The University ofMississippi 

MIS-655 MANAGEMENT OF THE INFORMATION SYSTEMS FUNCTION 
SPRING 2003 edition

( Section 1, T/Th 4:00-5:15 )
School of Business Administration
University of Mississippi


INSTRUCTOR:
Brian J. Reithel, PhD, CDP
Holman 240, (662) 915-5469
Office Hours:  Tues/Thurs 9:00-9:30 a.m., 3-4 p.m
Email: breithel@bus.olemiss.edu
Homepage: http://faculty.bus.olemiss.edu/breithel

REQUIRED TEXT:

Readings Packet.
and assorted Web-based resources:


DESCRIPTION OF COURSE:

 

This course will provide an in-depth study of the issues, strategies, and tactics for management of the Organizational Information Systems function. Emphasis will include systems technologies and development, end-user computing, and the impact of MIS on humans.

 

MAJOR OBJECTIVES OF COURSE:

  The purpose of this course is to allow the student to:


TEACHING METHOD:
The student is expected to have read assigned materials prior to each class. The class discussions are intended to emphasize the primary concepts related to each article and to provide an opportunity to answer any questions that may result from the readings.
INCOMPLETE GRADES:
Poor performance is not an acceptable reason to request an incomplete grade.
ASSIGNMENTS:
Late assignments will not be accepted without prior authorization from the instructor. The semester research project will not be accepted after May 2nd.
STANDARDS OF HONESTY:
The academic discipline policy of the University of Mississippi will be strictly followed in this course. Violation of the policy will result in a grade of F in the course. The student should refer to the "M" book for general definitions of academic misconduct.
CLASS ATTENDANCE:
You are expected to attend class on a regular basis. Because a portion of your grade for this course is based on class participation, missed classes will mean that you did not participate on those days. Therefore, absences will definitely result in a poor class participation grade.
CLASS PARTICIPATION
All students are expected to be prepared for and actively participate in class discussions of the readings. Lack of participation will be interpreted as lack of adequate preparation which will result in a lower participation grade.

 


GRADING:
Class Participation  15% 
Article Analyses  10% 
Topic Analyses  20% 
Group Research Project  15% 
Individual Semester
Research Proposal
 20% 
Final Exam (comprehensive)  20%

RESEARCH PROPOSAL OUTLINE:

Because a major goal of this course is to give the student experience in developing a research project, the student will select one of the topics identified in the course and prepare an in-depth proposal describing the research. The written research project be presented in the following format:

 1. Executive Summary.

 2. Introduction

 3. Hypothesis, problem, or question and importance of topic.

 4. Prior research on the topic.

 5. Research approach or research methodology.

 6. Limitations and key assumptions.


ARTICLE ANALYSIS FRAMEWORK

One of the more difficult tasks in reading an article is to gain an understanding of the primary ideas presented (often hidden!) in the text of the article. In order to facilitate this activity, the student should use the following framework to approach the readings for this class. This framework is based upon the ideas presented in an excellent monograph by Abdel-khalik and Ajinkya [1979] **.

Note: All students should come to class ready to answer the questions posed in the framework. If it seems necessary to the instructor, the student may be directed to prepare his/her answers in writing. Any written summaries assigned will be included in the class participation portion of the semester grade.

1. Why was the particular research underlying the published report conducted? (motivation for study)

2. What is the specific research problem or question?

3. What is the theoretical foundation? What new theory or conceptual model does the article develop? What about the logical consistency and adequacy of the new theory/thesis? Assertions made in the article must be critically examined.

4. What are the propositions or hypotheses? Are they derived from the theory offered, or formulated out of thin air?

5. What are the qualitative characteristics of the research design utilized?


ADDITIONAL RESOURCES AND ASSIGNMENTS


Readings List!

Goals/Questions for 2003 (from in-class discussion)

CIO/Research Questions (from in-class discussion on 1/16/2003)
Model Building Slideshow (  "                   "          )

Statistics Terms/Concepts I
Statistics Terms/Concepts II
Statistics Terms/Concepts III

Research Methods List / homework assignment due 1/23/2003

8 Steps to a Contribution to the Body of Knowledge...

Useful and/or Interesting Links:



Last Modified: Sundaay, 9-March--2003 15:15:00 CDT
Copyright © 2003 Brian J. Reithel, Ph.D.. All rights reserved.
Comments: breithel@bus.olemiss.edu