Information Technology in Organizations

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN ORGANIZATIONS A. INTRODUCTION Information technology is a system used to capture data, process and transmit or present it electronically into information in various formats that are useful for the user. Nowadays, information technology is developing very extraordinary. Information technology is increasingly sophisticated and can be used to support various activities, both for organizational, individual and social activities. The use of technology will have an impact on the process of change that occurs not only in individual society but also in organizations, such as structure, authority, power, job duties, employee career paths, supervision, and manager work. The use of electronic mail (email) or similar in an organizational setting can eliminate multiple messages to the person we are sending to or eliminate the waiting time until the messages are in the recipient's office. From the examples above, it can be seen that information technology has fundamentally changed organizations. B. THE ROLE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN ORGANIZATIONS As we know, in our future lives the technology sector will be the most dominant sector. Whoever masters technology will become a world leader. Technology has a role in various fields, especially in the organizational field. Information technology has become a basic need for every organization, especially in carrying out organizational activities. The role of technology is needed in organizations as a tool in an effort to win the competition that inevitably occurs in the world of organizations. Plus, we are faced with the fact that currently the world is in an era of very tight competition. The role of information technology in organizations allows every process to be carried out to be easier and faster. By using information technology, distance constraints and operational costs are no longer major problems. In other words, information technology can meet the information needs of an organization very quickly, timely, relevant and accurate (Wilkinson and Cerullo, 1997). The role of information technology for an organization can be seen using the categories introduced by G.R. Terry. There are five fundamental roles of information technology in organizations, namely: 1) Operational Function. Making the organizational structure leaner after its functions were taken over by information technology. The nature of its use is spread across all organizational functions, units related to information technology management will carry out their function as supporting agencies where information technology is considered as firm infrastructure. 2) Monitoring and Control Function. That the existence of information technology is an inseparable part of activities at the managerial level embedded in every manager's function. The unit organizational structure must be able to have a span of control or peer relationship that allows effective interaction with managers in the related company. 3) Planning and Decision Function. This function elevates information technology to a more vital level because of its existence as an enabler of organizational activity plans and is a knowledge generator for organizational leaders who are faced with the reality of daily decision making. 4) Communication function. Information technology is used as a means or medium for communicating, collaborating, cooperating and interacting. 5) Interorganizational Function. A unique role is caused by the spirit of globalization which forces organizations to collaborate or establish partnerships with a number of other organizations. Information technology has a role in organizations, including the following: • Minimal risk. Organizational activities definitely have risks, especially those related to financial factors. The presence of information technology helps organizations reduce existing risks, apart from that it also becomes a means to help organizations manage the risks they face. • Reduce Costs. Information technology as a catalyst in reducing organizational operational costs will affect the organization's profitability. In connection with this, there are four ways offered to reduce the costs of operational activities, namely: Process elimination, implementation of various information technology components to eliminate processes that are deemed unnecessary. Process simplification, long and complicated processes can be simplified by implementing various information technology components. Process integration, information technology can integrate several processes into one so that it feels faster and more practical. Process automation, changing manual processes to automatic in the organization. • Add Value. Creating value for company customers. The ultimate goal of value is not just to satisfy customers, but even further to create loyalty so that customers are willing to remain consumers for the long term. • Create New Realities. Able to create a competitive arena for organizations, namely in cyberspace. Information technology is important and inseparable from organizational activities. The reasons for using technology today can be determined by looking at how information technology is used throughout the organizational world. The following are some of the roles of information technology in modern organizations: a) Communication. For companies, email is one of the main means of communication between employees, suppliers and customers. Email was an early driver of the Internet, providing a simple and cheap means of communicating. Over time, there are more and more communication tools, starting from live chat, online meeting tools, and video-conferencing. b) Inventory Management. In managing inventory, organizations need to maintain enough inventory to meet demand without investing more than they need. Inventory management systems track the quantity of each item an organization has on hand, triggering additional stock orders when the quantity falls below a predetermined amount. This system is used when an inventory management system is connected to a point-of-sale (POS) system. The POS system ensures that every time an item is sold, one of those items is removed from the inventory count, creating a closed-loop information between all departments. c) Data Management. Most companies store their digital documents on servers and storage devices. This document is available to everyone in the organization, regardless of where they are located. d) Management Information System. Management information systems allow companies to track sales data, costs and productivity levels. Information is used to track profits, maximize return on investment and identify areas of improvement. Managers track sales, allowing them to react when expected sales figures fall short of estimates by increasing employee productivity or by reducing cost of goods. e) Customer Relationship Management. Companies use information technology to improve the way they design and manage customer relationships. A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system captures every interaction an organization has with customers, so that customer experience can be improved. If a customer contacts the call center with a problem, a customer support representative will be able to see what the customer purchased, view shipping information, provide a training manual for the use of the item and respond effectively to the problem. C. IMPACT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN ORGANIZATIONS The impact of information technology on organizations can be seen from the implementation of information technology which can support and assist organizations in implementing and achieving overall organizational strategy. This is in accordance with the opinion expressed by Romney (2006), that information technology in an organization is not the basic strategy of the organization, the implementation of information technology is used to assist in achieving organizational strategy. By using information technology, access to organizational activity processes can be done quickly so that decision making can be made more quickly, precisely and accurately and ultimately organizational goals can be achieved. With the application of information technology in organizations, there are various impacts on organizations, including information technology can bring a number of changes such as organizational hierarchical structures becoming increasingly wide/flat, authority tending to be decentralized, changes in power structures tending to be distributed; changes in job content, and changes in human resource management in organizations, as well as assisting managers in decision making. Apart from the impacts mentioned above, there are still other influences caused by the application of information technology in organizations. Positive influences include: a) As a medium for analyzing market conditions. b) As a medium for monitoring organizational performance. c) As a medium to improve the quality of information. d) Cost, time savings and increased productivity. e) As a medium for processing data quickly and accurately. f) To assist human resource management activities. g) To help improve service to customers, as well as members and administrators of the organization itself. h) To assist management activities and administrative services, such as E-mail, Voice Mail, Word Processing, Database Management Systems, and Social Media. i) As a creator, maintainer, maintainer and guard of communication relations between members, organizational administrators, organizational leaders, other organizational parties and the wider community. Apart from producing positive influences, the application of technology in organizations can also have several negative impacts on organizations, such as: • The large possibility of misuse of information technology. • Reduces people's social nature, because they tend to prefer connecting via social media rather than meeting in person. • The large possibility of job dissatisfaction, dehumanization and psychological impacts, as well as information anxiety. • High possibility of resistance to change problems. This problem must be eliminated because this can result in decreased productivity, increased absenteeism, and reduced motivation or work strikes (Gordon, 1993). To prevent unwanted conditions, Gordon recommends that: Organization members are involved in carrying out certain tasks and create an environment that supports the quality of organizational members. Apart from that, it is necessary to provide awareness to organizational members that the use of information technology can provide longterm benefits and show the weaknesses of old systems. To reduce resistance to change regarding changes in the implementation of information technology. Organization members need to receive education and training as well as providing relevant skills, to be able to have expertise and abilities regarding information technology. Maintain the security of organizational or company information.