ABSTRACT
Functional information systems were a step back from paper and pencil for sharing information. Sales managers can read paper production schedules; production planners can read paper sales forecasts. Large organizations are structured into functional parts. Each is responsible for a set of related activities, such as sales or accounting. Large organizations have local area networks in most of their locations, linked through wiring within buildings and via the Internet beyond them. Carlo Nizam of Airbus is generally credited with coining the term “Intranet of Things” for an intranet that connects non-human devices. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software connects parts of an organization via a shared database. That database reflects all of the organization’s operations. ERP software depends on the key enabling technologies for modern information systems: shared databases and networks. Its database is the focus of organizational coordination. An organization looking at ERP packages typically evaluates each module separately.
