Challenges and Temptations in Information Systems and Technology

FB5003-5 Global Information Systems for Work: Designing Systems 1

What is Wrong with Systems? IT has had a huge impact on society Current business would be impossible without IT But IT is often under- or poorly utilised There are many unanticipated consequences Resistance to IT-based change is common People question if IT actually adds value or not How resilient are systems? 2

What is Wrong with People? Users don t know what they want Analysts don t understand business requirements Business people don t understand what IT can do for them Programmers cannot get what they need from specifications C-suite managers seldom understand the strategic potential of IT The CIO (if there is one) is disconnected from the rest of the organisation 3

Examples of System Problems Customers are billed incorrectly Systems fail to generate reports, invoices, Systems fail and lead to massive disruption for consumers and the organisation New work processes ignore effective work practices New systems don t match current work practices Environmental & political issues are part of the system too. We often hear Oh, sorry, it is the system s fault . 4

Southwest Airlines July 2016 A computer error on 20/7/16 caused 2300 cancelled flights! Website, operations, check-in, boarding passes, ticketing all shut down for 12 hours Estimated US$10 million of lost revenue Lots of inconvenience for passengers http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/southwest-outage-illustrates-critical- importance-of-it-systems/science-technology 5

Why? Lots of Temptations T1: Assume that technology is a magic bullet Technology cannot solve informational, human and organizational/cultural problems. In fact, it may make them worse Implementation of IT often puts pressure on the way people work, i.e. the culture. For instance, it may centralize the work process causing the elimination of regional managers So, although IT is often seen as a magical solution to problems, it may also be a magical enhancer or creator of problems! 6

Temptations T2: Technology is the system It s not! Just part of it, the supporting part We still need people, processes, work practices, information, management, and they all operate in an environment Techno-centric views are dangerous Technology is rarely solely responsible for system failures People usually play a more significant role in system failures than is commonly recognised. Covid-19 caused many systems to fail 7

Temptations T3: Believe that technology is responsible for itself! But business professionals & managers have a role to play! They can t leave it all to the IT people! IT people seldom understand the business anyway And is the technology self-managing? Does it not require managing? It is useful to have people who explore new technology options on a forward-looking basis Do you have a future technology department or team? 8

Temptations T4: Avoid measuring anything But if you don t measure, can you manage? What are the key performance indicators (KPI)? How are they measured? How are they connected or interdependent? Measuring 1-2 indicators won t be enough either. It has to be comprehensive. Measuring productivity alone is insufficient. How about consistency? Error rates? Down time? Customer satisfaction? Employee turnover? 9

Temptations T5: Pre-implementation Analysis tends to be superficial (at best) What exactly is the purpose of this system? What will it do? Who for? Why? How? How resilient do we want to new system to be? What changes do we need to implement in our people, procedures, structures, incentives, culture, training? What political or environmental issues might arise? How do reporting channels change? Who is in charge? Where does the buck stop? Do we have a project team, champion, and budget? 10

Temptations T6: Systems operate in a vacuum They don t! They have users. Users have values. Organisations have values, a history, a culture. People don t do what they are told in fact they often do the opposite. Circumstances change but few systems are that flexible. Systems are connected to other systems, both inside and outside the organisation. 11

Temptations T7: Systems implement themselves! But what about planning? Hiring new staff? Changing the organisation? Re-engineering processes? Persuading people? How long does it take to implement a new system? Minutes? Years? 12

Overcoming Temptations Focus on the real, business issues Focus on how work is done Don t let the schedule run the project Don t let politicians run the project Think of systems as work systems, supported by IT, not as IT systems. 13

So, What is a Work System? A work system is a system in which human participants and/or machines perform work using information, technology, and other resources to produce products and/or services for internal or external customers . Such systems procure materials from suppliers, produce & deliver products, find customers, create reports, coordinate work, 14

A Typical Work Problem A PR manager communicates with clients Using a variety of communication and presentation technologies And needs high bandwidth, as well as access to information But the corporate Internet connection is slow Worse, top management block some vital IT applications and censor access to the Internet Result: Work is ineffective and inefficient 15

Commonalities 1 In any work system, people are doing work are using information & technology In any work system, there are multiple success indicators, including: time, effort, quality of results, satisfaction of clients, So, the context is important. It is not just about IT. 16

Commonalities 2 In any work system There is a problem or opportunity The precise scope of the work system is not obvious Further analysis is required to see what is really involved There are a variety of work practices But human communication/persuasion skills are always important There are participants and customers They have different roles Participating in a work system is not the same as using technology 17

Commonalities 3 Information All work systems involve information of some kind This information is critical to system success Technology All work systems use a lot of technology which is used by participants and customers Environment All work systems operate in an environment, a social context and are expected to comply with standards for security, governance, etc. 18

Commonalities 4 Products/Services All work systems produce things for customers Who have to buy them! Infrastructure All work systems rely on shared human, technical and informational infrastructures (visible or invisible) Strategies All work systems have an operational strategy, as does the organisation itself 19

Work Systems not IT Systems The Work Systems concept helps us understand how systems work in the organisational context IT success is really work system success IT success is about how IT is used in work systems IT success is not only the IT professionals responsibility. Line managers have a role to play too. IT needs to be part of a work system if it is to be useful We need to understand what IT can(not) do And what people can(not) do with IT. 20

The Work System Framework T CUSTOMERS S N T E R M A N T O PRODUCTS & SERVICES E R G I V I E N S E PROCESSES & ACTIVITIESS PARTICIPANTS INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES I N F R A S T R U C T U R E 21

Whats New About All This? The concepts used are not at all new or special, but the way they are put together is new for many people. How is IT perceived in your organisation (or university)? What role does it have? Who designs and looks after it? What do people say about it? Frustrations? Details? How about processes? 22

A Work System Snapshot Description: Work System Snapshot for Marketing & Communication (MC) Work in a Hotel Customers Products & Services Corporate Clients Private Clients Hotel MC Manager Hotel Accounts Dept Hotel Banqueting & Reservations Depts Special Offers for Use of Hotel Facilities Graphical highlights of facilities Application forms (web based) Payment arrangements Work Practices (Major Activities or Processes) Identify which materials to send to which corporate and private clients Identify correct details for clients, e.g. email addresses, WeChat/Twitter or which Social Media sites/pages to use or Microsite Identify which technologies should be used for which clients Combine technologies and content in integrated forms for communication Send materials to individuals and groups Monitor undeliverable communications and update addresses where needed Receive replies / bookings from clients and forward to appropriate internal departments (e.g. Accts, FB, Resvns) for follow up. Evaluate the efficacy of each promotional activity Participants Information Technologies MCM Manager MCM Assistant Promotional Material Text & Graphics List of recipients Email Social media Internet Intranet including Microsite Telephone Internal Hotel Reservation Systems 23

Work System Snapshot Consistency Rules Each of the processes and activities listed in the work system snapshot must be stated as a complete sentence that briefly specifies which participants perform the work and what they do. Each participant group must be involved in at least one step in the processes and activities. Customers are viewed as participants if they participate in at least one of the steps. Each informational entity and technological entity listed under information and technologies must be created or used in at least one step in the processes and activities. 24

Work System Snapshot Consistency Rules Each product/service in the work system snapshot must be the output of at least one step in the processes and activities. Each product/service must be received and used by at least one customer group. Each customer group must receive and use at least one product/service. 25

How Does the Work System Method (WSM) Work? The WSM is designed to help business professionals understand their organisation s systems. It is of particular value early on in projects It is flexible There are guidelines/concepts, but users are free to adapt these as needed, to iterate, to select the level of detail, The WSM is designed to be rigorous and to focus on real business problems 26

WSM essentials As with many systems analysis methods, WSM is organised around : Defining the problem Gathering/analysing relevant data Identifying alternatives Selecting the preferred alternative 27

WSM 3 Phases SO: Identify the Systems and Opportunities What work system are we talking about? From a business viewpoint, what are opportunities and problems in this work system? AP: Analyse the system and identify Possibilities Understand current issues. How can the work system be improved? RJ: Recommend and Justify changes What are we suggesting? Are these sensible suggestions? 28

WSM 3 Levels & 3 Phases Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Level 1 (Headings) SO: Identification of the work system that has the opportunities AP: Analysis of current issues and identification of possibilities for improvement RJ: Recommendation and its justification Level 2 (Questions) SO1-SO4: 4 questions about the system and opportunities AP1-AP10: 10 questions related to analysis and possibilities RJ1-RJ10: 10 questions related to the recommendation and its justification Topics and guidelines for thinking about each SO question at L2. Topics and guidelines for thinking about each AP question at L2 Topics and guidelines for thinking about each RJ question at L2 Level 3 (Topics) 29

Level 1 General requirement to think about the system Clarification of assumptions Quick personal summary of what is happening Minimal first-cut representation of reality 30

Level 2 Important questions are asked about the 3 phases of the analysis Four for SO, Ten each for AP and RJ If any of these 24 questions are not addressed, the analysis is probably deficient, which will cause problems later on. 31

Level 2, SO questions SO1: What are the problems or opportunities? SO2: Which is the work system that has these problems or opportunities? SO3: What are the factors that contribute to problems or opportunities? These may be political, organisational, cultural, SO4: What constraints limit the feasible range of recommendations? E.g. $/resource limitations, politics, people, 32

Level 2 AP questions (1 of 3) AP1: Who are the customers and what are their concerns? AP2: How good are the products/services produced by the work system? AP3: How good are the work practices inside the work system? 33

Level 2 AP questions (2 of 3) AP4: How serious are any mismatches between the work system and the roles, knowledge and interests of the participants? AP5: How might better information or knowledge help? AP6: How might better technology help? AP7: How good is the work system s fit with its environment? 34

Level 2 AP questions (3 of 3) AP8: How well does the work system use the available infrastructure? AP9: How appropriate is the work system s strategy? AP10: How well does the work system operate as a whole? 35

Level 2 RJ questions (1 of 3) RJ1: What are the recommended changes to the work system? RJ2: How does the preferred alternative compare to other alternatives? RJ3: How does the recommended system compare to an ideal system in this area? RJ4: How well do the recommended changes address the original problems and opportunities? 36

Level 2 RJ questions (2 of 3) RJ5: What new problems or costs might be caused by the recommended changes? RJ6: How well does the proposed work system conform to work system principles? RJ7: How can the recommendations be implemented? 37

Level 2 RJ questions (3 of 3) RJ8: How might perspectives or interests of different stakeholders influence the project s success? RJ9: Are the recommended changes justified in terms of costs, benefits and risks? RJ10: Which important assumptions within the analysis and justification are most questionable? 38

Level 3 The 24 questions in Level 2 provide an organised approach for pursuing each of the three major WSM phases. At level 3, there are a number of specific topics to consider for each of the 24 questions. We won t look at all of these today there are too many and it is not a good use of time. But we will consider one to exemplify the point 39

AP3 at Level 3 How good are the work practices inside the system? Roles and division of labour Relevant functions that the system does not do Problems built into the current business process Effect of characteristics of work practices Evaluation criteria for work practices Problems involving decision making Problems involving communication 40

AP3 at Level 3 All of the topics listed provide a perspective for examining work practices It is not an exhaustive list this has to be compiled by those working with the precise system in its context. But it does help us assess if there are issues that have not been considered carefully. 41

Level 3: Enough or Too Much? The WSM focuses on single systems But not interactions between systems Nor the level of detail that programmers will need The WSM enables managers and business professionals to examine work systems at a level of detail with which they feel comfortable. In some cases, Level 1 may be enough. In many, Level 2 is advisable. If you require a good business understanding of a work system, then Level 2 is likely to be necessary. Level 3 is necessary for those who need an intimate understanding of business processes. 42

And now Use the work system method to Identify a system, ideally a global system in a global organisation, that you are familiar with and its opportunities Analyse the work system and identify possibilities Recommend and justify changes Use the blank sheet provided as a basis for your work for submission at the end. Work in small groups. 43

Reference Steven Alter, The Work System Method: Systems Thinking for Business Professionals, IIE Annual Conference. Proceedings, 2012, pp.1-10 44