Information In Organizations
Information in Organizations
Victoria Thompson
CIS/207
October 6, 2014
Joel Erickson
Information is the foundation and backbone of many organizations. The way the information flows through these organizations and the way it is managed are both key to the organization’s success. The information systems must be able to be understood by all end users, clients, customers, and debtors in order for the operation to run smoothly. My former employer, Healthcare Financial Services, relied on many different types of information systems and their ability to perform without error. There are several departments in a collection agency, and each department works with a tremendous amount of data every day. New accounts arrive both electronically and printed as lists on paper that then have to be manually entered into the computer system by the data entry team. These accounts contain personal information about debtors including their names, social security number, dates of birth, as well as amounts of money they owe the client, which clients they owe money to, and dates of service. Many times sensitive medical information is also included, this information is protected by HIPAA laws and every employee on the network is responsible for understanding these laws so that they are not broken. If the rules are not strictly enforced the company could be faced with a lawsuit. The collectors make up another department in a collection agency. These collectors are on a VoIP system and are constantly calling debtors in a query to discuss their accounts, take payments, and/or set up payment plans. The information the collectors obtain from the debtors and input into the computer system is also very sensitive, such as credit card numbers and financial information. The IT department at Healthcare Financial Services consisted of a single person. Her responsibilities included upgrading and updating, verifying all devices were networked correctly, insuring each employee had
Victoria Thompson
CIS/207
October 6, 2014
Joel Erickson
Information is the foundation and backbone of many organizations. The way the information flows through these organizations and the way it is managed are both key to the organization’s success. The information systems must be able to be understood by all end users, clients, customers, and debtors in order for the operation to run smoothly. My former employer, Healthcare Financial Services, relied on many different types of information systems and their ability to perform without error. There are several departments in a collection agency, and each department works with a tremendous amount of data every day. New accounts arrive both electronically and printed as lists on paper that then have to be manually entered into the computer system by the data entry team. These accounts contain personal information about debtors including their names, social security number, dates of birth, as well as amounts of money they owe the client, which clients they owe money to, and dates of service. Many times sensitive medical information is also included, this information is protected by HIPAA laws and every employee on the network is responsible for understanding these laws so that they are not broken. If the rules are not strictly enforced the company could be faced with a lawsuit. The collectors make up another department in a collection agency. These collectors are on a VoIP system and are constantly calling debtors in a query to discuss their accounts, take payments, and/or set up payment plans. The information the collectors obtain from the debtors and input into the computer system is also very sensitive, such as credit card numbers and financial information. The IT department at Healthcare Financial Services consisted of a single person. Her responsibilities included upgrading and updating, verifying all devices were networked correctly, insuring each employee had