Module Information

The activity of information management is increasingly being recognised by organisations as core to their existence and vital for their success. If you are a member of staff of an information service, you may be familiar with the means by which information is organised in order to facilitate provision. However, if the service is to be successful, managers must have access to information about the service itself. In this respect they are information users as well as providers. It is information within this environment of information use that is the basis of decision making within organisations and is the best tool that managers have available. In studying management information systems, we shall examine the role of management information and of systems designed to generate and process such information. In the present day we infer the use of computers in the design of such systems. This is not necessarily the case and, in any event, computers are only ever components of the systems which will include people interacting with the technology and other organisational resources.
The module aims to encourage an understanding of information as a resource in organisational decision making and of the systems developed to use information in decision support and has been written for students from a variety of 'information' backgrounds.