ABSTRACT

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1. 1. Background of the Study

With storage prices falling and capacity ever increasing, the problem of how or where to store files and documents have pretty much been solved for normal users. Indeed, with the increasing number of files a user stores, the main problem now is the efficient and effective management of files the user has. By "management", this refers to a system which enables easy access, organization and retrieval of files the user keeps, and the ability to perform certain functionalities automatically (Marvish, 2013).

Today, we are in the era of modern science and technology with almost everything being computerized.  It is expedient to automate the process of our office records and files to alleviate for the numerous challenges associated with the manual processes. The Nigerian Army Institute of Technology and Environmental Studies Consultancy Directorate (NAITES Consult) is a directorate under the office of the institution Rector, with the mandate of harnessing available manpower, machines and money, as well as other resources to internally generally funds for the institution through commercial ventures.

 Management information system is an organized approach to the study of the information needs of an organization’s management at every level in making operational, tactical and strategic decisions. Its objective is to design and implement procedures, processes and routines that provide suitably detailed reports in an accurate, consistent and timely manner. Management information system (MIS) is defined as a system or process to produce the information necessary to manage an organization effectively (Comptroller’s handbook, 1999).

Information management has been defined as the organization-wide capability of creating, maintaining, retrieving and making immediately available the right information, in the right place, at the right time, in hands of the right people, at the

lowest cost, in the best media, for use in decision making (Langemo, 2008). In the

same vein, Best (2012) defines information management as the economic, efficient

and effective co-ordination of the production, control, storage and retrieval and dissemination of information from external and internal sources, in order to improve the performance of the organization. This definition is narrow in perspective in that it does not take care of managing the characteristics of information itself (content, ownership, representation and equality), irrespective of the storage medium, equipment that processes it and the system that employs it.

 Waston et al. (2002) stated that the information in MIS describes the firm or one of its major systems in terms of what has happened in the past, what is happening now and what is likely to happen in the future. The information is made available in form of periodic reports, special reports and output of mathematical simulation. All managers use the information output as they make decisions to solve the firm’s problem (Raymond, 2000). In summary, therefore, the key issue involved in information management is managing information in an organization using modern information technologies.

In the world of software development there lots of improvement in the area of Architectural design and principles. The philosophies and implementation details are changing as the people guiding the development of the application. In this fantastic and yet sometimes complex world of software development there are some tried and true architecture patterns  and software development guidelines employed by most architects. Also your design must have an ability to turn towards innovation instead of lending itself to common practices. Web services are one such area where architects must lean on their creative side and hope that their solutions are still successful. In this report we will explain an exciting voyage down the road of Web services application. From requirements to use cases, to database design, to component frameworks, to user interfaces, we will cover each and every aspect of system design required to build an application with collaborative Web services (Mubarak, 2016).

1.2     Statement of the Problem

The existing method of record keeping in Nigerian Army Institute of Technology and Environmental Studies Consultancy Directorate (NAITES Consult) has been a manual one, that is to say, the directorates records are in hard copy format which is prone to wear and tear and eventually to the total destruction of such records in cases of disaster such as fire outbreak or flood.

Furthermore the search for specific records in times of its pertinent need is sometimes time consuming, as a lot of files have to be searched out before it is been found. Thus the need for an online management system for the Nigerian Army Institute of Technology and Environmental Studies Consultancy Directorate (NAITES Consult).

1.3     Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of this research work is to design and implement an online management software for the Nigerian Army Institute of Technology and Environmental Studies Consultancy Directorate (NAITES Consult) that will be used manage the information base of the directorate.

The objectives include the following;

i. To review related literatures pointing to an online management systems.

ii. To design a system that store records of students under the directorate certificate giving courses.

iii. To design a system were the directorate can manage her staff and course student records efficiently.

iv. To design a system that maintains data integrity and security.

1.4     Significance of the Study

This study will serve as an agent against damage or loss of valuable information and serve to help the directorate manage her records efficiently.

The software is relevant in the following ways:

i.   The designed software will aid in keeping the directorate certificate course registration records.

ii.  The designed software will be useful in managing the directorate database efficiently.

iii. The designed software will be useful in terms of data security, as records can only be accessed by the directorate staff via their login details.

1.5     Scope of the Study

This research work covers the design and implementation of online management system for the Nigerian Army Institute of Technology and Environmental Studies Consultancy Directorate (NAITES Consult).

1.6     Definition of Terms

Internet: Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to serve billions of users worldwide. It is also known as the network of networks.

Consultancy: The providing of expert knowledge to a third party for a fee. Consulting is most often used when a company needs an outside, expert opinion regarding a business decision.

Management: management is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a not-for-profit organization, or government body.

NAITES Consult: A profit oriented arm (Directorate) of the Nigerian Army Institute of Technology and Environmental Studies.

NAITES: Nigerian Army Institute of Technology and Environmental Studies

Online: controlled by or connected to a computer. (of an activity or service) available on or performed using the Internet or other computer network.

Software: These are set of instructions that are designed to solve a specific problem. Software is made up of data and instructions. There are two categories of software; System software and Application software.

System: A system is a set of detailed methods, procedures and routines created to carry out a specific activity, perform a duty, or solve a problem

Web: The Web is basically a system of Internet servers that support specially formatted documents.