IST 415 Cases in Information System Technologies

1. IST 415 Cases in Information System Technologies Dr. Stephen Shih

2. Case Studies & Presentations + Special Topics Presentations + Real Life Case Studies IST 415 Teaching and Case Study Methodology Chapter Summarization & Reading Assignments

3. Case Study Methodology Dr. Stephen Shih

4. Why Case Studies? • The intellectual exercises carried out by students engaged in case-study analysis are similar to the activities of IT professionals in the real-world businesses.

5. Why use case studies in the IST course? The difficulty of engaging an IST graduate in the IT related projects is most likely to take place in the first few months dealing with fundamental business issues and problems, as the graduates may not yet fully prepared to perceive the relationship between these issues/problems and the practice of their IT careers.

6. Objectives • Develop analytical problem-solving skills and higher-order thinking capability (e.g., out-of-the-box thinking) by solving real-world or hypothetic cases. • Integrate what you have acquired in various IST courses. • Work in teams and use collaborative/ cooperative (rather than competitive) learning strategies. • Practice oral and written communication skills - present to a potentially hostile audience and/or bully bosses.

7. Overview of Case Study Method Overall Process • Individual Analysis and Preparation (Literature Review, Web Search, etc.) • Team Analysis, Discussion and Preparation • Classroom Presentation and Discussion/Critique • End-of-Class Generalization about the Learning Student Commitments • Preparation • Presence • Participation

8. General Structures of Case Study Reports & Presentation (for IT teams) • Problem Determination • Research, Investigation, and Findings • Discussion and Evaluation of Alternatives • Recommendations • Action Plans: Implementation & Deployment Plans

9. IT Teams vs. SM/SE Teams • SM/SE • TEAM • Assessment and critique of IT solutions/proposals • Recommendations from the non-technical/end user/business perspectives IT TEAM involves the analysis, synthesis, application, design, implementation, deployment, and/or evaluation of business information systems/ applications/infrastructure

10. I. Business Cases & Themes Key Concepts Particular Subjects/ Themes Specific Business Scenarios/ Situations IT + Management Members II. Required Skill Set III. Role-Play Alternative Solution Models / Recommendations Critique / Assessment Business Managers + CIO Argument Support/ Defense IT + Management Members

11. A Day As Business Managers … • Sample questions from the IT/business managers for assessment of the proposed solutions: • What is the rationale behind your IT solution(s)? • How feasible are your proposed IT solution(s) and plans? • How do you justify your proposed IT solution(s) in terms of potential benefits and necessary costs? • How do you compare your solution(s) with other comparable cases/systems/solution models? • How do you effectively implement and deploy the proposed solution(s)?

12. A Day As Business Managers . . . • Provide your suggestions to help the IT teams: • To see the problems and perform the problem-solving from the business and end-user points of view • To enhance/adjust to be in line with the enterprise’s business strategic goals and objectives.

13. IT Solution Assessment Proposed IT Solutions Feasibility Expected benefits/Cost-effectiveness Business implications Deployment and implementation planning • End User Requirements • Common Business Goals