Information is critical for any firm, regardless of the nature ofthe industry, hence the need to have systems in place that craft the channels of trapping and using information. With the changing consumer demands, data is critical to generating means that will capture the needs and wants of potential consumers for any product or service. The IS department has the daunting task of storing and analyzing information gathered. In instances of looking for consumer trends, the department collects data from historical plus present paths taken by individuals and predicts their behavior in the future (Zhu & Zhou, 2008). Complex and broad databases are adapted to house the critical data gathered from the different fields of interest. Secondly, the IS department is needed for strategic decision-making. Without pertinent information, decisions are made from naïve points of views making it hard even to call them strategic. So the IS department employs raw data from fields such as marketing, analyzes the parameters present, and in turn provides direction based on the evidence provided. The IS department further helps the business process in ways that ensure efficiency, ease, and productivity. Marginal productivity is heightened through integrated systems that ensure excellence in the delegation stage, manufacturing, and customer satisfaction. Project management is also made possible through operational monitoring and critique of already present criteria (Gupta & Malik, 2005, p. 30).
A steering committee refers to a group in an organization, groups, or evenan industry that comprises high-level executives or authorities. These different individuals perform the tasks of guiding the company in the instances of strategic decision making as well as exercising authority by delegating the channels of approach in situations (Karimi, Bhattacherjee, Gupta, & Somers, 2000). The Chief Information Officer (CIO) is a part of the steering committee and is given the duty of bringing the present perspective of business to the meetings. Because of the complete know-how in the abilities and possibilities of the IT section in the firm, he/she brings in a practical approach towards strategic decisions. In addition to that, the CIO is expected to provide a viability report of recommendations from the steering committee. If the sessions are discussing how to better market, the CIO is expected to bring the possibilities of using the company’s IT infrastructure to raise product awareness, etc. A CIO is also coupled with the role of providing a good risk management account of procedures to ensure sound strategic decisions by the committee. Such risks originate from the fact that information is readily available but does not warrant selective consideration. Therefore, during such steering communities, the CIO ensures that he/she sieves the information that is only relevant in that specific setting. They are also required to map out the ICT strategy for the committee moving into the future (Hunter, 2010). Because firms are expected to integrate technology into the business model, it means that all the strategies required to move into the future, crafted or developed by the steering ccommitteee will rely on expert advisory as well as a broad focus on ICT. This then brings the need to have the ICT policy that will accompany the final strategy. Innovative tools for creating plans need to be brought to the table by the CIO, whose role is to re-engineer the existing processes for the better.
References
Gupta, A., & Malik, A. (2005). Solving Business Problems withInformation Systemss. In A. Gupta & A. Malik, Management Information Systems (pp. 29-38). Firewall Media.
Hunter, G. (2010). A Chief Information Officer: A Review of the Role. Journal of Information, Information Technology and Organizations, 125-144.
Karimi, J., Bhattacherjee, A., Gupta, Y. P., & Somers, T. M. (2000). The effects of MIS steering committee on Information Technology Management Sophistication. Journal of Management Information Systems, 207-230.
Zhu, H., & Zhou, M. (2008). Roles of Information Systems: A Survey. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, Part C (Application and Reviews), 377-396.
