Enhancing Performance through Effective Management Information Systems

Healthy Together, one of the leading health technology organizations announced the launch of its Women, Infants and Children (WIC) MIS, Luna MIS in the month of April this year. This is built on AWS and is set to revolutionize the way the program is administered & managed.

Organizations are becoming reliant increasingly on Management Information Systems in today’s highly competitive and rapidly evolving business environment for enhancing performance, driving efficiency & maintaining a competitive edge. Through rendering relevant, timely & accurate information decision-making process is supported by an effective Management Information System. An effective MIS facilitates enterprises to streamline operations, enhance productivity and meet their strategic goals.

"By leveraging the power of AWS, we can provide a solution that meets the needs of today's WIC programs and also anticipates the challenges of tomorrow. This is a major step forward in our mission to enhance the health and well-being of women, infants, and children across the country," says Jared Allgood, President of Healthy Together.

Some of the subsystems of MIS include Laboratory Information Management System, Document Management System, Dealership Management System, Human Resource Management System, Laboratory Management System and Document Management system. LIMS focuses on sample tracking, workflow automation, data management, makes lab operations even more efficient as well as data driven. While Document Management Systems support workflow automation, version control as well as ensure secure access to company’s documents which contribute to better decision-making & compliance, Human Resource Management System which is a critical component of Management Information System mainly focuses on managing the company’s human resources.

In this article let us look at how Management Information Systems can improve performance through improving decision making, enhancing communication, optimizing business processes as well as fostering innovation.

Enhancing Decision Making

One of the most significant ways in which Management Information Systems improves performance is to enhance decision making processes. Effective decision making is important for achieving long term as well as short term goals, in any firm. Management Information Systems helps managers in identifying trends, assess risks & opportunities as well as forecast future developments. DSS within MIS are leveraged to handle complex data sets & render recommendations on the basis of historical data & statistical models.  This process not just helps in accelerating the decision making process but it also helps in increasing the accuracy of decisions leading to reduction of errors & misjudgments.

For example, Management Information Systems can analyze inventory levels, demand patterns, supplier performance, and enable the managers in making informed decisions regarding production schedules, procurement as well as distribution strategies. Companies can decrease costs, ensure timely delivery of products as well as minimize waste, thereby enhancing the overall performance.

Optimizing Business Processes

Effective Management Information Systems facilitates enterprises for streamlining business processes, alleviating inefficiencies & redundancies. This is done by automating routine processes as well as rendering managers with the tools for monitoring & evaluating process performance continuously.

Integrated with MIS, BPM (Business Process Management) systems lets organizations to design, monitor, implement & refine the process on the basis of performance data. This continuous improvement cycle facilitates enterprises in improving their operational efficiency. For instance, an MIS can track production performance in real-time. These highlight the bottlenecks in the production process as well as identifying areas for improvement. Similarly, Management Information Systems can be used for optimizing customer service workflows, decreasing wait times as well as enhancing the overall customer satisfaction in service oriented sectors.

Furthermore, MIS facilitates the integration of numerous business functions which include finance, human resource & operations. ERP systems centralize data across departments of an organization which helps ensure that all employees work with the same kind of information and such types of integration alleviates silos within the companies, improves collaboration and results in more efficient resource allocation. For example, through integration of financial data within the production as well as sales information, managers can align budgets better with operational requirements, decreasing waste & enhancing profitability.

“Unlike other management information system, ERP systems are very complicated to implement. ERP system evaluation, vendor selection, ERP consultant, implementation plan and execution are the secret sauces for implementing a successful ERP,” says Girish Rao, Head IT, Marico Limited. 

Enhancing Communication & Collaboration

For the smooth functioning of any firm, effective communication is vital & the Management Information System plays a major role in enhancing communication & collaboration among employees, stakeholders & departments. MIS helps in ensuring that all stakeholders in the firm have access to the respective information they require for performing their tasks effectively by offering a centralized platform for information sharing.

For instance, CRM systems which is one of the components of MIS, enables marketing, sales as well as customer service teams to collaborate on customer interactions and this unified approach helps in ensuring that all customer-facing departments work with the same information, decreasing the risk of miscommunication & enhancing the customer experience. Similarly, project management systems within a Management Information System help and allow teams in collaborating on projects in real-time, share updates & track the progress which in turn helps in ensuring that all stakeholders are aligned on project goals & deadlines.

“Any company embarking on CRM journey, whether on cloud solution or on premise solution, must decide first the approach for Customer Data Management (CDM),” says Shekhar Chhajer, CIO-India, Daimler South East Asia.

“As CDM is a cornerstone of effective CRM systems, right technologies must be selected which are capable of integrating the back-end systems. It is also important to minimize the entry points for customer information in the organization,” he adds.

MIS plays a significant role in improving the performance of organizations through enhancing decision-making, optimizing business processes & enhancing communication & collaboration as well as improving agility. Management Information Systems help companies in making informed decisions, streamline operations as well as adapt to changes in the business environment by rendering access to accurate, real-time information. However, it requires careful planning, significant investment as well as ongoing maintenance for the successful implementation of an MIS. And, when implemented effectively, a Management Information System acts as one of the powerful tools which not only helps in enhancing performance but also renders companies with a competitive advantage in the current dynamic & fast-paced business landscape.