Information Systems Development MIS331 Information Gathering 11/23/2018 MIS331

Agenda External success factors in SA & D “Get the user involved!” Focus on Analysis phase activities Requirements determination Requirements structuring Alternative generation and selection Presentation issues and tips 11/23/2018 MIS331

PIECES Framework 11/23/2018 MIS331

System Success Factors The client may not be the end-user He who signs the checks is the client The system is for the end-user The analyst has the unenviable task of balancing the constraints of the client with the needs of the end-user Regardless of the need to balance... You must get the user involved! 11/23/2018 MIS331

User Involvement Creates a sense of ownership Builds a feeling of responsibility for success Reduces inhibitions associated with unknowns of a new environment Minimizes intrinsic resistance to change Eliminates anxieties created by lack of communication If you don’t provide an agenda for a group…eventually they will create their own Has been shown to be directly related to system success 11/23/2018 MIS331

Requirements Determination “The facts, ma’am, just the facts” Gathering information from a variety of sources for the purpose of determining just exactly what is happening and when. Often, what the users think is happening is different from what is actually happening. Also, the reality of when something happens can be radically different than the user’s perception. We need to make use of a variety of data gathering techniques. Obtrusive versus Unobtrusive Interactive versus Detached 11/23/2018 MIS331

Traditional Methods Interviewing Questionnaires Direct Observation Can be used in both an exploratory and a confirmatory manner Questionnaires Primarily a confirmatory technique Direct Observation Exploratory or confirmatory Obtrusive and unobtrusive sometimes people change their behavior when being observed “Hawthorne Effect” Procedure and Document Review Forms, contracts, policy manuals, org.charts, etc. 11/23/2018 MIS331

Modern Methods Joint Application Design (JAD) simultaneous collection of requirements from key personnel JAD sessions are simply structured group meetings Group Support Systems (GSS) Facilitates the JAD process Promotes anonymity thus reducing inhibition to participate Can provide structure to chaos CASE tools (Upper CASE) Can organize the findings of many analysts Provides consistency in modeling activities Prototyping “Show me what you’ve got and I’ll tell you if I like it.” 11/23/2018 MIS331

Structuring and Alternatives Structuring involves the use of models to describe the system requirements in an understandable fashion. Process, Logic, and Data Modeling Alternative Generation and Selection Some schools of thought allow for selection of development method based upon the identified system requirements. We do not subscribe to this school of thought. 11/23/2018 MIS331

System Modeling How What Logical versus Physical A physical model describes a system in an implementation-dependent manner “How we do it.” A logical model describes a system in an implementation-independent manner “What we do.” How Physical Physical What Logical Logical 11/23/2018 MIS331

Presentations Issues and Tips 11/23/2018 MIS331

For Next Time... We’re going to play a game (no preparations necessary) 11/23/2018 MIS331