Using the web, find some stories about firms using database management systems.

Question

Using the web, find some stories about firms using database management systems. You might enter key words such as "database" and "imaging and access the websites of publications such as Computerworld and PC Week. Identify the purpose of each system. How does the system improve organizational performance? What are the attributes of the technology that make it useful? Describe any trade-offs the organization might have made. Identify other organizations in which the same technology might be applied

Explanation / Answer

Enterprise systems are integrated software packages designed to provide complete integration of an organization’s business information processing systems and all related data. Data is shared across systems to support the operation and management of the organization. Modules within these packages are named for the functions that they support and include logistics (sales and distribution, procurement, inventory management), accounting (financial accounting, treasury, controlling), manufacturing (planning and scheduling, cost accounting, capacity planning), and human resources (payroll, employee tracking, tax compliance). It is critical that business professionals understand these systems because they are members of teams that install and operate them in their
organizations, and they require access to information captured within.

A well-designed and well-managed database is an extremely valuable tool in supporting decision making. A database management system (DBMS) is a software tool that makes it possible to organize data in a database. The standard acronym for database management system is DBMS, so you will often see this instead of the full name. The ultimate purpose of a database management system is to store and transform data into information to support making decisions.

1)The physical database: the collection of files that contain the data
2)The database engine: the software that makes it possible to access and modify the contents of the database
3)The database scheme: the specification of the logical structure of the data stored in the database

While it sounds logical to have a DBMS in place, it is worth thinking for a moment about the alternative. What would the data in an organization look like without a DBMS? Consider yourself as the organization for a moment, and the data are all the files on your computer. How is your data organized? If you are like most typical computer users, you have a large number of files, organized in folders.

You may have word processor documents, presentation files, spreadsheets, photographs, etc. You find the information you need based on the folder structure you have created and the names you have given to your files. This is called a file system and is typical for individual computer users.

Now consider the challenges you are faced with. Have you ever lost a file? Have you had difficulty finding a file? Probably. Perhaps you are using multiple computers and your files are located in different physical locations. And when was the list time you created a backup of all your files? You do back up, right?
You probably get the picture. A file system is relatively simple, but it only works if you keep yourself very organized and disciplined. Now consider an organization with 1,000 employees, each with their own computer. Can you see some of the challenges when using a file system? Do you really want critical financial data floating around the offices as simple files on individual computers?

So what does a DBMS really do? It organizes your files to give you more control over your data.

A DBMS makes it possible for users to create, edit and update data in database files. Once created, the DBMS makes it possible to store and retrieve data from those database files.

More specifically, a DBMS provides the following functions:

Concurrency: concurrent access (meaning 'at the same time') to the same database by multiple users
Security: security rules to determine access rights of users
Backup and recovery: processes to back-up the data regularly and recover data if a problem occurs
Integrity: database structure and rules improve the integrity of the data
Data descriptions: a data dictionary provides a description of the data

Advantages of the DBMS:

Improved data sharing.

Improved data security
Better data integration
Minimized data inconsistency
Improved data access
Improved decision making
Increased end-user productivity

Some Stories of companies benfiting

1) One of the largest producers of beverages in South America is Coca-Cola Andina (Embotelladora Andina SA), a Chilean franchised manufacturer and distributor of Coca-Cola products in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay since 1946. Coca-Cola Andina IT staff is always eager to improve productivity and efficiencies. So when they realized that outdated processes were needlessly complicating and slowing IT project plans, they turned to the FileMaker Platform from FileMaker, Inc. With the help of local FileMaker developer MacPro Computer Consulting, Andina developed Tracking, a custom app for IT project planning, management, and control. Tracking helps the IT department manage and make sense of all the IT innovations that fuel Andina’s operations.

2) Top enterprise logistics company finds cost savings of more than $1.2 million; generates annualized ROI of 368%, and improves customer service efficiency using a custom app created with the FileMaker Platform. By integrating FileMaker Server with Salesforce® and creating a custom app to project the resulting sales and service metrics via a dashboard on monitors throughout the office, Ingram Micro, the world’s largest distributor of computer and technology products, is increasing sales and improving customer support.

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