Information Systems Management | Report

Running head: INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT
INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT
Name of the Student
Name of the university
Author note

1INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT
Introduction
Information systems form a vital part of any organization as it is medium through
which data can be collected, stored and processed. The business firms are dependent on the
information systems so that they can carry out various operations as well as manage the same.
Information systems in an organization act as a link in between the customers and the
suppliers and the whole market as well (Laudon and Laudon 2016). These systems aid the
internal departments of a company to function properly. In this paper, the role of information
systems and IT department of a firm will be discussed. The interview of Marcus East, the
CIO of National Geographic has been considered for this purpose. The themes and the views
of the CIO to adopt new technology will be discussed as well. The IT history of National
Geographic prior to this interview will be discussed as well.
Themes and views of the interview
The main theme of the interview lies on the fact that National Geography wants to
bring in improvisations in its technology by incorporating open source along with serverless
approaches so that its various digital offerings can be enhanced. Marcus East was hired by the
company in the year 2017 to the position of CIO so that he could support the company in
accomplishing its dream to bring in the modernizations in its operations that it has planned
for. The CIO was of the opinion that customers are waiting for more opportunities for
becoming a part of the National Geography community rather than just looking at pictures or
reading editorial. Thus to meet its customers demands the company took an initiative to
implement a programme that included bringing in changes in technology
(ComputerWeekly.com, 2020). The changes to be brought focused on three main aspects
such as developing a new underlying platform; modifying the digital experience at the same
time developing community products allowing customers to explore their areas of interest.

2INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT
The theme revolves around bringing in improvisation in the information technology by
inculcating new technologies in the various operations of the organization. The CIO is of the
opinion that the customers should be provided with high-quality experience.
IT history of company prior to the interview
The company wants to go serverless and embrace open source. Thus it is clear that the
organization has not adopted this yet. The company makes use of information technology
tools so that it can give its customers a high quality experience. It makes use of the
geographic information system that helps in capturing, checking, displaying as well as storing
various data that are related to different positions on the Earth surface. Geographic
information system forms an important part of the spatial data infrastructure and is defined by
the White House as “the technology, policies, standards, human resources and related
activities necessary to acquire, process, distribute, use, maintain and preserve spatial data”
(Abousaeidi, Fauzi and Muhamad 2016). National Geography can make use of different
information that includes locations which is very much required in case of capturing data
about different things and animals. Deep Ocean Dropcam is another information technology
tool that is used by National Geography. It is a low-cost and low-logistic research tool that is
made use of to probe the deep oceans so that the customers can be provided with important
data. These cameras help the company to provide users with high quality images of the deep
sea floor. The chief executive is passionate about bringing in innovations in the
organizational operations and National Geography has always sought to include new
technology and upgrade its operations. Back in the year 1900 when the company introduces
photographs in its magazine it was thought to be as a very big innovation by the other media
companies but gradually this has become a very common thing. This time as well, National
Geography wants to go serverless and embrace open source to set an example of innovation
in its operations. The company makes use of project management application that helps in