Chapter 16- Information Systems: A Manager's Guide to Harnessing Technology

What percentage of GDP is healthcare costs in the US?

18%

How much did switching to dynamic ticket sales increase sales for the San Francisco Giants in a single year?

6%

What percentage is most firms data messy and unstructured?

80%

What percent of organizational data was created in the last two years?

90%, and doubling annually.

data lake

A catch-all term for storage and access technologies used in Big Data. Data lakes are systems that allow for the storage of data in both structured as well as "raw," "unfiltered" formats. Data lakes also provide the tools to "pipe out" data, filter it, and refine it so that it can be turned into information.

column or field

A column in a database table. Columns represent each category of data contained in a record (e.g., first name, last name, ID number, date of birth).

data mart

A database or databases focused on addressing the concerns of a specific problem (e.g., increasing customer retention, improving product quality) or business unit (e.g., marketing, engineering).

Python

A general purpose programming language that is also popular for data analytics.

Big Data

A general term used to describe the massive amount of data available to today's managers. Big Data are often unstructured and are too big and costly to easily work through use of conventional databases, but new tools are making these massive datasets available for analysis and insight.

dashboards

A heads-up display of critical indicators that allow managers to get a graphical glance at key performance metrics.

table or file

A list of data, arranged in columns (fields) and rows (records).

online analytical processing (OLAP)

A method of querying and reporting that takes data from standard relational databases, calculates and summarizes the data, and then stores the data in a special database called a data cube

R

A programming language specifically created for analytics, statistical, and graphical computing.

row or record

A row in a database table. Records represent a single instance of whatever the table keeps track of (e.g., student, faculty, course title).

data warehouse

A set of databases designed to support decision-making in an organization.

Hadoop

A set of mostly open source tools to manage massive amounts of unstructured data for storage, extraction, and computation

expert systems

A set of technologies used in the development of AI systems that use a set of programmed decision rules or example outcomes to perform a task in a way that mimics applied human expertise.

database

A single table or a collection of related tables. Examples, might be focused on any combination of functional areas (sales, product returns, inventory, payroll), geo-graphical regions, or business units.

data cube

A special database used to store data in OLAP reporting.

business intelligence (BI)

A term combining aspects of reporting, data exploration and ad hoc queries, and sophisticated data modeling and analysis.

analytics

A term describing the extensive use of data, statistical and quantitative analysis, explanatory and predictive models, and fact-based management to drive decisions and actions.

query tools

A tool to interrogate a data source or multiple sources and return a subset of data, possibly summarized, based on a set of criteria

machine learning

A type of artificial intelligence that leverages massive amounts of data so that computers can improve the accuracy of actions and predictions on their own without additional programming.

serverless computing

A type of cloud computing where a third-party vendor manages servers, replication, fault-tolerance, computing scalability, and certain aspects of security, freeing software developers to focus on building "Business Solutions" and eliminating the need to spend time and resources managing the technology complexity of much of the underlying "IT Solution."

Deep learning

A type of machine learning that uses multiple layers of interconnections among data to identify patterns and improve predicted results. Most often uses a set of techniques known as neural networks and is popularly applied in tasks like speech recognition, image recognition, and computer vision

supervised learning

A type of machine learning where algorithms are trained by providing explicit examples of results sought, like defective versus error-free, or stock price.

semi-supervised learning

A type of machine learning where the data used to build models contains data with explicit classifications, but is also free to develop its own additional classifications that may further enhance result accuracy.

genetic algorithms

AI technologies that seek an optimal model by transforming or "mutating" an algorithm (versus neural networks, which add weights and mappings to a combination of inputs)—iteratively testing the result and choosing the best outcome

graphical query tools

Allow a user to create a query through a point-and-click or drag-and-drop interface, rather than requiring programming knowledge.

CAPTCHAs

An acronym standing for completely automated public Turing test to tell computers and humans apart. The Turing test is, rather redundantly, an idea (rather than an official test) that one can create a test to tell computers apart from humans.

over-engineer

Build a model with so many variables that the solution arrived at might only work on the subset of data you've used to create it.

artificial intelligence

Computer software that seeks to reproduce or mimic (perhaps with improvements) human thought, decision-making, or brain functions.

Turing test

Conceived by Alan Turing, a Turing test of software's ability to exhibit behavior equivalent to, or indistinguishable from, a human being.

deepfake

Creates bogus media—images, sound, or video—created by artificial intelligence that distort media in a way that makes it appear that a false event actually took place.

Key areas of data mining for businesses to leverage:

Customer segmentation, Marketing and promotion targeting, market basket analysis, collaborative filtering, customer churn, fraud detection, financial modeling, and hiring & promoting.

What is information?

Data presented in a context so that it can answer a question or support decision-making.

ETL

Extract, Transform, Load—copying data from multiple, disparately organized data sources, transforming (or cleaning) the data into a common format, and loading it into a combined usable format. ETL is a key step in getting data into a data warehouse or data mart.

data aggregators

Firms that collect and resell data.

How to develop and deploy more ethical, less risk-prone systems?

Hire diversely, hire ethicists, develop a code of technology ethics, create a systems review board, create and enforce technology audit trails, partner to build better technology, implement strong tech and procedural training programs, and provide a means for remediation.

(manager's) Knowledge

Insight derived from experience and expertise

database administrator (DBA)

Job title focused on directing, performing, or overseeing activities associated with a database or set of databases. These may include (but not necessarily be limited to): database design, creation, implementation, maintenance, backup and recovery, policy setting and enforcement, and security.

Who is the co-founder and CEO of Oracle?

Larry Ellison

shallowfakes

Manipulating media without the using artificial intelligence. Examples might include using Photoshop or simply slowing down a video and passing the distortion off as truth.

legacy systems

Older information systems that are often incompatible with other systems, technologies, and ways of conducting business. Incompatible legacy systems can be a major roadblock to turning data into information, and they can inhibit firm agility, holding back operational and strategic initiatives.

OCR

Optical Character Recognition. Software that can scan images and identify text within them.

What company is the largest database software vendor?

Oracle

How much data does Walmart gather each hour?

Over a million transactions and crunches over 2.5 petabytes

How members does Starbucks have?

Over million, and they 40% of overall sales. 3/4 of App users visit the store each week

omnichannel

Providing customers with a unified experience across customer channels, which may include online, mobile, catalog, phone, and retail. Pricing, recommendations, and incentives should reflect a data-driven, accurate, single view of the customer.

What is data?

Raw facts and figures.

change management

Refers to techniques to facilitate organization change, including preparing individuals for change and offering training and support during and after implementation. Change management is especially important in IS use, as many information systems implementations involve radical change to the way a firm conducts business or the way individuals and teams operate within the organization.

canned reports

Reports that provide regular summaries of information in a predetermined format.

Database management system (DBMS)/ (aka database software)

Software for creating, maintaining, and manipulating data.

transaction

Some kind of business exchange.

neural networks

Statistical techniques used in AI and particularly in machine learning. Neural networks hunt down and expose patterns, building multilayered relationships that humans can't detect on their own.

loyalty program

Systems that provide rewards and usage incentives, typically in exchange for a method that provides a more detailed tracking and recording of customer activity. In addition to enhancing data collection, loyalty cards can represent a significant switching cost.

transaction processing systems (TPS)

Systems that record a transaction (some form of business-related exchange), such as a cash register sale, ATM withdrawal, or product return.

data visualization

The graphical representation of data and information

relational database

The most common standard for expressing databases, whereby tables (files) are related based on common keys. Relational databases are the most common, but there is also hierarchical and object-oriented databases

e-discovery

The process of identifying and retrieving relevant electronic information to support litigation effort.

data mining definition

The process of using computers to identify hidden patterns in, and to build models from, large datasets.

ad hoc reporting tools

Tools that put users in control so that they can create custom reports on an as-needed basis by selecting fields, ranges, summary conditions, and other parameters.

The three V's of Big Data

Volume, velocity, and variety

self-supervised learning (aka unsupervised learning)

Where systems build pattern-recognizing algorithms using data that has not been pre-classified

structured query language (SQL)

by far the most common language for creating and manipulating relational databases.

When can data be a source of competitive advantage?

data is often considered a defensible source of competitive advantage. The data a firm can leverage is a true strategic asset when it's rare, valuable, imperfectly imitable, and lacking in substitutes.

data cloud (Sometimes referred to as cloud data warehousing)

this term refers to a cloud service that provides tools to extract and transform data from disparate sources so that it can be interrogated as needed. Unlike data warehouses, data lakes, or similar tools that an organization might run on-site, a data cloud can be spun up to temporarily hold a very large amount of data for short-term use, then disbanded when it is no longer needed. Snowflake is the best known of the many firms providing services in this space.