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Information Systems
05th Feb 2024

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes
 Lesson Objectives 2

•Students should be able to;

1. Describe an information system

2. List at least four (4) benefits of information systems.

3. Name and describe the five components of

information systems

4. Differentiate between a transaction processing

system, management information system and
decision support system.

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes
 Information Systems
•Information system (IS) is made up of two words
information and system.

•As you already know, Information is organised or

processed data.

•A system is a logical set of interrelated parts or a

procedure which takes input, processes the input and
provides output.

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes 3
 Information Systems 4

•Information System,
therefore, is a system or
procedure that is used to
capture, process data and
produce useful information.
•In other words:
•An information system is a
set of interrelated
components that work
together to produce the
required information needs
of an organization.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes
 Man-made vs Computer-based IS
Manual IS
•Relies on human effort
and physical means to
process, store, and
retrieve information
•Data processing is
performed manually by
individuals without the aid
of computers.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes
Computer-based IS
•Relies on computers and
software applications to
process, store, and retrieve
information.
•Data processing is
automated and performed
by computers, enabling
faster and more efficient
operations.
5
 Man-made vs Computer-based IS
Manual IS Computer-based IS
•Data is often stored in •Information is stored
physical files, paperwork, electronically in
or simple record-keeping databases, allowing for
efficient retrieval and
systems. analysis.
•Prone to errors due to •Higher accuracy due to
human involvement. reduced human
Accuracy depends on the involvement in routine
diligence and attention to tasks. Automation helps
detail of individuals. minimize errors.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 6
 Components of an CB-Information System 7

•An information system has five key components:

1. Hardware
2. Software
3. Data
4. Processes
5. People

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes
 Hardware 8

•The hardware consists of all of the physical

parts of the information system.
•Hardware includes;
• Servers • Scanners
• Workstations • Digital capture devices
• Physical networks parts • And other technology-
• Telecommunications based infrastructure.
equipment
• Fibre-optic cables
• Mobile devices
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes
 Software 9

•Software refers to the programs (made up of

coded instructions) that control the hardware
and provides users with tools to perform various
tasks.

•Software consists of:

1. System Software
2. Application Software

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes
 Types of Software 10

1. System Software manages the hardware

resources and provides an interface through
which users and other applications interacts with
the computer hardware.

•Examples of System Software include:

•The operating system such as windows 10
•Security software such as Antivirus
•Device drivers
•Utility programs
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes
 Types of Software 11

2. Application Software consists of programs that

support specific day-to-day business functions
and provide users with the information they
require.
• Example of Application Software are:
oMicrosoft project
oMs Excel
oMs PowerPoint.
oPayroll systems
oInventory management system
oRegistration system
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes
 Data 12

•Data are facts and are used as input to CBIS to process

it.

•The CBIS processes this data and delivers valuable

information for the organisation.

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes
 Processes/Procedures 13

•Processes are the established procedures and rules that

govern how information systems operates.

•We can also think of processes as the transformational

steps that involves calculation, comparison, and
decision making.

•Processes are the building blocks of an information

system because they represent actual day-to-day
business operations.

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes
 People 14

•People component constitute stakeholders who

operate the information system in order to perform
various tasks.

•Stakeholders include;
▪the users
▪the management group responsible for the system
▪IT staff members, such as systems analysts,
programmers, and network administrators who
develop and support the system.

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes
 Benefits of Information System 15

1. Reduces operational cost

2. Monitoring performance against predefined metric.
3. Provides security and Compliance measures to protect sensitive
data, reducing the risk of unauthorized access and data
breaches.
4. Better management of the organization's knowledge by providing
centralized platform for storing, organizing and accessing of
knowledge resources
5. Better communication and collaboration
6. Provides better information for decision making, planning and
control
7. Builds closer relationship with suppliers, customers, clients and the
general public
8. Increases the ability to manage change via for example real-time
communication
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes
 Advantages of CBIS
• Accessibility Speeds: A CBIS is able to sort, store and access
data much faster. It can quickly analyse data and find the
desired information.
• Security: It provides a protected environment for data files. It
protects data using passwords and encryption (a mechanism
to encode your data) so that only authorised users can access
the data. s.
• Track Changes: In manual information systems it is almost
impossible to track changes without going through a huge
amount of paperwork. Using CBIS you can record which user
accessed which data, access time of data and any changes
made by the user.
• Extended Data Storage and Availability: A CBIS stores a huge
amount of data and it automatically sorts data. This 16
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes increases
 Classification of Information Systems 17

•Organizational Level
oTransaction Processing System (TPS)
oManagement Information System (MIS)
oDecision Support System (DSS)

•Functional Level
oFinancial IS
oHR IS
oMarketing IS
oManufacturing IS

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes
 Transaction Processing System 18

•TPSs are computer-based information systems for

capturing, processing and reporting on the day-to-day
transaction in an organization.

Purpose:
•To process the daily transactions that goes on in a
business or a service providing company.
• Example of Users:
•Frontline or operational staff who interact directly with
customers, clients, or end-users. These can include:
cashiers, customer service representatives,
administrative assistants, receptionists, data entry clerks,
and service technicians.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes
 Transaction Processing System 19

•Examples of Transaction Processing Systems

•Payroll Systems – employee salaries
•Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) – withdraws/deposits
•Online Banking Systems – online banking
•Online shopping systems – manage shopping cart
•Airline Reservation Systems – process flight reservation
•Hotel Booking Systems – room reservation & check-ins
•Inventory Management Systems – monitor product
availability
•Library Management Systems – book borrowing & return
•Credit card processing systems – credit card processing
•Electronic Point of Sales Systems – process sales transaction
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes
 Features of TPS
• Rapid Response: It is critical for a TPS to have a rapid
response time with fast performance. Businesses cannot let
customers waiting for a TPS to respond. The total amount of
time from the input of the transaction to the production of
the output must be a few seconds or less.

• Reliability: Many organisations depend greatly on their TPS. A

system failure can disturb operations or even stop business.
The failure rate of a TPS must be very low to be effective. If a
TPS fails then quick and accurate recovery of data must be
possible. This makes backup and recovery procedures
essential.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 20
 Features of TPS
•Inflexibility: A TPS should execute every transaction in the
same way, irrespective of the user, the customer, or the time
of day. With a flexible TPS, there would be too many
opportunities for non-standard operations. For example, a
commercial airline requires to consistently accept airline
reservations data from numerous travel agents. It would be
difficult and problematic to accept different transaction
data from different travel agents.

•Controlled Processing: The processing in a TPS must

support an organisation’s operations. For example, if an
organisation assigns roles and responsibilities to specific
employees, then the TPS should impose and control this
requirement.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 21
 Management Information System
•There are two terms in MIS, ‘management’ and
‘information systems’, which should be understood
separately.

•Management is the process of planning, organizing,

directing, and controlling the resources of an
organisation to attain business objectives effectively.

•Information system refers to a set of interrelated

components that collect, store, process, generate
and disseminate information for effective business
decision making
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 22
 Management Information System
•MIS therefore is an information system that collects
data from various sources, processes it, and
transforms it into meaningful and useful information
needed to support managerial decision-making at
the middle level of an organization.

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes 23
 24

Management Information System

•INFOSEC (1999), defines MIS

“A telecommunications and/or computer related

equipment or interconnected system that is used in the
acquisition, storage, manipulation, management,
movement, control, display, switching interchange,
transmission or reception of voice, and/or data, and
includes software, firmware and hardware.”

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes
 Management Information System
•Purpose:
▪Provide middle management with summarized reports
and tactical information such as: project status reports,
departmental budgets, inventory levels, production
schedules, and employee performance metrics
•Example of Users:
▪Branch Managers
▪Department head
▪Team Leaders or Supervisors
▪Regional managers
▪Human Resource Managers
▪Sales Managers
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 25
 Management Information System
•Purpose:
▪Provide middle management with summarized reports
and tactical information such as: project status reports,
departmental budgets, inventory levels, production
schedules, and employee performance metrics
•Examples:
▪Sales Reporting Systems
▪Inventory Control Systems
▪Budgeting Systems
▪Management Reporting Systems (MRS)
▪Personnel (HRM) Systems
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 26
 MIS Functions
• Collecting Data from Various Sources: It refers to
gathering data from various internal as well as external
sources. Internal sources are financial reports, sales
records, etc. External sources are suppliers, competitors,
customers, newspapers, magazines, and so on. The data
is collected on both papers as well as in electronic form.

• Storing Data: It refers to storing and retrieving data as

and when required.

• Processing Data: It refers to processing of data i.e.,

applying various functions, such as calculating, sorting,
classifying, analysing, comparing and summarising, the
collected data.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 27
 MIS Functions
•Generating Information: It refers to transforming the
collected data into useful and meaningful information
after processing. The information generated after
processing of data must be well structured and organised.
• [

•Disseminating Information: It refers to segregating the

information produced into various departments,
depending upon their respective requirements to help
them in performing their functions efficiently.
•Storing Information: It refers to saving the generated
information back in the database for future references.
The same information can be further processed for
generating more results, if required.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 28
 Decision Support System
•What is a Decision?
• Choice
• Judgement
• Conclusion
• Determination
• Resolution

•Decision making can be defined as a process of

choosing between the different alternatives or
options after considering relevant information and
assessing potential outcomes.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 29
 Types of Decisions
•Structured Decisions: These are routine decisions with
well-defined processes and steps to be followed.
• A DSS helps automate and streamline these processes.
•Semi-Structured Decisions: Involves a combination of
routine and unstructured elements needing some level
of judgement.
• A DSS assists in organizing information and providing
insights.
•Unstructured Decisions: Complex decisions where the
decision-maker relies heavily on intuition and judgment
• A DSS helps by providing relevant information.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 30
 Decision Support System
•Decision Support System is an interactive information
system that assist decision-makers in an organization in
analysing and making informed and effective decisions.

Purpose:
•Assist management in making semi-structured
decisions.
Focus:
•Provide analytical tools and models for decision
support.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 31
 Decision Support System
Users: (users come from various levels of an organization)
• Executives and Senior Management: Executives use DSS to
make strategic decisions, analyze scenarios, and evaluate
the impact of decisions on the overall organization.
• Chief Executive Officer
• Chief Financial Officer
• Chief Operating Officer
• Chief Information Officer
• Sales Analysts: Sales analysts use DSS to analyze sales data,
forecast demand, and optimize sales strategies.
• Sales Planners
• Sales Forecasters
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 32
 Decision Support System
Users:
•Financial Analysts: Financial analysts use DSS for
financial modeling, forecasting, and evaluating
investment opportunities.
• Financial Planners
• Investment Analysts

•Educational Administrators: Educational administrators use

DSS for planning and managing educational programmes,
resource allocation, and student performance analysis.
• School Principals
• University Deans
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Lecture Notes 33
 Components of DSS
•A DSS has the following major components:

Model Base Knowledge Base

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes 34
 Components of DSS
•A DSS Database store historical and current data
collected from the organization and from other external
sources.
• A Model Base includes (mathematical and
computational) models and algorithms for analyzing
data, making predictions, and simulating different
scenarios.
•A Knowledge Base contains domain-specific
knowledge and rules that guide the decision-making
process for a particular organization.
•A User Interface allows decision-makers to interact with
the system, input data, and interpret results.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 35
 Decision Support System 36

•The following include DSS functionalities

•Business Intelligence (BI) Systems:
•Analyzes and presents business data to help
organizations make strategic decisions.
•Health Information Systems (HIS):
•Integrates patient data to support healthcare
decision-making, including electronic health
records (EHR) and medical information systems.
•Admissions Decision Support Systems:
•Helps universities in making admissions decisions
based on applicant data.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes
 Decision Support System 37

• The following also offer DSS functionalities

•Spreadsheets
• Spreadsheets, such as Microsoft Excel, are versatile tools that can be
used for decision support through data analysis, modeling, and
scenario planning.

•Expert System
• Expert systems are AI-based systems that emulate the decision-
making ability of a human expert and provide advise.

•Forecasting systems
• These systems help predict future trends based on historical data.
• They contribute to decision support by providing insights into possible
future scenarios.
ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes
 Lecture Review
• ______________are the established procedures and rules
that govern how the system operates.

• The __________component of an information system refers

to the physical devices and systems that make up the
information system.

• In a Transaction Processing System (TPS), the primary focus

is on recording and processing ____________ transactions.

• Which information system type is used by middle level staff

in an organization?

• Give an example of a Transaction processing system.

ICT172: Principles to Programming
Lecture Notes 38
 Reading & Presentation Assignment 39

•Present a 2-page, MS Word-processed report on

the following information systems:

1. Executive Support Systems (ESS)

2. Enterprise Information Systems (EIS)

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes
 End of Lecture 3

ICT172: Principles to Programming

Lecture Notes 40