practice will benefit the school in the long term by reducing the likelihood of inappropriate projects being implemented.
A specific planning framework should include the following features:
A. Master IS Plan. A master IS plan involves identification of the school’s strategic issues and the development of the
planning infrastructure for the future. The master plan is based on an examination of Clarion—Milwaukee’s formal
mission statement with respect to current strategic emphases. Workshops should be held for staff with the goals of
educating them as to the strategic process of IS planning and providing an understanding of broad IS management
objectives. All employees at Clarion—Milwaukee should be aware of the necessity to manage all information—including
text documents, voice messages, diagrams, and statistics—as valuable corporate assets. Staff should understand that
computers, software, written documents, and telephones are not “theirs.” Decisions and procedures regarding these
assets will be based on the treatment of these elements as “Clarion—Milwaukee Division” resources addressed within
the master plan. Staff should also be instructed to identify “critical success factors” vital for accomplishing Clarion—
Milwaukee’s objectives. This process will link specific task activities to the master IS plan.
B. Top Management Involvement. Primary attention should be given to techniques that facilitate top management
involvement and support. The superintendent, along with the new IS manager, should play a critical role in long-range IS plan-
ning. All future IS planning decisions should also include substantial input from members of the administrative council.
C. Systems Life Cycle Methodology. A “systems life cycle” methodology is recommended for use on each specific appli-
cation system. It is also useful for establishing requirements and project timetables. When evaluating new application
systems, consideration should be given to the life-cycle stage of each component. Avoid decisions that lead to purchase
of an application just prior to the release of a new option. A formal system should be developed that facilitates identifica-
tion of a software product’s evolutionary position with respect to Clarion—Milwaukee’s current technology. Only after
application systems are characterized within the spectrum of “cutting edge” to “nearing obsolescence” and compared to
the Clarion—Milwaukee Division’s ability to manage new technology, should tactical decisions be made.
D. Rolling Timetable. The master IS plan should include a rolling timetable in order to coordinate various project efforts
and make effective IS investment decisions.- Incorporate IS requirements in proposed long-range planning objectives. Long-range planning (LRP) objectives must
include information regarding a standard set of topics relevant to information systems. Each LRP objective should address its
potential impact on Clarion—Milwaukee’s information system and specifically identify any additional requirements. It is
because of the highly integrated nature of IS planning and other long-range planning that the new IS manager will have to work
closely with Clarion—Milwaukee’s controller. - Establish IS objectives within Clarion—Milwaukee Division’s five-year plan. As Clarion—Milwaukee’s IS planning
requirements become more complex, it will be imperative to continually seek out new ways to make strategic decisions. For
this reason, Clarion—Milwaukee should include ongoing evaluation of computer-based methodologies, which would increase
planning efficiency and integrity, as part of the long-range planning process. The role of IS management must be evaluated and
redefined in light of technological changes.
EXHIBIT 5 Continued
also mentioned that a new System i Model 525 would be
four to five times faster than Clarion’s AS/400 and could
handle a full complement of eight disk drives (560 giga-
bytes) for all the online data storage the school could ever
need. The consultant found that pricing for software is
now user-based so the operating system and user software
licenses would need to be relicensed for the conversion to
a System i. The sales representative’s estimate for a
conversion to a System i at Clarion—Milwaukee would be
between $100,000 and $130,000, including project man-
agement and professional services to support the
conversion. The consultant mentioned that the IBM sales-
person would be happy to visit with Young as soon as he
was ready to make his recommendations to the board.
Young expressed his appreciation to the lead LTM
consultant for this information.
Decision Time
It was 4:35 P.M. on June 6, 2006—one week before his pres-
entation. Knowing he would have to work with his IS Task
Force to finalize the report, Young poured himself a cup of
coffee and flipped open the consultants’ findings, which he
had received earlier that day (the report’s text is included as
Exhibit 5). He read LTM’s report with the vigor of a gradu-
ate student, hoping the findings would be a panacea for
Clarion— Milwaukee’s information systems problems.
Young had intended to make LTM’s report the basis
of his own report to the Board of Directors. Now that he
had read it, he thought it included some good ideas and
suggestions, but it seemed lacking as a full IS plan.
As Young was reviewing the plan, Jean Baker
brought an envelope into his office. She said “a nice youngCase Study IV-1 • The Clarion School for Boys, Inc.—Milwaukee Division 609