Information systems
- Overview
- Assessment methods
- Learning objectives
- Contents
- Bibliography
- Teaching methods
- Contacts/Info
To attend this course students should have already acquired some basic notions on data management (for instance by attending the “Database” course)
The evaluation will be based on an oral test aimed at ascertaining the students knowledge on the topics of the course and their capability of establishing appropriate links between them. Only for the students that will attend the lectures there is the further possibility (to be discussed during the course) of a final multiple choice test.
The result of the evaluation will be determined by the correctness and accuracy of the answers (70%); the capability of motivating appropriately the analysis and the claims (20%); and the communication capability (10%)
The aim of this course is to provide an introduction to information systems for business and management and, more generally, to the use of ICTs to innovate and improve the competitiveness of organizations. The students will be provided with conceptual tools allowing the evaluation, from both a theoretical and a managerial point of view, of different strategies for the implementation of information systems and of the impacts that different ICT systems can have on organizational systems.
1. Knowledge and understanding capabilities.
Knowledge of the most common organizational models
Knowledge of the role of information systems to support business processes
Knowledge of the typology and the classification of different information systems
Knowledge of the different architectures for information systems
Knowledge of the costs for the implementation and management of information systems
2. Capability of applying the acquired knowledge
Capability of identifying and describing the components of organizational systems
Capability of identifying the most appropriate organizational systems to implement in specific business contexts
Capability of designing and managing innovation processes based on ICT
Capability of identifying the most appropriate technological tools to support business processes
Capability of evaluating the impacts of the adoption of different ICT systems on the organization.
3. Judgement autonomy
Capability of comparing and evaluating different solutions for complex problems, such as the management of the information assets of organizations and the definition strategies for innovation.
4. Communication skills
Capability of communicating effectively, both in written and spoken form, and capability of explaining ICT based solutions to possible clients.
5. Learning capability
Capability of understanding, classifying and elaborating on what has been learned during the course.
- Organizations as open systems
- Organizations as decision-making systems
- The problem of coordination
- Transaction costs approach
- The analysis of business processes
- Classification of information systems
- The use of ICT to improve the performance of organizations
- The productivity paradox of ICT
- Slides of the lectures (made available through the e-Learning platform of the University of Insubria)
Essential reading:
1. De Marco, M., I Sistemi Informativi aziendali, Franco Angeli, 2000
2. One of the following books:
- Bracchi, Francalanci, Motta, Sistemi Informativi e aziende in rete, McGraw-Hill, 2001
- Laudon, Laudon, Morabito, Pennarola, Management dei sistemi informativi, Parsons Paravia Bruno Mondadori, 2010.
3. Further papers (in English) made available through the e-Learning platform of the University of Insubria
on site lectures, with the use of multimedia contents to deepen the knowledge on some of the topics of the course
Course hours: 48
Office hours
Upon appointment
Borrowed from
click on the activity card to see more information, such as the teacher and descriptive texts.