Systems Analysis & Design

7th Edition

Chapter 2
Phase Description
 Systems planning is the first of five
phases in the systems development life
cycle (SDLC)
 In this phase, you will learn how IT
projects get started and how a systems
analyst evaluates a proposed project
and determines its feasibility

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Chapter Objectives
 Explain the concept of a business case
and how a business case affects an IT
project
 Describe the strategic planning process
and why it is important to the IT team
 Explain the purpose of a mission
statement

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Chapter Objectives
 Describe the SDLC, and explain how it
serves as a framework for systems
development and business modeling
 Describe risks and risk management
features
 List the reasons for information systems
projects and the factors that affect such
projects

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Chapter Objectives
 Explain the initial review of systems
requests and the role of the systems
review committee
 Define operational feasibility, technical
feasibility, economic feasibility, and
schedule feasibility
 Describe the steps in a preliminary
investigation and the end product of an
investigation

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Introduction
 The term business case refers to the
reasons, or justification, for a proposal
 Systems development typically starts
with a systems request, followed by a
preliminary investigation, which
includes a feasibility study

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Strategic Planning – A Framework for
IT Systems Development
 Strategic planning is the process of
identifying long-term organizational
goals, strategies, and resources
 Strategic Planning Overview
– SWOT analysis

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Strategic Planning – A Framework for
IT Systems Development
 From Strategic Plans to Business
Results
– Mission statement
– Stakeholders
– Goals
– Objectives

8
Strategic Planning – A Framework for
IT Systems Development
 A Business Example
– Critical success factors
– Critical business issues
– Case for action

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Strategic Planning – A Framework for
IT Systems Development
 The Role of the IT Department in Project
Evaluation
– Management leadership and information
technology are linked closely, and remarkable
changes have occurred in both areas
– Today, systems development is much more team
oriented
– Although team-oriented development is the
norm, some companies see the role of the IT
department as a gatekeeper

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Strategic Planning – A Framework for
IT Systems Development
 The Future
– If you could look into the future, here is what
you might see: New industries, products, and
services emerging from amazing advances in
information technology, customers who expect
world-class IT support, a surge in Internet-
based commerce, and a global business
environment that is dynamic and incredibly
challenging

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What Is a Business Case?
 Should be comprehensive, yet easy to
understand
 Should describe the project clearly,
provide the justification to proceed, and
estimate the project’s financial impact

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Information Systems Projects
 Main Reasons for Systems Projects
– Systems request
– Improved service
– Support for new products and services
– Better performance
– More information

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Information Systems Projects
 Main Reasons for Systems Projects
– Stronger controls
• Encryption and biometric devices
– Reduced cost
 Factors that Affect Systems Projects
– Internal and external factors affect every
business decision that a company makes, and
IT systems projects are no exception

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Information Systems Projects
 Internal Factors
– Strategic plan
– Top managers
– User requests
– Information technology department
– Existing systems and data

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Information Systems Projects
 External Factors
– Technology
• Electronic
product code
(EPC)
– Suppliers
• Just-in-time
(JIT)

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Information Systems Projects
 External Factors
– Customers
• Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
• Electronic proof of delivery (EPOD)
– Competitors
– The economy
– Government

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Information Systems Projects
 Project Management Tools
– All IT projects, large and small, must be
managed and controlled
– Project management begins with a systems
request, and continues until the project is
completed or terminated
 Risk Management
– Every IT project involves risks that system
analysts and IT project managers must address
– Risk management

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Evaluation of Systems Requests
 Systems review committee
 Computer resources committee
 Systems Requests Forms

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Evaluation of Systems Requests
 Systems Review Committees
– Most large companies use a systems review
committee to evaluate systems requests
– Many smaller companies rely on one person to
evaluate system requests instead of a
committee
– The goal is to evaluate the requests and set
priorities

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Overview of Feasibility
 A systems request must pass several
tests, called a feasibility study, to see
whether it is worthwhile to proceed
further

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Overview of Feasibility
 Technical Feasibility
– Technical feasibility refers to technical
resources needed to develop, purchase, install,
or operate the system
 Economic Feasibility
– Total cost of ownership (TCO)
– Tangible benefits
– Intangible benefits
 Schedule Feasibility

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Evaluating Feasibility
 The first step in evaluating feasibility is
to identify and weed out systems
requests that are not feasible
 Even if the request is feasible, it might
not be necessary
 Feasibility analysis is an ongoing task
that must be performed throughout the
systems development process

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Setting Priorities
 Factors that Affect Priority
– Will the proposed system reduce costs?
Where? When? How? How much?
– Will the system increase revenue for the
company? Where? When? How? How much?

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Setting Priorities
 Factors that Affect Priority
– Will the systems project result in more
information or produce better results? How?
Are the results measurable?
– Will the system serve customers better?
– Will the system serve the organization better?

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Setting Priorities
 Factors that Affect Priority
– Can the project be implemented in a
reasonable time period? How long will the
results last?
– Are the necessary financial, human, and
technical resources available?
– Whenever possible, the analyst should
evaluate a proposed project based on tangible
costs and benefits that represent actual (or
approximate) dollar values

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Setting Priorities
 Discretionary and Nondiscretionary
Projects
– Projects where management has a choice in
implementing them are called discretionary
projects
– Projects where no choice exists are called
nondiscretionary projects

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Preliminary investigation
 Interaction with Managers and Users

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Planning the Preliminary Investigation
– During a preliminary investigation, a
systems analyst typically follows a series
of steps
– The exact procedure depends on the
nature of the request, the size of the
project, and the degree of urgency

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 1: Understand the Problem or
Opportunity
– A popular technique for investigating causes
and effects is called a fishbone diagram, or
Ishikawa diagram
– Pareto chart

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 2: Define the Project Scope and
Constraints
– Project scope
– Project creep
– Constraint
– Present versus future

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 2: Define the Project Scope and
Constraints
– Present versus future
– Internal versus external
– Mandatory versus desirable
– Regardless of the type, all constraints should
be identified as early as possible to avoid future
problems and surprises

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 3: Perform
Fact-Finding
– Fact-finding involves
various techniques
– Fact-finding might
consume several
hours, days, or weeks
– Analyze Organization
Charts

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 3: Perform Fact-Finding
– Conduct interviews
• Determine the people to interview
• Establish objectives for the interview
• Develop interview questions
• Prepare for the interview
• Conduct the interview
• Document the interview
• Evaluate the interview

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 3: Perform Fact-Finding
– Review documentation
– Observe operations
– Conduct a user survey
 Step 4: Evaluate Feasibility
– Evaluate the project’s operational,
technical, economic, and schedule
feasibility

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 5: Estimate Project Development
Time and Cost
– What information must you obtain, and how will
you gather and analyze the information?
– What sources of information will you use, and
what difficulties will you encounter in obtaining
information?

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 5: Estimate Project Development
Time and Cost
– Will you conduct interviews? How many people
will you interview, and how much time will you
need to meet with the people and summarize
their responses?
– Will you conduct a survey? Who will be
involved? How much time will it take people to
complete it? How much time will it take to
prepare it and tabulate the results?

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 5: Estimate Project Development
Time and Cost
– How much will it cost to analyze the information
gathered and to prepare a report with findings
and recommendations?
– You should provide an estimate for the overall
project, so managers can understand the full
cost impact and timetable

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 6: Present Results and
Recommendations to Management
– The final task in the preliminary investigation is
to prepare a report to management
– The format of the preliminary investigation
report varies from one company to another

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Preliminary Investigation Overview
 Step 6: Present Results and
Recommendations to Management
• Introduction
• Systems request summary
• Findings
• Recommendations
• Project Roles
• Time & cost estimates
• Expected benefits
• Appendix
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Chapter Summary
 Systems planning is the first phase of
the systems development life cycle
 Effective information systems help an
organization support its business
process, carry out its mission, and
serve its stakeholders

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Chapter Summary
 Strategic planning allows a company to
examine its purpose, vision, and values
and develops a mission statement,
which leads to goals, objectives, day-to-
day operations, and business results
that affect company stakeholders
 Systems projects are initiated to
improve performance, provide more
information, reduce costs, strengthen
controls, or provide better service
42
Chapter Summary
 Various internal and external factors affect
systems projects
 During the preliminary investigation, the
analyst evaluates the systems request and
determines whether the project is from an
operation, technical, economic, and
schedule standpoint

43
Chapter Summary
 Analysts evaluate systems requests on
the basis of their expected costs and
benefits, both tangible and intangible
 The steps in the preliminary investigation
are to understand the problem or
opportunity; define the project scope and
constraints; perform fact-finding; estimate
the project’s benefits; estimate project
development time and cost; and present
results and recommendations to
management
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Chapter Summary
 The report must include an estimate of
time, staffing requirements, costs,
benefits, and expected results for the
next phase of the SDLC

 Chapter 2 complete

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