Category: Managing IT

How many planes? Insight and strategy build on questions and perspectives

The officer in charge of the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 would have had early warning of the Japanese attack that day had he asked his radar watchers how many planes they had spotted. This story is sometimes told to students in the W. P. Carey School of Business MSIM programs – evening and online. It exemplifies the importance of asking the right questions, which is one of the key lessons the program strives to impart.

The future of analytics: Testing folklore and intuition

Five years ago, the best-selling book "Competing on Analytics" made a case for the use of data to inform decision making. Despite evidence that analytics yields tremendous benefits across a range of industries and use cases, most organizations still don’t compete on analytics, said information systems department Chairman Michael Goul at the Deloitte Analytics Symposium, held recently in Phoenix. A sound first step? Developing a culture of experimentation, Goul said.

Promises, promises: When one firm breaks them, two could suffer

A psychological contract  is an individual’s beliefs about the informal obligations that exist between employer and employee. What happens when an employer fails to come through on these perceived promises? Research shows that organizational citizenship behavior plummets, and when employees such as business analysts have two bosses, the downside of a broken promise multiplies, according to assistant professor of information systems Gregory Dawson.

Avoiding a breach: Advice for managers from security experts

High-profile computer security breaches — involving exposure of sensitive consumer information, uncovering of classified documents or disruption of corporate and government websites and systems – hit the news with alarming frequency.

Why are these breaches happening so often, and what should managers do to reduce the risk of a security incident? Security experts at the W. P. Carey School share their insights about root of the problem, and suggest what managers can do to keep their databases out of the news.

 

On the same wavelength: The inner workings of successful teams

Just about every organization has teams that work together exceptionally well. You might say the members are on the same wavelength, but exactly what does that mean? An experiment conducted at the W. P. Carey School of Business by information systems professor Pierre Balthazard and management professor David Waldman may bring us closer to understanding what goes on when those teams are "in the zone." The researchers recorded the brainwaves of student teams using EEG technology.

From Facebook to freedom: Does technology spur democracy?

Henry David Thoreau may have penned more than 9,300 words urging people to fight unjust governments in his essay on civil disobedience, but today’s political dissidents have brought throngs to the streets with 140 characters or less. Such is the power of social media. In the wake of 2011’s Arab Spring, many now think that information and communication technologies (ICTs) are a driving force behind increased levels of democracy. W. P. Carey researchers are asking, are they?