The Systems Life

Cycle
TWITTER.COM/MOSHIKUR
Systems Analysis

 The process of
investigation of a system’s
operation with a view to
changing it to new
requirements or improving
its current working.
NEED FOR SYSTEMS ANALYSIS

Systems analysis will identify

1. outputs and processing needed.
2. data required to provide this processing and
output.
3. role of people in the process.
4. security aspects to ensure the efficient
continuation of the business.
5. costs of providing the system.
 THE ROLE OF THE SYSTEMS ANALYST

 Liaison with senior management and  Begin the implementation by

the computer manager on the need convening a meeting of the new
for new/improved systems. system designers.

 Investigate aspects of the business  Order Hardware and any

and produce a Feasibility Report structural/electrical wiring changes
needed to buildings.
 Consult with the users who are using
 Supervise testing of new programs. User
the current system.
training with programs.
 Design all aspects of a new system.
 Supervise completion of
Report on developments to the documentation.
board and identify any likely
changes needed/problems  Acceptance tests. Changeover. Hand-
discovered as a result of over
investigations. Produce a systems  Monitoring of existing systems. Regular
specification. reviews to see if changes are needed.
 Supervise maintenance and inclusion
of new requirements.
 INVOLVEMENT OF OTHER STAFF

1. Departmental managers & board. Initiate new systems.

2. Departmental managers. Brief systems analyst on departmental needs, identify
key processes, documents and key workers.
3. Users. Assist manager and systems analyst in providing information about
current systems . Identify particular individual needs of a new system.
Undertake training from initial outlines of the new system to specific training
on using it.
4. IT Technical staff. Installing and testing new equipment.
5. Development Programmers. Initial briefing about the whole new system, one-
to-one briefing about individuals own designated tasks. Keep systems analyst
updated on progress and problems. Assist with testing of the new system.
Assist with training users. Provide documentation.
6. Maintenance Programmer(s). Become familiar with all programs including one
not written by the programmer. Perform changes as required as a priority.
“
Collecting Information

FIRSRT STAGE
”
There are four methods of doing this:
  The point of observation is
to see who does what in an
organisation and what
information they do it with.
1 Observation
By simply watching people
The aim of observation working it is also fairly
is to find out what straightforward to watch
actually happens, not how data flow around a
what the workers think system. Observers have to
observers expect to be careful of the
see. Hawthorne effect. This is
where workers modify their
behaviour because they
know they are being
watched.
Observation

Advantages Disadvantages
 Data gathered can be very  People may perform
reliable differently when being
observed
 Can see exactly what is  Work observed may not be
being done in complex representative of normal
tasks conditions
 Relatively inexpensive  Timing can be inconvenient
compared with other
techniques  Interruptions
 Some tasks not always
 Can do work performed the same way
measurements
 May observe wrong way of
doing things
Observation Guidelines

 Determine the who, what, where, when, why, and how

of the observation.
 Obtain permission from appropriate supervisors.
 Inform those who will be observed of the purpose of
the observation.
 Keep a low profile.
 Take notes.
 Review observation notes with appropriate individuals.
 Don't interrupt the individuals at work.
 Don't focus heavily on trivial activities.
 Don't make assumptions.
2 Examination of
documents  All documents which are
used within a system need
to be examined. These will
be eventually duplicated
or replaced with
alternative versions or
even discarded in the
new system.
The types of document which
need to be examined are:

 Data capture forms

 System documentation
 Business reports
 Invoices

 Bills

 Letters etc.
 Free-format questionnaire – a
questionnaire designed to
offer the respondent
greater latitude in the
answer. A question is
3 Questionnaires asked, and the respondent
records the answer in the
The use of questionnaires is a space provided after the
very popular method of fact question.
finding. A great deal of time
is spent on preparing
questionnaires in order that
the right type of question is Fixed-format questionnaire – a
asked in order that the most questionnaire containing
relevant information is questions that require
gathered. selecting an answer from
predefined available
responses.
Questionnaires

Advantages Disadvantages
 Often can be answered  Return rate is often low
quickly
 No guarantee that an
 People can complete at individual will answer all
their convenience questions
 Relatively inexpensive way  No opportunity to reword or
to gather data from a large explain misunderstood
number questions
 Allow for anonymity  Cannot observe body
language
 Responses can be
tabulated quickly  Difficult to prepare
 Types of Fixed-Format
Questions
• Multiple-choice questions
• Rating questions
• Ranking questions

Rank the following transactions according to the amount of

time you spend processing them.
___ % new customer orders
___ % order cancellations The implementation of quality discounts
___ % order modifications would cause an increase in customer
___ % payments orders.
___ Strongly agree
___ Agree Is the current accounts
___ No opinion receivable report that you
___ Disagree receive useful?
___ Strongly disagree ___ Yes
Developing a Questionnaire

1. Determine what facts and opinions must be

collected and from whom you should get them.
2. Based on the facts and opinions sought, determine
whether free- or fixed-format questions will
produce the best answers.
3. Write the questions.
4. Test the questions on a small sample of
respondents.
5. Duplicate and distribute the questionnaire.
  Objective:
 Find facts
 Verify facts
 Clarify facts
4 Interviews  Generate enthusiasm
An interview can take  Get the end-user involved
more time to organise  Identify requirements
and it is extremely
difficult to repeat so it  Solicit ideas and opinions
is vital that the
questions asked are The personal interview is generally
the right ones. recognized as the most important and
most often used fact-finding technique.
Types of Interviews and
Questions

Unstructured interview –conducted with only a general

goal or subject in mind and with few, if any, specific
questions. The interviewer counts on the interviewee
to provide a framework and direct the
conversation.
Structured interview –interviewer has a specific set of
questions to ask of the interviewee.
Open-ended question – question that allows the
interviewee to respond in any way.
Closed-ended question – a question that restricts
answers to either specific choices or short, direct
responses.
Interviews

Advantages Disadvantages
 Give analyst opportunity  Time-consuming
to motivate interviewee  Success highly
to respond freely and dependent on analyst's
openly human relations skills
 Allow analyst to probe
 May be impractical due
for more feedback
to location of
 Permit analyst to adapt interviewees
or reword questions for
each individual
 Can observe nonverbal
communication
Sample Interview Guide
Sample Interview Guide (concluded)
A Fact-Finding Strategy

1. Learn from existing documents, forms, reports, and

files.
2. If appropriate, observe the system in action.
3. Given all the facts that already collected, design and
distribute questionnaires to clear up things that aren’t
fully understood.
4. Conduct interviews (or group work sessions).
5. (Optional). Build discovery prototypes for any
functional requirements that are not understood or for
requirements that need to be validated.
6. Follow up to verify facts.