Exploring Process, Enterprise Integration and E-business Concepts in the Classroom: The Case of petPRO

Journal of Information Systems Education, Fall 2004 by Hajnal, Catherine A, Riordan, Robert

2. COURSE BACKGROUND

2.1 University Context

The Sprott School of Business at Carleton University has embarked on introducing enterprise integration and e-business concepts into the classroom. The School uses a broad-based definition of e-business - one that emphasizes that e-business is as much about business process and management practice as it is about technology. The definition includes the notion of an integrated enterprise, linked with its customers and suppliers, and with the ability to manage processes and information flows through the use of enterprise systems and internet-based technology.

Important in the School's approach to e-business is recognition of the need to think cross-functionally. Integration cannot take place if the perspective remains one of functional silos. This is not to say that the standard functions of business such as Marketing, Human Resources, Production, etc. will disappear. Rather, from a curriculum standpoint, the goal is to have the students appreciate both the functional perspective and the interdependence and interaction which take place across functions in order to complete the core business processes of an organization.

At the undergraduate level, this goal has been particularly challenging given the limited knowledge the students have of the various business functions. By the time students graduate, they are expected to have some depth of knowledge in a particular function such as Accounting or Information Systems and it is expected that they will have touched all of the business functions through their required courses. Students in first and second year, however, have had an introduction to only a few of the traditional business functions. These students have little foundation to appreciate the complexity of decision-making, data-sharing, and interdependence among the functions required to manage a cross-functional process such as customer-order fulfillment. It becomes critical to provide the students not only the enterprise and process related concepts, but a context in which to explore them. Providing that context is the focus of the curriculum innovation discussed in this paper.

2.2 Course Objectives

Introduction to Information Systems (often referred to as the 'Intro MIS Course' in other universities) is a required second-year course for all students completing an undergraduate degree in business or a business minor. This translates to a broad range of students with interests in a diverse set of business functions, as well as students from such disciplines as Economics, Engineering, and Computer Science. (Prior to this course students have taken an introductory programming course that uses VB.Net.) The course runs for one semester of 13 weeks. Approximately 600 students a year take the course in sections varying in size from sixty to seventy students each. This undergraduate business program core course serves as a building block for upper-level courses in all functional areas of the business school.

As an introductory course, the range of topics covered is very broad. The goal is not depth in a particular IS topic, but rather breadth across a range of IS related topics that reflect the use of information systems technology in business. Topics include but are not limited to: enterprise and functional systems; networks and telecommunications; databases and data enhanced decision-making; e-commerce and Internet technologies; business processes; and systems development and management. The overall learning objectives of the course include: