Abstract:

Management information systems (MIS) education is a vital part of any business education program, and the growing importance of MIS and information technology (IT) sector raises significant challenges in developing and upgrading MIS competencies. In these competencies, the ones required for information systems analysts are probably the most important, considering the quality and vitality of information systems created as a result of analysts‘ work. The changing technology and systems landscape forces to constantly reevaluate the existing study programs in the MIS field to avoid obsolete study content. At the same time, we may note a constant search for long-term values that provide solid foundations for future study activities.

The IS development experience in the last few decades indicates that alongside the required proficiency in formal IS analysis methods, specific “soft” analytical skills are required, encompassing systemic thinking, consistent argumentation, emphatic communication, creativity, clarity of ideas and others. Usually such skills get the secondary role in the education of IS analysts, and are acquired in the process of real working experience. In such case, IS analysts demonstrate required efficiency only after 2-3 years of practical work, resulting in lost value and raising an issue of the need to strengthen the program curriculum accordingly. This raises several important questions: what soft competencies are the most important for IS analysts; how their importance is justified; and what are the most prospective ways of developing them. To our belief, just a definition of a set of required “soft” skills would not be sufficient, as it would add little to the needs of IS analysts to see the big picture. A comprehensive approach is required, aligning the required soft skills along the most important managerial dimensions like holistic approach to a business entity, business agility and vitality, sustainable development and other. Consequently, the goal of this paper may be defined as a definition of an encompassing set of „soft“ skills specific for IS analysts, and selection of the most appropriate methods for their efficient development in university study programs.

Keywords:

Management information systems education, systems analysts, “soft” skills.