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Cis 206 - the Context for Systems Development

Autor:   •  February 14, 2018  •  14,317 Words (58 Pages)  •  528 Views

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Analyst: “Well, do you know what processes the competition automated?”Owner: “Nope.”Analyst: “Do you know where you are having the biggest problems managing information?”Owner: “Sure, we are constantly losing inventory.”

Now the analyst is on to something and has a basis for further discussion.

Be sure to understand all the stakeholders and the systems for which they are responsible.

Routes and Methods

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It has been established that MDA techniques are the practical ways to move through the SDLC and that there can be many kinds of SDLCs/SDMs that best meet the needs of a given business problem. The text's discussion of routes and methods is another way of saying that these various methodologies can be implemented in different ways. For example, the text created a new methodology (SDLC/SDM) called the framework for applications of systems thinking (FAST). The textbook maps the four traditional SDLC phase to the eight FAST phases in Chapter 3, Figure 3-5. This demonstrates that understanding the four traditional SDLC phases will give you the basic knowledge to understand any number of phases in a company's SDLC.

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[pic 1]Phase Comparison

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[pic 2]FAST Methodology

The FAST SDLC could be implemented in the traditional way using an MDA approach. In this case, someone would execute the steps illustrated and follow a step-wise fashion of completing all the FAST phases. But there are other approaches to implement the FAST methodology. For example, there is the rapid application development (RAD) approach. Rather than being step-wise, RAD is more iterative. What does this mean? Well, in a step-wise approach we would start a phase, finish it, go to the next, finish it, go to the next, and so forth. The problem with this approach is that you sometimes learn more about a phase after it has been completed. If you have no opportunity to rework that phase before you go on to the next, it can cause problems downstream. RAD solves this by allowing for continuous work on a given phase after the next is started.

Systems Analysis

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Have you ever wondered about the word analysis? It's heard all the time. Data are analyzed; problems are analyzed; dirt samples from Mars are analyzed. So then, what exactly does it mean to analyze something? If you look for the definition of the word analyze in any major dictionary, you will find that it means to take apart or separate into parts, usually for the express purpose of evaluation of how the parts relate to each other. This implies a systems relationship. That is, you cannot analyze the parts if they have no relationships.

Systems analysis is no different. You take apart information systems in order to study how the parts relate to each other, usually for the purpose of creating a new or better system.

Following any SDLC is a guideline for the project manager, system analysts, programmers, and all team members to increase the chance of successfully developing a system that meets the customer's needs. Focusing on the modern system analyst in the class, templates, techniques, and tools discussed can be used to document and capture the user requirements. SDLCs can be waterfall or iterative approaches, but both increase the chance of successfully completing an application, as referred to in Figure 3-8.

Summary

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There are many tools used for systems analysis. There are tools for defining the problem that is to be solved, there are tools for collecting information about existing business processes, and there are tools for speeding along the systems analysis process. In this week's reading, you will discover many of these. The key points to remember in this section are below:

- When developing any systems initiative, it is important to define the scope or the extent of systems to which the initiative will apply.

- Because business problems can vary widely, there are numerous systems analysis approaches. It is important to know which approach is right for which problem.

- Each system will be impacted during the various phases of the systems initiative. It is important to understand what happens to each system component during each phase.

- In addition to each system being impacted during the various phases of the systems initiative, you must also consider stakeholders and others who are impacted by the initiative.

- Note that several overviews of systems analysis tools are presented this week. Be sure to explore these tools in more depth as the course unfolds.

Project Management and Systems Analysis

Project Management | Systems Analysis | Summary

In this week, understanding the importance of project management practices and how they support the success of following a system development life cycle (SDLC) will be the key topics. The system analyst must have a clear understanding of the difference between the SDLC and the project management life cycle. The four traditional or classic phases of an SDLC are project initiation (planning), analysis, design, and implementation. These were discussed last week, and they set up the framework for understanding how the project management activities are supported by the SDLC. A project manager is challenged to balance the triple constraints of project management, ensuring that the system is completed on time, within budget, and meeting the user requirements or scope. A solid understanding of the traditional SDLC phases will help students adapt to any company's SDLC phases.

The coverage for this week will take the four traditional SDLC phases and expand them into the author's FAST methodology (an eight-phased SDLC). There will be more detailed descriptions of the FAST methodology, which will provide a very good example of the importance of system analysis throughout the SDLC. This will start with the first five system analysis phases in the FAST SDLC, which are covered in Chapter 5. The scope definition is the first phase of the FAST SDLC, which was covered last week. The next four FAST phases, which are problem analysis, requirements

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