Secondary Research Business Information Systems- * History

secondary research business information systems- * history business information systems impact mobile technology *

Business information systems

The modern day society evolves at the fastest rate known so far to humanity. And the trend setter for this rapid change is represented by technology. Innovations are present in all aspects of the daily operations, from the preparation of meals and the spending of the leisure time to the completion of the professional tasks.

Within the business community, technology has been adopted as a source of operational efficiencies. Technology allows economic agents to conduct research at superior levels, to process and store data, but also to provide support for manufacturing, marketing or managerial operations.

The technologies used by economic agents can generically be divided into two categories -- hardware and software. The hardware components include the computers, the machines, the peripheics or any other tangible devices. The software components include the applications used by the computers and any other hardware. In other words, they represent the programs that support economic agents in attaining their objectives and completing their operations and they are generally known as forming the overall business information system (The Free Dictionary by Farlex, 2011).

The PC Magazine defines the business information system as a "business application of the computer. It is made up of the database, application programs and manual and machine procedures. It also encompasses the computer systems that do the processing."

The business information systems reveal four main components, as follows:

The processing of the data

The procedures

The transaction processing and last

The batch processing.

The processing of the data is characterized by the fact that the databases store the subjects of the business and the activities. The applications in the system ensure the entry of the data, its upgrading, query and report processing. The procedures provide information of how the data is to be obtained and transformed into outputs. The transaction processing refers to the daily operations such as the business transactions or the upgrading of customer, inventory or other files. Finally, the batch processing refers to the upgrading and preserving of the data (PC Magazine, 2011).

The history of business information system is a highly complex one, marked by countless processes of trial and error. In numerous cases, the history has revealed that advancements were difficult to attain not necessary as a result of lack of knowledge, but mostly as a result of lack of adaptability.

"The history of business information systems has many examples of systems that are technically efficient but do not serve the needs of users and so are underused or misused" (Curtis and Conham, p.118).

The first years of evolution were marked by the creation of systems that required increased programming skills. The business information systems could as such be used only by people with a background in IT and this was seldom the case for accountants or other business professionals. Gradually then, focus came to be placed on the creation of applications which can be used by people without an IT background.

Gradually, focus also came to be placed on the creation of business information systems that served the precise needs of the users. The systems were also required to be cost effective in order for them to appeal to the buyers (Curtis and Conham, p.118). At the specific level of their evolution, the lines below reveal a concise history of the business information systems from the 1970s through today.

During the 1970s decade, business intelligence was completed with mainframe computers; the computers and the data were centralized and the systems completed limited functions, such as payroll, billing and inventory. The operation of these systems was pegged to the possession of COBOL programming skills

During the 1980s decade, PCs and LANs were installed and organizations set up their own departments and computer systems; applications such as word processors and spreadsheets were more easily accessible and decreased the operational dependence on the IT personnel. The skills required to operate the systems included PC skills and basic networking. The focus at this stage was that of automating the existent processes.

During the 1990s decade, the WANs became increasing presences in corporations and the focus of management was that of integrating the data and the systems. Stand-alone systems gradually become obsolete. The skills required to operate these systems included network supports, integration of systems and the administration of the databases. The goal of the business information systems at this stage was that of creating central control and promoting corporate learning.

Finally, during the 2000s decade, the WANs expanded with the aid of the Internet and came to include global enterprises and business partners, including purveyors. The desires of managers relate to data sharing across systems and the main focus of the systems is that of increasing speed and efficiency in inventory, manufacturing and distribution operations. The skills required from the people operating the business information systems in the twenty-first century include network support and systems integration (University of Wisconsin).

Today, the IT community is characterized by the advancement of the mobile technologies and the speed of evolution is so rapid that it is believed that some day in the not so far future, everyone will have a tablet (Hon, 2011). These developments have impacted not only the personal leisure time, but also the business information systems.

The specific field of mobile technology applied to business information systems is quite restricted for now, especially when compared to a multi-purpose application of mobile devices. Nonetheless, developments are also being made at this level. Hana Mohelska for instance pin points some of the most business usable mobile devices as follows:

Mobile telephones, as the largest category of mobile devices used in the business context

Netbooks, as the second most popular category of mobile devices used by economic agents

Personal digital assistants represent the third largest category of mobile devices used by business agents, with the specification that they be equipped with GSM capability

Other types of mobile devices used in business operations include the notebooks with a 4G card, pagers, BlackBerries, iPhones and GPS with GSM capabilities.