Information system is elaborated as the "arrangements of people, data, processes, and IT and their interactions needed to complete organizational tasks" Jacome, L.
Information system flexibility allows organizations to maintain control and react to constant changes in hypercompetitive, rapidly changing environments. There is indication in theoretical studies that information systems show relationships between flexibility and efficiency that are similar to the ones found to exist for manufacturing systems.
For example, Silver presented that both, an extremely flexible and an extremely restrictive inflexible design of a decision support system can inhibit system use and with it system success. While the extremely restrictive decision support system clearly limits the user to only certain types of procedures and precludes the use of others, the extremely flexible system can discourage usage by being too overwhelming for the inexperienced user.
Soh, Sia, Boh, and Tang indicated that increasing flexibility of an enterprise resource planning system leads to an increase in complexity. Many technical experts view an information system as an activity system in which all activities are information activities. They register, store, manipulate, and present information about a domain of interest to actors in support of their activities Checkland and Holwell An information system contributes significantly in material and synchronisation activities as well.
Material activities may be mediated by digitally controlled machinery and many coordination activities are communication activities in which actors express requests, requirements, contracts, and evaluations. Other information systems operate in ways that are extremely integrated in material business activities. They are part of the business activity system instead of just systems that support business activity.
An information system can conduct vital business activities and it can support business actions that are performed by other information systems or by human actors. Information systems are much more than IT-systems. In all businesses, vital information activities are performed by human beings. And the information activities that are performed by IT-systems are planned and programmed by human beings.
An Information technology system is an information system in which all performers are IT-actors. An Information technology-actor is intelligible unit of software and hardware. It is composed of sensors, actuators, memory, and activities. An IT-actor uses sensors to register information about its environment in terms of selected events, measurement values etc.
An IT-actor uses its memory to remember information about selected aspects of its history. An IT-actor can perform activities in terms of alteration of information, movement of information etc.
Innovative IT-actors are used in many computer games, internet-based systems, and business intelligence systems. Even the simplest IT-functions can be viewed as IT-actors. Therefore, the notion of IT-actors is general enough to cover both the simplest and the most advanced IT-systems. Use cases can be used to specify reactive IT-actors but they cannot be used to specify proactive IT-actors like web site crawlers or business intelligence monitors.
Many technical professionals visualize IT-systems, information systems, and business systems as activity systems in which actors conduct activity. Business systems contain information systems in the sense that parts of business may be regarded as an activity system that performs information activities.
Information systems may contain IT-systems that perform information activities. An interesting result of the study is that the proportion of flexible capacity acquired decreases with increasing scale economies. We also find that investment in flexible technology is significant even when it is relatively more expensive than dedicated technology.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution. Rent this article via DeepDyve. Baker Precision Instruments, Inc. Burstein, Michael C. Stecke and R. Suri Eds. Google Scholar. Cornuejols, Gerard, Fisher, Marshall L. Kalotay, A. Employers considering these monitoring techniques do need to take care to ensure that they comply with their legislative obligations for example, in New South Wales there is the Workplace Surveillance Act NSW.
A good practice to adopt is putting in place a policy that sets out what surveillance will be undertaken and in what circumstance. However, organisations not wishing to go down the path of surveillance can rely on trust and instead put in place outcomes as a measure of achievement. Reported benefits Many organisations engaging in tele-working have reported on significant cost savings.
For example, Shell Australia, who have an office of employees in Melbourne with only desks, have reported a reduction in travel costs and allowances together with lowering of fixed overheads in office accommodation IP Australia have also reported improved employee retention and engagement, additional individual productivity and reduced commuting as benefits of its tele-work program Cisco also reported, in , that it had saved 47, metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from being released into the environment due to reduced travel The pace of technological improvements just keeps on increasing and the opportunities to utilise these resources to provide flexibility to employees are already apparent.
Given the potential risks that can arise, it is clear that organisations should plan tele-work arrangements with care to ensure that these risks are minimised. Policies and procedures with clear responsibilities, rights and expectations are vital to the success of any tele-work plan. The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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It is also part of the information that we share to our content providers "Contributors" who contribute Content for free for your use. Learn More Accept. Employment and HR. Australia: Technology and its impact on flexible work. Your LinkedIn Connections with the authors. To print this article, all you need is to be registered or login on Mondaq. What is tele-work? Recent trends Despite early predictions that technological innovation enabling tele-work would revolutionise the workplace, the adoption of tele-work is still in its infancy in Australia.
Benefits It is generally accepted that there are significant benefits in implementing an effective tele-work arrangement. Legal risks Despite these benefits, tele-work also attracts a number of risks that an organisation should consider. An organisation should maintain control of an employee's home and mobile technology systems and apply appropriate safeguards, such as: training the employee to maintain the security of documents, including electronic files; ensuring that home computers and mobile devices have appropriate secure access, password protection and anti-virus software; and configuring an employee's home work computer or mobile device in the same manner as an office computer.
Organisational risks Not all positions or employees are suitable for tele-work arrangements. For example: Developing work relationships with people from the office often leads to a more positive and fulfilling working relationship. This can not be re-created electronically.
The stimulation of exchanging ideas with colleagues, which may be stifled by the lack of quality in electronic communication. Tele-commuters miss out on exposure to informal role models from whom they can mirror behaviour.
Impromptu discussions around the coffee machine cannot occur when you need to dial in to communicate with someone. Another major challenge of telecommuting is to minimise any feelings of disconnection by an employee in relation to the organisation or their team. Managing the risks Many organisations allowing their employees to work from home or use portable media do not have formal working from home policies in place.
Final comments The pace of technological improvements just keeps on increasing and the opportunities to utilise these resources to provide flexibility to employees are already apparent. Martin Osborne. This decision highlights the compensation risks of COVID for employers and the importance of managing those risks.
Can my redundancy payment be reduced by my employer? Hall Payne Lawyers. When a redundancy payment can be reduced or varied and under whose authority this can be done. Bullying policies and responding to complaints: is your house in order? For example, the Orkin Design Rolltop is a laptop that can be rolled up like a yoga mat.
It has flexible touch-screen technology so that a screen could be rolled out from a cylinder-type casing and plugged into a power outlet. For instance, the Elecom slide wireless keyboard is an ultra portable keypad for any computer or mobile device.
With Bluetooth technology, it makes portability a breeze, but the highlight is that it is able to contract into a compact rectangular case.
It comes as a set of three and includes smooth end caps through which you can feed your earbuds.
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