Midsouth Chamber Of Commerce (A): The Role Of The Operating Manager In Information Systems Case Study

Information System (IS) is the foundation of nearly every business in the modern day world of business, and it is imperative to note that successful integration of information technology can play a vital role in increasing an organization’s profitability (Galliers & Leidner, 2014). MSCC (Midsouth Chamber of Commerce) entered the 21st century as one of the most powerful advocacy businesses with the main objective of gaining access to reasonable transportation services. However, the provided case study “Midsouth Chamber of Commerce (A): The Role of the Operating Manager in Information Systems” presents technical hitches encountered by Leon Lassister, Vice President of Marketing and Membership with MSCC, while attempting to integrate IS into
As early as 1900s, transportation systems were the backbone of economic development in the Midsouth area, but some legislative decisions crippled the ability of communities who were highly dependent on transportation systems to gain access to sound transportation services.
From the case study, it’s quite evident that MSCC’s computer system were not integrated, lacked adequate maintenance and support infrastructure, as well as they were not documented. Additionally, major computer operations at the firm also involved a computer system that’s not Y2K compatible. Nonetheless, the Vice President of Marketing and Membership with MSCC created a vision that was meant to inspire the organization to integrate computer systems as a way of enhancing the firm’s success with regards to handling conferences and seminars and marketing. In fact the case study states “Wilson and Lassiter, as a result of the study, recognized that there were many revenue-producing opportunities the MSCC could pursue that would require a much higher level of information systems use, ” (Brown et al. n.d., p.
Following the reorganizations at the organization, Hedges was assigned the responsibility of being in charge of the new system. However, Hedges not only had little computer background, but also had very limited time to manage the growing computer operations properly at MSCC because he was too busy. While Lassister was the one pushing for the adoption of the new system, support from other members of the staff like Hedges and Harry Taska would’ve been invaluable.
As a matter of fact, the case study cites that there was no concern or support from the higher management/the board. Essentially, one of the most important practices in the IT industry is the approval and support of major players within an organization during the implementation of a new system (Stair & Reynolds, 2011). It’s also important to ensure that a person appointed to be in charge of an information system is not only experienced, but also well-versed with important knowledge about computer operations within an organization, particularly for an organization that relies heavily on information technology (Xu & Quaddus,