Deck 2: Systems Integration

Question 1

The current classification of organizations into departments like Accounting and Human Resources shows how the organizational structure evolved by breaking complex tasks into smaller, manageable tasks.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The distributed system architecture has been commonly used in organizations for quite some time.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

When organizations get large and complex sharing of information happens only at higher levels of management.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Organizations have horizontal and vertical divisions.

Question 5

When organizations get large and complex they tend to break functions into larger units and assign one or more staff the responsibility for these activities.

Question 6

ERP systems allow organizations to integrate heterogeneous systems into one with an integrated database system.

Question 7

Mid-level managers typically focus on planning the long-term strategy of the organization.

Question 8

The first generation of computer architecture was the decentralized approach.

Question 9

The functional silo problem gave birth to BPR.

Question 10

Information systems that work independently and are grouped by the various functions and/or departments are known as silos.

Question 11

Independent information systems are good for sharing data between users.

Question 12

When data has to be manually re-entered from one system into another system, this indicates that the systems have seamless integration.

Question 13

In a decentralized computer architecture, every user is given a personal computer.

Question 14

The functional model of POSDCORB (Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing, Coordinating, Reporting, Budgeting) dates back to the 1930s yet is still in use today.

Question 15

Silo environments help to foster enterprise decision-making and overall effectiveness.

Question 16

Functional silos deliver value through their cross-functional performance but are evaluated for their functional performance.

Question 17

When systems are integrated they can share information in real-time.

Question 18

Until recently, information systems and organizations have evolved into functional silos.

Question 19

A centralized computer architecture is based on using servers to share data and applications.

Question 20

The business process view flattens the organization structure from a matrix to a hierarchical structure.

Question 21

Systems integration can't help employees at a lower levels make better decisions and feel more empowered and productive.

Question 22

Getting employee buy-in on a systems integration project is very critical for the success of the integrated system.

Question 23

Decision support systems take data from the TPSs in the organization to help managers make better decisions.

Question 24

One consequence of making information more easily shared will be that integrated systems won't make it easier to get illegal access to the data.

Question 25

Heterogeneous or independent non-integrated systems create bottlenecks, interfere with productivity, and breed inaccurate data.

Question 26

Operating systems and databases are examples of systems that support the end-users directly.

Question 27

Expert systems are a type of Executive Support System to support top-level executives.

Question 28

The manufacturing area has basically the same information needs and reporting requirements as the marketing area.

Question 29

Information systems support the major functional areas of a business including manufacturing, finance, accounting, human resources, and marketing.

Question 30

CEOs and Presidents are involved in planning the long-term strategy of the organization.

Question 31

Today's information systems are based on a centralized architecture that allows sharing of applications and data resources between the end user and the server computers.

Question 32

Silos will probably not prevent customer service representatives from accessing customer data payment records in real-time.

Question 33

Lower-level managers rarely focus on the day-to-day operations of the organization.

Question 34

A cross-functional task such as order processing involves interactions between sales, warehousing and accounting.

Question 35

A distributed architecture is good for ERP systems because they are flexible and scalable.

Question 36

Transaction processing systems are designed to support office workers.

Question 37

The three major types of information system architectures include centralized, decentralized and distributed systems architectures.

Question 38

The distributed system architecture is very complex requiring careful planning and design.

Question 39

The people issues are the most challenging in systems integration.

Question 40

Functional department heads will probably lose control of the data they produce in an integrated system.

Question 41

To get employees to do their task in a new way, managers must get them to shift their focus from achieving ________ goals to organizational goals.

A) procedural
B) departmental
C) functional
D) individual
E) practical

Question 42

If there is a system failure or a major disaster it is crucial that a good ________ system for the integrated system be in place.

A) hardware
B) backup and recovery
C) database
D) crisis management
E) electrical

Question 43

In general, the biggest benefits of implementing an integrated system include a reduction in inventory and ________ costs.

A) personnel
B) direct
C) material
D) silo
E) indirect

Question 44

Being able to approve a customer's credit application on the spot is an example of how integrated systems can provide better:

A) resources.
B) market research.
C) information visibility.
D) support.

Question 45

ERP systems come with built-in ________ for a variety of functions such as entering a customer order.

A) tasks
B) vendors
C) processes
D) users
E) roles

Question 46

________ tools are good for short-term integration of existing applications in the organization.

A) Hardware
B) Data integration
C) Real-time access
D) Business process integration
E) Middleware

Question 47

Because systems integration often involves sharing information across departments, this often creates ________ among the functional departments.

A) power conflicts
B) new opportunities
C) network failures
D) better decisions

Question 48

To avoid support and maintenance problems with the integrated system it is important to create a ________ IT help desk and support.

A) strategic
B) business
C) centralized
D) network
E) distributed

Question 49

At the ________ level, ERP systems require organizations to focus on business processes rather than functions.

A) presentation
B) logical
C) middleware
D) physical
E) hardware

Question 50

A side benefit of integration is that the organization is forced to ________ its hardware, software, and IT policies.

A) review
B) reengineer
C) upgrade
D) standardize

Question 51

A(n) ________ provides a visual dashboard of strategic information to top-level management in real time.

A) DSS
B) TPS
C) ESS
D) OAS

Question 52

The first step in systems integration is to take inventory of the various IT ________ being used in the organization.

A) resources
B) databases
C) hardware components
D) integrated systems
E) web-enabled applications

Question 53

Information systems that are used for generating reports for mid-level managers are known as:

A) ESS.
B) DSS.
C) databases.
D) MIS.

Question 54

Systems integration means allowing access to a shared data resource by people from different ________ areas of the organization.

A) functional
B) geographical
C) decisional
D) logical

Question 55

ERP systems are integrated, multi-module ________ software packages.

A) network
B) web-service
C) database
D) application
E) platform

Question 56

At the physical level, systems integration means providing seamless connectivity between ________ systems.

A) software
B) functional
C) distributed
D) heterogeneous

Question 57

Many benefits of integrated systems are ________ so they are difficult to quantify.

A) financial
B) operational
C) intangible
D) decisional
E) tangible

Question 58

One step in the systems integration process is to develop a policy on whether older, ________ systems will be supported and maintained.

A) business
B) functional
C) departmental
D) legacy

Question 59

Because of the high initial setup costs for the integrated system, it is particularly crucial to have a strong commitment from:

A) the consultants.
B) the IT staff.
C) top management.
D) the employees.

Question 60

Business ________ reengineering involves changing the mindset of employees to do their tasks in a new way.

A) software
B) system
C) process
D) task
E) function

Question 61

Integrated systems should ________ share information with one another.

A) never
B) slowly
C) rarely
D) seamlessly

Question 62

Hershey's ERP project failed initially because they failed to break their existing:

A) chocolate bars.
B) functional silos.
C) cross-functional roles.
D) hardware resources.
E) software development patterns.

Question 63

An organization that wants to connect its systems with its partners and suppliers needs to have a robust ________ system in place.

A) supply chain
B) ERP
C) DSS
D) TPS

Question 64

________ systems focus on individual tasks and/or functions rather than on a process and supporting team collaboration.

A) Matrix
B) Vertical
C) Hierarchical
D) Silo

Question 65

How have organizations evolved into horizontal silos over the years? What impact does this have on information sharing?

Question 66

Because of an ERP system, customers should be able to find out ________ the current status of their orders.

A) eventually
B) on the web
C) in real-time
D) quickly

Question 67

Early business organizations focused on breaking complex work tasks into ________ tasks that could be more easily managed and controlled.

A) larger
B) more complex
C) smaller
D) non-working

Question 68

The current generation of ERP systems does not work well with ________ architecture on legacy platforms.

A) in-house
B) distributed
C) grid
D) centralized
E) cross-platform

Question 69

Manually reentering data in a system ________ leads to more errors and inaccuracies.

A) rarely
B) usually
C) always
D) never

Question 70

As organizations get more ________ and more virtual, information sharing and communication problems get worse.

A) centralized
B) geographically dispersed
C) automated
D) integrated

Question 71

In silo systems information is captured and re-entered several times and is not available in ________.

A) batches
B) real-time
C) back-ups
D) hardcopy

Question 72

One benefit of ERP systems is that they allow organizations to quickly form and break ________ with other companies.

A) networks
B) web services
C) protocols
D) alliances

Question 73

Describe three different limitations of integrating systems.

Question 74

The evolution of Information Systems is often viewed as a(n) ________ change process in which technologies, human factors, organizational relationships and tasks change continuously.

A) easy
B) automated
C) simplified
D) socio-technical

Question 75

The business process view flattens the organization from a hierarchical to a ________ structure.

A) vertical
B) relational
C) matrix
D) horizontal

Question 76

How does changing from a functional view to a process view of the business impact the structure of the organization?

Question 77

How have organizations evolved into vertical silos over the years? What impact does this have on information sharing?

Question 78

List and describe at least three different limitations of systems integration.

Question 79

The hierarchical layers of an organization from strategic planning to operational control represent ________ silos.

A) horizontal
B) matrix
C) corn
D) vertical

Question 80

A(n) ________ organization focuses all its business processes around improving its relationship with its customers.

A) sales oriented
B) non-profit
C) vertical
D) customer-centric