Information systems, in various forms, have always been a part of how people communicate, and although historic systems are very different from those of today, their legacy should not be discounted. It is important to remember that without pioneering systems of the past, the systems of today could not exist. A modern information system is defined, according to Jessop and Valacich (2006), as“[...] combinations of hardware, software and telecommunications networks which people build and use to collect, create, and distribute useful data typically in organizational settings.” A broader definition might read “a set of individual components that, when combined, allow people to share useful data.” By the second definition, then, information systems have been around for a very long time because the need to efficiently communicate and collaborate is, arguably, no more necessary today than it was five centuries ago. Both ancient and modern people have devised systems for sending, receiving, and storing useful data.
When the ancient Greek philosopher Theophrastus (Wikipedia) released the first message in a bottle, and when the first telegraph message (“What hath God wrought?”) was sent by Samuel Morse in 1844 (Library of Congress), these data were sent using an information system. In today’s technology-driven environment, information systems are much different, but they utilize many of the same principles of the systems of the past. The most important component that has not changed with the passage of time is the human component, and while it is true that the systems of today consist of computers, computer software, and telecommunications networks, both modern systems and systems of the past rely on people to make them useful. It is the study of people, their ability to be an individual component of a system, by interacting with hardware and software, that I believe broadens the field of information systems in relation to another common term: information technology.
Information Systems and Information Technology
In many ways, these two terms are interchangeable because much of the subject matter of each discipline overlaps. Both information systems and information technology professionals design and support hardware, software, and telecommunications networks; and for many organizations and colleges, these terms are interchangeable. One college might have an information systems program, while another might have an identical program, but refer to it as an information technology program. Likewise, one organization might list on their job description “Information Technology Manager,” while a very similar job description might be listed as “Information Systems Manager.” In these cases it is important to examine the contents of the job description or the educational program rather than the title.
If information systems and information technology are largely thought of as the same discipline, why are there two different names? The truth is, according to Jessop and Valacich (p. 5), as the discipline has grown into its modern form, it has been called by many names, some of which are still used: Management Information Systems (MIS), Data Processing Management, Systems Management, Business Computer Systems, and Computer Information Systems (CIS) are good examples. It is important to note the subsets of these names as well — specific job duties like Systems Administrator, Network Administrator, Systems Engineer, or Application Developer. In my opinion, in the modern organization, information systems has taken a broader perspective than information technology, because it includes the people and processes in addition to the technology that allows organizations to create, collect, and distribute useful data. But there is still a great deal of overlap, so remember this: always examine the content of the job description or educational program to determine whether it is right for you. The title is less important.
–
References
Jessup, L., & Valacich, J. (2006). Information Systems Today. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education, Inc.
Wikipedia. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2011, from Theophrastus: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theophrastus
Samuel F. B. Morse Papers. (n.d.). Retrieved December 18, 2011, from Library of Congress: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/sfbmhtml/
