Mission Statements and Strategy Planning Using

Information Technology: An Introduction

Introduction
The use of information technology (IT) by many organizations has increased dramatically over recent
years. Databases help an organization store, retrieve, manipulate and print information with
increased speed and accuracy. This increased efficiency helps organizations to enjoy a greater profit
margin. Murphy (2006) says that making use of information technology can help you, "Avoid
duplication of effort, save you time [and] money, make you more efficient, introduce staffing
economies and ultimately increase your profit." Increasing the profit margin as well as improving
staff efficiency are common goals for organizations. Are they the goals of your organization?
Strategy Statement
Successful organizations know that goal setting and mission statements are the basic foundation
that helps motivate its employees to achieve common objectives. There is a need to develop
strategies that point team members in the right direction. Berkowitz (2011) says that, "In general, a
strategy statement should contain the following elements: publics, logic, communication channel,
type of medium, [and] timing." A well written strategy supports the objectives and outcomes that the
organization is striving to achieve.
Integrating Information Technology
Nowadays, businesses and organizations know that promoting information technology should be a
significant part of its overall mission. Information systems should be incorporated into the mission
and strategy statements. A specific objective might include the expansion of information technology
across all work silos.
Educational institutions likely have made some of the more significant progress in incorporating
information technology to increase and enhance distant learning as well as other important areas
such as communication and Internet presence. Texas Tech University includes these quantifiable
goals: "Create a secure wireless network to serve at least 50% of campus. Expand the number of
technology-enabled classrooms by 100%. Provide 25% of all Internet services through portable
devices." A goal to increase student achievement might be accomplished by the increased use of
technology.

Choosing a Database
In order to achieve these IT strategies and goals, an institution might choose a database unique to
its needs. It is important to consider five key components during the planning and setup phase of the
database design stage. Duffy (2000) states that the components of a database plan should include,
"an executive summary, implementation plan, hardware/software purchase plan and needs, staffing
recommendations, training recommendations and data/information flow (where/how data moves
through your agency)." Some questions that might be asked include, "Which database you will use?
Who will build the database? Who will maintain the database?"
9 Database Models
According to UnixSpace, there are nine database models: (1) Hierarchical, (2) Network, (3)
Relational, (4) Object/Relational, (5) Object/Oriented, (6) Semi-structured, (7) Associated, (8) Entity
attribute value, and (9) Context. How might an organization go about choosing the most appropriate
database type?
Relational Database
According to Paragon (2005), "The most common kind of database used for structured applications
is the relational database which is partitioned into tables." If an organization chooses the relational
database model, then designing tables will be the next step. Sebastian (2005) says one should
consider appropriate naming conventions that limit the use of, "dashes, spaces, digits and special
characters." The author notes that the designer should also, "avoid language mix-ups...use
consistent table naming and give them a technical primary key." Sebastian discusses the relational
database theory and identifies ways to setup a "one-to-many relationship" structure. "You need a
policy for many-to-many relationships too." A thorough understanding of the components of a
relational database gives the designer a competitive edge.
Designing Reports
Next, the user might set out to design some basic forms and reports. Microsoft Office software
products are very commonly used by many corporations and non-profit organizations. Simple tables
can be designed in either Excel or Access. One might first choose to begin in Excel and follow the
suggestions outlined by Sebastian. Once the tables are designed in Excel, the user can import them

into Access. At this point, the names of the tables and the identification of primary keys can be
modified as needed. There are built-in help features which allow a person with a basic
understanding of computers to design forms with radio dials and fields with dropdown menus.
Data Modeling
Before a user is able to make any meaningful reports or forms, data modeling should be conducted.
It is important because it points the designer in the right direction for setting up the appropriate
tables in the first place. The business design needs to be studied and then matched with the model
that is most applicable. Work silos can be identified and then their relationships studied. This is why
the relational database is appropriate across many organizational structures.
Diagram Basics
A diagram helps to depict the relationships of the data being modeled. Chaple, (2011) says an entityrelationship (ER) diagram is, "A specialized graphic that illustrates the interrelationships between
entities in a database. ER diagrams often use symbols to represent three different types of
information. Boxes are commonly used to represent entities. Diamonds are normally used to
represent relationships and ovals are used to represent attribute." We have discussed relationships,
but what are entities and attributes? IBM describes an entity as, "a principal data object that is of
significant interest to the user. It is usually a person, place, thing, or event to be recorded in the
database. If the data model were a language, entities would be nouns" (IBM, 2005). The IBM guide
also discusses attributes. "Entities contain attributes, which are characteristics or modifiers,
qualities, amounts, or features. An attribute is a fact or non-decomposable piece of information
about an entity. Later, when you represent an entity as a table, its attributes are added to the model
as new columns."
Church Database
A church or parish will generally have a database of its members as illustrated in Diagram 1. The
parishioner is the member of the church and is located in the entity box. The associated attributes
such as the address and phone numbers are located in the ovals. A relationship to the parishioner,
such as a child, is located in the diamond with its associated attributes or additional information in
the ovals.
The database for a church or parish is likely to be much more detailed and complex with additional
child members, sacramental records, and contribution information. It is shown here to give a basic
idea of how a relational database might be setup for this organization.
Conclusion
High quality information technology should be incorporated into all aspects of a given organization.
The future of IT systems may evolve into uses that might be more user-friendly. Using Microsoft
Office software products might be replaced or enhanced by voice recognition systems that design an
appropriate database by oral command.