Discussion 1 Topic: Manager’s Decision Support Tools
· DQ1: Read the journal article, “Executive Information Systems: Their impact on Executive Decision Making.” Based on the information presented in the article, discuss the following:
o The tools executive managers use when making major decisions
o The relationship between the tools the executive managers’ use and the managers’ tasks
o The reasons for using the support tools
· Considerations: Organizations generate huge amounts of data. Creating a management dashboard from this data can be an extremely challenging task. The challenge is in aggregating the right data to produce information useful to decision processes. An additional challenge is pulling data from many disparate systems, in different formats. As noted in the required reading (journal article), a significant amount of effort can be applied toward constructing a management dashboard only to later learn that it may not be fit for purpose. When beginning a project to develop a management dashboard, always begin with the system requirements—how will the system be used and what is required to satisfy that use. The software market offers a large variety of executive information systems (EIS). Finding the right EIS can be a challenge and few will provide all of the decision support necessary forecasting and simulating the future of the organization; however, overtime, executives become savvier in differentiating the utility provided by EIS and market reality.
Discussion 2 Topic: Managerial Planning
· DQ2: What are the types of plans? How are they distinguished from one another? Do you think plans with incremental objectives are more effective than those that contain stretch goals? Why or why not? Support your opinion with outside resources.
Review several of your peers’ posts. Discuss how and why these changes have occurred, with at least two of your peers. Your initial post should be at least 200 words in length. Support your claims with examples from required material(s) and/or other scholarly resources, and properly cite any references. Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts by Day 7.
As you begin working on your written assignment consider these common errors:
References:
Avoid sites like Merriam-Webster.com to describe complex theories. Use a scholarly reference–journal article, textbook
Avoid sites like about.com and businesschron.com for scholarly writing.
APA is used as a reference for formatting your document, not as a reference for content in your document.
Don’t refer to the textbook as “the text.” Try “According to Baack (2012), … Your work should standalone.
References and citations must be 100% synchronized.
Get in the habit of using peer-reviewed journal articles.
Mechanics:
Use formal language
Break up long sentences–makes it easier to read and understand the point.
Avoid terms that imply something is obvious because it may be obvious to you, but not the reader.
Avoid generalizations
Avoid awkward sentences.
Check for missing commas.
Avoid using “etc.” It assumes the reader knows the remaining items in your list.
Write from an unbiased position.
Avoid rhetorical questions.
Avoid beginning sentences with conjunctions.
Avoid colloquialisms
Avoid dividing words with the forward slash
Avoid using words like naturally, obviously, etc. It assumes the reader has the same knowledge as you.
Contractions are not appropriate in academic writing. Use “does not” instead of “doesn’t” or “will not” instead of “won’t.” This will ensure a professional and academic tone.
Expand abbreviations
Try reading your work out loud. This technique can help you to eliminate awkward phrasing, repetition, and other errors.
“Where” refers to a location.