Ch 1 - Systems, Roles, and Development Methodologies

Why is information crucial for businesses?

Information fuels business and can determine the success or failure of a business.

What is the purpose of systems analysis and design?

To understand user needs and systematically analyze, process, store, and output data within an organization's context.

Why is the emphasis on users important in systems analysis?

It involves analyzing users' business objectives and ensuring effective communication of planned systems.

What are the qualities of a systems analyst?

Problem solver

communicator

self-disciplined

strong personal and professional ethics

What is the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC)

Definition:

Distinctive phases to initiate the software production for client requirements in the highest quality, low-cost and shortest possible time.

Advantages:

• Structured, Time-Intensive, Ensures thorough solutions.

Disadvantages:

• Takes time, rigorous, resource intensive, gives solutions that are no longer needed

Stages:

1) Identifying problems, opportunities and objectives

2) determining information requirements

• Human Computer Interaction

3) analyzing system needs

Step 4: Designing the Recommended System

5) developing and documenting software

6) testing and maintaining the system

7) and implementation

What is the impact of maintenance?

Maintenance consumes 48% to 60% of the total system development time and is an ongoing process. It involves:

1. Correcting Software Errors

2. Enhancing Capabilities:

   • Users requesting new features

   • Adapting to changes

   • Keeping up with rapid advancements

What is Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE)?

CASE tools automate routine tasks to improve productivity, enhance communication with users, and streamline system development from start to finish.

• Examples (The Repository Concept): Tools like Visible Analyst, Microsoft Visio, and OmniGraffle support creating and modifying diagrams easily.

• Facilitates brainstorming and collaboration.

• Manages data flow and requests for corrections.

• Enables changes and models project requirements.

• Defines project boundaries.

• Visualizes how projects integrate with organizational systems.

Info reported in CASE Repository

What is The Agile Approach?

Definition:

• A software development method based on values, principles, and core practices

  • Communication

  • Simplicity

  • Feedback

  • courage

Advantages:

• Short release time

• Onsite customer

• Pair programming

• Incremental and iterative

• Customer oriented, user feedback

Disadvantages:

What levels may an SA be involved in?

Operational level

• Day-to-day operations

Knowledge Level

• Analyzes data to improve business process

Middle Level

• Designs and implement MIS that help with performance tracking and reporting

• tactical descision-making

strategic level

• Top management, long term planning

What is the operational level?

Support the day-to-day operations of the company

• frontline workers, customer service reps, data entry staff

• Transaction Processing System (TPS:) Uses IT to handle repetive tasks
  

Examples: Payroll Processing, Inventory Management

what is knowledge level?

Employees use their expertise, experience, and analytical skills to process information, solve problems, and support decision-making.

Office Automation System (OAS)

• Supports data workers who share information, but do not usually create new knowledge

• Examples: Word processing, Spreadsheets, Desktop publishing, Electronic scheduling,
  Communication through voice mail, Email, Video conferencing

Knowledge Work System (KWS)

• Supports professional workers such as scientists, engineers, and doctors
  • Examples: computer-aided design systems, virtual reality systems, investment
  workstations

What is middle level management?

Designs and implements MIS that helps with performance tracking and reporting.

Management Information System (MIS)

• Support a broad spectrum of organizational tasks including decision analysis and decision making

• Examples: profit margin by sales region, expenses vs. budgets

Decision Support System (DSS)

• Aids decision makers in the making of decisions

• Examples: financial planning with what-if analysis, budgeting with modeling

Expert System (ES)

• Captures and uses the knowledge of an expert for solving a particular problem which leads to a conclusion or
  recommendation

• Examples: MYCIN, XCON

What is Strategic Level?

Make long-term decisions that shape the org’s direction, goals, and competitive position

• CEOS, CFOs, COO, Senior executives

Executive Support System (ESS)

• Helps executives to make unstructured strategic decisions in an informed way

• Examples: drill-down analysis, status access

Group Decision Support System (GDSS)

• Permit group members to interact with electronic support

• Examples: email, Lotus Notes

Computer-Supported Collaborative Work System (CSCWS)

• CDCWS is a more general term of GDSS

• May include software support called “groupware” for team collaboration via network
  computers

• Example: video conferencing, Web survey system

Integrating New Technologies into Traditional
Systems

• Ecommerce and Web Systems

• Enterprise Resource Planning Systems

• Wireless Systems

• Open Source Software

• Need for Systems Analysis and Design

CASE Tools Classification

• Upper CASE tools perform
  analysis and design

  • Create and modify the system design

  • Help modeling organizational requirements and defining system boundries

  • Ex:

    • DFD

    • ER models

• Lower CASE tools generate
  programs from CASE design

  • Focus on code generation, debugging, and testing

• Integrated CASE tools perform
  both upper and lower CASE
  functions

  • Microsoft Visio, IBM Rational Rose

Scrum

• Sprint cycle lasts between two and four weeks

• Development team is expected to produce a potentially releasable product

• Applications or websites are constantly changing

• Each iteration boasts a new set of features produced during the spring cycle

Stage 1 - Agile Approach

Exploration

• Explore environment, assert conviction, assemble team, asses member skills

• Duration: a few weeks to a few months

• Tasks

  • Examine tech to build new system

  • Estimate time needed for a variety of tasks

• Goal:

  • Get customer to refine a story enough to estimate time to build solution into the system you are planning

Stage 2 - Agile Approach

Planning

• Establish plan to deliver solution (two months to half a year)

• Duration: Short

• Planning Game (kent beck)

  • team of dev and stakeholders discuss and prioritize user stories for the next development iteration, estimating effort, and deciding which stories to focus based on their value to the project

  • Time, expense, and uncertainty

• Goal: Limit uncertainty

  • Simple solution, feedback, and adapt design

  • Story cards: task, notes, and provide an area for task tracking

Stage 3 - Agile Approach

Iterations and First Release

• Cycles of testing, feedback and change

• Duration: three weeks in duration

• Goal

  • Run customer written function tests at the end of each iteration

  • Question whether the schedule needs to be altered or whether you are tackling too many stories

  • Celebrate progress

Stage 4 - Agile Approach

Productionizing

• Software revision turn around in one week

• Duration: One week

• Goal

  • Daily briefings

  • Product released, but may be improved

  • Celebrate occasion

Stage 5 - Agile Approach

Maintenance

• Kept running smoothly

• Goal

  • Add features, consider customer suggestions, and team members rotated on or off the team

Object-Oriented Systems Analysis and Design

Split work into models to reduce the amount of work. Split into individual projects and not care about the customer. Allows for separation of work activities.

Cycle repeats with design and implementation of next part and this repeats until the project is complete

• Dev of systems that must change rapidly in response to dynamic business environ

• Difference from SDLC:

  • Examines objects that are part of the system

    • customers, items, oprders, and so on

  • SDLC and O-O more slower than agile

Advantages:

• Code reusability, scalability, maintainability, flexibility, collaboration

Disadvantages:

• increased complexity, higher resource consumption, over-engineering, learning curve

Unified Modeling Language

Used to break down a system into a use case model

Use Case Model

• Identifies actors and major events initiated by the actors

• Draw diagrams called Use Case Diagram to show flow of events

• Write up case scenario in words the steps that are normally performed

Use Case Model - Stage 1

During the Systems Analysis Phase, Begin Drawing UML Diagrams

• Draws activity diagrams of all major activities

• Creates one or more sequence diagrams for each use case that show the sequence of activities and their timing

Use Case Model Stage 2

Continuing in the Analysis Phase, Develop Class Diagrams

• Nouns in use cases are objects that potentially can be grouped into classe

• Example:

  • Every automobile is an object that shares characteristics with other automobiles (class)

Use Case Model - Stage 3

Still in the Analysis Phase, Draw Statechart

• Class diagrams used to draw state-chart diagrams

• Statechart diagrams helpful in modifying class diagrams, so iterative process of UML modeling continues

Use Case Model - Stage 3

Begin Systems Design by Modifying the UML Diagrams, then Complete the Specifications

• Modify existing system (diagrams)

• Derive classes, their attributes, and methods

• Class specifications for each class

• Develop method specifications that detail the input and output requirements for each method, along with a detailed description of the internal processing of the method

Use Case Model - Stage 4

Develop and Document the System

• More complete documentation and UML diagrams, faster development

Spiral Model (Often focus on small, quick iterations of development)

• Small part of the system, high-priority item or item that has greatest risk

• Design and implementation

• Repeated w/ analysis of the next part, design, and some implementation

• Repeated until project is complete

Cloud Computing

• Virtual servers

• Cloud computing offers many services

  • Web browsers used to access applicatons

  • Scalable to suit growing (or changing) demand by users.

  • Software as a Service (SaaS)

  • Not necessary to have IT infrastructure, enables small companies with smaller and less predictable budgets to make advances in processing more quickly

  • disaster revoery, lower cost, and increased flexibility

  • Google apps, AWS, Akami, CRM software

Cloud Computing Trade-Offs

• Security and privacy

  • (improved staff training, making security of cloud computing a strategic priority, and so on)

• SA must evaluate and compare cloud providers can be valuable to your client

• Public cloud

  • external cloud

  • less critical data

• Private cloud

  • Internal one

  • data control

ERP Systems and the Cloud

• Enterprise Resource Planning Systems

  • Integrated management of main business proceses often in real time and mediated by software and technology

• No need to purchase new IT , new versions and upgrades of ERP software are maintained and installed by the ERP cloud vendor and switching to other modules may be less cumbersome

• Workday

  • Addresses costs, soolution to IT business problems and variable level of service

• NetSuite

  • account software, real-time invetory management, CRM software, ecommerce, and real time global business management to small and medium enterprise

Implementing CDLC

mplementing CDLC

Five essential Characteristics

1. One demand self service

2. Broad network access

3. Resource pooling

4. Rapid elasticity

5. Measured service

Three service models include:

1. Software as a Service (Saas)

2. Platform as a Service (Paas)

3. Infrastructure as a Service (laas)

Four Deployment Models

1. Private Cloud

2. Community cloud

3. Public Cloud

4. Hybrid Cloud

• CDLC

  • Predicative life cycle

  • Phases

    • 1. Data gathering

    • Devleopment

    • Launch

    • Continuing operations

    • Optimization

    • Improvement

  • Inexpensive testing (pentesting)

  • Collaboartion with the development ecosystem permits the developers access to data and a lower amount of time invested for other tasks such as a diverse range of sytem tests

  • Faster approach than traditional SDLC

  • Integration with cloud services (AWS) give businesses the potential to scale up acrosst he organization rapidly

• SDLC

  • Does not offer penetration testing only after installation

5 Strategic Considerations in Implementing Cloud-Based Systems

1. Save money on premises data centers, maintenance and support personal = use cloud based systems

2. Start small and build your cloud endeavors gradually so that they can be expanded later

3. Choose multiple cloud providers in order to avoid getting stuck with one vendor

4. Monitor changes closely. Visibility of applications and data from multiple systems

5. Develop an integration strategy

Choosing Which Systems Development Method to Use

1. Understand org first

2. Budget time and resources and develop a project proposal

3. Interview org members and gather detailed data using questionnares and sample data from existing reports

4. Observe how business is currently trasnsacted

Similarities

• SDLC and OOAs both require extensive planning and diagramming

• Agile approach and OOA both allow subsystems to be built one at t ime untilt he entire system is complete

• Agile, SDLC, CLDC all concerned with the way data logicall moves through the system

THE SDLC APPROACH

• A structured process for software development, from planning to maintenance.

• it is important to document each step of the way

• upper-level management feels more comfortable or safe using SDLC

• there are adequate resources and time to complete the full SDLC

Focus:

• Entire software lifecycle

Approach

• Sequential (Waterfall) or iterative (e.g, agile)

• Waterfall = rigid, agile = flexible

AGILE METHOD

• A flexible, iterative approach to software dev. emphasizing collaboration and adaptability

• speed and adaptability

• application need to be developed quickly in response to a dynamic and changing environment

• the customer is satisfied with incremental improvements

• executives and analysts agree with the principles of agile methods

Focus

• Rapid iteratitons and user feedback

Approach

• Iterative and incremental

Flexibility

• Highly flexibile

Adv

• Flexibility, customer satisfaction, faster, risk, higher quality

Disadv

• Lack of predictability, scope creep, customer avaiability required, high learning curve, team collaboration, not ideal for large scale projects

OBJECT ORIENTED METHOD

Definition:

• A method of analyzing system requirements using object-oriented concepts.

Focus:

• System design through objects, classes, and interactions

Approach:

• Conceptual modeling (UML diagrams, use cases).

Flexibility

• More rigid in analysis but flexible in design.

• systems can be added gradually, one subsystem at atime

• reuse of previously written software is a possibility

• it is acceptable to tackle the difficult problem first

THE CDLC APPROACH

Definition:

• A specialized SDLC tailored for cloud environments, integrating cloud-specific processes.

Focus

• Development, deployment, and management in cloud-based infrastructure.

Phases

• Cloud-native architecture, deployment, monitoring, scaling, and security.

Collaboratioin

• Cross-functional collaboration between cloud engineers, developers, and security teams.

• Users and coders can study, share, and modify the code or computer instructions

The Open Source Movement

any capable user is able to participate online in development, making the number of possible contributors indefinite.

Benefits of Corporate participation in Open Source Software Development

• Rational

  • Save money

• Emotional

  • Accepting responsibility

Licensing and Compliance

• Product of community consensus, so diff communities use diff licenses

The Role of the Analyst in Open Source Software

• Shotage of open source developers and huge demand

• Responsive design

adaptive lifecycle

flexible method of managing projects in unpredictably changing situations.

Rapid Application Development

Primarily targeted in resolving limits of system development life cycle using object oriented strategies

• Hybrid of Orbeject Oriented and Agile

• Focused on process

Roles of an Analyst: Consultant

Roles of an Analyst: Consultant

• Acting as a systems consultant means you understand the organiztion culture or subcultures

• Outside consultant means using systematic methods and IS users to understand culture

Roles of an Analyst: Supporting Expert

• Draws on professional expertise concerning computer hardware and software and their uses in the business

• Doesn’t manage projects, serves as a resource

Roles of an Analyst: Agent of Change

• Must interact with users and management (if they are not one and the same) from the very beginning of your project

• Understand what they need to support their work so change can take place