Strategic Information System Planning.Ü

Our class in Management Information System II have discussed and shared about the Evolution of Information System Planning and the Problems of Information System Plan last Monday. It was a good sharing and we learned from the practical examples given by the sharers.
Any activity requires planning in order to achieve a desired goal. It would be crucial for any endeavor in life without any established plan. These plans could either make or break an individual or any organization. That is why plans should be thoroughly analyzed. This thorough analysis will lead to strategies that will eventually play a big role for the success of a company or any person.
To review, Information System involves Hardware, Software, and People ware. These three are interrelated in a way that one could not work properly if one component is malfunctioning; the entire Information System is affected. That is why a strategic plan for it should be made. This strategic plan will enable an organization or any business individual to succeed and survive, depending on the plan that has been made. As said earlier, plans could either make or break them.
As years go by, Information Systems Planning also has developed. The realization that there is a constant change in the environment brought an impact to the many organizations for them to improve business performance and maximize their returns on IT investment. Basically, planning for Information System begins with the identification of needs. A problem will be given a solution when the problem itself is first identified. In the sharing, it was said that the plan should be specific and flexible. Specific enough to enable understanding of each application and to know where it stands in the order of development and flexible so as to adjust the priorities in the planning, if necessary.
Nevertheless, problems can never be eluded. That is why it should be that the SISP should anticipate for the things to happen—it really requires deep understanding of the specific needs inside an organization. Also, organizational plans and IS plans should go together so that it would advance and bring improvement to the organization, hence, gives way to its survival in the industry. Moreover, the application of Information Technology to a firm’s strategic activities is one of the effective factors to enhance business operations. Through planning strategically, an organization can participate in the competition in the business enterprise

five years from now?

Life is unpredictable. It is full of surprises. You don’t know what it may bring. But as the captains of our own boat, we are liable on how are we going to make things run in a smooth flow. We are the forecasters of our own future. We make things happen in our lives. What we believe is what we become; and what we believe for should be accompanied with our actions in order for them to be fulfilled.
As of now, I am still a student who is continually learning the fundamentals of the Information and Communications Technology industry; exploring its vastness and hoping too that I will be entering, engaging, and working with the real ICT world. As a student as of now, I allow myself to discover more of the field that I have chosen. To experience challenges in my student years is essential for the development of my knowledge and skills that soon will be vital in my future career.
To foresee myself five years from now is not that fixed. What I mean is that I am not sure yet if I will become what I am planning to be. But as what I have mentioned earlier, “What we believe is what we become”… What I believe then, I will become. This suggests that we should possess the proper mindset for us to arrive at our individual goals--- that we should believe in our own abilities and potentials and really allow ourselves to be exposed with the unending learning around us; to never stop learning. With this motivation, I could envision myself as a professional IT person in a well-known company acquiring the competitive skills and adequate knowledge about my profession. I could visualize that I am working in a software development team. I could also envision myself as occupying a top rank and being well-compensated by the company. Five years from now, I could see myself as a successful IT professional mentoring other people; helping them to carry out their objectives.
With all of these futuristic ideas and plans I have, it will just be fulfilled if it is the perfect will of Him. As what the Scripture says: “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is His’ that will prevail”…Nevertheless, He has also promised that He has the perfect plans in our lives; not to harm but to prosper us. This means there is hope for everything. As long as we do our part, believe in ourselves, and most importantly, trusting Him in all our ways, we will succeed.