What are the factors which lead to the success and failure of MIS in an organization?

Answer 1

Factors contributing to success of MIS: If MIS is to be success, then it should have all the features listed below: 1) MIS is integrated into the management function. It sets clear objectives to ensure that MIS focuses on the major issues of the business. Also adequate development resources are provided and human & organizational barriers to progress are removed 2) An appropriate information processing technology required to meet the data processing and analysis needs of the users of MIS is selected. 3) MIS is oriented, defined and designed in terms of the user's requirements and its operational viability is ensured. 4) MIS is kept under continuous surveillance, sot that its open system is modified according to the changing information needs 5) MIS focuses on results and goals, and highlights the factors and reasons for non achievements. 6) MIS is not allowed to end up into and information generation mill avoiding the noise in the information and the communication system. 7) MIS recognizes that a manager is a human being and therefore, the systems must consider all the human behavioral aspects in the process of management. 8) MIS is easy to operate and therefore, the design of MIS has such good features which make up a user friendly design. 9) MIS recognizes that the information needs become obsolete and new needs emerge. The MIS design, therefore, has a potential capability to quickly meet newer and newer needs of information. 10) MIS concentrates on developing the information support to manage critical success factors. It concentrates on the mission critical applications serving the needs of the top management.

Factors contributing to failures: Many times, MIS is a failure. The common factors which are responsible for this are as follows:

1) MIS is conceived as a data processing and not as an information system. 2) MIS does not provide that information which in needed by managers but it tends to provide the information generally the function calls for. MIS then becomes an impersonal function. 3) Understanding the complexity in the business systems and not recognizing it in the MIS design leads to problems in the successful implementation. 4) Adequate attention is not given to the quality control aspects of the inputs, the process and the outputs leading to insufficient checks and controls in MIS. 5) MIS is developed without streamlining the transaction processing systems in the organizations. 6) Lack of training and appreciation that the users of the information and the generators of the data are different, and they have to play an important role in the MIS. 7) MIS does not meet certain critical and key factors of its users, such as a response to the query on the database, an inability to get the processing done in a particular manner, lack of user friendly system and the dependence on the system personnel. 8) A belief that the computerized MIS can solve all the management problems of planning and control of the business. 9) Lack of administrative discipline in following the standardized systems and procedures, wrong coding and deviating from the system specifications result in incomplete and incorrect information. 10) MIS does not give perfect information to all users in the organization. Any attempt toward such a goal will be unsuccessful because every user has a human ingenuity, bias and certain assumptions not known to the designer. MIS cannot make up these by providing perfect information.