MIS Project Case Solution And Analysis, HBR Case Study Solution & Analysis of Harvard Case Studies

MIS Project Case Study Solution

13-1 How do building new systems produce organizational change?

Describe each of the four kinds of organizational change that can be promoted with information technology.

If one reads text and looks at figure 13.1, it will show us few different kinds of organizational changes. As described in text, these include: automation, rationalization, redesign, and paradigm shifts

Automation is the ability to orchestrate and integrate tools, people and processes through workflow, benefits include: reduced human errors, faster response to mission-critical system problems and more efficient allocation of resources

Rationalization: Medium risk, medium reward. It involves streamlining standard operating procedures, redesigning business processes, work flows, and user interfaces.

Business Process Redesign: Analyze, simplify and redesign business process, rethink and streamline business process to improve speed, service and quality.
Paradigm shift: This involves rethinking the nature of the business and the nature of the organization.

13-2 What are the core activities in the systems development process?

Distinguish between systems analysis and systems design. Describe the activities for each.

SYSTEM ANALYSIS:

System analysis is the process by which we determine the problem and issues that the firm tries to resolve within an information system. The whole cycle involves the identification of problem sources of the problem, its root causes and determining the solution and knowledge requirement to deal with the problems. System analyst performs this work by getting information about the organization and the users of the system by obtaining different documents. He can also achieve the desired results by interviewing the staff and identifying problematic areas and could then propose a solution for the purpose; this could either be system transformation or system design to meet the changes required.

He can also perform a feasibility study for the expected outcomes of the transformed systems. System analysis identifies several alternatives and it is up to the management to determine its most useful plan and implement it accordingly. System analyst needs a perfect set of information to establish his/her opinion regarding who are the users of the system and what are their capabilities.

SYSTEM DESIGN:

After system analysis regarding the description of problems and how actually the system wants to work, system design is the whole process by how the system analyst is going to implement those changes which he has decided to change and how he would design the system in such a way that the users could get maximum advantage without lacking in anything. It is a system model. This model is based on all of the technological organizational and financial transformation that a system needs. It is a unique set of programs fulfilling the needs of the users.

ACTIVITIES OF SYSTEM DESIGN:

It is a crucial stage as it involves the designing of the system. It is a conversion of WHAT into HOW. Detailed description about the problems helps to produce physical design from logical design. The steps are input, output, databases, forms, codes generation and processing specifications details along with language designs and hardware software compatibility. Moreover, the question arises as to what are the limitations of the system and what is the most advantageous feature. Documentation, training backups and all the important decisions regarding software are determined at this stage.

WHY INFORMATION REQUIREMENT IS DIFFICULT TO DETERMINE:

Information requirement is necessary, and faulty assessments lead to ineffective software developments. However, this is one of the most difficult tasks because there are many steps involved in this process, and information gathering measures might not be accurate or in the right direction. Some problems require solution rather than complete replacement of the software. The set of information must be complete in nature to evaluate and decide whether it needs changes or complete replacement from new software.

Explain why the testing stage of systems development is so important. Name and describe the three stages of testing for an information system?

TESTING PHASE:

The testing phase is critical because it is the primary step to assess whether the system will be useful for the needs of the users of the system. The system developer should be competent enough to establish whether the system has produced the required results or not; the three stages of testing phase are:

Unit testing:

In this juncture, we assess individual programs and applications, which check them separately and then evaluate their performance.

System testing:

In this stage, we test the entire system programs and the compatibility, along with the support of each program with each other, as well as regarding the working of a program as planned.

Acceptance testing:

This is the stage, which gives certification regarding the successful completion of the program. Moreover, end users certify that the system is efficiently and appropriately meeting the needs of the respective users. After acceptance, it is ready for installation.

Describe the role of programming, conversion, production, and maintenance in systems development.

Programming:

In this stage, the system specifications that were prepared during the designing stage were translated into software program codes. The software was decided according to the compatibility of the scheme; the software is either purchased or manufactured by any professional software developer.

Testing:

Testing stage determines that whether the desired results are achieved or whether the system is operating in a right direction as intended. The time allocation to this phase is overrated and thus, the results are not quite useful. Testing must be done appropriately and carefully by processing a different kind of data reviewing results and making desired corrections. This step must be performed carefully to avoid enormous risks. This stage has three phases: unit testing, system testing, and acceptance of the scheme.

Conversion:

During conversion, the old regime has been converted into a new regime either wholly or as a part. The fundamental transformations require transforming the system based on the software and programs written for the users.

Production:

After the conversion and installation, the system is now productive. In this phase, the performance is reviewed by the specialist and the users to ensure that the system is working as per the specifications or either any modification on the new system is required, whether the objectives are achieved or not, and whether Any improvement is needed or not. MAINTENANCE:

Maintenance is an on-going process, which mostly comprises of software upgrading and performance reviews. Changes regarding making it more efficient and rectifications of errors are performed by assessing hardware and software compatibility, which come under maintenance.

13-3 What are the principal methodologies for modeling and designing systems?

Compare object-oriented and traditional structured approaches for modeling and designing systems:

Formal methods:

Formal methods are the facts that the system building should be done step by step; from top to bottom and the highest levels to the lower level of details. These techniques are focused and result oriented. Data flow diagram can be used to elaborate the process in accurately. Moreover, structured charts can also be helpful.

OBJECT-ORIENTED APPROACH:

Object oriented approach uses an object as the basic unit of system analysis and design. Operations are embedded in objects and instructions are followed by objects as they are structured, instead of using other programs and procedures for the task. The object itself is used for applying different methods and modification of instructions.

In the object-oriented approach, the system is made up of various objects that collaborate with each other to make the system work. Processing logics reside in them. The object has different classes, and those classes inherit all the characteristics of the said object.

Object oriented approach is more useful and well defined as compared to any other approach to system building. This method describes that how the system and objects will interact and behave with each other as well as it sheds light on the question as to how the subclasses of the hierarchy inherit the characteristics of the class.

Since objects are reusable, therefore object-oriented development reduces the cost of writing new software and can be used as building blocks of new software. The semi-completed objects can be used to develop customized complete applications. As a result, it would save the additional cost, and this would be more advantageous.

13-4 What are the alternative methods for building information systems?

Define the traditional systems life cycle. Describe each of its steps and its advantages and disadvantages for systems building.

TRADITIONAL SYSTEMS LIFE CYCLE:

The traditional method is the formal method, which is used to build the system, and it is the principle methodology used for the development of systems. The overall process comprises of various stages, and the activities must be performed in a particular order to achieve the desired results. In this strategy, an agreement is made with the users and the specialist to validate each stage and then move to the next level. The staff has assigned different responsibilities during each stage. This approach is time taking and inflexible.

This strategy consists of:

-System analysis

System design

Programming

Testing

Conversion

Production and Maintenance

During this whole process, users and technical specialists discuss different matters to build the best possible program. The organization presents the problem, which needs solution and professional experts gather information from users and start working for the resolution of the problem by developing different alternatives. Users provide specialist with complete information and guide the specialist regarding the constraints. In addition to this, the system gets approved by the system users.

For the development of software, technical experts translate design specifications into software and require the users of the business to test it and make their approval, for that purpose, they develop test plans for different scenarios for software support.

MIS Project Harvard Case Solution & Analysis

Moreover, the conversion of the old system to the new system takes place, where the technical specialists develop plans and supervise conversion, whereas the business users evaluate the system and make a decision about the time to put into production. Technical experts assess the performance and design maintenance structures and processes.......................

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