Systems Development

Prof. Rushen Chahal

Overview of Systems Development

Participants Initiating systems development Information systems planning Establishing objectives for systems development Systems development and the Internet Trends in systems development and enterprise resource planning

Participants
Stakeholders
Individuals/organizations who are beneficiaries of the systems development effort

Systems analyst
Professional who specializes in analyzing and designing business systems

Users
Individuals who interact with the system regularly

Programmer
Individual responsible for modifying or developing programs to satisfy user requirements

Managers System stakeholders Programmers

Systems analyst

Users Vendors and suppliers

Technical specialists

Systems Analyst
A programmer or consultant who designs and manages the development of business applications. Typically, systems analysts are more involved in design issues than in day-to-day coding. However, systems analyst is a somewhat arbitrary title, so different companies define the role differently.

Typical Reasons to Initiate a Systems Development Project

Problems with existing systems Desire to exploit new opportunities Increasing competition Desire to make more effective use of information Organizational growth Merger or acquisition Change in market or external environment Perception of potential benefit by individual capable of initiating change

Systems development process initiated

Planning
Information systems planning
The translation of strategic and organizational goals into systems development initiatives

Strategic plan

Creative analysis
The investigation of new approaches to existing problems

IS planning

Critical Analysis
The unbiased and careful questioning of whether system elements are related in the most effective or efficient ways

Systems development initiatives

Steps in IS Planning
Strategic plan Developing overall objectives Previously unplanned system projects

Identify IS projects Set priorities & select projects Analyse resource requirements Set schedules and deadlines Develop IS planning document

Establishing Objectives for Systems Development

Performance objectives
Quality or usefulness of the output The quality or usefulness of the format of the output The speed at which the output is generated

Cost objectives
Development costs Costs related to the uniqueness of the system application Fixed investments in hardware and related equipment On-going operating costs of the system

Systems Development and the Internet

Applications being moved to the Internet
Sales Order placement Product information access

Building a static Web site Intranet tools

NetDynamics SilverStream Web-Logic Novera Netscape Communications

Systems Development Life Cycle

Systems investigation
Problems and opportunities are identified

Systems analysis
Existing systems and work processes are studied

Its a cycle

Systems design
Defines how the information system will do what it must do to solve the problem

Systems implementation
System components are assembled and the new or modified system is placed into operation

Systems maintenance and review

Ensures the system operates and is modified to keep up with business changes

Systems investigation (understand problem) Systems Analysis (understand solution) Systems design (select and plan best solution)

Systems implementation (place solution into effect)

Systems maintenance and review (evaluate results of solution)

Cost to make a particular change

Investigation

Analysis

Design

Implementation

Time

Maintenance and review

Prototyping
Operational prototype
Accesses real data files, edits input data, makes necessary computations and comparisons, and produces real output

Non-operational prototype
A mockup or model that includes output and input specifications and formats

Rapid application development (RAD)

Employs tools, techniques, and methodologies designed to speed application development, automates source code generation, and facilitates user involvement in design and development activities

Joint application development (JAD)

Involves group meetings in which users, stakeholders, and IS professionals work together to analyze existing systems, proposed solutions, and define requirements for a new or modified system.

Rapid Application Development

A programming system that enables programmers to quickly build working programs. In general, RAD systems provide a number of tools to help build graphical user interfaces that would normally take a large development effort. Two of the most popular RAD systems for Windows are Visual Basic and Delphi. Historically, RAD systems have tended to emphasize reducing development time, sometimes at the expense of generating efficient executable code. Nowadays, though, many RAD systems produce extremely fast code. Conversely, many traditional programming environments now come with a number of visual tools to aid development. Therefore, the line between RAD systems and other development environments has become blurred.

Prototyping: The Iterative Life Cycle

Iteration 1
Determine requirements Analyse alternatives Specify design Implement design User review

Iteration 2
Determine requirements Analyse alternatives Specify design Implement design User review

Iteration 3 (final)
Determine requirements Analyse alternatives Specify design Implement design Changeover

General Model of Prototyping

Systems development initiated
Investigate and analyse problem sufficiently to develop workable solution Develop prototype

Put prototype into operation

Refine and modify prototype

Complete component or system

 End-user systems development life cycle

Any systems development project in which the primary effort is undertaken by a combination of business managers and users

End-User Systems Development Life Cycle

Factors Affecting Systems Development Success

Managing change
Requires the ability to recognize existing or potential problems and deal with them before they become a serious threat to the success of a new or modified system

Use of project management tools

Schedule Milestone Deadline Critical path Program Evaluation Review Technique (PERT) Gantt chart

Selected Project Management Software Packages

Software BeachBox 98 Job Order OpenPlan Project Project Scheduler Super Project Vendor NetSQL Partners Management Software Inc. Welcom Microsoft Scitor Corp. Computer Associates

Use of Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE) CASE tools automate tasks required in a system development effort and enforces adherence to the SDLC Tools
Tools that focus on activities associated with the early stages of systems development

Upper CASE tools Lower CASE tools

Tools that focus on the later implementation stage of systems development

Integrated-CASE (I-CASE) tools

Tools that provide links between upper- and lower-CASE packages, allowing lower-CASE packages to generate program code from upper-CASE package generated designs

CASE
Short for Computer Aided Software Engineering, a category of software that provides a development environment for programming teams. CASE systems offer tools to automate, manage and simplify the development process. These can include tools for: Summarizing initial requirements Developing flow diagrams Scheduling development tasks Preparing documentation Controlling software versions Developing program code

Various companies offer CASE software capable of supporting some or all of these activities. While many CASE systems provide special support for object-oriented programming, the term CASE can apply to any type of software evelopment environment.

ISO 9000
An international standard used by IS departments to ensure quality standards exist and are maintained in their products and services

Systems Investigation
Identify potential problems and opportunities and consider them in light of the goals of the company The investigation team
Managers and stakeholders IS personnel

Task
Undertake feasibility analysis Establish system development goals Select system development methodology Prepare system development report

Feasibility Analysis
Technical feasibility
Can the hardware, software, and other system components be acquired or developed to solve the problem?

Operational feasibility
Can the project be put into action or operation?

Schedule feasibility
Can the project be completed in a reasonable amount of time?

Economic feasibility
Does the project make financial sense?

Net present value

The preferred approach for ranking competing projects and determining economic feasibility

 A report that summarizes the results of the systems investigation and the process of feasibility analysis and recommends a course of action Steering committee
An advisory group consisting of senior management and users from the IS department and other functional areas

The Systems Investigation Report

Systems Analysis
Typical table of contents from a systems investigations report:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Table of Contents Executive summary Review of goals and objectives System problems and opportunities Project feasibility Project costs Projects benefits Recommendations

Sources of Data
Internal Sources Users, stakeholders, managers Organization charts Forms and documents Procedure manuals and policies Financial reports IS manuals Other measures of business processes External Sources Customers Suppliers Stockholders Government agencies Competitors Outside groups Journals, etc. Consultants

Data Collection
Structured Interview Unstructured Interview Direct Observation Questionnaires Statistical Sampling

Identify data sources

Data collection

Follow-up & clarification

Data Analysis
Data analysis
Manipulating collected data so that it is usable for the development team members participating in systems analysis

Data modeling
A commonly accepted approach to modeling organizational objects and associations that employ both text and graphics E.g, ER (entity relationship) diagrams

Activity modeling
A method to describe related objects, associations, and activities

Data flow diagram

A diagram that models objects, associations, and activities by describing how data can flow between and around them

ER Example

MID

Member

Play

Game of Golf

Name

Address

Date paid

MID

Date

Time

Score

Data Flow Diagram

Schematic description of business processes
Premise: for every activity there is some communication, transference, for flow that can be described as a data element DFDs show logical sequences (not physical processes)

Entity symbol

Data-flow line

Process symbol Assign Tee time

Data-flow line

Data store

Tee time

Member
Reservation request

Available times

Schedule
Group information Member tee time

Course access

Member
Member ID

Check member in

Member card
Date

Score card

Member

Sort scores

Score card

Scores

Handicap

Calculate handicap

Tee time

Application Flowchart
Charts that show relationships among applications or systems
Order processing application Inventory control application Invoicing application

Marketing analysis application

Grid Charts
A table that shows relationships among the various aspects of a systems development effort Database Customer Inventory Supplier Accounts receivable
applications Order processing applications Inventory control application Marketing analysis application Invoicing application database database database database

X X X

X X X

X X

Requirements Analysis
An assessment used to determine user, stakeholder, and organizational needs

Goals and mission of the organization

Strategy translation

Systems requirements

Screen Layout Charts

May be tailored for
Frequent users who require little descriptive information, or Infrequent users who require more descriptive information

For frequent users

ORDER ENTRY ORDER NO. XXXXX CUSTOMER NO. XXXXX SALES PERSON XXXXX NET DOLLARS XXXXX

REGION XXX

COMMISSION XXX

ITEM NO. XXXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXXX

QTY XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX

UNIT XX XX XX XX XX XX XX

PRICE XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX XXXXX

DOLLARS XXXXXX XXXXXX XXXXXX XXXXXX XXXXXX XXXXXX XXXXXX

DISCOUNTS XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX XX

For infrequent users Which online option would you like to perform? (Please enter an X to make a selection) _DATA ENTRY Enter transaction and report requests for later processing Review online information from the database: bill of materials, where-used, routing, item data

_RETRIEVALS

The Systems Analysis Report

Strength and weaknesses of existing system from a stakeholders perspective User/stakeholder requirements for the new system Organizational requirements Description of what new information systems should do to solve the problem

Typical Table of Contents for a Report on an Existing System

Johnson & Flores, Inc. Systems Analysis Report TABLE OF CONTENTS Background Information Problem or Need Statement Data Collection Data and Requirements Analysis Recommendations Appendixes of Documents, Tables, and Charts Glossary of Terms