Own Version: 1.2

Organizational Change

Based on the data I have gathered, among the four types of organizational change, the most radical type is paradigm shifts. The most common is automation and also the easiest. Automation and rationalization of procedures are slow moving and slow changing strategies. These two types of change carry low rewards but offer little risk. In contrast, business reengineering and paradigm shifts are faster; carry high rewards but offer high chances of failure.

Change is constant. Many have changed for the better but others are for worse. Others choose to be adaptive than to be predictive because they have this thought that not all things can be predicted. And it is all because life is a constant change. But for me, I am not really into adaptive side; I choose to be predictive rather. Change makes me nervous at times and I am not that person who can easily adapt but not quite long which is I know wrong but still I am working on it.

To understand each type and to know the reason why paradigm shifts the most radical type let us first define each of them. Automation deals with the use of Information Technology (IT) in order to speed up the process of a certain task. Rationalization of procedures is the reformation of operating procedures, removal of bottlenecks to make the operating procedures of the organization more efficient. Business reengineering is the redesigning of the business processes to improve measure of performance while paradigm shifts is the re-conceptualization or change of the nature of the business and the organization itself.

Talking about paradigm shifts as the most radical type of change, organizations could have major disruption when it is done. Although we could say that it is very dangerous because it talks about extreme change and taking high risk but still many of the organizations use it and also business reengineering. Why extreme change? As defined above, it is because it deals with changing the very nature of the business, the structure of the organization and it also deals with new products or services. Same as other individuals, organizations use paradigm shifts as their strategy to change in order to stay competitive. I have read from an article that because of the global economic pressure, organizations realized that they have to take on the challenges to meet the demands of their shareholders.

All types of change could give an organization a disruption but in two most common types – the automation and rationalization of procedures, usually, it can be managed. For the rest, especially the highly disruptive, most dangerous and most radical type of change which is paradigm shifting, it needs a lot of care and should be done well. And if done well, it can give tremendous rewards.

References:
http://www.santarosa.edu/~ssarkar/cs66fl06/ch14notes.htm

http://eclass.yonsei.ac.kr/ksim/under/note/Ch13.pdf

Own Version: Verse 1.1

Use case diagram is used to present in a graphical manner the functionality of a system. Use cases are the goals of an actor or the functions that an actor carries out. By the use of this diagram, functions of a system that are to be performed by an actor can be specified.

The above figure is a use case diagram that presents the enrollment system of the university. Use cases are represented by ovals and the actors are represented by stick figures. The connecting lines between an actor and a use case represents as the association to show that an actor carries out a use case. The figure shows the use cases that a student should perform for him/her to be officially enrolled and the other actors who are involved in the system.

Data Gathering

As I have known myself, I am not what anyone would call verbose but sometimes aggressive, loud, playful and whatever. There are times that I am quiet and times I am not. When I am in my silent mode, I used to think about anything that goes into my mind and observes the things surround me yet it is somewhat helpful because I am learning and I could have my realization after.

Based on the description of my personality that I have stated and on my choice, I could say that I would choose interviewing not because I am more comfortable with it, it is because I love the feeling (not very). I love the feeling going to companies a little bit terrified and excited. I love the feeling going to companies seeing the employees busy with their works and I love the feeling of being cold because of the air-conditioned rooms.

Among the data gathering techniques, interviewing is the most challenging for me when talking about confidence, guts and patience. You must have complete confidence in order to be good in doing such thing and to have a good outcome. You must be brave to avoid bulges while speaking and not to forget the things to say. And I do agree because I already experienced the same thing. I was very nervous at that time, I was lack of preparation, and it gave me so much trouble that made me forgot the things that I have to say even the beginning of my talk. I was totally blackout. You must also have the patience when the person from whom the information is sought keeps on talking even if the words coming are not on track anymore and if the treatment is not good to you. And as an interviewer, you must be attentive and smart in order to keep the conversation going. Ask proper questions to draw out further information, and contribute some ideas of your own on the subject being talked about.

Talking about being comfortable with, I could say that I am more comfortable with document review, observation and use of questionnaires because I do not have to talk much and no so much pressure. When using document review, I just have to rely on papers and study those. In observing, of course, I just have to observe and interpret. And when using questionnaires, I have to construct questions that would cater the information that I need then give it to the assigned person and wait.

I could say that I could get sufficient information when using interviewing. I could make sure that the information that was gathered is from a reliable source and not just a bulk of falsified papers. I could easily ask another question when needed and I could easily make clarifications if there is. It would also help me build more my self-confidence, learn more how to get along with other people not of my own age and learn to converse easily, naturally and effectively. It is also a practice for me to be ready in the future because as it has been said, as we grow older, we encounter new and different types of situations. More and more, we are expected to take part in social conversations. I might be exposed regardless of my major like having communication either verbal or written to some tasks.

On my own

If I were to choose between adaptive and predictive approach in achieving my objectives in life, I would use the latter one which is the predictive approach. Before, we were asked about how we see ourselves ten years from now and the strategies to get there. Well, in a way, that is planning I could say. Planning, for me, is very essential when we are undertaking a project or if we are aiming to achieve something. If we plan in advance, risk can be minimized, we would know where we are going and we can be sure of our actions. Of course, if possible, we don’t want to take risk and we don’t want our dreams to be just our reality. And if we plan in advance, there is a great chance for us to achieve that something. Yes, adaptive approach can be more flexible to change compared to predictive approach, but there is a high tendency of taking risk in using that approach.

In developing a system, adaptive and predictive approach both use SDLC, and activities of each phase are similar. If I were to create my own version of SDLC for me to achieve my objectives in life, this would be the activities/steps that I would undertake:

Prepare a plan.
For some actions that I take, I think first and make a plan. But sometimes, my plan doesn’t work for several reasons – plan is not good enough, there is missing in the plan, and plan is not implemented. Those are the valuable lessons for me to be learned. This time, I will make sure that my plan is in accordance with what I want and with what I need. I will make sure that it will work for the achievement of my objectives.

In preparing my plan, I will decide carefully and make my objectives specific, step-by-step, list the actions and the means in taking the action, the information, knowledge, skills, techniques that I need to master to achieve those objectives and make my own schedule on when to do those actions. In such a way, I can be sure of my actions and directions of where to go and why.

Put the plan into action.
Long before, I made a plan, but the plan was not implemented. That mistake made me regret myself and gave me the feeling of disappointment. Why is it that the plan was not implemented? Looking back from that very moment, the plan was failed to implement because of fear and hesitation that I felt. Fear for the plan to fail and I was uncertain if the plan would work. Instead of learning from that mistake, I made the same mistake again and again. But that was before. I hope and I pray that this time that dilemma would not happen again.

So, after preparing a plan, of course, the next step is to put the plan into action. In taking the action, there are factors that are needed such as information, knowledge, skills and techniques. This is now one of the reasons why planning is important. If we plan, those factors can be identified earlier and it would be easier for us to do the action. As what I have mentioned above in preparing my plan, those factors are considered and listed.

Measure performance.
After preparing my plan and putting it into action, I will also measure my performance. Why need to measure? Of course, not only me but you as well need to measure performance that we exert in our plan. By doing this, we would know how far we are going and how good we are in doing the action. We would also know if we are achieving our objectives. Errors could also be detected. And since errors are detected, we can plan for another action and fix those errors.

Based on my experience, sometimes, when evaluating performance and finding out that we are not doing well in our action, we tend to feel frustrated, sometimes we feel like giving up, depressed and then we stop. But, as it has been said, “Never give up.”

Analyze and interpret the results.
After performing the plan and measuring it, comes the results. I should ask myself, “How’s the result? Is it good or bad?” If it is good, then I should keep on doing the same good thing and keep on improving as well. If the result is bad, then I should still keep on moving but using different strategies and techniques.

Preparing a plan and then analyzing the results is not new to me since I have been doing this long before. I plan not only for the future but also for everyday. Since I am not a good decision maker and not a good planner, it takes time for me to think and then decide what is good. But I am also working on it.

Try again and maintain.
If ever I fail, I will never stop trying until I have achieved my objectives. As what I have read from a book that says, “The learning process is filled with trial and error and accompanied by some frustrations; but we learn from our mistakes.” Therefore, try and try. Even when I keep on trying but there is still no change and I keep on failing, there must be something wrong with my strategies or with my techniques. That is why we have to measure our performance and then analyze the results because as what I have said errors can be detected and the earlier the better. It is really disheartening when we keep on working, so much effort were exerted only to find out that in that long run we are not improving and we are out of track and no good results after all. But, as it has been said, “Be positive.”

Maintain. When the time comes that I’m on my success beam, I would have to maintain that success. Well, although problems and change may occur, as I am sure to have, I would have to face those problems, solve it all, and make some enhancements to expand my capabilities.

Happy New Year to all!

Is it worth?

Many days were allotted by our group to look for a company. After the long walk and negative responses from other companies, eventually, we received a positive response from DCT Printshop. The first proposal that was made, unfortunately, was rejected. We were told that the proposed system was low average. But life must go on. We have to look for another proposal. Then we received a recommendation from our instructor to take the student registration management information system (SRMIS), that is, within our department only. The group accepted it and moved right away. We were told that we had to provide a letter to the registrar’s office and to the department of institute of computing (IC), which we did. But then, again, the registrar’s office refused the proposal. Since we did not have any other options, the group decided to look for another company.

Going back from the time when we had our first visit in our first company – DCT Printshop, the first and second department which are to be found upstairs told us that they did not have any problem with their automated systems. While sitting on a bench and feeling sad, Sir Alfredo Tesoro, the VP-Administration and Sales in the company called us and then we had a discussion. We asked him if there is any data processing which is done manually and we also asked for a suggestion on what he wants for the company or if he wants to have enhancement in any of the systems. Based on the information that we have gathered and on what the VP-Admin have suggested and after the analysis that we have done, the group decided to propose a job requisition, inventory and monitoring system that would simplify their traditional mode of managing records and to keep an eye on the scheduled dates of the yearbook. The system entails a list of records from the job-orders given by the clients, the progress in the processing and production of the yearbook.

Given the question, “Think about your approved/proposed systems, is it worth the three or more years of learning you get from the university?” I would say that the proposed system is very simple or easy to develop for those who are experts like systems analysts/developer. Not like me, I am not that good enough in developing a system, I am still an amateur and still in the process. But I am still working on it. Maybe, someday, somehow, ten years from now, when the time comes I might be able to develop any of the systems. And as part of information technology (IT), it is really part of our job to help companies solve their problems with regard to their information system. Although we could say that the proposed system is not worth the three or more years of learning, but due to knowledge and time constraints, it is also one of the reasons why the group arrived with the proposal. Going back from the time when we had our database analysis and design 1, 2 and 3, we were also asked to develop a specific system. This time, we are facing another challenging task. But I know it doesn’t end up here, there are still more and more tasks to come.

Well, honestly, as part of information technology (IT) and being an IT student, although it is not so obvious, I also think of something that I can contribute to the world of IT, something that is new, valuable and exceptional, something that I can be proud of. But this is now the question, what is that something?

Allow me to share with you this; although it is not so related to the topic, I just want to express this realization and appreciation of mine. As I still remember, when green campus computing and free open source software (FOSS) were introduced to us, I told myself, “This is really great.” In my own little ways, I was able to help preserve the green planet. But we are not just an advocate; we put it into practice. So, I have now my first answer to that something and that is being part of green campus computing and FOSS. But I am still looking for more.

To everyone, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year !

Critical Success Factor

To begin, when I first heard these words – critical success factor (CSF), I had these questions in mind – What is CSF? Is that for what? How does it work? But that was long time ago. Now that I was asked to identify the steps for CSFs approach, let us first answer those questions.

Critical success factors (CSFs) according to Deborah Muckle are the things that must go right for a business to succeed. And stated in Wikipedia, CSF is a business term for an element which is necessary for an organization or project to achieve its mission. They are the critical factors or activities required for ensuring the success of your business. The term was initially used in the world of data analysis, and business analysis.

Rockart defined CSFs as:
"The limited number of areas in which results, if they are satisfactory, will ensure successful competitive performance for the organization. They are the few key areas where things must go right for the business to flourish. If results in these areas are not adequate, the organization's efforts for the period will be less than desired."

He also concluded that CSFs are "areas of activity that should receive constant and careful attention from management."

Talking about critical success factor, last December 15, 2008, when we had our class in management information system 2 (MIS 2), one of the reported topics was about CSF and we were asked to identify the CSFs of our department which is the Institute of Computing (IC) but I was not able to answer not because I had no idea, but I just could not raise my hand (joke!).

So now that we have those definitions from the different sources, let us now proceed to its significance. After reading quite a few articles, from what I have understood, it is really important to identify the critical success factors of an organization or a project to have focused on things that must be observed all the way through and as what have stated in Wikipedia, key success factors generally include exceptional management. Therefore, identifying CSFs and managing it in an exceptional manner will lead the organization or a project to success.

What are these factors? Here are some of the critical success factors that were identified in Wikipedia:

• Money: positive cash flow, revenue growth, and profit margins.
• Your future: Acquiring new customers and/or distributors.
• Customer satisfaction: How happy are they?
• Quality: How good is your product and service?
• Product or service development: What's new that will increase business with existing customers and attract new ones?

Those factors that were stated above have helped me understand more about critical success factors. So, after defining the term, knowing its significance and showing some of the examples, to move on, here are now the steps for CSFs approach that were presented by Deborah Muckle in his presentation in Chapter 11: Information Systems Planning:

First, identify the firm’s primary mission and objectives that define satisfactory overall performance. Every organization has its mission or the reason why it exists which simply means its purpose and its objectives that support to accomplish its mission. Primarily, an organization exists to serve its stakeholders at its best. These stakeholders are the customers, employees, business partners, shareholders, and communities that benefit from the organization’s existence and growth. It is not easy or we can never identify the CSFs of an organization when they don’t even know their purpose of their existence. Why need to identify the CSFs when there is nothing to be accomplished? Think of that. As it has been said, purpose in life transcends self and gives meaning and satisfaction. It is important that the organization should also be specific with their vision, mission and objectives. Of course, there can never be an organization without its vision, mission and goals.

Second, executives identify the CSFs. After identifying the organization’s mission and objectives, and CSFs were also identified, the organization can now focus their efforts on the factors. Let me have an example, if I were to ask myself, why do I exist? What is my purpose here on earth? To achieve that purpose, what are the things that I need to improve or to have? Are my abilities enough?

It has been stated in Mind Tools site,
“By identifying your Critical Success Factors, you can create a common point of reference to help you direct and measure the success of your business or project.

As a common point of reference, CSFs help everyone in the team to know exactly what's most important. And this helps people perform their own work in the right context and so pull together towards the same overall aims.

Critical Success Factors are the areas of your business or project that are absolutely essential to it success. By identifying and communicating these CSFs, you can help ensure your business or project is well-focused and avoids wasting effort and resources on less important areas. By making CSFs explicit, and communicating them with everyone involved, you can help keep the business and project on track towards common aims and goals”

So, after reading the citation, I have now my realization, “Every living thing, no matter how small is in itself, a delight” How was that? You might confuse and wonder how the quote connected to the topic, for what? But then allow me to use it. Many of the organizations have a tendency to generalize their critical success factors that would lead them to a problem. When determining CSFs, it is suggested to be more specific because as what the quote trying to express, small things might be unnoticed without knowing that they are the important things. Just like viruses, they are so small that they cannot be seen through most microscopes however, they are contagious and dangerous. That is why the executives or managers of any organization should have a deep analysis on the organization’s CSFs. They have to consider the business needs when thinking about what really matter for the success. Once we have a list of CSFs, it is time to consider what is absolutely essential and so identify the truly critical success factors.

Next is to identify the pertinent indicators or measures of performance for each CSF; measurements could be either quantitative or qualitative. These pertinent indicators or measures of performance are what we called key performance indicator (KPI). “A critical success factor is not a key performance indicator (KPI). Critical success factors are elements that are vital for a strategy to be successful. KPIs are measures that quantify management objectives and enable the measurement of strategic performance” – stated in Wikipedia.

In order for the organization to determine how much they attain their objectives, KPIs are used. Like for example, if one of the CSFs of the organization is customer satisfaction, then the KPI now is the number of customers that are happy with the product or service. If we are talking about money, it could be the amount of revenue or the cash flows of the organization. Let me have another example, from the factor stated above, acquiring new customers and/or distributors, the number of new customers should be measured.

After the long analysis in identifying critical success factors and identifying the measures of performance for each CSF, lastly, decide which measures are most important than then makes sure that IS plans provide means for collecting and using this information. Organizations find ways or means enabling them to achieve their mission by doing necessary activities. As what I have said earlier, determining factors should be specific; it should be in sufficient detail to provide sufficient information for the plan to begin. The very reason why should develop an IS plan and why need to identify CSFs and that is for the organization to succeed. It has been said that it is not necessarily that all the measures are should be employed; instead, the organization is advised to weigh all the output measures and identify which measures are the most important. But that is not the end at all, after that, the decisions should go in to the IS plan and should be stated there the means using the information.

Let me share with you my observation from the previous assignments up to the present, the word success has been always there. We can always reason out that the organization should do that and do this, should have that and have this for the attainment of its success which is true. Even me as a person, I really wanted to succeed. When we say success, it is really broad and music to our ears. So to achieve success, we must always pay the price. It takes lot of courage and perseverance. For that reason, I could say, we all love success.

And for me to say, organization should identify the critical success factors within and control the factors that enable success and should overcome the factors that would hinder the success of its organization.

Jumping up to the conclusion, when a plan is to be implemented, it should be taken into consideration the critical success factors of the organization. As it was stated, CSFs are the things that must go right for a business to succeed. As I still remember, from the previous assignment I said that in developing information systems plan (ISP), there are several factors that must be considered. Each of which should not be taken for granted and should be well analyzed and planned and part of that are the CSFs.

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critical_success_factor

http://www.science.gmu.edu/~ahughes/MIS411f05Ch11Deborah.ppt

http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_80.htm