Organizations use MIS (Management Information Systems) to make executive decisions in all spheres and phases of the business. Using a management information system, the organization is able to procure, analyze and document facts and figures on all of its strategic business functions. Once an analysis is done, the company top management then bases its decisions on the reports generated by an MIS. Whenever there are tweaks in the functioning, the management is able to take corrective action immediately.

There are several MIS tools. An organization could use one of them in isolation or a number of them simultaneously at a given point of time.

Transaction Processing Systems (TPS)

The transaction processing system is the most basic and elementary form of MIS. Using this, the organization is able to record and document all of its recurring and routine business transactions. These are transactions such as orders of raw materials, inventories, customer transactions and sales.

Companies record all of their transactions using this mechanism. With this recording, they are able to observe trends in the transactions. For example, if an organization finds that there are more customer orders in some months, it can infer that there is more demand during those months. The company is then able to take steps to handle that demand by employing and deploying more manpower and resources during those months.

Operation Information System (OIS)

Operations Information Systems are tools used to plan and schedule production and assembly functions. Using these tools, a manager is able to decide what levels of inventory and raw materials to hold, and how to sequence production functions. What component is to be produced after which and how the final product will be assembled is the essence of operations information management. The operations manager also oversees the deployment of manpower for production purposes.

With effective processes in place, the company never faces a situation of downtimes or running out of stock.

Decision Support Systems (DSS)

DSS (decision support systems) are used by top management for managerial decision-making. This tool extensively makes use of computers, computing tools, mathematical and scientific models for its analysis.

With the DSS, the company can analyze, scrutinize and evaluate all the methods it could deploy for use in departments such as production, sales, marketing and finance. The company is then able to choose the option that saves the most on costs, time, and both human and material efforts while reaping the maximum benefits. The management then utilizes that method.