IS 5800 Syllabus
Management
of Information Systems:
FALL 2017
Course Hours:
Thursdays: 6:55-9:00 pm, Room 003 Anheuser Busch Hall
PLEASE NOTE EXAM I, EXAM
II and EXAM III will be administered in 005 Express Scripts Hall;
This section is based on a “flipped” classroom, a form of
blended learning in which students learn content online by reading and watching
videos and recorded lectures outside the classroom. Class time is used for group project
work, group presentations and exams.
Course Instructor:
Dr. Mary C.
Lacity
235 Express Scripts Hall
(314) 516-6127 (work)
(314) 516-6827 (fax)
Email:
Mary.Lacity@umsl.edu
Homepage: http://www.umsl.edu/~lacitym
Office Hours: Thursdays: 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm (no
appointment needed—just stop in!); other times by appointment
Course Description:
Bulletin
description: This course provides an
overview of the established and contemporary issues related to managing
information systems within organizations. Topics include:
Global
IT spend
Role
of the Chief Information Officer (CIO)
Enterprise
Systems (e.g., ERP, CRM, SCM)
Managing
IT within and across organizations (i.e., IT strategy, governance,
organizational structures, technology acceptance)
Impact of IT on organizational competitiveness and
global economies—if machines do everything, what will people
do?
Managing IT-enabled projects; Project Management;
Change management
Business
Intelligence, Big Data and the Internet of Things
IT
sourcing arrangements (outsourcing, cloud computing)
IT
issues related to security, privacy, intellectual property rights, and ethics
Societal
impacts of IT such as Green IT and Digital Divide
Business
value of emergent technologies (e.g., Cognitive Automation (Machine Learning), Blockchain, Robots, Digital Fabrication (3-D printing),
Social Media;)
Course Instructor:
Dr. Mary C.
Lacity is Curators’ Distinguished Professor at
the University of
Missouri-St. Louis and a Visiting
Scholar at MIT CISR.
She has held visiting positions at the London School of Economics, Washington
University, and Oxford University. She is a
Certified Outsourcing Professional ®, Industry Advisor for Symphony Ventures, and Co-editor of the Palgrave
Series: Work, Technology, and Globalization. Her
research focuses on the delivery of business and IT services through global
sourcing and automation. She
has conducted case studies and surveys of hundreds of organizations on their
outsourcing and management practices. She has given keynote speeches and
executive seminars worldwide and has served as an expert witness for the US
Congress. She was inducted
into the IAOP’s Outsourcing
Hall of Fame in 2014, one of only three academics to ever be inducted. She
was the recipient of the 2008 Gateway to Innovation Award sponsored by the IT Coalition, Society for
Information Management, and St. Louis RCGA. She
has published 26 books, most recently Robotic Process Automation and Risk Mitigation: The
Definitive Guide (2017) and Service
Automation: Robots and the Future of Work (2016)(SB Publishing, UK, co-author Leslie
Willcocks). Her publications have appeared in the Harvard Business Review, Sloan Management Review, MIS Quarterly, MIS Quarterly
Executive, IEEE Computer, Communications of the ACM, and many other academic and
practitioner outlets.
Course Materials:
I have selected the most pertinent readings for
each module, including foundational readings that remain relevant through time
and thought-provoking contemporary readings. Readings are posted on MYGATEWAY. You
may also download readings from the online libraries available to all UMSL
students.
We will also read selected chapters from three books. New and used books (kindle, hard copy,
soft copy) may be purchased from Amazon.
|
|
Citation |
Required
Reading |
|
|
Brynjolfsson,
E. and McAfee, A. (2014) The Second
Machine Age, Norton, New York, ISBN
9780393239355 |
Chapters
1 & 2 |
|
|
Rogers,
E.M. (2006) Diffusion of Innovations, New York, Free Press, fourth or
fifth edition. ISBN:
0743222091 |
Chapters
1 |
|
|
Tapscott,
D., and Tapscott, A. (2016), Blockchain
Revolution: How the Technology Behind Bitcoin Is Changing Money, Business,
and the World, Penguin Random House, NYC ISBN:
978-1101980132 |
Chapters
1 & 2 |
Course Grades:
|
PERCENT
|
ASSESSMENT |
DUE DATE |
|
20% |
Exam
I |
Thursday,
Sept 14 in class |
|
20% |
Exam
II |
Thursday,
Oct 5 in class |
|
20% |
Exam
III |
Thursday,
Nov 2 in class |
|
35% |
Oral
Group Presentation |
See
schedule below |
|
5% |
Class
Participation |
Required
Attendance Days |
Because the instructor
will raise the student’s lowest exam score by 10 points, the final
average is calculated using the following formula:
Final Grade = (Best Exam Score *.20) + (Second Best Exam
Score *.20) + ((Worst Exam Score + 10) * .2) + (Oral Grade *.35) + Class
Participation
The
conversion from a numeric final average to a course letter grade is strictly
enforced since the grading generosity comes from adding 10 points to the lowest
exam score. The letter grades use the following scale:
|
92.00 or above |
A |
|
90.00 to 91.99 |
A- |
|
88.00 to 89.99 |
B+ |
|
82.00 to 87.99 |
B |
|
80.00 to 81.99 |
B- |
|
78.00 to 79.99 |
C+ |
|
72.00 to 77.99 |
C |
|
70.00 to 71.99 |
C- |
|
Below 70.00 |
F |
Grading
Philosophy.
Professors do not “give” grades. Students “earn” grades. I take grading very seriously. I thoughtfully grade each assessment item
on the assessment sheets. A
sub-culture has emerged among some
(certainly not all) graduate students that graduate students are
“customers” and that everything they do should be given an A. Such a view dilutes the value of your
education. I am morally obligated
to clearly define expectations (which I do on a very detailed syllabus), to
help you as much as I can before your exams and oral presentations (which I do
for each individual and group), and to grade the actual performance using the
assessment sheets.
Protesting grades on
these grounds are not effective: ignorance about when something is due (that
never works-read the syllabus for due dates), ignorance of an assessment item
(that never works, everything is posted in Mygateway),
different perception of performance (as an outside and experienced observer, I
am certainly more objective than the student who self-assesses!), personal
problems (must be documented and discussed before
an exam or presentation), all the hard work they did (that’s an input,
not an output), etc.
I must treat and assess
each student the same—fairly and consistently. I cannot make exceptions for some
students. All that said, I have
great empathy for college students, having been one myself for nine years! I care about your learning. I want
to see all students earn high grades!
Exams:
The exams cover
material from the assigned readings, assigned videos/webinars/Voicethreads, professor’s lectures, and group
presentations. The exam study guides posted in Mygateway
will guide you as you work your way through the modules.
Exams are
closed notes, closed books, closed Internet—all you need is your brain.
No make-up exams will be given without prior instructor permission or under
extreme documentable circumstances.
Students will take 3
exams. Exams are NOT
cumulative. The instructor will
raise the student’s lowest exam score by 10 points.
Based on years of experience, students are much
more likely to perform well on exams if students:
A. Set aside 10 to 15 hours a week to work on a
module-put the time slot on your family and work calendars
B. Printed the study guide before working
through a module
C. Closely read required readings and closely
watch webinars and required videos
D. Actively participate in your
learning—answer the study guide questions as you read and watch assigned
materials.
E. Start a study group! A study group is an
effective and pleasant way to reinforce learning.
Students who have
earned As on past exams report that they have followed
A through D/E and studied for the exam for 5 to 10 hours the week prior to the
exam. I suggest you schedule time
each week to read assignments and schedule 5 to 10 hours the week prior to the
exam for studying.
If students have not
done A through D, students find it overwhelming to read all the assignments and
watch all the videos/webinars in the week prior to the exam.
I want you
all to succeed! Please follow my
advice!
Oral Group Presentation:
The class will be divided into 8 groups. Each
group is responsible for presenting a 45 to 50 minute presentation to the class. Each
group will be assigned a different IT topic:
Group 1: Organizational uses of social media
Group 2: Green IT
Group
3: Internet of Things
Group
4: IT Security and Privacy
Group 5: Digital Fabrication
(3-D printing)
Group
6: Digital Divide
Group
7: IT Entrepreneurs
Group
8: The Rise of the Robots
Important Information for Group
Projects:
Advice
and Checklists for Oral Group Presentations
Information about required Academic
Articles
Watch recording on finding
academic articles (in mygateway under GROUP PROJECT
MATERIALS folder)
Information about required Primary
Sources
Watch webinar on interview tips
(in mygateway under GROUP PROJECT MATERIALS folder)
Information about Citations
PRESENTATION
TIMING: The entire presentation should be between 45 and 50 minutes
Each group should spend their time in
approximately the following way: (Again, some topics lend themselves to a
slightly different format, so be sure to look at my links to your topic.)
Overview of the topic. Provide general
statistics about your topic; why is your topic important to general managers?
How much money do companies spend on your topic? What are the promised benefits
of this topic if properly managed? What
are the potential pitfalls if mis-managed?
What
will we learn from your presentation? If you cite surveys, YOU MUST TELL US
ABOUT THE SAMPLE in terms of size of organizations that participated (such as
Fortune 500), geographic dispersion (such as U.S. or global), sample size, and
date of data collection. You'll be
surprised how surveys report very different figures because of sample
diversity. (~10 minutes)
Real–world examples: Explain your topic
with rich examples based on your primary and secondary sources. (For organizational uses of social
media, “examples” might include examples of how specific companies
engage customers in social media sites; for Green IT group,
“examples” may include how specific organizations dispose of
e-waste, or specific company’s Green IT polices
and practices.) Why did you select these examples? How are they representative of the
lessons you are trying to demonstrate? (~20 minutes)
Generalizations/Lessons Learned/Best
Practices:
Do a cross-case comparison of similarities and differences among the examples.
Extract a set of lessons or best practices for the general manager; tie these
lessons back to the examples. (~5
minutes)
Audience Activity. Each group should only
plan 35 to 40 minutes of content to allow 5 to 10 minutes of audience
interaction. In the past, students have done
very creative things for audience participation including “Name that
Entrepreneur”, a short Jeopardy game, a short survey, Taboo game, stand
up sit down, etc. Groups normally
reward participation with small prizes like candy. (~5 to 10 minutes)
PRESENTATION MATERIALS:
Each group will develop
power point slides (or Prezi).
On the day of your presentation, please provide a STAPLED, hardcopy set of slides for
your instructor. Please print only 2 slides per page.
Please load your final power point slides in GROUP X Group Pages under
FILE EXCHANGE.
Please name the final
version of your power point slides exactly as indicated below:
|
Group |
Oral
Presentation File Name File names are case sensitive |
|
SocialMediaFall2017.pptx |
|
|
Group 2: Green IT |
GreenITFall2017.pptx |
|
Group 3: Internet of Things |
IoTFall2017.pptx |
|
Group 4: IT Security and Privacy |
SecurityFall2017.pptx |
|
Group 5: Digital Fabrication (3-D printing) |
3DFall2017.pptx |
|
Group 6: Digital Divide |
DigitalDivideFall2017.pptx |
|
Group 7: IT Entrepreneurs |
EntrepreneurFall2017.pptx |
|
Group 8: The Rise of the Robots |
RobotsFall2017.pptx |
I
am very happy to work with groups on their specific topic. I strongly
suggest that I meet with your groups several times. At
a MINIMUM, I want to review your power point slides at least a week before your
presentation.
Oral Group Presentation Grades:
Oral presentations are
graded as a group grade rather than as individual grades. Oral group presentations will be graded
using the following form: oral group grade form
Individuals in a group never
contribute the exact equal amounts of time, content, and value. This often
leads to some people feeling they worked more than others, and some people
feeling left out. Usually a leader emerges, one who will hopefully help find
the gifts of each individual. Unfortunately, I cannot effectively intervene in
these matters and I rely on you as adults to ensure that all members of your
group meaningfully contribute to the data gathering, interviewing, analysis,
slide design, and presenting the final project.
All group members will receive the same grade
for the oral presentation, provided that all members agree that each individual
made a significant contribution. If a group member has not meaningfully or
fully participated, I will assume that group member was legitimately distracted
by other life issues such as illness or heavy work travel. I do expect that
members who do not fully participate show their integrity by willingly reducing their percentage of contribution.
It is no shame to not fully participate because of legitimate reasons. It is unethical to ask other group
members to falsely report contribution percentages.
In order to provide some accountability, albeit
imperfect, I will ask that each group fill in the following form and each group
member must sign it. This form is due on the day of presentation.
Please print, fill in,
and have every member sign a copy of: group contribution form .
Attendance Policy/Class Participation:
Attendance is required
on three exam days, required group project work days, and ALL group project
presentations.
Attendance will be
taken at the start of each scheduled class on REQUIRED attendance days.
Students must attend
all group presentation or students will be required to write 250 word essays on
each missed presentation. The essay questions are: "Why is the topic
important to general managers? What are the promised benefits of this topic,
the potential pitfalls, and overall lessons you learned from the
presentation?" Essays are due
May 6 by 8:00 am. If essays are not
turned in, the student will receive a delayed grade in the course.
If a student misses a
class, he or she is responsible for the material covered.
CLASS SCHEDULE,
READINGS, AND ASSIGNMENTS
|
Date |
Topic/ Agenda |
Read or
Watch |
Learning Objectives |
Attendance
Required? |
1. Thursday,
August 24
|
Course Overview |
Read: Lacity
(2016), “Why General Managers Need to Actively Participate in
Information Technology Decisions” Watch Voicethreads posted in MyGateway under course overview folder |
Understand: ·Why general managers
need to participate in IT governance ·IT spend-world,
country, firm ·IT-enabled competitive
advantage, business process excellence, and cost containment |
Yes |
2. Thursday August 31
|
Assign Students to Group Projects |
Review syllabus links
to group project topic descriptions before class |
Understand: · How group projects
will be graded · How to find academic
references · How to stay on track |
Yes |
2. Week of Thursday,
August 31
|
IT Governance |
Read: Kappelman, L., McLean, E., Johnson, V. and Torres, R. et al. (2017), “The
2016 SIM IT Issues and Trends Study,” MIS Quarterly Executive, 16(1), 47-80. Watch Voicethreads posted in MyGateway
under IT Governance folder Watch assigned videos on ERP, CRM, and
Cloud |
Understand: ·
Understand
IT departments (structure, role of CIO) ·
Understand services performed by IT
departments ·
Understand IT governance |
Do the IT Governance and IT Technology
and Management Trends modules on your own |
|
IT Technology and Management Trends |
Watch Voicethreads posted in MyGateway
under Technology and Management Trends folder Read: Gartner Identifies the Top 10 Strategic Technology
Trends for 2017: http://www.gartner.com/smarterwithgartner/gartners-top-10-technology-trends-2017/ Watch Video: Gartner 2017 top ten trends: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTvFO-2LtNM |
Understand: ·
Current
IT management trends ·
Current
IT technology trends |
||
3. Week of Thursday,
September 7
|
Effects
of IT on organizational
competitiveness and global economies |
Read: Brynjolfsson, E. and McAfee, A. The Second Machine Age, 2014, Norton, New York .Chapters 1
&2. Watch Videos: TED
talks by the authors: Andrew McAfee at TED: What will future jobs look
like? Erik Brynjolfsson at TED: The key to growth? Race with
the machines TEDtalks available at you-tube and also at |
Understand: ·
First
and second machine age ·
How
have the bounds of technological capabilities changed from 2009 to 2014? ·
What
will technology’s capabilities likely be in the future? ·
What
does the Second Machine Age imply for the nature of work and global economic
prosperity? |
NO; Meet with groups and do the module on your own;
|
4. Thursday,
September 14
|
In-class EXAM I |
YES |
||
5. Week of September 21
|
Organizational Acceptance of Information
Technologies |
Read: Rogers, E.M. (2006),
Diffusion of Innovations, New York, Free Press, fourth or fifth edition. Read
Chapter 1. Watch & listen:
Webinar Adoption of Innovations
I Read: Gartner hype cycle: http://www.gartner.com/technology/research/methodologies/hype-cycle.jsp Read:
Christensen, C., Raynor, M., and McDonald, R.
(2015), “Disruptive Innovations,” Harvard Business Review, 93(12): 45-53. Watch 3 videos: Professor Rosemann’s overview of
Roger’s theory: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxVeLlTEgtU Christensen’s
Disruptive Innovation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbPiAzzGap0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cu6J6taqOSg Watch webinars/Voicethreads posted in MyGateway
under Organizational Acceptance of Information Technologies folder |
Understand:
·
Roger’s Adoption Curve ·
Rogers’ Theory on Determinants of Individual
Adoption ·
Roger’s Theory on Determinants of
Organizational Adoption ·
Consequences of innovations ·
Innovation Research biases ·
Gartner Hype Cycle phases ·
Christensen’s theory of disruptive
innovation |
NO; Meet with groups and do the module on your own
|
6. Week of September 28
|
Management of
Large Scale IT-enabled Business Projects |
Read: short except on Project
Management from Lacity, M. (editor), (2008), Major Currents in Information
Systems: The Management of Information Systems, Volume 4 (series editors:
Willcocks, L., and Lee, A.), Sage, London. Read Lynch Standish Group
2015 Chaos Report Read: Nelson,
R., (2007), "IT Project Management: Infamous Failure, Classic Mistakes,
and Best Practices," MISQE, Vol. 6, 2, pp. 67-78. Read: Nelson, R.
(2014), “IT Project Estimation: Contemporary Practices and Management Guidelines,”MISQE, Vol. 13, 1, pp. 15-30. Watch Webinars |
Understand: · Waterfall vs. Agile methods · Statistics/measures on project
success rates · Reasons projects fail · Project management best
practices · Change management objectives and
practices |
NO; Meet with groups and do the module on your own
|
7. Thursday October 5
|
In Class Exam II |
Yes
|
||
8. Week of Thursday Oct 12
Do Option A or Option B
(NOT BOTH)
|
OPTION A: IT Sourcing Cloud Services |
Read: Lacity, M. and Willcocks, L. (2013), “Sourcing of Information
Technology Services,” The Computing Handbook Set, Information Systems
and Information Technology (Volume II)(Heikki Topi, ed.),
Article 60. Watch webinars posted in MyGateway under IT Sourcing folder |
Understand: · IT Sourcing decisions(options, locations,
other) · determinants of IT sourcing decisions · outsourcing success rates · determinants of ITO outcomes · enduring ITO challenges |
NO; Meet with groups and do the module on your own |
|
Read: Loebbecke, C., Thomas, B., and Ulrich, T., “Assessing Cloud
Readiness at Continental AG,” MIS Quarterly Executive, (11)1: 11-23. Read: Lacity, M., and Reynolds, P. (2014), “Cloud Services Practices
for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises,” MIS Quarterly Executive, Vol.
13, 1, pp. 31-44. Watch webinars posted in MyGateway Cloud Services folder |
Understand: ·
Cloud basics · What value do clients seek from cloud
services? · What practices ensure success? · Is cloud services is becoming the
“great equalizer” between large and small-sized firms? |
NO; Meet with groups and do the module on your own |
||
|
OPTION B: Cognitive
Automation |
Read: Lacity,
M. (2017), “The Cogs and Wrenches of Cognitive Automation,”
Working paper. Lacity, M., Scheepers, R., Willcocks, L., and Craig, A. (2017),
“Reimagining the
University at Deakin: An IBM Watson Automation Journey”, The LSE
Outsourcing Unit Working Research Paper Series Lacity, M., Willcocks, L. and Craig, A.
(2017), “Service
Automation: Cognitive Virtual Agents at SEB Bank,” Watch Voicethreads posted in MyGateway
under Cognitive Automation folder |
·
Understand what’s different about CA ·
Machine Learning, NLP, and Machine Vision ·
Challenges with data and algorithms ·
Gaining the triple-win ·
Risks to avoid or minimize ·
Action principles for success ·
Implications for the future of work |
NO; Meet
with groups and do the module on your own |
|
9. Week of Thursday October 19
|
Blockchain |
Read Chapters 1 & 2: Tapscott, D., and
Tapscott, A. (2016), Blockchain
Revolution: How the Technology Behind Bitcoin Is Changing Money, Business, and
the World, Penguin Random House, NY Watch video: The real value of bitcoin and crypto currency technology - The
Blockchain explained Watch voicethreads |
Blockchain defined – Learn the major components of a blockchain
and what functions do they serve Why
blockchains? – Learn
what problems do blockchains aim to solve History
of Bitcoin – Learn how Bitcoin jumpstarted a new
currency Challenges – Learn about the dark sides and challenges of blockchains Future
Implications – Learn how are/will blockchains
transform or disrupt industries |
NO; Meet
with groups and do the module on your own |
10. Thursday October 26
|
WORK WITH GROUPS ON
PRESENTATIONS |
Professor to review slides for groups 1 and 2 during class |
YES |
|
11. Thursday November 2
|
EXAM III in Class |
YES |
||
12. Thursday November 9
|
Group
1: Organizational uses of social media Group 2:
Green IT |
Professor to review slides for Group 3 from 5:45 to 6:15 Group 4 from 6:15 to 6:45 |
YES |
|
13. Thursday November 16
|
Group 3: Internet of Things Group 4: IT Security and Privacy |
Professor to review slides for Group 5 from 5:45 to 6:15 Group 6 from 6:15 to 6:45 |
YES |
|
14. Thursday
November 30
|
Group
5: 3-D printing Group
6: Digital Divide |
Professor to review slides for Group 7 from 5:45 to 6:15 Group 8 from 6:15 to 6:45 |
YES |
|
15. Thursday December 7
|
Group 7: IT Entrepreneurs Group 8: The Rise of the Robots |
YES |
||