Examples Of Management Information Systems

Management information systems (MIS) help provide relevant data required to generate actionable insights. Examples include Management Reporting Systems, Sales Management Systems, and Inventory control Systems. 

When a company is consistently growing, it means the management information systems and professionals in charge are doing a great job.

This article will make you understand how MIS work, their examples, and why corporate companies cannot do without them.

What is a Management Information System?

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A management information system (MIS) is an array of systems and procedures that collects data from different areas of an organization, compiles it, and presents them in a readable format to managers or decision-makers.

Just as it plays a major role in companies, MIS is also a major anyone who has a flair for using technology to improve an organization’s productivity can pursue.

Components of Management Information Systems

To present decision-makers with the needed information to make the right call, these four components of an MIS must function at optimal levels:

1. Information system

This system focuses on retrieving data stored in the MIS. It is a combination of hardware, software, personnel, and infrastructures.

Hardware components include computers, printers, network devices, and scanners. Software components, on the other hand, are the applications used in running the company’s network.

These elements make it easy for employees (personnel) to generate information. When there is a flow to this process, the integrity of an organization’s infrastructure can be easily maintained.

2. Database management system

Database management systems majorly consist of software or algorithms designed to store and retrieve data. Data collected can also be stored physically for future reference.

The type of database management system in a company’s MIS will greatly depend on the suitability of the system to service they offer and the size of the data it will be storing.

Small database management systems can easily store small information and are compatible with PCs. For huge data, you will need larger and more sophisticated machines like a mainframe computer.

3. Intelligence system

This component of an MIS is in charge of processing raw data and making them readable for managers or executives.

From their presentation, management can decide on what to do to improve service or cut costs without affecting deliverables.

The intelligence system is similar to or is a form of artificial intelligence capable of storing human knowledge. It uses this knowledge to predict or provide executives with various solutions to future problems based on previous patterns.

4. Research system

This component specializes in identifying the major management issues in an organization and provides a series of alternative decisions that could have been ensured if the situation was different.

With a research system, MIS helps organizations cover all the possible ways any scenario could play out. It will also help you realize that the best decisions sometimes are not the obvious ones.

Examples of Management Information Systems

There are various examples of management information systems out there. Some of the popular ones include:

1. Process control system

For businesses with different stages of production, a process control system oversees all production procedures. If any aspect of production is low or way too fast, this MIS reveals such irregularity.

A process control system is common in steel, petroleum, automobile, and other manufacturing companies.

2. Management reporting system

Management reporting system compiles financial, operational, accident, efficiency, and attendance reports for every employee.

These system types or examples of management information systems only oversee processes assigned to them.

3. Inventory control systems

Inventory control systems help managers track the current condition of a company’s stock. You can also track the movement of stocks within a warehouse, and detect theft, or expired materials with these system types or examples of management information systems.

4. Sales and marketing systems

Sales and marketing systems provide managers with detailed info regarding the current state of sales and advertising campaigns. These systems reveal customer reviews and help product managers improve the quality of their products.

5. Human resources systems

These systems help HR managers control information circulating within and outside the control. HR managers also use them to ensure employees and supervisors are in full compliance with an organization’s ethics.

6. Accounting and finance systems

Accounting and finance systems help in the tracking and management of the company’s assets and investments.

Managers rely on these systems to roll out payrolls, calculate taxes, and disburse pension funds. Auditors also use these systems to generate reports.

7. Decision support systems

Decision support systems provide managers with the external information required to make better decisions.

Internal information can take the form of financial or inventory reports while external data includes a comparison of current interest rates and trends within the same industry.

Benefits of Management Information Systems

1. Collecting diverse business Information

An MIS is a specialist in collecting data from every segment of an organization. This may range from retrieving accurate information regarding daily revenues and expenses to the effectiveness of every department.

With MIS, employees can schedule or manage work shifts, incoming deliveries, current stock, and outgoing shipments from any station.

These systems also come with performance indicators that can help managers confirm the timeliness, quality of services provided by employees, and other areas needing improvement.

2. Making business decisions

There is no better way to make accurate and effective management decisions without an MIS. This is because it has a pool of information from different components you will need as a manager, CEO, or board of directors.

Not just that it presents this information in a comprehensive format – saving you the stress of having to arrange or organize data. 

3. Facilitates collaboration and communication

A management information system can foster smooth collaborations and communication between employees and executives. This occurs when documents and communications are made at the right time.

MIS gives no room for sloppiness and aids in providing businesses with anticipated developments and warnings across departments.

4. Compiling business reports

Compiling accurate business reports without a management information system is impossible. This is because you need the internal and external information only these systems can provide.

Let’s say you manage a restaurant and you plan on compiling a monthly report. With MIS, you can easily generate the right value for revenues, expenses, and labor hours per employee, just to name a few.

With this report, executives can easily know if your outlet is making more money than others or not and take necessary action.

5. Generating government reports

This is similar to generating business reports. However, in this case, the government is more interested in how to calculate your tax. Non-profit organizations mostly use MIS to avoid disturbing their volunteers or employees.

This fosters more productivity on their path and gives room for utmost transparency when submitting federal or state reports.

6. Ease of operation for front-line employees

Front-line employees rely on MIS to know the status of inventories and request supplies when the need arises. They can also view stats regarding their performance to know where to improve.

FAQs

How does an MIS work?

A management information system compiles data from diverse systems, analyzes this information, and creates reports used in making informed management decisions.

This is a major reason it is referred to as the backbone of an organization’s operation.

Is Excel an MIS?

Yes, Excel is a type of MIS. 

Data analysts and business managers use this software to coordinate and generate interactive reports.

Why are companies using MIS?

Companies need MIS to make better management decisions and improve operational efficiency and product development.

Conclusion

MIS is indispensable in today’s business world. However, setting it up can be expensive. The process requires purchasing different MIS software packages and hiring IT professionals to maintain them.

A cost-effective way to start is to purchase sales and marketing systems first. Front-line workers should be taught how to collect and input data effectively while those working behind the scenes focus more on managing adverts.

The more a company grows, the greater the need to add any of the aforementioned examples into its MIS becomes.

I hope you found this article helpful. To stand a better chance of working with MIS, you need to land a corporate job. Therefore, I recommend you read about the types of corporate jobs you can get.

Thanks for reading.