UNIVERSITY OF MAURITIUS

FACULTY OF LAW AND MANAGEMENT

FIRST SEMESTER EXAMINATIONS

NOV/DEC 2015

BSc (Hons) Accounting (Minor: Finance)

PROGRAMME
Level IV

MODULE NAME MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS

Thursday
DATE MODULE CODE CSE3203 (5)
26 November 2015

TIME 09.30 11.30 Hours DURATION 2 Hours

NO. OF 6 NO. OF QUESTIONS 4

QUESTIONS SET TO BE ATTEMPTED

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES

This paper consists of 6 questions and 2 Sections.

Section A is Compulsory.
Answer ANY THREE (3) questions from Section B.
 Management Information Systems CSE3203 (5)

SECTION A - COMPULSORY

Question 1 [40 marks]

The new trend for business organisations is to develop enterprise software solutions which
combines the functionalities of enterprise applications. For example SAP Business Suite
offers solutions like SAP ERP, SAP Netweaver BI, SAP CRM & SAP SCM. Some businesses
make use of individual enterprise applications while others prefer enterprise suites.

a) What are the challenges of implementing enterprise applications?

[6 marks]

b) Describe the advantages of implementing an enterprise suite rather than individual

enterprise applications.
[6 marks]

c) What are the main capabilities of a customer relationship management (CRM) system
and Supply Chain Management (SCM)?
[6 marks]

d) Company X is in the Garment Retail industry in Mauritius. They use Information

Systems to support their internal processes.

On the other hand, Company Y is in Banking in Mauritius and employs strategic

Information Systems to position themselves against competing companies.

The third Mauritian Company Z develops Accounting Information Systems and sells
them to business clients all over the world.

i. Describe three important roles played by Information System for the three companies
X, Y and Z.
[6 marks]

ii. Explain how each of these companies will measure the benefits of their Information
Systems.
[6 marks]

e) Describe the business value of telecommunications for organisations.

[10 marks]

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 Management Information Systems CSE3203 (5)

SECTION B

Answer ANY THREE (3) questions.

Question 2 [20 marks]

a) Explain the primary differences between operational planning, tactical planning and
strategic planning?
[6 marks]

b) What types of systems are used for enterprise-wide knowledge management and how
do they provide value for businesses?
[6 marks]

c) Briefly describe the main steps of the Prototyping Approach for software development
and give an example of an application where the prototyping approach would be useful.

[8 marks]

Question 3 [20 marks]

a) What are the business benefits of collaboration and teamwork using internet, intranet
and extranet technology.
[6 marks]

b) Many organisations are turning to cloud computing to minimise their IT investments.

i. Describe three types of cloud service models that an organisation can choose from.
[6 marks]

ii. Explain the main concerns in terms of technological and management issues that
organisations must take while choosing cloud computing.
[8 marks]

Question 4 [20 marks]

In today's high technology environment, organisations are becoming more and more
dependent on their information systems. The public is increasingly concerned about the
proper use of information, particularly personal data. The threats to information systems
from criminals and terrorists are increasing.

a) What is the difference between a Security Plan and Disaster Recovery Plan?
[6 marks]

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 Management Information Systems CSE3203 (5)

b) Explain why information systems are vulnerable to destruction, error, and abuse?

[6 marks]

c) What are the most important tools and technologies for safeguarding information
resources?
[8 marks]

Question 5 [20 marks]

a) What are the principal risk factors in information systems projects?

[6 marks]

b) Explain the difference between decision support systems (DSS) and executive decision
support systems (ESS)
[6 marks]

c) How do business intelligence and business analytics support decision making?

[8 marks]

Question 6 [20 marks]

Automoto Ltd is a local shop selling car automotive spare parts. Part of the companys
strategies, the Automoto Ltd has decided to implement an e-commerce web site to become
more competitive.

(a) Identify the potential benefits resulting from the implementation this e-commerce
website.
[6 marks]

(b) Instead of implementing the project in-house, Automoto Ltd decides to outsource the e-
commerce project implementation. Assuming that it decides to use facilities provided by
Service Providers, identify the different types of Service Providers required and briefly
list the facilities offered by each one.
[6 marks]

(c) What would be the potential challenges faced by the company to ensure that the
e-commerce implementation project is a success?
[8 marks]

END OF QUESTION PAPER

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