Chapter 3 Determining Feasibility and Managing Analysis and Design Activities
Systems Analysis and Design Kendall & Kendall Sixth Edition
Major Topics
Project initiation Determining project feasibility Project scheduling Managing project activities Manage systems analysis team
members
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Project Initiation
Projects are initiated for two broad reasons:
Problems that lend themselves to systems
solutions. Opportunities for improvement through
Upgrading systems. Altering systems. Installing new systems.
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Organizational Problems
Identify problems by looking for the following signs: Check output against performance criteria
Too many errors. Work completed slowly. Work done incorrectly. Work done incompletely. Work not done at all.
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Organizational Problems (Continued)
Observe behavior of employees
High absenteeism. High job dissatisfaction. High job turnover.
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Organizational Problems (Continued)
Listen to feedback from vendors,
customers, and suppliers
Complaints. Suggestions for improvement. Loss of sales. Lower sales.
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Project Selection
Five specific criteria for project selection:
Backed by management. Timed appropriately for commitment of resources. It moves the business toward attainment of its
goals. Practicable. Important enough to be considered over other projects.
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Possibilities for Improvement
Many possible objectives exist including:
Speeding up a process. Streamlining a process. Combining processes. Reducing errors in input. Reducing redundant storage. Reducing redundant output. Improving system and subsystem integration.
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Feasibility Impact Grid (FIG)
A feasibility impact grid (FIG) is used to
assess the impact of any improvements to the existing system. It can increase awareness of the impacts made on the achievement of corporate objectives
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Feasibility Impact Grid (FIG) (Continued)
Current or proposed systems are listed
on the left. Objectives are listed on the top. Red arrows indicate a positive impact. Green arrows indicate implementation.
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Feasibility
A feasibility study assesses the
operational, technical, and economic merits of the proposed project. There are three types of feasibility:
Technical feasibility. Economic feasibility. Operational feasibility.
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Technical Feasibility
Technical feasibility assesses whether
the current technical resources are sufficient for the new system. If they are not available, can they be upgraded to provide the level of technology necessary for the new system.
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Economic Feasibility
Economic feasibility determines whether
the time and money are available to develop the system. Includes the purchase of:
New equipment. Hardware. Software.
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Operational Feasibility
Operational feasibility determines if the
human resources are available to operate the system once it has been installed. Users that do not want a new system may prevent it from becoming operationally feasible.
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Activity Planning
Activity planning includes:
task. Scheduling the project.
Selecting a systems analysis team. Estimating time required to complete each
Two tools for project planning and
control are Gantt charts and PERT diagrams.
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Estimating Time
Project is broken down into phases. Further project is broken down into tasks or activities. Finally project is broken down into steps or even smaller units. Time is estimated for each task or activity. Most likely, pessimistic, and optimistic estimates for time may be used.
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Gantt Charts
Easy to construct and use. Shows activities over a period of time.
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Gantt Chart Example
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PERT Diagram
PERT-Program Evaluation and Review Technique
PERT diagrams show precedence, activities that
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must be completed before the next activities may be started. Once a diagram is drawn it is possible to identify the critical path, the longest path through the activities. Monitoring critical path will identify shortest time to complete the project.
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PERT Diagram Example
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PERT Diagram Advantages
Easy identification of the order of
precedence Easy identification of the critical path and thus critical activities Easy determination of slack time, the leeway to fall behind on noncritical paths
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Timeboxing
Timeboxing sets an absolute due date
for project delivery. The most critical features are developed first and implemented by the due date. Other features are added later.
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Personal Information Manager Software
Personal information manager (PIN) software is useful for scheduling activities and includes features such as:
Telephone and fax number lists. To-do lists. Online calendars.
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Team Management
Teams often have two leaders:
One who leads members to accomplish
The systems analyst must manage:
Team members. Their activities. Their time and resources.
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tasks. One concerned with social relationships.
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Goal Setting
Successful projects require that
reasonable productivity goals for tangible outputs and process activities be set. Goal setting helps to motivate team members.
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Ecommerce Project Management
Ecommerce and traditional software project management differences:
The data used by ecommerce systems is
scattered across the organization. Ecommerce systems need a staff with a wide variety of skills. Partnerships must be built externally and internally well ahead of implementation. Security is of utmost importance.
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Project Failures
Project failures may be prevented by:
Training. Experience. Learning why other projects have failed.
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Extreme Programming
Extreme programming (XP) takes good systems development practices to the extreme.
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Extreme Programming Variables
Extreme programming has four variables that the developer can control:
These are balanced for a project.
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Time. Cost. Quality. Cost.
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Extreme Programming
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Extreme Programming Activities
The activities of extreme programming are:
Coding. Testing. Listening. Designing.
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Extreme Programming Core Practices
There are four core practices in extreme programming:
A short release time. Working a 40-hour week. Having an onsite customer. Pair programming.
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Roles in Extreme Programming
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Roles in Extreme Programming
There are a 7roles played in XP:
Programmer. Customer. Tester. Tracker. Coach. Consultant. Big Boss.
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The Planning Game
The planning game defines rules to help
formulate the development team and customer relationship. Limits uncertainty. Two players: the development team and the business customer. Customers decide what to tackle first.
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XP Development Process
XP projects are interactive and
Exploration. Planning. Iterations to the first release. Productionizing. Maintenance.
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incremental. The five Stages of XP development are:
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XP Development Process
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