New Directions in MIS Management: A Guide for the 1990s

by Robert J. Thierauf

Overview

Thierauf's work develops a number of interesting and potentially useful approaches to management information systems (MIS) practice. The author presents a number of techniques (some well known, others more recent) that practicing MIS managers may adopt to facilitate effective MIS planning for the 1990's by focusing on problem finding rather than on problem solving. A primary recommendation of Thierauf's is the restructuring of the MIS organization using a functional (end-user) departmental approach. Discussed at length are various issues relevant to this restructuring, such as staffing, motivating MIS personnel and end users, and MIS ‘soft' controls. Recommended for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students as well as practicing managers and MIS specialists. Choice

With new developments in hardware and software, MIS managers are increasingly faced with the need to develop more sophisticated managerial—as opposed to purely technical—skills. Here, an acknowledged expert in the field of information systems draws on his own original research and experience to develop a set of workable strategies and techniques that MIS managers can use to function more effectively as we move into the next decade. Thierauf identifies probable trends in the field in coming years and outlines ways in which MIS managers can anticipate predictable problems, apply improved management skills to the end-user interface, and effectively motivate MIS personnel.

Thierauf concentrates particularly on four major areas of managerial responsibility: planning, organizing, motivating, and controlling. In planning, he shows how to use problem-finding techniques to anticipate and solve potential problems between MIS personnel and end-users. To help reduce this conflict, Thierauf argues, there is a need for a new direction in organizing MIS departments. He proposes bringing MIS and end-use departments together by using a functional departmental approach. In motivating MIS personnel, there is need to go beyond self-actualization by emphasizing mutual actualization as well as self donation. Finally, in the area of control, Thierauf advocates the use of soft controls to replace stringent controls that have had a tendency to restrict personal freedom on the job. A common thread througout the discussion is a focus on effective guidelines for the MIS manager to follow in order to come to grips with the changing realities of the 1990s.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780899303468
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	11/15/1988
Pages:	257
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.62(d)

About the Author

ROBERT J. THIERAUF is Professor of Information and Decision Sciences at Xavier University. His twenty previous books include Effective Information Centers (Quorum, 1988) and A Problem-Finding Approach to Effective Corporate Planning (Quorum, 1987).

Table of Contents

New Directions for the MIS Manager
Introduction to MIS Management in the 1990s
Past, Present, and Future Problems Faced by MIS Managers
Effective MIS Planning Using Problem Finding
New Direction in MIS Planning
An MIS Planning Framework for the Problem-finding Process
Integration of MIS Objectives, Goals, Strategies with Critical Success Factors for Effective Problem Finding
Effective MIS Organization Structure Using a Functional (End-User) Departmental Approach
New Direction in MIS Organization Structure
An Approach to Staffing New MIS Organization Structure
Effective Motivation of MIS Personnel and End Users
New Direction in Motivating MIS Personnel and End Users
Effective MIS Control Using Soft Controls
Newer Direction in MIS Control
Effective MIS Guidelines in the 1990s
MIS Management Guidelines for the 1990s
Bibliography
Index