Introduction to Information Technology

This document provides an introduction to information technology and its application in modern business. It discusses the role of IT in Barclays, different types of networking technology, ethics and social issues, and the importance of internet and intranet in the organization. The document also explains the various stages of system development life cycle.

INTRODUCTION TO
INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................4
Purpose........................................................................................................................................4
Background.................................................................................................................................4
LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................................................4
Information technology and its role in retail business................................................................4
Different types of networking technology..................................................................................5
Ethics and social issues of using technology..............................................................................5
Importance of intranet and internet in business..........................................................................5
ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION...................................................................................................5
Role of information technology in Barclays...............................................................................5
Various types of information system used in Barclays...............................................................6
Ethics and social issues in Barclays............................................................................................8
Importance of internet and intranet in Barclays..........................................................................9
List and explain the different stages of system development life cycle....................................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
The term information technology is widely used in business and concerned in the field of
computer. It is an application of computers and its equipments which helps in storing, retrieving
and manipulating data (Long, 2018). Various industries are associated with IT such as hardware,
software, banks, hospitality, healthcare, e-commerce and many more. It include three categories
which is processing of techniques, methods of decision making and application of stats.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to understand the Information technology and its application
in the modern business. This study is going to focus on the identification of role of IT and its
success and failure within the organisation and also identify the ethical and social issues that are
concerned with running business. It is also analysed the difference between the various types of
networking technology and also discuss the importance of intranet and internet in the business.
This report also explain the various stages of system development cycle.
Background
This report is in the context of Barclays which is a British multinational bank and provide
various financial services, headquartered in London. Company is divided into four categories
such as personal banking, corporate banking, wealth management and investment management.
Barclays operates internally and externally in order to design and implement the solution which
helps in meeting the needs of their respective customers.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Information technology is an equipment which is used by businesses, institutions and
many other organisations in order to manage the various types of information. According to
Dave Bourgeois, IT is concerned with different components who work together in order to
gather, process, store and circulate information which helps in coordinating, controlling and
decision making within the organisation.
Information technology and its role in retail business
IT plays a crucial role in order to manage the complex organisational structure. Due to
increase in globalisation, the term sale and supply gets affected and to arrange them for the
optimum utilisation, it need to be managed (Baylis, 2018). IT is important in Barclays in order to

manage and control its data and information, helps in increasing the ability of company as it
helps in increasing the speed and flexibility, analysing the data of customers and many more.
Different types of networking technology
Networks are the process which helps in connecting the devices and also helps in
exchanging the information. These are known as the mode of connection between the devices
and computers. These are divided into various categories such as LAN, MAN, WAN and many
more which helps in connecting the devices from a distance (Lloyd, 2017). It refers to the small
handy devices at the place which spread across the entire globe and run with specific objective
and purpose.
Ethics and social issues of using technology
Ethical issues are arises in the technology in various areas such as in business, financial
services and many more. Ethics are concerned with the moral and ethical areas of technology in
society which provides a vision to the ethical dimensions of technological system. Moreover, in
organisation employers always want to use technology as because of this their work become easy
and they can easily verify information regarding their staff. It is helpful for HR department as it
helps in recruiting and providing training to employees.
Importance of intranet and internet in business
An intranet is a computer network which is provided by the organisation in order to
connect their people. Intranet is important as it helps in improving the productivity of employees,
save their time, helps in improving the communication and reduces the cost (Theis and Wong,
2017). Internet is the combination of various services which is used by various departments of an
organisation. It is important in doing the research better, makes communication easy, helps in
getting updated and many more.
ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
Role of information technology in Barclays
Information technology is used to store, retrieve and manipulate data as it helps in
creating information (Luftman, Lyytinen and Zvi, 2017). Collected information can be
summarised because of knowledge and experience which comes from the gathered data and its
done with the help of information technology. It is a technique which helps in providing the
appropriate information to the right person at correct time. Moreover, it is also helpful in

providing the solution to their problems which is concerned with IT and employees of Barclays
need to learn how to use these information in an appropriate manner. Information technology is
pervasive in nature as it is used in different organisations in various departments. It is a
combination and configuration of data which is used to make quick decisions.
Various types of information system used in Barclays
Management information system: It is the support system of organisation's operations
because it helps in gathering different kinds of information, analyse it and make report of it in
order to take decisions. The prime factor of it is that it helps in improving the decision making by
providing updated and accurate data including the organisational assets such as financial,
personnel, manufacturing, marketing, R&D and many more (Lugmayr and Grueblbauer, 2017).
The aim of MIS is to use the relevant information in order to increase the value and profitability
of business. MIS is beneficial in order to gain the competitive advantage, providing the overall
picture of an organisation, improves the efficiency of an organisation, helps in taking decision
and reduces the risk factor in order to execute their plans. In Barclays, MIS is used in order to
support the decisions of strategic managers in order to shape them which helps in getting the
desired outcome. Therefore, MIS helps in collecting and storing the data and make it accessible
to the managers of Barclays who want to analyse the data by going through the reports.
Decision support system: It is a computerised system which helps the managers in order
to take their decisions as it generates the different information which is related to the processing
of business such as transaction, automation system and many more. This system use the
summarised data and information which is identified by the research and development. This
system compile the relevant information from their past data or records, documents and personal
details in order to analyse and solving the problems which helps in taking appropriate decision.
In Barclays, DSS is useful in taking managerial decisions, operating activities and planning for
an organisation and also helpful in implementing changes rapidly (Hintz, Dencik and Wahl-
Jorgensen, 2017). Their aim is to structure the underspecified problems in order to face the upper
level managers and focuses on the features which make things easy for their workforce. It also
put emphasis on the flexibility and adaptability in order to regulate in the changing environment
and decision making approach for their workforce.
Types of network technologies used in Barclays

Networks are designed in order to perform various task in an organisation. It is a
transmission which is used to indicate the various specifications and implement it in the various
levels. Network is the process which helps in connecting the two or more devices in order to
exchange the information and it is the medium between the devices and computers (Plumb and
et. al., 2017). It consist group of computer system such as servers, devices and various resources.
Networking can be done either by using the cable or wireless media. These networks are depends
on the basis of size, complexity, security and geographical area. There are different types of
network technologies which are discussed as under:
Local Area Networking (LAN): It is a wired network based on the single site and used in
the offices, building and logistics organisations. It is used when any information, software and
hardware need to share among the organisation and it is worthy only for organisation not for the
external world. As per LAN, it include various software such as official documents, details of
employees and handbook and in hardware it include printer, modems, memory space etc. LAN is
useful in reducing the infrastructural cost of an organisation and it connect those devices which
are situated at short distance such as in offices, schools, hospitals and many more (Musti-Rao,
2017). It is connected to the central device which is known as Hub or Switch using a cable and
this system appropriately use the access point in order to transmit or receive data.
Metropolitan Area Network (MAN): It is the new in the networking typology which is
one who works for the different types of networks. This network is larger than the local area
network and covers the whole area of single city. The range of this network is 100 KM which
comprises the combination of various hardware and media. It is single network which connect
the various devices such as TV cable (Khan, Bankole and Alomari, 2017). This type of network
is used by the private company or public company. This network is efficient and provide fast
communication through the medium of high-speed carriers and provide good support to the large
network like greater accessibility to WAN. In order to use this network connection, more cables
are required to connect the devices from one place to another and difficult to protect the system
secure from the hackers.
Wide Area Network (WAN): It is a telecommunication network which comprises
network of networks. It connect devices which are across the country or building but it is
considered as the slowest data communication which is beneficial for those organisations who
connect the devices for long distances. It consider those networks which are connected by the

public networks such as telecommunication system and useful in order to connect the satellites.
WAN is useful in covering the large geographical area in order to connect the long distance
business, by using this messages can be sent very quickly and it includes pictures, sounds and
other related data. In this network, security is the main problem where many people have the
ability to use their information from each others computers.
In the context of Barclays, LAN is appropriate and relevant for it because it covers less
security issue and as a financial service provider company need to use more secured network
connection in order to protect the data of their respective customers. As LAN is useful in many
ways such as sharing the resources, software applications, provide easy and cheap
communication, provide security to data and keep it centralised.
Ethics and social issues in Barclays
Due to the excellent services of information technology, they made many business
organisations successful such as in online market such as flip-kart, amazon, eBay and many
social media websites like Facebook, Instagram and many more. Moreover, inappropriate
information can create various issues for the organisation and employees. Because of personal
information which is shared online, criminals get misuse of it such as get access of bank details
and its information which might lead the financial loss. These are discussed as under:
Ethical issues: Copyright infringement: Being copied and piracy is the huge problem with digital
products. There are many websites which copy the original content of company and make
it available for their competitors which helps them in gaining their competitive
advantage. It is biggest issue for organisation in terms of ethics because through this
company can face various issue (de Treville, Ketokivi and Singhal, 2017). Trademarks
and patents can get copied which is unauthorised and in order to protect them Barclays
need to register its trademark under the patent protection act. Because of this act, no one
can copy their trademark and they do so it will be punishable. Hacking: It is a term which is used in the context of security, privacy and viruses and
because of these the data of an organisation get theft or stole. Stolen data can become
threat for company and damage its ethical norms and discipline. Hacking is a term which
is used in the context of by-pass the security in order to control and gain the authority or
accessibility of other person's system. When the hacker gain the access of the system then

they can do anything with their data and information and misuse it. Therefore, in terms of
Barclays, they need to adopt proper security system in order to protect themselves from
hackers who can stole their private data and information by which their ethics
maintained.
Social issues: Social media: This factor can create the issues for company regarding its social media
accessibility and how it can impact the image of company. It majorly impacts through the
online market and from the reviews of customers as because of negative reviews and
feedback it can decrease their sales and revenues which impacts their ranking and ratings
on the online market (Orlova and Mokhova, 2017). In the context of Barclays, their
presence on the social media and the perspective of customers influences the reviews of
their customers. Moreover, it becomes the biggest threat as because of this their
information, plans and strategies got leak and might be useful for their competitors.
 Unauthorised access: It describes that someone get secret access of their system and it is
the combination of using someone's username and password. In the context of Barclays,
it is done by their employees and as it is a system function which is done through internal
people. Unauthorised assess is done because of weak security and privacy. Many
organisations use mobile services also in order to provide extra security to their system.
In Barclays, they use strong security system which provide them better protection in
order to protect their data.
Importance of internet and intranet in Barclays
Intranet: Easily share information: Intranet is used in organisation as it helps in connecting more
and more people. Intranet is a way by which employees can easily share information as in
this many people are connected at same time and express their emotions, likes and
dislikes and comments (Da Silva, Öchsner and Adams, 2018). In Barclays, their
employees share information with the purpose of sharing with all employees and it is
important as it save their time and improves the productivity of an organisation. Knowledge management: This factor helps in managing the information and its
knowledge about their employees and organisation. This factor is important for Barclays,
as it provides sustainability while managing the information of their employees and also

helps in improving their knowledge. Because of intranet, it becomes easier for the
employees of Barclays to analyse what they want and need by considering their
requirements.
Internet: Helps in online marketing: Internet is useful in conducting the online marketing or
promoting their products which is helpful because many organisations use it and get
succeed. It is helpful as promoting the products by which companies can provide or
convey information to their respective customers which is beneficial for them in order to
sustain their customer base (Chanson, Risius and Wortmann, 2018). In the context of
Barclays, it is useful in promoting their services on social media as it through this it can
achieve success in the competitive market.
 Developing the communication: Internet is helpful in developing communication as it
complete the whole process of communication by removing the various barriers from it.
Through internet, it becomes easy to build more and more communication with people
because it connect people across the world. In the context of Barclays, it is important as it
helps in sharing and providing the relevant information to many people.
List and explain the different stages of system development life cycle
System development life cycle is the series of five phases which helps in creating the
hardware system and software and also combine both of them in order to meet the expectations
of customers (Long, 2018). System is a set of components which helps in interacting with
people. It is a process which covers the planning, testing and deploying the information system.
It covers various stages which are discussed as under: Planning: It is the crucial stage which helps in creating the successful system which is
valuable for the regulation of an organisation. This stage covers defining the problems,
goals and objectives, resources and cost of strategies which need to be made in order to
survive in the market and also study the competence of various solutions in order to meet
the requirements of customers, suppliers, consultants and employees (Baylis, 2018)
(Lloyd, 2017). Analysis: This stage covers the involvement of information which includes the collection
and gathering of various facts and figures, recommending the improvements for the plan
which helps in providing the appropriate system. It includes the determination of

strategies, plans and objectives and analyse the various deviation in it and take corrective
action for it. Design: This phase comes after the better understanding of the various requirements,
components and security level which defines the various types of data. This design can be
done on the pen and paper in order to determine that how it look and function in detail. In
includes the layout of plan, business rules, process and other documentation. Implementation: This step come when the complete understanding is done for their
system and provide appropriate requirement and specifications. It is the construction
process which is done after the designing the system for the organisation (Theis and
Wong, 2017). It defines that it is ready to install in the premises of customer and ready to
launch as per the requirement of customer. For this, system need to get familiar with it
and analyse the complexity of the system.
 Maintenance: It is the last stage which analyse the various obstacles of the system in
order to meet the requirement. This step include providing the recent update for the
specific components and make sure that it meet the appropriate standards and technology
which helps in facing the current security threats.
CONCLUSION
From the above discussion, it is summarised that information technology is a process
which is useful in organisations in order to operate them and get succeed. Its applications are
used as it helps in storing, retrieving and manipulating the data which can improve the
productivity of an organisation and also save its efforts, time and cost. In the above discussion, it
is identified that IT plays a very important role for the success and failure of organisation and it
is analysed that company face various ethical and social issues in order to pertain the running
business. Moreover, different types of network technologies are discussed and to develop the
proper system, SDLC is used which defines the various stages for the systematic development.

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