SYSTEMS ANALYSIS AND DESIGN 1 – Introduction to information System

development

DIT 210/BIT 125: SYSTEMS AND DESIGN

1.0 INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT
A system and the main Functions of a system
A system is asset of interrelated components that work together to accomplish
a purpose. Basically, there are three major components in every system,
namely input, processing and output.
In a system the different components are connected with each other and they
are interdependent. For example, Human body represents a complete natural
system. We are also bound by many national systems political system,
economic system, educational system and so forth. The objective of the
system demand that some output is produced as a result of processing the
suitable inputs.
The following simple diagram may be used to explain the conceptual
components of a system.

Environment (suppliers, customers, competitors etc)

Input PROCESS (develop, procedure, Output

course, course of action)

Figure 1. Components of a system

Classification of systems
Systems can be classified either as open or closed systems. This classification
is based on how a system interacts with its environment. A system`s
environment includes all factors surrounding the system. The description of
open and closed systems are given below.
Closed and Open Systems
In systems theory, a distinction is made between open systems and closed
systems. A closed system is a system, which is isolated from its environment
and independent of it. That is, a closed system does not interact with its
environment. An open system is a system connected to and interacting with its
environment. An open system is a system connected to and interacting with its
environment. It can also adapt to changing conditions. It can receive inputs

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from, and delivers output to the outside of system. An information system is
an example of this category. Closed systems exist in concept only.
The diagram in figure 2. Illustrate the idea of open and closed systems. As it
can be seen from the diagram, an open systems receives different kinds of
inputs and gives different output depending on the input.

SYSTEM ANALYSIS AND DESIGN 1 – Introduction to information System

development

SHUT OFF FROM ITS

ENVIRONMENT

Controlled Inputs Relating to its

Uncontrolled inputs environment in both
Predictable outputs prescribed and
uncontrolled ways.
Unexpected inputs
Unpredictable outputs

Figure 2. Closed and Open Systems

INFORMATION SYSTEMS
Information in organizations is considered as a strategic
resource.
In the past, information used to be considered a bureau tic nuisance (of
little use) and a limited toll for management decision making. Today,
information systems can so drastically boost a firm`s productivity and
efficiency that businesses view information as a weapon against
competition and a strategic resource. For example
The Basic Systems Components of an Information System

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An information system is a set of information technologies that enables
people in organisation to accomplish tasks effectively by the avoiding
access to information.

People: All members of an organisation need to use information to

perform their jobs. As a group, these people are referred to as information
system users or end users. The structure and design of an information
system is defined by another group of people- the system designers.
Another group of people in the organisation – managers – decides how
money, time, and other resources should be categorised into four areas:
tasks related to communication among people in the organisation, and
tasks related to the strategic management of the organisation.
Information: As a commodity, information refers to facts, statistics or
other data that are valuable or useful to a person for accomplishing a
task. Organisation: A business or other organisation can be defined by
its purpose, the tasks or activities that performs, and its structure.
Environment: The global, competitive business environment presents
problems and opportunities that a business organisation must cope with
to thrive.
Types of Information Systems
In this section, we will explore three most important information systems
namely, transaction processing system, management systems and
decision support system.
Transaction Processing Systems
TPS processes business transactions of the organisation. Transaction can
be any activity of the organisation. Transactions differ from organisation to
organisation. For example, take a railway reservation system. Booking,
cancelling, etc are all transactions. Any query made to it is a transaction.
However, there are some transactions, which are common to almost all

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organizations. Like employee new employee, maintain their leave status,
maintain employees accounts, etc.
TPS provides high speed and accurate processing of record keeping of
basic operational processes. These include calculation, storage and
retrieval. They can be programmed to follow routines functions of the
organisations.
Management Information system
These systems assist lower management in problem solving and making
decisions. They use the results of transaction processing and some other
information also. It is a set of information processing functions. It should
handle queries as quickly as they arrive. An important element of MIS is
database. A database is a non-redundant collection of interrelated data
items that can be processed through application programs and available
to many users.
Decision Support System
These systems assist higher management to make long term decisions.
These types of systems handle unstructured or semi structured decisions.
A decision is considered unstructured if there are no clear procedures for
making the decisions and if not all the factors to be considered in the
decision can be readily identified in advance. These are not recurring
nature. Some recur infrequently or occur once. A decision supply system
must be very flexible. The user should be able to produce customised
reports by giving particular data and format specific to particular
situations.

Summary of Information Systems

Categories of Information Characteristics
System
Transaction Processing System Substitutes computer-based
processing for manual procedures.
Deals with well-structured
processes. Includes record keeping
applications.
Management Information System Provides input to be used in the
managerial decision process. Deals
with supporting well-structured
decision situations. Typical
information requirements can be
anticipated.

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Decision support system Provides information to managers
who must make judgments about
particular situations. Supports
decision-makers in situations that
are not well structured.

Roles of System Analyst

The system analyst is the person (or persons) who guides through the
development of an information system. In performing these tasks, the
analyst must always match the information system objectives with the
goals of the of the organization.
Role of System analyst differs from organization or organization. Most
common responsibilities of System Analyst are the following.
1) System analysis
It includes system`s study in order to get facts about business activity.
It is about getting information and determining requirements. Here the
responsibility includes only requirements. Here the responsibility
includes only requirement determination, not the design of the system.
2) System analysis and design:
Here apart from the analysis work, Analyst is also responsible for the
designing of the new system/application.
3) Systems analysis, design, and programming:
Here Analyst is also required to perform as programmer, where he
actually writes the code to implement the design of the proposed
application.
Due to the various responsibilities that a system analyst requires to
handle, he has to be multifaceted with varied skills required at various
stages of the life cycle. In addition to the technical know-how of the
information system development a system analyst should also have
the following knowledge.
 Business Knowledge: As the analyst might have to develop
any kind of a business, he should be familiar with the general
functioning of all kind of businesses.
 Interpersonal skills: Such skills are required at various stages
of development process for interacting with the users and
extracting the requirements out of them.
 Problem solving skills: A system analyst should have enough
problem occurring at the various stages of the development
process.

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The Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC)
Why Organisations Development Information Systems
The systems development process begins when someone recognizes that
a problem needs to be solved or an opportunity exists that can be taken
advantage of system development is a problem-solving process of
investigating a situation, designing a system solution to improve
the situation, acquiring the human, financial, and technological
resources to implement the solution, and finally evaluating the
success of the solution. An organisation may face several problems
and opportunities, each of which may require the company to develop
new IT applications. Each project requires people, money and other
organisational resources, so aa steering committee is formed.

System Development Life Cycle

The System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is a conceptual model used in
project management that describes the stages involved in an information
system development project from an initial feasibility study through
maintenance of the completed application. Various SDLC methodologies
have been developed to guide the processes involved including the
waterfall model (the original SDLC method), and application development
(RAD), joint application development (JAD), the fountain model and the
spiral model. Mostly, several models are combined into some sort of
hybrid methodology. Documentation is crucial regardless of the type of
model chosen are devised for any application, and is usually done in
parallel with the development process. Some methods work better for
specific types of projects, but in the final analysis, the most important
factor for the success of a project may be how closely a particular plan
was followed.

Figure 3 below is the classic waterfall model methodology, which is the

first SDLC method and it describes the various phases involved in the
development of an Information System.

SystemProblem
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identification
 Feasibility
Study

Requirements
Analysis

Design

Development

Testing

Implementation

Maintenance

Figure. 3. Traditional (Waterfall) system Development Life Cycle.

Stages of the typical system development life cycle
I. Feasibility study (Investigation)
The purpose of the investigation phase is to study the existing business
problem or opportunity and determine whether it is feasible to develop a
new system or design the existing system if one exists.
During this stage the following activities are performed;
 The project team conduct a feasibility study to identify the nature of
the problem
 The team also examines the current system to determine how well
it needs of the users and the organisation.
 Assess whether a new or improved information system is a feasible
solution.
In carrying out the above activities the project team tries to answer the
feasibility questions related to the following.
 Technical Feasibility
In technical feasibility the following issues are taken into consideration.
 Whether the required technology is available or not

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 Whether the required resources are available – the resources include
Manpower (that is Programmers, testers, debuggers, etc) and the
software and hardware.
Once the technical feasibility is established, it is important to consider to
consider the monetary factors also. Since it might happen that developing
a particular system may be technically possible but it may require huge
investments and benefits may be less. For evaluating this economic
feasibility of the proposed system is carried out.
 Economic and Financial feasibility
For nay system if the expected benefits equal or exceed the expected
costs, the system can be judged to be economically feasible. In economic
feasibility, cost benefit analysis id done in which expected costs and
benefits are evaluated. Economic analysis is used for evaluating the
effectiveness of the proposal system.
In economic feasibility, the most effective is cost-benefit analysis. As
the name suggests, it is an analysis of the costs to be incurred in the
system and benefits derivable out of the system.
Note: The good student has been requested to look at the following
methods of conducting the cost-benefit analysis: Break-even analysis,
Payback Analysis, Present – Value analysis and cash flow analysis.
 Operational feasibility
Operational feasibility is mainly concerned with issues like whether the
system will be used if it is developed and implemented. Whether there will
be resistance from users that will affect the possible application benefits?
The essential questions that help in testing the operational feasibility of a
system are the following.
 Does management support the project?

 Are the users not happy with current business practices? Will it reduce
the time (operation) considerably? If yes, then will welcome the change
and the new system.

 Have the users been involved in the planning and development of

the project? Early involvement reduces the probability of resistance
towards the new system.

 Will the proposed system really benefits the organisation? Does the
overall response increase? Will accessibility of information be lost? Will the
system affect the customers in considerable ways?

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Based on its investigation, the project team can make three possible
recommendations. The three possible recommendations that the project
team can make are:
a) To leave the system the way as it is;
b) To improve or enhance the current system; or
c) To develop an entirely new system
Note: Systems can also look at organizational feasibility and legal
feasibility but the major areas considered are the ones mentioned above.
II. Analysis
During the analysis phase, the systems analyst gathers documents,
interviews users of the current system (if one exists), observes the system
in action, and gathers and analyses data to understand the current
system and identify new requirements – features or capabilities that must
be included in the system to meet the needs of the users. The system
analyst identifies the requirements related to each subsystem of the
following in a proposed system:
(i) Input/output requirements: The characteristics of the user
interface, including the content, format, and timing requirements for
data-entry screens and managerial reports
(ii) Storage requirements: the content of records and databases and
the procedures for data retrieval
(iii) Control requirements: the desired accuracy, validity, and security
of the system; for example, tom prevent data entry errors and
guarantee an easy-to-use, user-friendly system
The systems analyst documents the work done in the analysis phase in a
written functional requirements report. The following are the main issues
that the functional requirements report should outline;
 Explains the current business procedures
 How the current system works
 Identifies problems with the current procedures and system
 Describes the requirements for the new or modified system
Note: A system requirement is a feature that must be included in
the new system. And may include a way of capturing or
processing data, producing information, controlling a business
activity or supporting management.
III. Design
The investigation phase focuses on why, the analysis phase focuses on
what and the design phase focuses on how. In the design phase, the
system analyst develops the system specifications that describe how
exactly the system requirements, identified in the analysis phase, will be

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met. The three main categories of the how-to questions that the systems
analyst considers in design phase are;
 User interface design: How will the various outputs of the system
be designed? Where will input data come from, and how will it be
entered into system? How will the various windows, menus and other
user-computer dialogue characteristics be designed?
 Database design: how will the data elements and structure of the
files that oppose the database be designed?

IV. Development
After the design phase is complicated, the actual system development can
begin. The development phase is a process of turning the design
specifications into a real working system. The fundamental activities of
the development phase include;
 Hardware, software and communications purchasing;
 Documentation; and
 Programming, that is writing the code to solve the tasks involved.
V. Testing
In this phase the system is tested. Normally programs are written as a
series of individual modules, these are subjected to separate and detailed
test. The system is the tested as a whole. The separate modules are
brought together and tested as a complete system. The system is tested
to ensure that interfaces between modules work (integration testing), the
system works on the intended platform and with the expected volume of
data (volume testing) and that system does wait the user requires
(acceptance/beta testing).
Note: The good student has been asked to differentiate between Alpha
and Beta testing.
VI. Implementation
The implementation phase occurs when the testing phase is completed
and the new system is ready to replace the old one. For commercial
software packages, this phase typically involves extensive training and
technical user support to supplement sales and marketing efforts. For
large customs systems, implementation includes end-user education and
training, equipment replacement, file conversion, and careful monitoring
of the new system of problems.
The approaches for converting the new system that the system analyst
one can choose from are:

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The direct changeover approach simply replaces the old system with
the new system. The organization relies fully on the new system with the
risk that parts of the new system might work correctly.
The parallel system approach operates the old system along with the
new system for a period of time. The old system is gradually phased out
as users gain skills and confidence that the new system is stable and
reliable.
The pilot approach implements the new system in one in one
department or work in an organisation. The new system is used and
modified at this test site until the systems analyst believes the system can
be successfully implemented throughout the organization.
End user training is critical to implementing an information system
successfully. During training, clerical and managerial end users learn to
use the features of the new system effectively. They learn how to handle
problems that may arise when they use the system.
VII. Maintenance
The maintenance phase involves monitoring, evaluating, repairing and
enhancing the system throughout the lifetime of the system. Some
software problems don’t surface until the system has been operational for
a while or the organization needs change. System ned to adjusted to keep
up to update with new products, services, customers, industry standards,
and government regulations.
The following are the main reasons for evaluation during system
maintenance;
 The system is evaluated periodically to determine whether it is
providing the anticipated benefits and meeting organisational
needs.
 Also, evaluation provides the feedback necessary for management
to assess whether the system was developed on schedule
and within budget and
 To identify what adjustments to make in the system
development process in future.
Summary of SDLC Stages
The stages involved in a systems development, starting with the original
identification of the problem by management and ending with a report
back on successful (or otherwise) implementation are the following:
 Preliminary investigation – review of problem through project
proposals
 Detailed investigation – feasibility study (technical, economical,
social, and operational feasibility tests)
 Analysis – questionnaire, interviews, records review, observation.

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  Design – logical system representation (DFDS), decision tables,
Decision trees, Structured English)
 Development – coding and testing (unit testing, system testing,
integration testing, user acceptance testing, bottom up testing, top
down testing, black box testing, white box testing, valid data and
invalid data testing etc).
 Implementation – site preparation, hardware installation, software
installation, live testing, training (onsite training and offsite
training), changeover (direct changeover, parallel, phase change
and pilot change).
 Post implementation review and evaluation – report on system`s
impact on workers, management and business in general.
Advantages and limitations of the Waterfall Model
a) Advantages of Waterfall Life Model

1. Easy to explain to the user

2. Stages and activities are well defined
3. Helps to plan and schedule and project
4. Verification at each stage ensures early detection of errors/
misunderstanding

b) Limitations of the Waterfall Life Cycle Model

The traditional model has the following limitations:
 The model implies that you should attempt to complete a given
stage before moving on to the next stage
 Does not account for the fact that requirements constantly
change.
 It also means that customers cannot use anything until the
entire system is complete.
 The model makes that once the product is finished, everything
else is maintenance.
Due to the limitations of the waterfall model, a number or models have
been proposed to present the System development lifecycle. These
include the Spiral Model, Prototyping System Development Life Cycle
Model and Object-Oriented methodology among other users.

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