Information Systems System Analysis 421 Class Five

1. Information Systems System Analysis 421Class Five Initiating and Planning Systems Development Projects

2. Learning Objectives • Describe steps involved in the project initiation and planning process • Explain the need for and the contents of a Statement of Work and Baseline Project Plan • List and describe various methods for accessing project feasibility 6.2

3. Learning Objectives • Describe the differences between intangible and tangible costs and benefits and between recurring and one-time benefits and costs • Detail various methods of cost/benefit analysis • Describe the general rules for evaluating the technical risks associated with a systems development project • Describe the activities and participant roles within a structured walkthrough 6.3

4. Initiating and Planning System Development Projects • Project Initiation • Establishment of project team • Development of relationship with customer • Project Initiation Plan • Establishment of Management Procedures • Establishment of Project Workbook and Project Management Environment • Project Planning • Defining clear, discrete activities and the work needed to complete each activity 6.4

5. Initiating and Planning System Development Projects • Deliverables and Outcomes • Baseline Project Plan (BPP) • Scope • Benefits • Costs • Risks • Resources • Statement of Work (SOW) • Describes deliverables • Outlines work needed to be performed 6.5

6. Assessing Project Feasibility • Six Categories • Economic • Technical • Operational • Schedule • Legal and contractual • Political 6.6

7. Assessing Economic Feasibility • Cost – Benefit Analysis • Determine Benefits • Tangible Benefits • Can be measured easily • Examples • Cost reduction and avoidance • Error reduction • Increased flexibility • Increased speed of activity • Improved management planning and control • Opening new markets and increasing sales opportunities 6.7

8. Assessing Economic Feasibility • Intangible Benefits • Cannot be measured easily • Examples • Increased employee morale • Competitive necessity • More timely information • Promotion of organizational learning and understanding • Determine Costs • Tangible Costs • Can easily be measured in dollars • Example: Hardware 6.8

9. Assessing Economic Feasibility • Determine Costs (Continued) • Intangible Costs • Cannot be easily measured in dollars • Examples: • Loss of customer goodwill • Loss of employee morale 6.9

10. Assessing Economic Feasibility • One-Time Costs • Associated with project startup, initiation and development • Includes • System Development • New hardware and software purchases • User training • Site preparation • Data or system conversion 6.10

11. Assessing Economic Feasibility • Recurring Costs • Associated with ongoing use of the system • Includes: • Application software maintenance • Incremental data storage expense • New software and hardware releases • Consumable supplies • Incremental communications • Time value of money (TVM) • The process of comparing present cash outlays to future expected returns 6.11

12. Assessing Technical Feasibility • Technical Feasibility • Assessment of the development organization’s ability to construct a proposed system • Project risk can be assessed based upon: • Project size • Project structure • Development group’s experience with the application • User group’s experience with development projects and the application area 6.12

13. Technical Feasibility • Technical feasibility addresses three major issues: • Is the proposed technology or solution practical? • Do we currently possess the necessary technology? • Do we possess the necessary technical expertise, and is the schedule reasonable? • Technical feasibility can only fully be evaluated after those phases during which technical issues are resolved — namely, after the evaluation and design phases of our life cycle have been completed.

14. Technical Feasibility • Can we actually build this system? • What happens if: • We don’t get the benefits we project? • Our cost estimates are high? • Our time lines estimates are short? Y2K? • Fail to integrate new with old? (Conversion problems) • Easiest feasibility criterion • MIS is knowledgeable about the capabilities available

15. Operational Feasibility • Operational feasibility criteria measure the urgency of the problem (survey and study phases) or the acceptability of a solution (definition, selection, acquisition, and design phases). • There are two aspects of operational feasibility to be considered: • Is the problem worth solving, or will the solution to the problem work? • How do the end-users and management feel about the problem (solution)?

16. Operational Feasibility • Is the Problem Worth Solving, or Will the Solution to the Problem Work? • The following is a list of the questions that address these issues: • Performance. Does the system provide adequate throughput and response time? • Information. Does the system provide end-users and managers with timely, pertinent, accurate, and usefully formatted information? • Economy. Does the system offer adequate service level and capacity to reduce the costs of the business or increase the profits of the business?

17. Operational Feasibility • Is the Problem Worth Solving, or Will the Solution to the Problem Work? • Control. Does the system offer adequate controls to protect against fraud and embezzlement and to guarantee the accuracy and security of data and information? • Efficiency. Does the system make maximum use of available resources including people, time, flow of forms, minimum processing delays, and the like? • Services. Does the system provide desirable and reliable service to those who need it? Is the system flexible and expandable?

18. Operational Feasibility • How likely is it that this project will solve the real ROOT problems? Titanic • How will this system impact the organization? Surprise impact of our Navy Intelligence system

19. Political Feasibility • How do End-Users and Managers Feel about the Problem (Solution)? • It's not only important to evaluate whether a system can work but also evaluate whether a system will work. • A workable solution might fail because of end-user or management resistance. The following questions address this concern: • Does management support the system? • How do the end-users feel about their role in the new system? • What end-users or managers may resist or not use the system? People tend to resist change. Can this problem be overcome? If so, how? • How will the working environment of the end-users change? Can or will end-users and management adapt to the change?

20. Political Feasibility • How do the end users and management feel about the problem • How will the working environment of the end user change • If the users are not ready than no project is worth pursuing! • Usability Analysis - ease of learning ,use and satisfaction

21. Schedule Feasibility • Given our technical expertise, are the project deadlines reasonable? • Some projects are initiated with specific deadlines. • You need to determine whether the deadlines are mandatory or desirable. • If the deadlines are desirable rather than mandatory, the analyst can propose alternative schedules. • It is preferable (unless the deadline is absolutely mandatory) to deliver a properly functioning information system two months late than to deliver an error-prone, useless information system on time! • Missed schedules are bad. • Inadequate systems are worse!

22. Building the Baseline Project Plan • Objectives • Assures that customer and development group have a complete understanding of the proposed system and requirements • Provides sponsoring organization with a clear idea of scope, benefits and duration of project 6.22

23. Building the Baseline Project Plan • Four Sections • Introduction • System Description • Feasibility Assessment • Management Issues 6.23

24. Building the Baseline Project Plan • Executive Summary • Project Description • Brief overview • Recommended course of action • Project scope defined • Units affected • Who inside and outside the organization would be involved • Interaction with other systems • Range of system capabilities 6.24

25. Building the Baseline Project Plan • System Description • Outline of possible alternative solutions • Narrative format • Feasibility Assessment • Project costs and benefits • Technical difficulties • High-level project schedules 6.25

26. Building the Baseline Project Plan • Management Issues • Outlines concerns that management may have about the project • Team composition • Communication plan • Project standards and procedures • Objectives • Assure conformity to organizational standards • All parties agree to continue with project 6.26

27. Reviewing the Baseline Project Plan • Walkthrough • Peer group review • Participants • Coordinator • Presenter • User • Secretary • Standards Bearer • Maintenance Oracle 6.27

28. Reviewing the Baseline Project Plan • Walkthrough (continued) • Activities • Walkthrough Review Form • Individuals polled • Walkthrough Action List • Advantages • Assures that review occurs during project 6.28

29. Summary • Project Initiation • Forming project initiation team • Establishing customer relationships • Developing a plan to get the project started • Setting management procedures • Creating an overall project management environment • Baseline Project Plan (BPP) • Created during project initiation and planning 6.29

30. Summary • Contains: • Introduction • High-level description of system • Outline of feasibility • Overview of management issues • Statement of Work (SOW) • Describes what project will deliver • Lists all work to be performed 6.30

31. Summary • Feasibility • Economic • Operational • Technical • Schedule • Legal • Contractual • Political 6.31

32. Summary • Benefits • Tangible vs. Intangible • Costs • Tangible vs. Intangible • One-time vs. Recurring 6.32