Requisite skills for new MIS hires

ABSTRACT

Rapidly changing technology makes the information systems (IS) field a highly dynamic one. IS professionals must possess the requisite skills to be successful in this environment. At an April 1988 meeting of The University of Georgia - MIS Industry Advisory Board, twenty Board members ranked the skills that new MIS graduates should have if they seek an entry-level position as a programmer, systems analyst, or end-user support professional. Separate ranked lists were generated through Collaborative Work System (CWS) software so that required skills could be compared across entry-level positions. The findings provide insights about the changing needs of industry and implications for academic programs in colleges and universities.

REFERENCES

• 1: Albin, M. & Otto, R.W., 1987, "The CIS Curriculum: What Employers Want From CIS and General Business Majors," The Journal of Computer Information Systems, Summer, pp. 15-19.
• 2: Lynda M. Applegate , Tsung Teng Chen , Benn R. Konsynski , Jay F. Nunamaker, Knowledge management in organizational planning, Journal of Management Information Systems, v.3 n.4, p.20-38, Spring 1987
• 3: Bell, J.D. & Richter, W.W., 1987, "Needed: Better Communication from Data Processors," Personnel, Volume 63, Number 5, May, pp. 20-26.
• 4: Benbasat, I, Dexter, A.S., & Mantha, R.W., 1980, "Impact of Organizational Maturity on Information System Skill Needs," Management Information Systems Quarterly, Volume 4, Number 1, March, pp. 21-34.
• 5: Bracker, W.E., Konsynski, B.R., & Sokolov, D.L., 1984, "Ranking Data Communications in Today's Classroom," Data Communications, Volume 13, Number 4, April, pp. 133-139.
• 6: Can, H. Managing End User Computing, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 258 pages.
• 7: Cheney, P.H. & Lyons, N.R., 1988, "Information Systems Skill Requirements: A Survey," Management Information Systems Quarterly, Volume 4, Number 1, March 1980, pp. 35-43.
• 8: Cheney, P.H. & Lipp, A., 1987, "Information Systems Personnel Skill Requirements: 1978 & 1987," University of Georgia Working Paper #28.
• 9: Cheney, P.H., Hale, D.P., & Kasper, G.M., 1989, "Information Systems Professionals: Skills for the 1990's," Proceedings of the 22st Annual Hawaii International Conference on Systems Sciences, Honolulu, Hawaii, January, pp. 331-336.
• 10: Couger, J.D., Zawacki, R.A., & Oppermann, E.B., 1979, "Motivation Levels of MIS Managers Versus Those of Their Employees," Management Information Systems Quarterly, Volume 3, Number 3, September, pp. 47- 56.
• 11: Couger, J.D., 1980, "Low Social Need Strength (SNS) of Computer Professionals and the Impact on Curriculum Design," Proceedings of the First International Conference on Information Systems, December 8.-10.
• 12: J. Daniel Couger , Robert A. Zawacki, Motivating and Managing Computer Personnel, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, NY, 1980
• 13: J. D. Couger , Mel A. Colter, Maintenance programming: improved productivity through motivation, Prentice-Hall, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ, 1985
• 14: Gerardine DeSanctis , Brent Gallupe, Group decision support systems: a new frontier, ACM SIGMIS Database, v.16 n.2, p.3-10, Winter 1984 [doi>10.1145/1040688.1040689]
• 15: Gerardine Desanctis , R. Brent Gallupe, A foundation for the study of group decision support systems, Management Science, v.33 n.5, p.589-609, May 1987 [doi>10.1287/mnsc.33.5.589]
• 16: "DPMA Model Curriculum for Undergraduate Computer Information Systems Education," Data Processing Management Association, Park Ridge Illinois, 1986.
• 17: R. Brent Gallupe , Gerardine DeSanctis , Gary W. Dickson, Computer-based support for group problem-finding: an exprimental investigation, MIS Quarterly, v.12 n.2, p.277-296, June 1988 [doi>10.2307/248853]
• 18: Gray, P., et. al., 1981, "The SMU Decision Room Project," Transactions of the First International Conference on Decision Support Systems, Atlanta, Georgia, June, pp. 135-162.
• 19: Paul Gray, Group decision support systems, Decision Support Systems, v.3 n.3, p.233-242, Sept. 1987 [doi>10.1016/0167-9236(87)90178-3]
• 20: Warren Harrison , Donald Springer, A software systems management MBA option, ACM SIGMIS Database, v.16 n.2, p.19-23, Winter 1984 [doi>10.1145/1040688.1040692]
• 21: Hiltz, S.R. & Turoff, M., 1982, "Computer Support for Group Versus Individual Decisions," IEEE Transactions of Communications, Volume 30, Number 1, January, pp. 82-94.
• 22: Huber, G.P., 1984, "Issues in the Design of Group Decision Support Systems," Management Information Systems Quarterly, Volume 8, Number 3, September, pp. 195-204.
• 23: George H Jenkins, Education requirements for the entry level business systems analyst, Journal of Systems Management, v.37 n.8, p.30-33, Aug. 1986
• 24: M. Tawfik Jelassi , Renée A. Beauclair, An integrated framework for group decision support systems design, Information and Management, v.13 n.3, p.143-153, October 1, 1987 [doi>10.1016/0378-7206(87)90022-X]
• 25: Kenneth L. Kraemer , John Leslie King, Systems for cooperative work and group decision making: status of use and problems in development, Proceedings of the Twenty-First Annual Hawaii International Conference on Decision Support and Knowledge Based Systems Track, p.137-148, January 1988, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, United States
• 26: Kenneth L. Kraemer , John Leslie King, Computer-based systems for cooperative work and group decision making, ACM Computing Surveys (CSUR), v.20 n.2, p.115-146, June 1988 [doi>10.1145/46157.46158]
• 27: Krueger, B.D., 1986, "Today's DP Emphasis Demands a New Approach to Hiring," Data Management, pp. 9- 11.
• 28: Lauer, J., Hallam, S.F., & Lee D.W., 1987, "What Executives Perceive They Really Need to Know About Information Systems," The Journal of Computer Information Systems, Winter, pp. 39-45.
• 29: McClanahan, A. & Holden, E., 1987, "Computers in the Business Curriculum: Is the Introductory Business Computer Course a Passing Fancy?," The Journal of Computer Information Systems, Summer, pp. 23-25.
• 30: Nunamaker, J.F., Applegate, L.M., & Konsynski, B.R., 1985, "Computer Aided Deliberation: Model Management and Group Decision Support," University of Arizona Working Paper 1985.
• 31: Jay F. Nunamaker, Jr. , Lynda M. Applegate , Benn R. Konsynski, Facilitating group creativity: Experience with a group decision support system, Journal of Management Information Systems, v.3 n.4, p.5-19, Spring 1987
• 32: Jay F. Nunamaker, Jr. , J. Daniel Couger , Gordon B. Davis, Information systems curriculum recommendations for the 80s: undergraduate and graduate programs, Communications of the ACM, v.25 n.11, p.781-805, Nov 1982 [doi>10.1145/358690.358698]
• 33: Richman, L.S., 1985, "Software Catches the Team Spirit," Fortune, Volume 9, Number 3, September, pp. 125- 136.
• 34: Riehl, J., 1987, "A Curriculum Model of Telecommunications Education Requirements for the Information Systems Specialist," The Journal of Computer Information Systems, Spring, pp. 2-4.
• 35: Sprague, R.H. & McNurlin, B., 1986, "The Mead Corporation," from Sprague and McNurlin (eds.) Information Systems Management in Practice, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, pp. 15- 21.
• 36: Mark Stefik , Gregg Foster , Daniel G. Bobrow , Kenneth Kahn , Stan Lanning , Lucy Suchman, Beyond the chalkboard: computer support for collaboration and problem solving in meetings, Communications of the ACM, v.30 n.1, p.32-47, Jan. 1987 [doi>10.1145/7885.7887]
• 37: Van de Ven, A.H. & Delbecq, A.L., 1974, "The Effectiveness of Nominal, Delphi, and Interacting Group Decision Making Processes," Academy of Management Journal, Volume 17, Number 4, pp. 605- 621.
• 38: Vitalari, N.P., 1985, "Knowledge as a Basis for Expertise in Systems Analysis: An Empirical Study," Management Information Systems Quarterly, Volume 9, Number 3, September, pp. 221-241.
• 39: Vogel, D., Nunamaker, J.F., Applegate, L.M., & Konsynski, B.R., 1987, "Group Decision Support Systems: Determinants of Success," Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Decision Support Systems, June 8-11, 1987, pp. 118-128.
• 40: Wagner, G., 1981, "DSS: Dealing with Executive Assumptions in the Office of the Future," Transactions of the First International Conference on Decision Support Systems, Atlanta, Georgia, June, pp. 122- 129.
• 41: Richard T. Watson , Gerardine DeSanctis , Marshall Scott Poole, Using a GDSS to facilitate group consensus: some intended and unintended consequences, MIS Quarterly, v.12 n.3, p.463-478, Sept. 1988 [doi>10.2307/249214]
• 42: Zawacki, R.A., Scott, D.K., & Zawacki, P.A., 1988, "How College Students Choose IS Careers," Datamation, Volume 34, Number 10, September 15.

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.2 DATABASE MANAGEMENT

Additional Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.4 INFORMATION SYSTEMS APPLICATIONS

  K. Computing Milieux
  K.6 MANAGEMENT OF COMPUTING AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS
      K.6.1 Project and People Management
          Subjects: Staffing
  K.7 THE COMPUTING PROFESSION

General Terms:
Human Factors, Management