... | Unit 5002 – Information based decision making Assignment 1. Explain and provide examples of the differences between data and information, and describe at least three different sources of management data and information. Prepare a chart to evaluate the benefits and possible drawbacks of each source of information in terms of its usefulness in helping managers to make sound business decisions. Describe the selection criteria you would apply to ensure the quality and integrity of the data and information you use for decision-making. Give reasons for each selection criteria. This covers assessment criteria: 1. Examine the nature of data and information 2. Evaluate relevant sources of data and information 3. Discuss the criteria for selection of data and information Guideline word count: 450 - 500 1.1 Examine the nature of data and information Data can be described as facts and figures which relay something specific but that are raw and still need to be processed and organised. Data can be classified as either quantitative (numerical) or qualitative (descriptive), both have a distinct purpose and use. Once data has been processed, organized, structured or presented in a given context so as to make it understandable and useful, it can be classified as information. When planning or carrying out a decision-making process, besides data and information, it is also important to consider knowledge....
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...Accounting Information for Managers To Make Better Decisions 1 Abstract This paper analysis how the accounting information would support the decision making process. The main goal of an accounting system is to provide financial information about the organization including financial situation and the performance of the organization. The decision makers should know the situation of the organization either by comparing competitors or previous periods’ performance in order to achieve the objectives of the company and this being possible by using accounting information. In addition, this thesis studies the importance of having effective and efficient accounting system to make better decision as it relates to increase the profitability target of an organization. Organizations should replace their weak accounting system in order to ensure that each team member in the Accounts Department is conscious of their role to produce good accounting information (1, Okoli Margaret). The result of this paper describes that providing right information to the right people in time via management reporting to maximize the use of reports in decision-making. 2 Introduction Any organization should survive and excel in the fast paced and ever changing market. We are living in the digital era so information can be found everywhere via websites, databases documents, reports, and emails. However, it’s important to read the historical data-set during decision making process but providing report in quick...
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...of information systems in supporting decision making process. For this purpose, role of different types of information systems such as, Management Information System (MIS), Decision Support System (DSS), Enterprise Resource Planning System (ERP), Executive Information System (EIS), specifically agent-based information systems have been analysed in the different aspects of decision making process. For this purpose ten highly relevant journal articles have been selected and the body of this report is based upon the literature of those articles. From the research of this report, it is has been found out that different types of information systems facilitates managers working at different levels of organisations in making effective decision. It has been identified that organisations operate in highly vibrant and impulsive environment that changes rapidly. Based on these changes, executives and higher level managers have to make decisions accordingly. This decision making process requires a lot of subjective information about the external environment upon which decisions have to be made Annotated Bibliography 1. Ucakturk, A. & Villardb, M., 2013. The Effects of Management Information and ERP Systems on Strategic Knowledge Management and Decision-Making. Social and Behavioural Sciences, Vol 99, pp. 1035 – 1043. In this article, Ucakturk and Villardb have discussed the effects of management information and ERP systems on strategic knowledge management and decision-making processes...
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...HOLIDAY DECISION MAKING: PROCESS OF LEISURE DISCOVERY AND ADAPTABILITY. The following essay attempts to discuss and critically evaluate the traditional problem solving, cognitive model of consumer decision making process with that of holiday decision making. The writing begins with the introduction phase which discusses the traditional model of consumer decision making process. The following subsection discusses the sequential stages involved in the traditional consumer decision making, following is a comparative analysis between holiday decision making and traditional consumer decision making based on the stages involved in traditional consumer decision making. A conclusion that summarizes this study follows thereafter. I. INTRODUCTION “Consumer behavior reflects the totality of consumers’ decisions with respect to the acquisition, consumption and disposition of goods, services, activities, experiences, people and ideas overtime.” (Wayne D. Hoyer, Deborah J. Maclnnis 2008). This means that as much as the consumer will purchase a certain product e.g. soap, based on his preference of brands, he may also purchase a product such as a book just because it has been written by a popular author. Consumer decision making is about market choice behavior where consumers must make a decision between two or more competing alternatives, and thereafter decide on whether to purchase the alternative. The consumer decision making process is the stages that a consumer goes through in order...
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...Decision Making: Decision making is an art and a science which has been studied over generations. The secret of marketing lies in learning what the customer wants and how to influence the customer’s decision making process so that he buys our product above competition. Behind a simple decision making process, there are many thought processes which influence the decision making. A buyer may take an emotional, spur of the moment decision, or he may take a well thought out and researched decision. Based on his observation, different processes can be defined for decision making. Decision making mainly depends on the involvement of the customer. There are high involvement products and there are low involvement products. Similarly, there are consumer products and industrial products. Involvement in industrial products like automobile (BMW) will generally be higher as compared to commercial products because the amount of investment in industrial products is also huge. Marketers must consider how consumers decide to buy their product. Consumers use nominal, limited, and extended decision making. Watch this video to learn more about the different types of consumer decisions. Consumer Decisions and Strategy In order to successfully reach their target market, marketers must have some idea of how much time and effort consumers will put into a purchase decision. For BMW the business personalities, high officials are the target market but decision sometimes depends on their wives...
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...Decision-Making Case Study The looming changes in health care are a frequent topic in many meetings with health care providers. Budget cuts are not just a speculation but are a reality. Decision-making to provide quality patient care with less money is a challenge at best. The Informed Decisions Toolbox can assist administrators and managers with evidence-based decisions that will allow patients to receive the quality care they deserve while reducing expenses. The Informed Decisions Toolbox The Informed Decisions Toolbox (IDT) is the result of a research study to aid managers with making evidence-based decisions that improve organizational performance. The IDT has an approach of six steps to decision-making (Rundell, et al, 2007): (1) framing the management question, (2) finding sources of information, (3) assessing the accuracy of the information, (4) assessing the applicability of the information, (5) assessing the actionability of the evidence, and (6) determining if the information is adequate (p. 325). As a facilitator for the use of evidence-based research in decision-making, the IDT assists decision-makers with estimating how operational and strategic decisions will have an effect on the organization. Evidence-based decision-making is not new to the health care industry. Clinicians have incorporated evidence-based research for years when making patient treatment determination. The use of evidence-based research for decision-making in other realms of healthcare...
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...Decision - Making Case Study Analysis HCS/514 Managing in Today’s Health Care Organizations August 28, 2015 Introduction The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) produced a set of developmental tools to aid decision makers in discovering and interpreting evidence related decisions. These developmental tools are to promote the use of evidence-based management within a health care setting. The informed decision toolbox was created to help merge the gap between evidence based research and decision making within an organization (Crump & Spurgeon, n.d.). These tools consist of six steps that will guide managers and decision makers in constructing well informed decisions. The steps are composed of; framing the question behind the decision, finding sources of information, assessing the accuracy of information, assessing the applicability of the information, assessing the actionability of the information and determining if the information is adequate are used by managers to consider if the decision they are making is well informed (Young, 2002). Framing Questions and Locating Sources By framing the question behind the decision, a manager must first identify what the decision is and then determine what information must be obtained in order to make a well informed decision. To properly make a well informed decision, a manager must frame a question that will properly translate what research must be conducted to begin research. The questions will be used...
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...BIG DATA - THE MANAGEMENT REVOLUTION Summary The general theme of the article is to proof how data-driven decisions are better for businesses as data enables the managers to base their decision on evidence rather than intuition. The idea behind big data is to collect all kinds of data from various sources and to effectively utilize this data to improve the financial and operational aspects of the business. Companies that operate on digital platforms like Amazon are already experts at big data and are using the predictions based on data in a deft manner. The practice of big data should not be confined to companies that operate digitally but should be implied by other businesses as well, as big data is a revolutionary practice that provides data in larger volumes with higher velocity with which data is complied and entailed and the variety in which data is available. Furthermore, modifying a company to be data-driven is not only technologically challenging but poses a copious amount of managerial challenges as well. The decision is usually based on the senior manager who has to know how to answer questions and how to embrace evidence based decision. For a company to re-organize itself to become data-driven, the manager should concentrate on improvising five areas that include, leadership, talent management, technology, decision making and company culture. The author cities instances of big data using examples of airports where PASSUR Aerospace provided a service called...
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...Assignment Brief - Unit 5002V1: Information based decision making Version 1: Nov 13 Page 1 of 2 Unit 5002V1 - Information based decision making Introduction This unit is about understanding the sources of management information within an organisation, and being able to analyse the information in order to identify patterns and trends. It is also about being able to use simple decision making models and methods of presenting decisions as well as understanding how to communicate management decisions effectively. Scenario Learners may use their own employment context, or that of another organisation with which they are very familiar, to base their assignment. However, in the case that they are not able to do so, please use the below scenario:- You are a manager, leading a department in a medium sized company. You are required to analyse and present management information and to communicate decisions made to a range of different audiences. Task 1: Examine and provide examples of the differences between data and information. Evaluate at least three different sources of management data and information, preparing a table to evaluate the benefits and possible limitations of each source of information in terms of its usefulness in helping managers to make sound business decisions. Discuss the selection criteria you would apply to ensure the quality and integrity of the data and information you use for management decision making. Give reasons for each selection criterion. Guideline...
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...TOPic: DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMS: AN OVERVIEW AND ITS ROLE IN BUSINESS Introduction A decision support system (DSS) is a computer-based information system that supports business or organizational decision-making activities. DSSs serve the management, operations, and planning levels of an organization and help to make decisions, which may be rapidly changing and not easily specified in advance. Typical information that a decision support application might gather and present are: * Inventories of information assets (including legacy and relational data sources, cubes, data warehouses, and data marts), * Comparative sales figures between one period and the next, * Projected revenue figures based on product sales assumptions. Making decisions concerning complex systems (e.g., the management of organizational operations, industrial processes, or investment portfolios; the command and control of military units; or the control of nuclear power plants) often strains our cognitive capabilities. Even though individual interactions among a system's variables may be well understood, predicting how the system will react to an external manipulation such as a policy decision is often difficult. What will be, for example, the effect of introducing the third shift on a factory floor? One might expect that this will increase the plant's output by roughly 50 percent. Factors such as additional wages, machine weardown, maintenance breaks, raw material usage, supply logistics, and...
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...Decision support systems are a lesson of computer-based information systems plus knowledge based systems which support decision making activities. Since there are numerous methods for decision-making, moreover, because of the wide range of dominions in which decisions are made, thus, the concept of decision support system (DSS) is very wide-ranging. A DSS may take several different formulae. In general, we can assure that a DSS is a computer system in order to aid for making decisions. A decision is an optimal among alternatives based on estimations, valuation and of the standard of those substitutes. However, supporting a decision means assisting employee working alone, or in a group gathers intelligence as teamwork and the best and appropriate for the organization. In addition, supporting the optimal making process involves backup, the appraisal and/or the comparison of alternatives. In practice, references of DSS are commonly references to computer applications that perform by means of supporting role. The decision support system has been well-defined in various ways by different scholars and managers. On contrary, others define a DSS rather mainly is "a computer-based system that aids the process of decision making." For instance, Turban expresses exactly as "an interactive, flexible, and adaptable computer-based information system, specially developed for supporting the solution of a non-structured management problem for improved decision making. It utilizes data, provides...
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...Chapter 2 Making Decisions In this chapter, students will explore the importance of decision-making to managers and learn how to make effective decisions. |LEARNING OBJECTIVES | | 1. Describe the eight steps in the decision-making process. 2. Explain the four ways managers make change. 3. Classify decisions and decision-making conditions. 4. Describe different decision-making styles and discuss how biases affect decision making. 5. Identify effective decision-making techniques. |It’s Your Career | | Be a Better Decision Maker Decisions are an essential part of your life, personally and professionally. Each and every day is a series of decisions, from minor to significant, and everything in between. Good decision-making is a skill, and like any skill, it can be learned and improved. So, how can you improve your decision-making skills? The chapter outlines four things students need to know; each numbered item will be described further in the chapter: 1. Know, understand, and use the decision-making process. Yes, there is a “method” to making decisions that takes you from identifying problems to evaluating the effectiveness of your decision. It works. Know it. Understand it. Use it. 2. Know when and how to use rational or intuitive decision-making...
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...Chapter 2 Making Decisions In this chapter, students will explore the importance of decision-making to managers and learn how to make effective decisions. |LEARNING OBJECTIVES | | 1. Describe the eight steps in the decision-making process. 2. Explain the four ways managers make change. 3. Classify decisions and decision-making conditions. 4. Describe different decision-making styles and discuss how biases affect decision making. 5. Identify effective decision-making techniques. |It’s Your Career | | Be a Better Decision Maker Decisions are an essential part of your life, personally and professionally. Each and every day is a series of decisions, from minor to significant, and everything in between. Good decision-making is a skill, and like any skill, it can be learned and improved. So, how can you improve your decision-making skills? The chapter outlines four things students need to know; each numbered item will be described further in the chapter: 1. Know, understand, and use the decision-making process. Yes, there is a “method” to making decisions that takes you from identifying problems to evaluating the effectiveness of your decision. It works. Know it. Understand it. Use it. 2. Know when and how to use rational or intuitive decision-making or both. Different...
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...internal and external source and processing this information for the purpose of facilitating the process of decision-making of the business. MIS is not new, only the computerization is new , before computers MIS techniques existed to supply managers with the information that would permit them to plan and control business operations. The computer has added on more dimensions such as speed, accuracy and increased volume of data that permit the consideration of more alternatives in decision-making process. The scope and purpose of MIS is better understood if each part of them is defined individually, thus 1. MANAGEMENT: Management has been define in process or activities that describe what managers do in the operation for their organization plan, organize, initiate and control operations. They plan by setting strategies and goals and selecting the best course of action to achieve the goals. They organize the necessary tasks for the operational plan, set these tasks up into homogenous groups and assign authority delegation; they control the performance standards and avoiding deviation from standard. The decision-making is a fundamental prerequisite of each of the foregoing process, the job of MIS is facilitating decisions necessary for planning, organizing and controlling the work and functions of the business so that specified goals of business are achieved. 2. INFORMATION: Data must be distinguished from information and the distinction is clear and important for...
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...Higher Diploma in Business Management BUSINESS DECISION MAKING Unit 6: Outcome 1: Outcome 2: Outcome 3: Outcome 4: Business Decision Making Be able to use a variety of sources for the collection of data, both primary and secondary Understand a range of techniques to analyse data effectively for business purposes Be able to produce information in appropriate formats for decision making in an organisational context Be able to use software generated information to make decisions in an organisation Your assignment consists of two tasks for you to complete. Task 1 will include two parts. Part 1 is scenario based and asks you to prepare a professional report based on your market findings. In Part 2 of the Task 1 you will need to discuss various Management Information Systems (MIS). Task 2 will be based on three time-constrained activities (TCAs). TASK 1, Part 1 – Individual business report Submission date: 21 May 2015 Scenario: Grocery Ltd In business, good decision making requires effective use of information. A Sales Director of Grocery Ltd, the recently established mass retail business in Dubai, seeks information on the grocery market in Dubai in order to make several important business decisions. He appointed you as his consultant to analyse relevant market data/ information and deliver a professional report based on your findings. Grocery Ltd operate several grocery stores in Dubai; all stores were established four years ago. During the past...
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