Developing Information

System

1
 Information Systems Analysis and Design
• Information systems analysis and design is a method used by
companies ranging from IBM to PepsiCo to Sony to create and
maintain information systems that perform basic business functions
such as keeping track of customer names and addresses, processing
orders, and paying employees.
• The main goal of systems analysis and design is to improve
organizational systems, typically through applying software that can
help employees accomplish key business tasks more easily and
efficiently.
• Systems analyst, will be at the center of developing this software.

2
 Systems Analysis and Design
Testing
prototyping
Development

Implementation Training
Design

Application
Design
Maintenance &
Analysis review

User
requirements

Project
initiation

3
 Systems Analysis and Design

• The analysis and design of information systems are based on:

• Your understanding of the organization’s objectives, structure, and processes
• Your knowledge of how to exploit information technology for
advantage To be successful in this endeavor, you should follow a
structured approach.
• The Software Development Life Cycle(SDLC), is a four-phased
approach to identifying, analyzing, designing, and implementing an
information system. 
• We use the SDLC to organize our discussion of the systems
development process.
4
 Systems Analysis and Design:Core
Concepts
• The major goal of systems analysis and design is to improve organizational systems.
• Often this process involves developing or acquiring application software and training
employees to use it.
• Application software, also called a system, is designed to support a specific organizational
function or process, such as inventory management, payroll, or market analysis.
• The goal of application software is to turn data into information.

• For example, software developed for the inventory department at a bookstore may keep
track of the number of books in stock of the latest best seller.
• Software for the payroll department may keep track of the changing pay rates of employees.
• A variety of off-the-shelf application software can be purchased, including WordPerfect,
Excel, and PowerPoint.
• However, off-the-shelf software may not fit the needs of a particular organization, and so the
organization must develop its own product.
5
In addition to application software, the information system includes:
• The hardware and systems software on which the application software runs. Note
that the systems software helps the computer function, whereas the application
software helps the user perform tasks such as writing a paper, preparing a
spreadsheet, and linking to the Internet.
• Documentation and training materials, which are materials created by
the systems analyst to help employees use the software they’ve helped create. 
• The specific job roles associated with the overall system, such as the people who
run the computers and keep the software operating.
• Controls, which are parts of the software written to help prevent fraud and theft. 
• The people who use the software in order to do their jobs.

6
• The components of a computer-based information system application are summarized in Figure

• We address all the dimensions of the overall system, with particular emphasis on application
software development—your primary responsibility as a systems analyst.

7
 •  Our goal is to help you understand and follow the software engineering process that leads to the
creation of information systems. As shown in Figure , proven methodologies, techniques, and
tools are central to software engineering processes.
1. Methodologies are a sequence of step-by-step approaches that help
develop your final product: the information system. Most
methodologies incorporate several development techniques, such as
direct observations and interviews with users of the current system
 2. Techniques are processes that you, as an analyst, will follow to help
ensure that your work is well thought-out, complete, and
comprehensible to others on your project team. Techniques provide
support for a wide range of tasks, including conducting thorough
interviews with current and future users of the information system to
determine what your system should do, planning and managing the
activities in a systems development project, diagramming how the
system will function, and designing the reports, such as invoices, your
system will generate for its users to perform their jobs.
  3. Tools are computer programs, such as computer-aided software
engineering (CASE) tools, that make it easy to use specific techniques.
These three elements— methodologies, techniques, and tools—work
together to form an organizational approach to systems analysis and
design. 8
Information System Development
• The number of phases in the information system development may
vary from methodology to methodology. Each phase gives an output
that becomes input of next phase.
• Mainly the process comprises of:
1. Investigation
2. Feasibility Study
3. Analysis
4. Design
5. Implementation
6. Maintenance

9
10
• Each stage of this development process is highly interrelated and
interdependent on each other.
• The system developer has to perform many activities to accomplish
each stage.
• Sometimes he has to go back to the previous stage to implement
some changes so that a better system will be there or to produce a
better solution to the organization problem or provide the best
product to the users of Management Information System.
• Now we take each stage individually and the activities related to each
stage and how these activities are performed.
11
1. Investigation
• This stage includes the preliminary study of proposed information
system solution to the end users problems.
• Because the development of Management Information System is a
time consuming and costly effort, feasibility studies have to be
conducted.
• This study is a preliminary study which investigates the information
needs of the users and determines the resource requirement, costs,
benefits and feasibility of a proposed project.

12
 2 Feasibility Study
• The goal of feasibility study is to evaluate an alternative system and to propose the most feasible and desirable
systems for development.
• The feasibility study is conducted in four different areas:
1. Organizational feasibility
2. Economic feasibility
3. Technical feasibility
4. Operational feasibility.
• Figure 1.2 shows the various components of a feasibility study.

13
• The focus of organizational feasibility is on how well a proposed system supports
the values and objectives of the organization.
• In economic feasibility, the developer conducts cost/benefit analysis, i.e.,
whether the cost of developing a system is more than benefit or loss because, if
the development cost increases than the proposed benefit then the purpose of
making Management Information System is defeated or it is not an efficient
Management Information System.
• Technical feasibility comprises of the study of the hardware and software
requirements, availability of these media with in the organization or they have to
be arranged. It also includes whether we have to develop our own system or buy
some readymade solutions with some modification to meet our needs, etc.
• In Operational feasibility the willingness and ability of management, employees,
customer suppliers and others to operate, use and support a proposed system is
studied.
14
 3 Analysis

• It is applicable to both, i.e., for making an entirely new system or improving or replacing the existing one.
• Some activities of this stage are the next step of feasibility study but it is not a preliminary study like
feasibility study. It is an in-depth study and results in the functional requirement that provide the basis for
system design.
• System analysis involves knowing the information needs of the end user and the organization employees,
what are the resources activities and products presently available and the information system capability to
meet these information needs.
• The process of system analysis starts with analyzing the organization’s present system if any, and functional
requirement analysis.
• To achieve effectiveness in Information System one must know something about the organization like, about
its culture, management their experience, qualification, attitude towards computerized Information System,
organizational values & norms/organizational working, etc. in detail, in general and specific to each
organizational unit so that a balanced Information System comes into existence.
• If the company has some information system in existence then it is very important to analyze that system.
• In this, one must analyze each component of system like hardware, software, people resource, networking
and data resources. Whether the existing system serves the purpose of management or it is lacking at some
end to serve the solution of information need, so that proper action should be taken at the time of designing
the system so that these loop holes can be removed. 15
• Functional requirements are end user information requirements that comprise of:
1. User interface requirements: In which one determines what type of input and
output requirements of the user are there. It also includes source, formats,
contents, etc., of each input & output media
2. Processing requirements: What are decision rules, calculations are required to
convert Notes input into output. How much time it takes for processing the input
into output?
3. Storage requirement: What is the size of data base, whether it is a common data
base or distributed. What are the queries of the user?
4. Control requirements: What are the types of measures of accuracy, validity, safety,
security and adaptability requirement for system input processing, output and
storage function adopted

16
 4 Design
• The previous stages depict what users demand from the system in order to
fulfill their information needs and aims at answering “What is needed?”
• System design stage gives answer to the question “How” the system will
accomplish the objective.
• Systems design consists of design activities that produce system
specifications, satisfying the functional requirements developed at the
analysis stage.
• System design consists of two steps –
a) conceptual design
b) detailed design

17
 Conceptual Design
• Conceptual design represents the structure of Information System.
• The input to this stage is information requirement and management
objective and the output is the performance requirement of those who will
develop the detailed design.
• The process of conceptual design involves showing the feasibility of
meeting the management objective for Information System.
• This is the phase of system development which gives answer to the
question “how” the system will work at gross or high level.

18
19
Define the Problem
• With their dynamic nature, the problems must reside in an organization.
• What really or usually lacks is their proper definition and priority to solve them.
• Therefore, the first step in Management Information System design is to know the
problem in detail.
• This is achieved by a continuous and iterative process of:
1. Stating the information need
2. Asking questions about that need
3. Suggesting the interpretations of that need
4. Detailing the original statement
5. Reviewing the more detailed statement of need with management.
• This process will be repeated until we really understand the information needs and
problems to be solved.
20
 Set System Objectives
• Like other functional areas, the manager should set objectives in terms of design of information
system.
• Various organizations aiming for information of the records or the processing of the dates, over look
the main objective of the information system, i.e., proper management of the information resources.
• Although it is a difficult task to set objectives, because most of the organizations set their objectives
very vaguely like “improve efficiency;” meet the production schedule” and so on. In order to achieve
the objectives successfully they should be specific. Information system objectives must ultimately be
stated in terms of the objectives of the department, group, or in terms of the functions the
information system is to perform.
• Information system objectives should be expressed in terms of what managers can do after their
information needs have been full-filled.
• After setting the objectives, system designer should state them by using descriptive statement, or
flowchart, or data flow diagrams and so on, to convert the objectives for the manager which they
want to accomplish from the emerging information System.
• The objective should be expressed not quantitatively rather qualitatively so that, alternative
information system design in particular, and system performance in general can be measured, for
information system’s effectiveness and efficiency.
• To conclude, the information system objectives should be aligned with the overall objectives of the
organization
21
Establish System Constraints:
• Constraints mean problems, boundaries or restriction that enable the
designer to stipulate the condition under which objective may be attained
and to consider the limitation that restricts the design.
Determine Information Need:
• A clear statement of information need is fundamental and necessary for a
good system design.
• If the manager does not convey his or her information needs, a good design
will not be prepared.
• The type of information needs depends on two factors – one is personal
managerial attributes of the individual manager and the organizations
environment in which the decisions are made

22
Determine Information Sources:
• Determination of information need and to determine the information
source i.e., from where to collect the information that are overlapping.
• For designing a new system, the existing system needs to be analyzed.
• There are two approaches. One is in favor of this and other says there is
no need of analyzing the existing system.
• But sooner or later in a system design, the analysis of existing system
becomes a necessary requirement.
• There are two techniques for analysis and synthesis for discovering the
information source, one is input/output analysis using decision table
and other is multi dimensional flow using flowchart.
23
Develop alternative conceptual designs and
select one:
• Every problem can be solved in a number of ways.
• So before selecting the most feasible alternative, one has to evaluate
each alternative in the light of:
1. Compare anticipated performance of the conceptual design with the
objectives of the system.
2. Prepare a rough or preliminary cost-effectiveness analysis of the information
system.
3. Examine the flow chart for strength and weakness of each conceptual design.
4. Expand the conceptual design in more details, if none of these provides a
preferred design

24
 Document the System Concept
• In this stage manager participation to the design process shows what input,
output, master files and rules for processing are required.
• The general system flow chart is a common method of indicating the general
structure of a computer based information system.
• System flow also reflects the design efforts before and after this stage.
• At this stage the formats of input are designed. The input received from
outside sources is then converted into machine usable forms.
• The output data definition includes the specifications of the destination like
where they go and in what form, etc. Including the specification in what
percentage one gets the output and at what frequency and form it will take,
i.e., hard copy, soft copy, etc.
• After preparing the output and after input has been documented, the last step
is to prepare a report for the manager
25
Prepare the Conceptual Design Report:
• The conceptual design report, is in a sense a proposal for the
expenditure of funds and for organizational change.
• In nutshell, it consists of performance specification, function to be
performed by the system and means by which each function is
measured.
• Along with this report separate documentation should be provided.

26
 Detailed Design
• In order to make a detailed design, first of all the system designers have
to gain the support of all the staff members from top to bottom level.
• To seek their acceptance it is better to involve them in the designing
process.
• The designer uses four sources for the design of the Information System.
• They are task force meeting; for a larger system an interview with the
top, intermediate level manager and a selected group of operating staff;
study the internal and external source document; and at last personal
observation of operations and communications.

27
The detailed design is done for the areas of designing user interface, data
design and process design.
1. User Interface Design:
• The user interface design activity is related to facilitate the interaction between the
user and their computer based application. This involves:
 On which operating system the Management Information System should be based.
 Concentrate on the design of attractive and efficient forms of user input and output.
 Design methods of converting source document into object document means converting
human understandable form to machine understandable language.
• This activity produces the detailed design specifications for information product
like display screen, forms, documents and reports.
2. Data design:
• It includes the design of the structure of databases i.e. what type of specific data
element is carried.
• Entities and their characteristics.
• The relationships these entities have with each other.
• The integrity rules, i.e., how data is maintained and used in the information system
28
3. Process Design:
• It involves the design of process i.e., the design of software programs,
procedure needed by information system.
• At this stage the developer has to decide about the detailed specification of
software, that is either software has to be purchased, or developed or it is
purchased and modified according to the proposed system requirements.
• The system analysts along with management and information system user can
use their expertise to design a new or improved Information System.
• Finally, system design should be such, which specifies what types of
hardware, software, data, people and network resources are required to
make a better Information System.
• It also specifies how such resources will convert data resources into final
information product which is needed or expected by the end user from the
Information System

29
 5. System Development Strategies
• This is the phase, when the programmers play their major role in
development. They start designing the data structures and writing of
programs as per the documents prepared during design phase.
• So, this phase can be categorized into two sub-phases, i.e., database design
and program design.
How data has to be organized, depends on the requirement specifications, hardware
configurations and the features of programming language and DBMS used.
Program design is mainly concerned with writing of programs (coding), editing of
programs using a text editor or word processor, debugging and finally testing them.
There is generally a team of programmers, who work under guidance of their project
leader/systems analyst and do all the coding's.

30
6. Implementation
• Implementation means to introduce the designed system into practice or in use.
• The implementation process covers the following:
1. Acquisition of hardware and software resources required by the proposed system.
2. Develop the computer program or perform any modification in the existing programs or
the software package purchased.
3. Train the end user - it involves
(a) preparing training program and documents that explain how to operate the proposed
system. i.e. to make manual of the Information System.
(b) Educate and train managers, sales person, computer operators who operate the system.
4. Test the system and remove errors if any. This process is continued till system is free from
errors.
5. Conversion process i.e. to introduce a new system.

31
• The conversion process has many ways to convert from old system to new system.

Parallel: When new and old systems are run in parallel for a trial period and a comparison of
both is done. If the proposed system gives a satisfactory solution to information need, it is
accepted and the old one becomes obsolete.

Pilot: In this the new system is introduced at one location or site only for trial. If its performance
is according to the need, it is introduced in whole of the company or organization.

Phasing: Introduce the system in phases i.e. the new system is introduce at one site at a time.
This method is useful when upgrading of old system is done.

Plunge: It is also known as an immediate cut over or change-over. Introduce the new system as
and when it is ready to work and remove the old one directly.

32
 7. Evaluation and Maintenance
• After introducing the system for some time usually after a month, the system developer
takes feed back from the manager, sales person, operators and users of the system that
whether the system is achieving its objective or not. This process is known as
evaluation.
• An effective systems can fail if they are not maintained properly.
• Maintenance involves control, evaluation and modification to make a better system.
• Maintenance is required, because sometimes operators develop their own private
procedure, or make some short cuts, or some unauthorized person introduces some
changes in the present system without taking permission.
• Maintenance activity is initiated by error reports, a user change request, a member of
maintenance team, or by the management.
• Proper planning is done for maintenance. It involves:
a. Collect all requests for change.
b. Give priority to each request after analyzing their long run benefit and cost effects.
c. Prepare short plans.
d. Document the maintenance as it occurs. 33
• Maintenance activity is related to make some modification i.e.,
1. To change the policy statement
2. To change forms
3. To change operating system
4. To change procedures, etc.

34
 PROBLEMS AND PITFALLS IN DEVELOPING MIS
• An effective MIS requires continuous,  consistent, long-range planning with involvement
and commitment from the management as an institutionalized planning process
involving everybody concerned.
• Some of the usual pitfalls and problems in developing and running effective Information
System are mentioned below along  with –some  ways of  increasing effectiveness: 
1. Emphasis on Clerical System:
I. Just taking over an existing clerical system and modifying it without upgrading or changing it does
not help.
II. The clerical system has to be upgraded to a management system. On the other hand, computers
have been put to work on those things that are best understood and easily structured and which
require little management involvement. 
2. Communication gap between Computer Technologist and Manager/ User:
i. Ensuring maximum cooperation and coordination between computer personnel and managers is
necessary.
ii. A greater degree of interaction and involvement between the systems function and the
management function  is required. 

35
3. Lack of a Master Plan:
i. A systematic long range plan/planned approach is necessary for establishing an effective  Management
Information System. 
ii. Increased focus on the area of problems definition is required in the  systems analysis.
iii. The dramatic changes in business strategy together with changes in the top management personnel  and
organization structure call for a through plan.
4. Subordition of MIS Function to EDP Accounting System:
iv. Management Information System's function should be made an independent function so that it reports
directly to top   management.  
5. Lack of Managerial Participation:
v. This involvement and support of top management  as well as participation of  all managers in the design
of their own management information system are necessary.
vi. If top management tends to depend upon its informally designed private information
systems, development of structured, formalized and a public management information systems becomes
difficult.
vii. Many top managers wrongly feel that good strategic decisions are  made more by intuition than by a
quantitative analysis of the available data.
6. Overlooking Human Acceptance:
viii. Users of Management Information System should be involved right at the early stages of design.
Their cooperation by demonstrating how  Management Information System will positively affect their job
is a must. 
36
7. Lack of Resources and Trained Personnel:
i. Lack of trained personnel consisting of system analysts, system designers, programmers and
chief information officers who are business trained and/or have a basic business prospective is a
 handicap.  
8. Voluminous and Unstructured Nature of Data:
ii. Sometimes the volume of data itself can be a hurdle unless careful sifting is done. On the other
hand, it may also be difficult to locate and retrieve relevant data.
iii. Often, the data required by top management is unstructured, non- programmed, future oriented.
inexact and external and hence difficult to  capture.
9. Limited Use of Management Science and or Techniques:
iv. Some of the ways of increasing the effective of Management Information System include
  motivating managers to participate and get involved in Management Information System,
 establishing consistent performance and work criteria for Management Information System,
 maintaining simplicity and ease of use,
  training systems analysts and
 careful consideration of basic computer feasibility criteria like volume and repetitive nature of transactions, degree
of mathematical processing, quick  turnaround time, accuracy and validity of data, common source documents and
well understood processing logic. 
10. Enormous Time, Effort and Resources Required:
v. MIS budget includes data processing costs, hardware costs, personnel  costs, supplies, services, etc.
37  
 Functional MIS
1. MIS for Marketing
• Marketing Information System is a continuing and interacting structure of
people, equipment and procedures to gather, sort, analyze, evaluate, and
distribute pertinent, timely and accurate information for use by marketing
decision makers to improve their marketing planning, implementation and
control activities.

38
Components of Marketing Information System

39
 Components of Marketing Information
System
• Box on the left shows components of the marketing environment that manager must
monitor.
• Trends in the marketing environment are picked up and analyzed through four subsystems
making up the marketing information system- Internal Accounting System, Marketing
Intelligence System, Marketing Research System and Analytical Marketing System.
• Internal Accounting System is the most basic information system used by marketing
executives.
• It is the system that reports orders, sales inventory levels, receivable, payable. By
analyzing the information, marketing managers can spot important opportunities and
problems.

40
• The Order Shipping Cycle:
Sales representatives, dealers and customers dispatch orders to the firm.
The order department prepares multi-copy invoice and sends them to various
departments.
Out of stock items are back ordered. Shipped items are accompanied and sent to
various departments.
The company wants to carryout these steps quickly and accurately. The computer is
harnessed to expedite the order shipping billing cycle.
• Improving the Timeliness or Sales Reports:
Marketing executives receive sales reports some times, after the sales have taken
place.
Many companies complain that sales are not reported fast enough in their company.
Marketing information system can improve these things rapidly.
• Designing a User Oriented Report System:
In designing an advanced sales information system, the company should avoid
certain pitfalls.

41
• The marketing information system should represent a cross between
what Managers think they need, what managers really need and what
is economically feasible.
• Management information system should provide the reports for all
marketing departments.
• Information system can delete the unwanted system from the survey
and from other departments and prepare reports which are required
by different persons of marketing department.

42
 2. MIS for Personnel Management:
• Personnel management has the primary objective of providing suitable
manpower in number and with certain ability, skills and knowledge, as the
business organization demands from time to time.
• Its goal is to control personnel cost through continuous increase in
manpower productivity resorting to the following techniques:
a) Motivation through Leadership and Job Enrichment
b) Grievance Handling
c) Structuring the Organization
d) Promotion and Rewards through Performance Appraisal
e) HRM through Training and Upgrading the Skills

43
• The information and scope of personnel function have resulted in
greater complexity in field.
• There is need to cope with incredible volume of information and
maintaining it.
• There is need to classify, reclassify and cross this information.
• This can be achieved by computerized personnel system which
enables personnel management to manage more efficiently and
effectively and to provide more positive services to the organization.

44
• The following documents serve as the input in personnel information
system:
 Productivity Data on the Job
Industry Data on Manpower, Skills, Qualification
Bio-Data of Self and Family
Personnel Application Form
Attendance and Leave Record
Appraisal Form
Appointment Letter
Wage/ Agreement
Record Sources of Manpower, University, Institutes, and Companies
45
 Components of Personnel Information
• A computer based personnel information system is designed to support the operational,
managerial and decision making functions of the personnel division in an organization.
• Following are the components of the personnel management information system:
i) Establishment Records:
 Establishment relates to the setting up of budgets for appropriate staff levels and grades
throughout the organization.
 The system should encompass these budgeted posts and report on variations between actual staff
numbers and the budget numbers.
ii) Recruitment Records:
 Details of all vacancies and applicants should be held by the system. These should show the status
of each vacancy and of each applicant and should perform as much as possible of the administrative
process. This will generally mean that the system should interface with a word processing system.

46
iii) Personnel Records: These relate to identification data, current and historical salary and
allowances data and various employees attributes such as grades and key dates.
iv) Pensions Records: The system maintains all details of service entitlements of employees,
contribution by both the employee and the organization to pension scheme, details of
dependents, spouse and children, data required for actuarial purpose to verify the availability
of the scheme and details and entitlements of employees who have become pensioners.
v) Training Records: These include data relating to each employees qualification, skills and
experience. The system would also hold details of internal and external training courses and
its relevant details.
vi) Absence Records: The system should allow for the recording of various absence types like
sick leave, special leave etc. Input of this sub-system should be automatically reflected in the
establishment sub-system.
vii) Industrial relations Records: The system should hold data to assist management in
negotiations and planning for alternative strategies. It includes labor relations, relation
between employees and executives, human resource management activities and trade union
activities

47
 3. MIS for Financial Management:
• Financial management function has a primary objective of meeting
the financial needs of the business.
• The second objective of FM is to meet the statutory compliance by
way of declaring the auditing financial result, submitting reports and
returns to the govt. and Tax authorities and fulfill the obligations to
the shareholders.

48
FM uses variety of tools and techniques like
• Break Even Analysis:  a financial calculation that weighs the costs of a new business,
service or product against the unit sell price to determine the point at which you will
break even. In other words, it reveals the point at which you will have sold enough units
to cover all of your costs
• ABC Analysis- ABC analysis is an approach for classifying inventory items based on the
items’ consumption values. Consumption value is the total value of an item consumed
over a specified time period, for example a year.  A items are goods where annual
consumption value is the highest.  B items are interclass items C items have the lowest
consumption value. 
• Ratio Analysis- Ratio analysis refers to the analysis of various pieces of financial
information in the financial statements of a business. They are mainly used by external
analysts to determine various aspects of a business, such as its profitability,
liquidity(liquidity ratio focuses on the company's ability to clear its short term debt) and
solvency.,
• Management Accounting - Management accounting is that field of accounting, which
deals with providing information including. financial accounting information to managers
for their use in planning, decision-making, performance evaluation, control, management
of costs and cost determination for financial reporting.
• Cost Analysis- the act of breaking down a cost summary into its constituents and
49
studying and reporting on each factor
 Input Documents:
• Receipts from customers, authorities, employees, share holders, financial
institution and others.
• Payment to suppliers, authorities, share holders, financial institutions and
others.
• Data from stock exchange on the shares prices consolidated financial results
of the other companies etc.
• Transactions are payments and receipts and they are documented through
journal vouchers, bills, debit notes, credit notes, receipts and transfer
documents.

50
Application of Financial Management Information System:
• The major application of financial management information system includes
financial accounting system, which accounts for the financial transactions of
the company and produces financial results for the company.
• It produces balance sheet for the company where the performance of the
company is published in standard format prescribed by the govt.
• The system is made so comprehensive that it not only collects financial data
but also collects data on different matters such as job, department, and
division and so on.
• It forms a basis for certain reports which are required by the top level
management. The users of the financial data base are finance managers, cost
controller, auditors, material managers, marketing managers, company
secretaries and the top management.

51
 4. MIS for Production Management
• The objective of production management function is to provide manufacturing
services to the organization.
• This involves the manufacturing of products of a certain specified quality and
within certain costs in a stipulated time, fulfilling the promises given to the
customer.
• The production management function is supported by other functions like
production, planning and control, industrial engineering, maintenance and quality
control.
• It has a very strong interface with materials management function.
• The organization of production management differs according to the types of
production i.e. job shop or continuous. It also varies with the production policy of
the organization, like whether the production is initiated against a customer order
or for stock.
52
• The system methodology differs with respect to the manufacturing
technology the organization has adopted.
• The goals of the production management are fuller utilization of the
manufacturing capacity, minimal rejection, maximum uptime of plans and
equipment's meeting the delivery promises.
• The function is of key importance when business strength is in technology
and manufacturing, and the market for product and services exist.
• The function is pegged with the responsibility of managing high
investment in plant, equipment and machinery.
• It also has to control the large labour force at its disposal.

53
 Inputs of Production Management Information System:
• The production management is conducted through innumerable
transaction. They relate to planning, issuing and controlling the various
task involved in the course of production.
i) Process Planning Sheet
ii) Quality Assurance Rating Form
iii) Production Schedule
iv) Process Planning Sheet
v) Job Cards
vi) Finished Goods Advice
vii) Material Requisition
viii) Customer Order
ix) Breakdown Advice
x) Material requirement
xi) Production Programme
54
 Components of Production Management Information System:

a) Sales department to find out what the customer wants and to compare this with
what the firm can provide.
b) Design department to design new requirements and make modifications in
established items either to bring them up to date or to make them meet a specific
requirement of the customer.
c) Purchasing department buys the material required at the best possible price and
on the most reliable delivery to make the various items either on one off basis for
individual job or replenish material held in the stores on maximum and minimum
levels
d) Manufacturing process sees that the parts are produced as economically as
possible for delivery at the time required by the customer and to meet the
standards set by the design department.

55