Understanding the Problem

The primary aim of this first stage of the SDLC is to determine the purpose and requirements of a
new system. It is not until the requirements have been established that possible solution can be
considered. The Requirements Report is therefore the essential deliverable produced by this stage. A
Requirements Report defines the precise nature of the problem to be solved. This stage determines
what needs to be achieved to make the system a success. The new system must achieve all the
requirements if it is to meet the identified purpose.
To determine the need and to understand the existing system interviews and surveys are performed
to enhance and improve an existing system.
Interviews are performed either in person or over the phone. Interviews can be formal with
prepared questions designed to obtain specific information, informal where the interviewee leads
the discussion according to their needs or a combination of both.
Often the initial idea to consider a new system occurs because of problems or inadequacies with an
existing system. The general nature of these issues is first expressed during an initial informal
interview with management. Users and management often assume new systems will include all the
functionality present within their existing system.
Surveys are paper or electronic questionnaires that are usually prepared in advance. The responses
can only hope to gather information about issues the analyst has already anticipated. Surveys are
often distributed to a large number of people and the results are summarised using a spreadsheet or
another analysis tool.
To determine the purpose and requirements of the new system, information gathered from
interviews and surveys allow the analyst to formulate a list of needs. The final list of needs is used to
create a statement identifying who the information system is for and what it must achieve. This
statement is the purpose of the information system. The needs are refined to create a list of
achievable requirements. If a system satisfies all its requirements then all the identified needs will be
met and the systems purpose will be achieved.
It is necessary to verify that all requirements have been met if we are to accurately evaluate the
success of the project.


Planning

In this second stage of the system development cycle, the aim is to determine possible solution
options and then make a decision on which option, if any, should be designed and implemented.
Feasibility studies are undertaken to make such decisions. Once a proposed solution has been
chosen then the Requirements Report can be updated to reflect the detail of the chosen solution.
Finally plans with regard to how the project will be managed can be created.
For smaller systems developed by individuals or for individuals, the process of determining possible
solution options is often a relatively simple task.
For larger systems developed by teams and for larger organisations determining possible solution
options is more complex and time consuming. Often proposed solution are sought from a number of
outside IT companies. Each proposal must detail how each of the requirements will the achieved.
This includes details of the required participants, data and information, information technology and
information processes.
The ability of each possible solution to meet all the requirements must be assess fairly and this is
where the Requirements Report play a major role in this regard. Without a common and complete
set of requirements it would be impossible to make a fair comparison between different solution
options. The ultimate aim is to determine the feasibility of each possible solution and then
recommend the most suitable solution.
Once a particular solution has been selected additions and upgrades to the Requirements Report can
be made to include more specific detail.
Project management aims to ensure the system development lifecycle results in a system that
achieves its purpose on time and within budget. It is the process of balancing the allocation of time
and money so that development tasks achieve the requirements effectively and efficiently. During
the planning stage it is critical to plan how the project will be managed. Without a plan, time and
budget overruns are likely and furthermore the problems leading to such overruns are difficult to
detect until it is too late. Lack of planning is a major reason for project failure, indeed poor planning
can lead to projects being abandoned altogether.
Gantt chart are a good way to manage of developing and monitoring the completion of tasks.

Designing

The third stage of the system development life cycle is where the actual solution is designed and
build. This includes describing the information processes and specifying the system resources
required to perform these processes. A diagram can be used to outline all the systems components.
The resources used by the new information system includes the participants, data/information and
information technology.
The design process commences by describing the detail of the systems information processes.
System models are created and during the system modelling process, the data and information used
and produced by the system is determined and clearly defined using a data dictionary. Once the
information processing and data/information is understood the particular detail of the information
technology that will perform the processes can be determined. Depending on the individual system,
it may be necessary to have new software developed, existing software modified or specific
hardware components assembled. It is essential that the needs and concerns of all people affected
by the final operational system remain central to the design process.
The vital link between all the systems resources is the information processes. Describing the detail
of such processes is critical to all aspects of the design. As a consequence detailed models of the
solution should be produced.
Context diagrams represent the entire new system as a single process. Context diagrams indicate
where the new system interfaces with its environment. They define the data and information that
passes through the boundary and in which direction it travels. The data entering the system from all
its sources must be sufficient to create all the information leaving the system to its sinks.
The development of dataflow diagrams is a critical step in the design of the solution. The data flow
diagrams specify the data entering each information process and the processed data or information
leaving each information process. The designer must consider the consequences of their design for
the hardware and software that will ultimately perform the processing.
A series of progressively more detailed data flow diagrams are created to refine the system into tis
component sub processes. Breaking down a systems processes into smaller and smaller sub
processes is known as top-down design. The component sub processes can then be solved and
even tested independent of other processes. Once all the sub processes are solved and working as
expected they can be combined to solve the larger problem.
Data dictionaries are used to detail each of the data items used by the system. They are tables
where each row describes a particular data item and each column describes an attribute or detail of
the data item. Data dictionaries are often associated solely with the design of databases where they
are used to document details of each field.
The creation of the system models was about designing the information processes and defining the
detail of the data and information used and produced by the system. The information processes,
data/information and also the information technology all works together with the participants to
achieve the systems purpose.

Implementing

The fourth stage of the system development life cycle is where the new system is installed and
finally commences operation. The old system ceases operation and is replaced with the new system.
There are various different methods for performing this conversion.
Usually implementation of a new system includes converting form an old system, hence these
methods of implementation are called methods of conversion. There are four main methods of
conversion: direct, parallel, phased and pilot conversion.
Direct conversion involves the old system being completely dropped and the new system being
completely implemented at a single point in time. The old system is no longer available. As a
consequence, you must be absolutely sure that the new system will operate correctly and meet all
its requirements. This conversion method is used when it is not feasible to continue operating two
systems together. Users must be fully trained in the operation of the new system before the
conversion takes place.
The parallel method of conversion involves operating both the old and new systems together for a
period of time. This allows any major problems with the new system to be encountered and
corrected without the loss of data. Parallel conversion also means users of the system have time to
familiarise themselves fully with the operation of the new system.
The phased method of conversion from an old system to a new system involves a gradual
introduction of the new system whilst the old system is progressively discarded. This can be
achieved by introducing new parts of the new product one at a time while the older parts being
replaced are removed.
Pilot conversion of the new system is installed for a small number of users. These users learn, use
and evaluate the new system. One the new system is deemed to be performing satisfactorily then
the system is installed and used by all. This method is particularly useful for systems with a large
number of users as it ensures the system is able to operate and perform correctly in a real
operational setting. The pilot method also allows a base of users to learn the new system.
Successful training requires motivated learners as motivated learners are vital if the training
methods are to be a success.

Testing, Evaluating and Maintaining

This is the fifth and final stage of the system development life cycle and unlike the previous stages,
aspects of this final stage continue throughout the life of the system.
Tasks included in the testing, evaluating and maintaining stage includes acceptance testing to ensure
the system meets requirements, ongoing evaluation to monitor performance, ongoing evaluation to
review the effect on users and participants and maintaining the system to ensure it continues to
meet requirements.
Problems identified will require modifications to the system.
The testing, evaluating and maintaining stage of the SDLC commences with formal testing of the
system to ensure it meets the requirements specified in the Requirements Report also known as
acceptance testing.
Once the tests confirm the requirements have been met for the system, it is then signed off as
complete. The client and the system developers agree to use the results of the acceptance tests as
the basis for determining completion of the new system. If the tests are unsuccessful then the client
makes their final payment and the system analyst and developers jobs are complete.
There are two essential factors to consider in regard to monitoring the performance of a system.
Performance can be monitored from a technical viewpoint. This process is of evaluation.
Technical performance monitoring aims to evaluate the continuing achievement of the systems
evolving requirements. Some old requirement may go down in priority over time or even become
irrelevant. Other new requirement will emerge and existing requirements will change. This is the
nature of virtually all information system that they change over time. Ongoing evaluation of
technical performance aims to verify that requirements continue to be met and identify any changes
that may require modifications to the new system.
Users and participants are the most critical elements of an information system. If they are positive
about the system then its more than likely to be s success, however it can also be the opposite as
well.
Information systems require regular maintenance if they are to continue to meet their
requirements. Maintaining an information system involves regular maintenance and repairs when
faults occur.