Chapter 8
Information Systems
Development & Acquisition
8-1
Chapter 8 Objectives
Understand the process of IS management
 Understand the system development life
cycle (SDLC)
 Understand alternative approaches to
system development
 Understand in-house system development
 Understand external acquisition,
outsourcing, and end-user development

8-2
The Need for Structured
Systems Development

Systems analysis and design – the process
of designing, building, and maintaining
information systems
Systems analyst
 Blending technical and managerial expertise

8-3
The Need for Structured
Systems Development

Evolution of IS development
From “art” to a “discipline”
 Standardized development methods
 Software engineering

8-4
The Need for Structured
Systems Development
Options for Obtaining Information Systems
1.
2.
3.
4.
Build your own
Buy a prepackaged system
Outsource development to a 3rd party
End user development
8-5
The Need for Structured
Systems Development

Information Systems Development in Action
Breaking large complex problems into
manageable pieces
 Decomposing large, complex problems

8-6
The Need for Structured
Systems Development
System Construction Process
1. Identify a large IT problem to solve
2. Break the large problem into several smaller,
more manageable pieces
3. Translate each “piece” (small problem) into
computer programs
4. Piece together each program into an overall
comprehensive IS that solves the problem
8-7
The Need for Structured
Systems Development

The Role of Users in the Systems Development
Process
 Knowledgeable of needs
 Effective partnership
8-8
Steps in the Systems Development Process
8-9
Steps in the Systems
Development Process
Systems Development Life Cycle
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
System identification, selection, and planning
System analysis
System design
System implementation
System maintenance
8-10
Steps in the Systems
Development Process

Phase 1: System Identification, Selection,
and Planning
Undertake only those projects critical to
mission, goals, and objectives
 Select a development project from all possible
projects that could be performed
 Different evaluation criteria used to rank
potential projects

8-11
Steps in the Systems
Development Process

Phase 1: System Identification, Selection,
and Planning
 Evaluation criteria





Strategic alignment
Potential benefits
Potential costs and resource availability
Project size / duration
Technical difficulty / risks
8-12
Steps in the Systems
Development Process

Phase 2: System Analysis

Collecting System Requirements
 Requirements collection
•
•
•
•
Interviews
Questionnaires
Observations
Document analysis
Critical Success Factors (CSF)
 Joint Application Design (JAD)

8-13
Steps in the Systems
Development Process

Phase 2: System Analysis

Modeling Organizational Data


Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD)
Modeling Organizational Processes and Logic


Data flows
Processing logic
8-14
Steps in the Systems
Development Process

Phase 3: System Design
Designing forms and reports
 Designing interfaces and dialogues
 Designing databases and files
 Designing processing and logic

8-15
Steps in the Systems
Development Process

Phase 4: System Implementation
Software programming
 Software testing




Developmental
Alpha
Beta
8-16
Steps in the Systems
Development Process

Phase 4: System Implementation
 System conversion





Parallel
Direct
Phased
Pilot
System documentation, training, and support



User and reference guides
Training and tutorials
Installation procedures and troubleshooting guides
8-17
8-18
Steps in the Systems
Development Process

Phase 5: System Maintenance

Maintenance process steps:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Obtain maintenance request
Transform requests into changes
Design changes
Implement changes
8-19
Steps in the Systems
Development Process

Phase 5: System Maintenance

Maintenance types:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Corrective maintenance
Adaptive maintenance
Perfective maintenance
Preventive maintenance
8-20
8-21
Other Approaches to Designing and
Building Systems



Prototyping
Rapid Application Development (RAD)
Object-Oriented Analysis & Design (OOA&D)
8-22
Need for Alternatives to Building
Systems Yourself
1.
2.
3.
4.
Limited IS staff
IS staff has limited skill set
IS staff is overworked
Problems with performance of IS staff
8-23
Common Alternatives to In-house
Systems Development

External acquisition
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
System identification, selection and planning
Systems analysis
Development of a request for proposal (RFP)
Proposal evaluation
Vendor selection
8-24
Common Alternatives to In-house
Systems Development

Outsourcing – the practice of turning over
responsibility of some to all of an organization’s
information systems development and
operations to an outside firm
8-25
Common Alternatives to In-house
Systems Development

Why Outsource?







Cost and quality concerns
Problems in IS performance
Supplier pressures
Simplifying, downsizing, and reengineering
Financial factors
Organizational culture
Internal irritants
8-26
Common Alternatives to In-house
Systems Development

Managing the IS outsourcing relationship
Strong CIO oversight
 Measurement of milestones, costs, and
benefits
 Customer relationship management
Not all outsourcing relationships are the same
 Basic relationship
 Preferred relationship
 Strategic relationship


8-27
Common Alternatives to In-house
Systems Development

End-user development



Benefits of end-user development
Encouraging end-user development
End-user development pitfalls
8-28