The goal of this exercise is to help you learn to apply Chapter 6's guidelines for conducting reader-centered research.

The Exercise

This exercise involves three steps.

First, from the projects described below, choose one with which you have some practical experience or interest and can write about intelligently. If you don't have experience with any of the topics, consider drawing upon projects or case studies from your other classes. Alternatively, if you are beginning work on a project requiring research, use this exercise to begin it.

Second, spend between 60 and 90 minutes conducting research by following Chapter 6's guidelines. You do not have to complete the research, but do use your time efficiently. DO NOT use websites for your information. However, you may use journals and other items that you access through online reference sources, databases, and indexes available through your college library's website. A trip to the library itself is not a bad idea, either.

Third, write a memo to your instructor describing what you did and telling what you learned that will help you research effectively and efficiently in the future.

The Alternatives

1. The top executives in your company have decided that they want the information systems department to develop an executive information system. They require that the system give them access to timely information about the industry, the competition, and technological innovations. The majority of this information would be generated from outside the company. Prepare a preliminary report to the executive board about establishing an executive information system. These people will want to know the type of information they will be able to access, the ease with which they can find it, and the technical support that the organization will provide. A brief survey of how other companies are using executive information systems may help these executives decide how their system should be structured.
2. As a member of the technical systems support team in a large manufacturing company, you are responsible for suggesting and implementing improvements to the system hardware, including terminals, computers, and printers. To stay ahead of the competition, the company has decided that it must begin processing orders faster and getting products to customers more efficiently. Consequently, management has decided to improve its order processing, shipping, and billing systems, which run on a central mainframe machine. Write a report to your boss, the senior systems support manager, about the different options for upgrading the system (two solutions might include networking PCs or buying a new, more powerful mainframe machine). Make a convincing argument about which solution will best suit the company's needs. Be sure to include the benefits and constraints of implementing each option.
3. Imagine that you are a senior systems analyst at a business or institution with which you are already familiar, and that you are in charge of programming and new systems development. One of your ongoing responsibilities is to examine processes within the organization that could benefit from being automated using computers. Write a memo or report to management explaining why the process you've chosen should be automated. Your reasons might include cost savings, increased productivity, fewer errors, etc. Remember that management will need enough information to justify allocating funds to the project.