional new laws, prosecution is deterred because the legal proceeding is a tardy, time-consuming and expensive process, even when there are well-justified intentions to proceed with legal action.

Also, legislation always lags behind the event such that either no appropriate laws are found or the new law is too late for the case in hand. Hence, computer laws are at best a deterrent to computer crime, not a guardian of information. •Premise 3: Computer ethicists assert, on the one hand, that special ethical issues are raised because computers are special technology, and query, on the other hand, why there should be computer ethics since, for example, there is no such thing as telephone ethics even though the telephone is a special technology that makes a profound change on the way individuals communicate with others. 1 However, information security is worthy of ethical consideration as many decisions in information technology affect a wide range of stakeholders. National and international computer societies have promoted codes of ethical practice and even written these codes into their constitutions. As technology advances, computers continue to have a greater impact on society.

Therefore, computer ethics promotes the discussion of how much influence computers should have in areas such as information security, artificial intelligence and human communication. As the world of computers evolves, computer ethics continues to create ethical standards that address new issues raised by new technologies. Reference http://www. isaca. org/Journal http://plato. stanford. edu/entries/ethics-computer/ http://www. cmpe. boun. edu. tr/~say/c150/intro/lit10. html

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