INFORMATION SYSTEM
PLANNING
JAY PATEL (10629 – BIS)
PLANNING FOR INFORMATION SYSTEM
• The complexity of the information resources
environment suggests that planning is vital to
success.
• The plan describes the structure and content of
the information system and how it is to be
developed.
• The overall responsibility of IS planning is the
responsibility of Chief Information Officer (CIO)
APPROCHES TO ORGANIZING AND SUPERVISING
THE SYSTEM PLANNING EFFORTS
• Planning staff within information systems
functions (planning specialists)
• Ad hoc planning groups within information
systems
• Planning group with representatives from
various functions
PLANNING DIFFICULTIES
• Business goals and systems plans need to align
• Rapidly changing technology
– Technological advances, obsolete technology
• Continuous planning/monitor and follow change
• Companies need portfolios rather than projects
• Infrastructure development is difficult to fund
• Responsibility needs to be joint
– CIO, CEO, CFO, COO input is needed
• Systems planning in becoming business planning.
REVIEW OF PLANNING
• Master plan is reviewed by the steering
committee which comprises of executives
from major functional areas and is
executives.
• The committee also periodically reviews
progress against the plan.
• The master plan is integrated in the
organizational plan by top management after
review and approval.
• Information system policies and procedures
are defined.
CONTENT OF INFORMATION SYSTEM PLAN
• The master plan has two components : a
long-range plan and a short-range plan. The
long-range plan provides general guidelines
for direction and the short range plan
provides a basis for specific accountability as
to operational and financial performance. It
consists of the following subheadings
– Information system goals, objectives, and
architecture
– Inventory of current capabilities
– Forecast of developments against the plan
– The specific plan
SYSTEM GOLS, OBJECTIVES AND
ARCHITECTURE
• Organizational goals, objectives, and
strategies
• External environment (industry, government
regulations, customers, and suppliers)
• External environment (industry, government
regulations, customers, and suppliers)
• Assumptions about business risks and
potential consequences
• Overall goals, objectives, and strategy for the
information system
CURRENT CAPABILITIES
• Inventory of
– Hardware
– Software (System software, DBMS, etc)
– Application systems (classified on the basis of functional
systems, organizational strategy, maintenance need)
• Analysis of
–
–
–
–
Expense
Hardware utilization
Software utilization
Personnel utilization (further classification such as job,
skill, functional area)
• Status of projects in progress
• Assessment of strengths and weaknesses
FORECAST OF DEVELOPMENTS
AFFECTING PLAN
• Hardware and software technological
availabilities should be forecasted with
expected impact on existing IS
• Methodology changes should be forecasted
• Environmental developments such as
government regulations, tax laws and
competitors affecting IS should be stated
SPECIFIC PLAN
• Hardware acquisition schedule
• Purchased software schedule
– System Software
– Applications software
• Application development schedule
• Software maintenance and conversion
schedule
• Personnel resources required and schedule
of hiring and training
• Financial resources required by object of
expenditure
IS PLAN REQUIRES UPDATION
•
•
•
•
•
•
Changing organizational setup
Changes in technology
Changing needs of system
Internal events
Progress of new systems
External events
INFORMATION SYSTEM GROWTH
MODEL
• The NOLAN stage model
– The organization must go through each stage of
growth before it can progress to the next one, thus
giving an insight to planning regarding the stage of an
IS
• Stage of information system growth
Stage of growth
Description
Initiation
Early use
Expansion
Experimentation, rising cost
Formalization
Organizational controls
Maturity
Integration of applications
NOLAN SIX STAGE MODEL
Stage
Level of Control
1
Low control. Some slack. No planning
2
Greater slack due to encouraged use, integration
and lack of planning
3
High controls, planning given importance
4
Use of databases for integration
5
Slack due to focus on strategically important
systems
6
Application portfolio complete and matches
organizational objectives
NOLAN SIX STAGE MODEL
ASSUMPTIONS OF NOLAN MODEL
• Organizational learning
• Stages cannot be skipped
• Other than the natural process, these
processes can be planned, coordinated,
and managed to move through the stages
effectively and efficiently
ADVANTAGE AND DIADVANTAGE OF
NOLAN MODEL
• Advantage
– Evolutionist model as it focuses on
development
• Disadvantage
– Lack of specificity as it does not define the
mechanism for change
THREE STAGE MODEL OF THE PLANNING
PROCESS
• It clarifies the generic planning activities, the order of
activities, and the alternative techniques and
methodologies that apply
Strategic
Planning
• Strategy set
transformation
• Strategy Grid
• Strategic fit
• Derivation from
organizational
plan
Organizational
information
requirement
analysis
• Business system
planning
• Critical success
factors
• Ends/ means
analysis
Resource
Allocation
• Comparative cost/
benefit
• Portfolio approach
• Charge out
• Steering
committee ranking
STRATEGIC FIT
• Each organization has a culture which
reinforces values, norms, and beliefs
about the organization. Goals, objectives,
and strategy for information systems
should fit with the culture in order to avoid
high resistance and high risk of failure.
STRATEGY SET TRANSFORMATION
• Explicate the organization’s strategy set
– Delineate the organization structure for users
– Identify goals of claimants
– Identify organizational goals and strategies for each
claimant group
• Validate the organizational goals from management
• Transform organizational strategy set into the
information system strategy set
– Identify IS objectives for each organizational strategy
– Identify IS constraints from organizational strategy
– Identify IS design strategy based on organizational
attributes
ANALYSIS OF ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION
REQUIREMENTS
• Information requirements are required at the
organizational level for information system
planning, identifying applications, and
planning an information architecture.
• More detailed information requirements are
required for detailed design of applications.
REFRENCES
• http://www.iaeng.org/publication/WCECS2014/WCECS2
014_pp168-170.pdf
• https://it.toolbox.com/blogs/craigborysowich/strategicsystems-planning-methodology-073105
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stages_of_growth_model
• http://ecomputernotes.com/mis/information-systemplanning/explain-the-nolan-stage-model-for-is-planning
• http://ecomputernotes.com/mis/information-and-systemconcepts/nolanssixstagemodel
THANK YOU