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Summer Examinations, 2008/
Exam Code(s) 1BC1, 1BC2, 1BC3, 1BC4, 1BC5, 1CL1, 1BCA Exam(s) Bachelor of Commerce Bachelor of Commerce International (French) Bachelor of Commerce International (German) Bachelor of Commerce International (Spanish) Bachelor of Commerce International (Italian) Bachelor of Corporate Law Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) Module Code(s) MS Module(s) Management Information Systems Paper No. 1 Repeat Paper Special Paper External Examiner(s) Professor Hans van der Heijden Internal Examiner(s) Professor J. F. Collins Dr. M. Lang, Dr. B. Donnellan, Mr. M. Hughes, Mr. S. Hill
Instructions: Candidates are required to answer^ a total of^ FOUR^ questions,
consisting of ONE QUESTION from EACH SECTION Answers for EACH SECTION are to be written in a SEPARATE ANSWER BOOK Duration 3 Hours No. of Answer books 4 Requirements : Handout MCQ Statistical Tables Graph Paper Other Material No. of Pages Department(s) Accountancy and Finance
Answers for EACH SECTION are to be written in a SEPARATE ANSWER BOOK. Please write the name of the section on the answer book cover. Answer either Question 1 or Question 2 Question 1 a. “There is no salient difference between information technology (IT) and information systems (IS).” Discuss this statement and use examples to illustrate your answer. 10 Marks b. Using examples, explain what is meant by a disruptive technology. 5 Marks c. “ Christopher Columbus sailed west and accidently discovered that the world was round. Over 500 years later I flew east and accidently discovered that the world is flat.” (Thomas L. Friedman) Outline the drivers of and discuss the significance of the “Flat World Thesis” as argued by Friedman. 10 Marks Question 2 a. Define “competitive advantage”. 5 Marks b. Explain, using examples, how environmental scanning can be used to identify competitive advantages. 10 Marks c. Michael Porter has provided managers with three tools: five forces model, generic strategies model, and the value chain model. which can be utilised for the identification of competitive advantages. Select one of these tools and illustrate how a manager would use this tool in assessing the competitive position of their business. 10 Marks continued…
SECTION A
Answers for EACH SECTION are to be written in a SEPARATE ANSWER BOOK. Please write the name of the section on the answer book cover. Answer either Question 5 or Question 6 Question 5 “In nearly every software project that fails to meet performance and cost goals, requirements inadequacies play a major and expensive role in project failure” a. Explain why requirements management is vital to the success of information systems development (ISD) projects 10 Marks b. Describe how “agile” approaches to ISD, such as extreme Programming (XP) and Scrum, control the risk of changing business requirements. In your answer, you should compare the “agile” approach with that of the traditional “waterfall” model of information systems development. 15 Marks Question 6 a. In the design of relational databases (e.g. Microsoft Access), describe using examples what is meant by the concept of a “primary key”. 5 Marks b. What factors should you consider when selecting the primary key attribute(s)? 8 marks c. In the design of relational databases, describe using examples what is meant by the concepts of a “foreign key”. Explain how a foreign key is used to implement “relationships” and enforce “referential integrity” between database “tables”. 8 Marks d. Briefly outline how spreadsheet modelling applications (e.g. Microsoft Excel) can be used to support decision-making. 4 Marks continued…
SECTION C
Answers for EACH SECTION are to be written in a SEPARATE ANSWER BOOK. Please write the name of the section on the answer book cover. Answer either Question 7 or Question 8 Question 7 The Open System Interconnection (OSI) model defines seven layers that describe how applications running upon network devices may communicate with each other. a. Describe the OSI model outlining the function of each layer within the model. 10 Marks Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) is a layered framework for the design of network systems that allows for communication across all types of computer systems. b. Discuss the above statement, describing the layers of the TCP/IP model. Your answer should also illustrate how the layers of the TCP/IP model map to the layers of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model. 15 Marks Question 8 a. Briefly outline and describe the five basic components of a supply chain. 10 Marks “Information Technology’s primary role in Supply Chain Management is creating the integrations or tight processes and information linkages between functions within a firm” b. Discuss this statement, using diagrams where appropriate. Your answer should include an overview of the integrated supply chain, visibility, consumer behaviour, competition and speed. 15 Marks
SECTION D
