Fall 2008

 Course Syllabus

IT Management and Strategy

 Master of Science in Information Technology

Course Number:      IT6264

Semester Hours:      3

Pre-requisites:          Graduate standing

Instructor:                 Nicholas Harkiolakis, Ph.D.Professor of Information Technology

e-mail:                        nharkiolakis@hau.gr

Office hours:            By appointment

Catalog Description:

The top management, strategic perspective for aligning competitive strategy, core competencies, and information systems. The development and implementation of policies and plans to achieve organizational goals. Defining the systems that support the operational, administrative, and strategic needs of the organization, its business units, and individual employees. Approaches to managing the information systems function in organizations, including examination of the dual challenges of effectively controlling the use of well-established information technologies, while experimenting with selected emerging technologies. Role of the CIO.

Objectives:

      To analyze the role of information systems in today’s competitive business environment.

      To define an information system from both a technical and business perspective.

      To explain how information systems are transforming organizations and management.

      To explain how the Internet and Internet technology are transforming business and the emerging digital firms.

      To identify the major management challenges in building and using information systems in organizations.

      To identify the major types of systems in a business and explain the role played by the key system applications in a business.

      To demonstrate how information systems support the major business functions of sales and marketing, manufacturing and production, finance and accounting, and human resources.

      To analyze why managers need to pay attention to business processes, and discuss why firms need to integrate their business processes.

      To explain the business benefits and challenges of using enterprise systems.

      Identify the salient characteristics of organizations that managers need to know in order to successfully build and use information systems.

      Analyze how businesses use information systems for competitive advantage.

      To describe how Internet technology has transformed valuation propositions and business models.

      To explain what electronic commerce is and how it has changed consumer retailing and business-to-business transactions.

      To demonstrate how Internet technology can facilitate management and coordination of internal business processes and supply chain management.

      To assess the managerial and organizational challenges posed by electronic business and electronic commerce.

      To analyze the management problems raised by the new information technology (IT) infrastructure and suggest solutions.

      To aid students in exploring and understanding what ethical, social, and political issues are raised by information systems.

      To introduce students to specific principles for conduct that can be used to guide decisions about ethical dilemmas.

      To identify challenges to the protection of individual privacy and intellectual property by contemporary information systems technology.

      To aid students in developing corporate policies for ethical conduct.

      To introduce students to the major factors driving the internationalization of business.

      To introduce students to global strategies for developing international businesses and to enable students to choose among them.

      To expose students to how information systems support the various international business strategies.

      To identify for students the issues that managers should address when developing international information systems.

      To aid students in understanding the main technical alternatives in developing global systems.

Learning Outcomes:

At the completion of the course students should be able to understand:

·         How IT can enable new organizational forms

·         The role of collaborative systems in developing more flexible, fast response organizations.

·         How to design an application architecture to provide the information needed for decision making and knowledge management

·         Students develop an understanding of the strategic use of information technology from a business perspective at the enterprise level.

·         Students will understand the internal management of information systems services from the point of view of the CIO and to examine alternative strategies and tactics available to management to achieve goals.

·         Understand approaches and techniques involved in business strategy formulation and strategic management and their implications for IS/IT strategy development

Course Requirements:

·      Class attendance and participation

·      Weekly homework assignments

·      In class assignments

·      In class discussions

·      In class demonstrations

·      Individual and group projects

Plagiarism Policy: 

Students are responsible for performing academic tasks in such a way that honesty in not in question.  Please refer to the Academic Honesty Policy in the University Catalog for the full detailed policy on this matter.

Attendance Policy:

Limit of 2 absences before status in the course is affected

Class Participation: 

Students are expected to follow the professor’s guidelines for working classroom assignments.

Homework Submission Policy:

All homework is expected in print during the session following the assignment date

Make-up and late assignments:

Students are expected to manage their time appropriately so as to submit their assignments on time. Late assignments will receive no credit. Exceptions to this rule will be considered on an individual basis.

Topics of Class Discussion /Learning Objectives/Assignments

Week I

Topics:

Introduction to IT Management and Strategy, Course Material and Assignments

      A historic perspective of Information Systems?

      Preview of Current Body of Knowledge

      Course topics distribution

      Assignment Analysis

Week II

Topics:

Managing the Digital Firm

      Why Information Systems?

      Contemporary Approaches to Information Systems

      Toward the Digital Firm: The New Role of Information Systems In Organizations

      Learning to Use Information Systems: New Opportunities with Technology

Information Systems in the Enterprise

      Major Types of Systems in Organizations

      Systems from a Functional Perspective

      Enterprise Applications: Enterprise Systems and Systems for Supply Chain Management, Customer Relationship Management and Knowledge Management

Information Systems, Organizations, Management, and Strategy

      Organizations and Information Systems

      The Changing Role of Information Systems in Organizations

      Managers, Decision Making, and Information Systems

           

Case Studies:   

      US Steel

      KMart

Week III

Topics:

The Digital Firm: Electronic Commerce and Electronic Business

      Electronic Business, Electronic Commerce, and the Emerging Digital Firm

      Electronic Commerce

      Electronic Business and the Digital Firms

      Management Challenges and Opportunities

The Internet and the New Information Technology Infrastructure

      The New Information Technology (IT) Infrastructure for the Digital Firm 

      The Internet: Information Technology Infrastructure for the Digital Firm

      The World Wide Web

      Support Technology for Electronic Commerce and Electronic Business

           

Case Studies:

      GM

      Wine

Case Studies Due:

      US Steel

      KMart

Assignment:

      Current and future IT trends in businesses operating in Greece: Survey distribution

Week IV

Topics:

Enterprise Architecture

      The Zachman Framework

      Dynamic Frameowrks

Business Process Reengineering

      Business Process Analysis

      Organizational Analysis

      Evaluating the Gap between the Current and Required IS/IT Environments

Case Studies Due:

      GM

      Wine

Assignment:

      Innov8 BPR simulation

Week V

Topics:

Technology Ventures

      Venture Opportunity, Concept and Strategy

      Venture Formation and Planning

      Functional Planning

      Financing and Building the Venture

Assignment:

      Development of a technology venture

Assignment Due:

      Report on Innov8 BPR simulation assignment

Week VI

Topics:

Ethical and Social Issues in the Digital Firm

      Understanding Ethical and Social Issues Related to Systems

      Ethics in an Information Society

      The Moral Dimensions of Information Systems

Assignment:

Week VII

Topics:

Managing International Information Systems

      The Growth of International Information Systems 

      Organizing International Information Systems

      Managing Global Systems

      Technology Issues and Opportunities for Global Value Chains

Assignment Due:

      Current and future IT trends in businesses operating in Greece

Week VIII

Topics:

IS/IT Strategy Analysis

      Assessing and Understanding the Current Situation

      Critical Success Factors and Balanced Scorecards

      Value Chain Analysis

      Internal Value Chain

      Techniques for Interpretation and Analysis

Assignment/Group Project:

      Analysis of the IT  strategy of a business in Greece

Assignment Due:

      Development of a technology venture

Week IX

Topics:

IS/IT Strategy Development and Determination

      The Evolution of the IS/IT Strategy Process: From Technology Focus to Strategic Focus

      Problem and barriers

      Challenges for Planning Strategically Today

      Establishing an IS/IT Strategy Process

      Establishing the Relative Priorities for IS/IT Investments

Assignment Due:

      Development of a technology venture - presentation

Week X

Topics:

IS/IT Strategic Management

      Managing the Applications Portfolio

      Generic Application Management Strategies

      Organizing Strategies for IS/IT Management

      Provisioning for IS/IT Resources

      Managing Investments in IS/IT

      Knowledge Management

Assignment Due:

      Development of a technology venture - presentation

Week XI

Topics:

IT as a Service

      Economy of Services

      IT services definition, examples, and positioning

      ITSC Components and Collaborations

      IT Service Topics and Streams

      Implementation

      Research in Services

      Value

Week XII

Topics:

Review of Topics, Student Presentations

Assignment Due/Project Presentations:

Method of Evaluation:

·      Class Participation:                                                                                   10%

·      Case Analysis (Homework Case Studies):                                            20%

·      IT Trends Survey:                                                                                     20%

·      PBR report:                                                                                                20%

·      Group Project:                                                                                           30%

Case Analysis:

The case analysis will assess the students’ ability to apply course concepts to what customers and companies do, and their analytical and communication skills. There will be a primary case study that will be covered as the course material progresses and independent mini-cases that will address the topics covered in each session. Students grading will be based on their ability to support their arguments based on the material covered in each session.

Suggested Readings:

·         Strategic Planning for Information Systems, 3/E

JohnWard, Joe Peppard

Wiley, 2007

·         Technology Ventures

Richard C. Dorf, Thomas H. Byers

McGraw Hill, 2008

·         Management Information Systems, 10/E
Kenneth C. Laudon, Jane P. Laudon
2008 Prentice Hall

·         Enterprise Architecture
O’Rourke, Fishman, Selkow

Thomson, 2003

The syllabus can change at any time at the discretion of the instructor or the university.