AIMS

The contemporary political, economic, technological and social environment is undergoing rapid and transformational change. This is a period of massive disruption as we harness technological innovations and transform the ways in which wealth is created in the new digital economy. Our organisations need to respond to this change and develop strategies and structures to support the reformation of business and work practices necessary to survive.

This subject focuses on the strategic response required by organisations to address this disruption. The subject further explores development and implementation of information systems as both a catalyst for, and a response to, organisational change.

In this subject, several change management theories and models are investigated in depth with an analysis of their applicability, benefits, risks and impacts. A case study of a contemporary organisation is used to facilitate this learning with the application of theory, methods and best practices applied in real situations. These learnings will be of enormous value to students and professionals leading the change in their organisations.

This subject supports course-level objectives by allowing students to develop analytical skills to understand the complexity of real-world work in organisations. It promotes innovative thinking around the deployment of existing and emerging information technologies. The subject contributes to the development of independent critical inquiry, analysis and reflection.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

This subject focuses on providing foundation understanding for the professional to understand and manage the current and future impact of change in this disrupted economy.

Topics discussed include: the relationship between change and disruption; the need for strategic change management; and explore the change architecture and organisational readiness to transform itself. The subject will also explore the impacts, on individuals, organisational structures and the role of the change manager in developing the strategic response to successfully navigate the change.

AIMS

This subject introduces a range of information security management services implemented in industry. The subject will cover the fundamental principles and practice of security risk assessment, incident response and disaster recovery, knowledge leakage, systems and network security, and policy and culture. Students will develop an appreciation for the kinds of security practices that exist in industry in each of these areas.

This subject supports course-level objectives by allowing students to have in-depth knowledge of the specialist area of information security management. The subject’s assessment tasks include the writing of a comprehensive consulting proposal and research into critical security issues faced by organizations. These tasks will encourage students to work in a team to develop a high-level of achievement in writing, research activities, and presentation skills.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

Security principles and techniques discussed are: Models for understanding knowledge leakage, Security Risk Assessment Methods, Firewall and virtual private network (VPN) security scenarios, and Incident Response Methodology. Real world cases will be drawn from a range of organization types including critical infrastructure installations in Australia.

AIMS

Outsourcing has become a routine part of management, yet it remains far from easy. In general, the concept of using external organizations (whether domestic or offshore) is considered an efficient and logical way to get things done, and is indeed widely accepted in many sectors of the economy. However, the learning curve is significant, it involves considerable hard work by both parties on a daily basis, and the results are highly dependent on the capabilities of the organizations involved. This subject focuses on the crucial activities that make a difference between success and disappointment.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

This subject provides an overview of both the theory and practice of managing outsourcing throughout the lifecycle.

Topics discussed are:

• Architect Phase: Deciding what and how to outsource. Designing a deal, developing a Contract Scorecard, Service Level Agreements and Key Performance Indicators, pricing, and the contract
• Engage Phase: Competitive bidding, choosing supplier/s, negotiation, due diligence
• Operate Phase: Mobilisation, governance and contract management, relationship management
• Refresh Phase: Disengagement (exit), next generation planning.

AIMS

As with many other forms of technology, information technologies have lifecycles ranging from initial conception, to possible adoption, and widespread use, to eventual obsolescence.This subject will examine emerging information technologies and the issues that relate to them, including: how they evolve and, enter usage, and their likely future effects on people and social structures.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

The subject provides an understanding of both technical and managerial issues, as well as strategic implications of emerging technologies and issues. Upon completion of the subject, students should be able to (a) understand key enabling technologies and become an effective participant in technology-enabled business endeavours and initiatives; (b) recognize ways of leveraging the technology to improve intra and inter-organizational processes and enhance a firm’s competitive position; (c) gain skills for building careers and taking advantage of entrepreneurial opportunities through emerging technologies, and (d) understand the factors that influence how relevant an emerging technology will be in the long run.

AIMS

This subject asks the question ‘what makes a successful entrepreneur?’ It’s a complex topic and the subject of heated debate in the business, education and the economics communities, and also in discussions of international development, sustainability and social philanthropy. The way we will approach this subject is by looking at the behaviours, attitudes, values and skills that entrepreneurs need to create the climate for successful innovation - whether they are entrepreneurs starting new ventures or ‘Entrepreneurs’ in large organisations. What you will discover in this subject is that innovation isn’t just about having great ideas, and that entrepreneurs aren’t who you think they are. The subject will do this by looking at topics such as how innovation works and how it can be managed, different modes of entrepreneurialism, how entrepreneurs think and how to create, build and sustain an entrepreneurial business.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

The subject comprises 5 themes:

• ’Making New Things’, a survey of current thinking about innovation and entrepreneurship
• ’The Customers’ Point of View’, looking at techniques for understanding customers and consumer-led innovation
• ’Everything is Negotiable’, including work done at the Harvard negotiation project on win/win negotiation and emotional negotiation
• ’Everyone Needs Help’, exploring the ways entrepreneurs create support networks to help them be successful innovation and mentoring
• ’Inspire People’ - an examination of the importance of vision and commitment in innovation and entrepreneurship
•  The subject involves advanced learning activities including case-based and experiential approaches.

AIMS

In this subject students are introduced to the processes of information systems project management with a focus on people in the presence of organisational politics. The first half of the term discusses eight of the nine knowledge areas of the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) - scope, cost, time, human resources, risk, quality, and communication and integration management. The second half of this subject focuses on developing skills necessary to manage projects within an organisational setting and discusses topics including project management processes; teamwork; stakeholder behaviour; conflict; change management; politics; and project success factors.

A key feature of the subject is the use of a case that spans all assignments and enables students to engage with stakeholders through a learning management system (LMS) forum. The case provides the vehicle for students to initiate, plan and recover a project. Student teams also have the opportunity to meet with a manager from the case’s ‘project office’ to review their work and obtain guidance prior to report submission.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

Content includes: the techniques as discussed in the (PMBOK) as developed by the Project Management Institute: Myers-Briggs (MBTI) Personality Type as applied to project managers; and various organisational theories applicable to change management, group and team work, staff motivation, conflict management and negotiation.

AIMS

This subject introduces the concept of enterprise architecture (EA). The structure of an EA provides the framework by which an organisation can be understood. It introduces the fundamental relationships existing between various components of the EA namely: processes, information, organisational structure and enabling technologies. Consequently, many of the concept domains introduced in this subject are more fully explored in further core and elective subjects.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

Integrating business applications across business functions and companies provides large benefits to organisations. This subject has two primary themes. Firstly, it introduces EA concepts and frameworks that serve as artefacts of the business and also the process of creating an EA. Secondly, it looks at the implementation of the EA into the organisation and the impacts on the processes, information, organisational structures and applications employed to enable the organisation to function. A final discussion covers the benefits, risks and critical success factors

AIMS

This subject will focus on the patterns of IT spending in organizations, particularly strategies to reduce IT costs, increase information productivity and enhance Knowledge Capital.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

This subject discusses key themes relevant to Chief Information Officers (CIOs) in the context of the Information Economy such as the theory of Knowledge Capital, economic growth and the role of technological progress, Knowledge Valuation, outsourcing and profits, and Insurance for IT Risks.

AIMS

Strategic alignment of Information Systems (IS) and business is critical to the competitive positioning of organisations. IS governance deals with all aspects of the formulation and implementation of IS management plans, including IS strategic plans. This subject discusses approaches to the formulation and development of IS strategies. Topics covered include analysing an organisation’s operating model, IS governance arrangements and IS governance policy framework, and maturity in the adoption of enterprise architectures. Students are expected to become familiar with current IS governance frameworks and their implications for developing IS governance plans.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

Topics covered in the subject include: critical and strategic thinking, modes of strategic planning, IS strategic frameworks, IS Governance frameworks, IS Governance policy documents, IS Governance design frameworks, IS Governance arrangements, models of organisational decision making, operating models, relationship of IS Governance design to the development of enterprise architectures, IS Governance design methodologies, and value creation through IS Governance design and implementation.

AIMS

Business analytics involves the use of data to support business decision-making. Topics covered include business decision-making, evidence-based management, data warehouse design and implementation, data sourcing and quality, on-line analytical processing (OLAP), dashboards and data mining, case studies of business analytics practice.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

This subject introduces the concepts of business analytics, decision making, data warehouse design, data warehouse modelling, data quality, data warehouse implementation - including the extract-transform-load (ETL) process, and data warehouse use in supporting business analytics – including decision making tools and OLAP. Readings are provided for all topics that introduce real world cases on business analytics and related areas and include the use of business analytics in organisations.

The subject also explores how organisations gather and generate multiple forms of information, and how this information is analysed and converted into useful knowledge via individual judgement and organisational learning processes. In applying empirical and analytical approaches to practical situations, students will develop insights into both the nature of the business problems as well as methods that are used for identifying and evaluating alternative solutions. The subject content will include conceptual foundations, practical tools, and case studies to discuss the costs, benefits and risks of the various analytical methods that will be introduced.

AIMS

Students undertake an original investigation of a topic relevant to Information Systems in an organisation. Specific projects will depend on the availability of appropriate expertise, but may address a range of issues within Information Systems practice. Under the supervision and guidance of an academic researcher, students are required to design and conduct a practice-oriented investigation. This would typically involve a literature review, data collection, data analysis and critical reflection of industry practice. The results will be reported as a thesis and in a public presentation. In some instances, it is expected that the results will also be submitted for publication in a conference or journal.

The project will require an explorative approach, where students will pursue outcomes associated with new knowledge or understanding, within the Information Systems disciplines, often as an adjunct to existing academic research initiatives. It is expected that the Capstone Project will incorporate findings associated with both well-defined professional practice and research principles.

INDICATIVE CONTENT

Research will be conducted on a topic of mutual interest under the guidance of an experienced Information Systems researcher.

Refer to ISYS90099