Types of Information Systems

Following are the various types of Information Systems:

Transaction Processing System

Management Information System
Executive Information System
Decision Support System
Expert System
Functional Area Information System
Office Automation System (Personal Productivity Software)
Collaboration System
Customer Relationship System
Electronic Commerce System
Enterprise resource Planning System

Transaction Processing System

Designed to process day-to-day business event data at
the operational level of the organization.
Performs repetitive tasks automatically, that occur as
regular part of a businesss day-to-day operations.
Situated close to the customers and processes large
volumes of data.
Online processing Transactions processed as they are
created giving immediate results Results of questions
answered
Batch Processing - Processed in batches Processing of
end-term grade reports.
Example:
Grocery store checkout cash register with connection to
network.
Payroll processing
Sales and order processing
Inventory management

Management Information System

Are organizational information systems which gather data from
multiple data sources to produce scheduled and structured reports
and also ad hoc reports.
Reports are produced at predefined intervals daily, weekly or
monthly.
MIS is meant for midlevel managerial level personnel for effective
decision making.
This system is designed to produce detailed information to help
manage a firm or a part of a firm.
Examples:
Inventory management and planning system
Sales forecasting
Financial management and forecasting
Manufacturing planning and scheduling
Advertising and product pricing

Executive Information System

Provide very high-level, aggregate information to support executive-level
decision making for highest organizational managers.
Information is provided in a highly aggregated form so that trends and
anomalies can be pointed out.
EIS provides both textual news stories or non-analytical information (Soft
data) and also facts and numbers (Hard data).
Processing of EIS data consists of summarizing and graphical interpreting
Output data of EIS includes summary reports, trends and simulations;
feedback to system operator
Applications:
Executive level decision making
Long-range and strategic planning
Crisis management
Monitoring of internal and external events
News retrieval and stock update information system

Decision Support System

These systems provide analysis tools and access to databases in
order to support quantitative decision making.
Helps managerial-level personnel solve semistructured problems.
DSS is designed as an Interactive decision tool where as TPS, MIS
and EIS present data in a passive way as a summary of the output.
Commonly used tool of DSS is Microsoft Excel which provides
What-If analyses.
Example:
Product demand Sales and resource forecasting.
Cost analysis
Linear programmming and decision trees
Simulation
Statistics Correlation and Regression
Output of DSS is in the form of graphs and textual reports
Feedback is given to the system through user interface

Expert System
These systems mimic human expert in a particular area and
provide answers or advice by asking a series of questions.
First knowledge is gathered from the expert and it is compiled.
The processing in an expert system is known as inferencing
Matching facts and rules,
Determining the sequence of questions presented to the user and
Drawing a conclusion.

Examples:
Automated system for analyzing bank loan application (Example, IF
personal income is >= Rs.50,000, THEN approve the loan)
Medical diagnosis,
Machine configuration,
automobile diagnosis,
financial planning,
software application assistance (Wizards)

Office Automation System

These systems support a wide range of predefined, dayto-day work related activities of individuals and small
groups.
People buy these systems off-the-shelf.
People can work individually or work with others using
these systems.
Example: Microsoft Office - Word processor, Spreadsheet
and PowerPoint
Assistance provided to the users include
Communication and scheduling
Document preparation
Analyzing and merging data
Consolidating information

Collaboration System
These systems enable people to communicate, collaborate
and coordinate with each other
Example:
Electronic mail system with automated, shared calendar.
Microsofts Exchange/Outlook and Lotus Notes are collaboration
systems that provide people with E-mail, automated calendaring
and online, threaded discussions.
Videoconferencing and Desktop videoconferencing (fast personal
computer, a small camera, a speaker telephone,
videoconferencing software and video board)
Groupware Helps people work together; Example Lotus Notes
One form of groupware is the Electronic Meeting Systems (EMSs).
Helps group members solve problems and make decisions through
interactive, electronic idea generation, evaluation and voting.

Customer Relationship Management

System

Customer relationship management (CRM) refers to practices,

strategies and technologies that companies use to manage and
analyze customer interactions and data
The aim of CRM is to improve business relationships with
customers, assisting in customer retention, increase sales and
support interaction between the customers and the business
firm.
CRM compiles information on customers across different
channels such as company's website, telephone, live chat,
direct mail, marketing materials and social media.
CRM collects and compiles information on customers' personal
information, purchase history, buying preferences and
concerns into a single database.
CRM automates marketing and sales force efforts and provides
technologies for undertaking geographic marketing campaigns
based on customers' physical locations.
Example: Siebels suite of e-business software products,

Electronic Commerce
System
Electronic Commerce is the online exchange of goods, services
and money between firms (B2B) and between firms and customers
(B2C).
Other forms of electronic commerce include Business to
Employees (B2E) and Consumer to Consumer (C2C).
EC also involves events leading upto purchase of
products/services and also after sale service.
These systems enable customers to buy goods and services from
a firms Web site.
These systems work through Internet and
Enable consumers to find information about the products
and purchase goods or services.
Business firms can also exchange , information and
services electronically
Example: www.flipkart.com or www.amazon.com
Before Electronic Commerce, Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)
was in vogue.
EDI refers to the digital or electronic, transmission of business

Enterprise Resource Planning

System
These systems support and integrate all facets of the business,
including planning, manufacturing, sales, marketing and so on.
ERP provides a common data warehouse and similar
application interfaces for servicing an entire enterprise.
ERP applications make accessing information easier (by
providing sharing facility between business activities) by
means of central information repository.
Example is that inventory information is accessible not only to
inbound logistics and operations but also to accounting and
customer service personnel.
ERP systems are packaged applications whose vendors include
BAAN, Oracle, PeopleSoft, SAP and J.D. Edwards.
Example: SAP R/3 (Systems, Applications, and Products in Data
Processing, Release 3)

Functional Area Information

Systems
Support the activities within a
specific functional area of the firm.
The functional areas are: Accounting
and Finance, Human Resources,
Marketing and Production and
Operations

Accounting and Finance

These systems are used for managing,
controlling and auditing the financial
resources of the organisation.
Examples:
Inventory management
Accounts payable
Expense accounts
Cash management
Payroll processing

Accounting Information
Systems

Finance Information
Systems

Human Resource Management

Information System
Human resources management information system
(HRMIS) is the computer software that simplifies and
accelerates HR management process and improves its
quality via automation of the basic (routine) objectives
and activities.
These systems are used for managing, controlling and
auditing the human resources of the organisation.
Examples:
Recruiting and hiring
Education and training
Benefits management
Employee termination
Workforce planning

Human Resource Management

Information System

Marketing Information
Systems

Amarketinginformationsystem(MKIS)isasoftwareprogramthatallowsuserstocompileand
analyzedatainaveryeasy,organizedfashion.
MKISsystemshelpusersmakedecisionsaboutconsumerbehaviorandthemarketingmix,
includingproductsandhowtheyareplaced,priced,andpromoted.
Thesesystemsareusedformanagingnewproductdevelopment,distribution,pricing,promotional
effectivenessandsalesforecastingoftheproductsandservicesofferedbytheorganisation.
Threecomponentsofmarketingintelligencenetwork:
1.Continuousmonitoringistheprocedurebywhichthechangingenvironmentisregularlyviewed.
2.Marketingresearchisusedtoobtaininformationonparticularmarketingissues.
3.Datawarehousinginvolvestheretentionofalltypesofrelevantcompanyrecords,aswellasthe
informationcollectedthroughcontinuousmonitoringandmarketingresearchthatiskeptbythe
organization.
Examples:
Marketresearchandanalysis
Newproductdevelopment
Promotionandadvertising
Pricingandsalesanalysis
Productlocationanalysis

Marketing Information
Systems

Marketing Information
Systems
AdvantagesofMarketingInformationSystems:
1.Organizeddatacollection.
2.Abroadperspective.
3.Thestorageofimportantdata.
4.Anavoidanceofcrises.
5.Coordinatedmarketingplans.
6.Speedinobtainingsufficientinformationtomake
decisions.
7.Dataamassedandkeptoverseveraltimeperiods.
8.Theabilitytodoacost-benefitanalysis.

Production and Operations

These systems are used for managing, controlling and auditing the production
and operations resources of the organisation.
Manufacturing
Design and Engineering
Master Production Scheduling
Inventory Control
Materials Planning
Manufacturing and Process Control
Quality Control
Examples:
Inventory management
Cost and quality tracking
Materials and resource planning
Customer service tracking
Customer problem tracking
Job costing
Resource utilization

Production and Operations

Production and Operations