G045 Lecture 05 Feasibility Study (Task Di) Mr C Johnston ICT Teacher

Session Objectives Understand the concept of feasibility, Be aware of different solutions which can be used, Understand different feasibility tools which can be used by a company to assess the viability of a solution to a problem, Know the structure of a feasibility study.

Feasibility Feasibility is weighing up different factors and deciding if a solution is viable, Some of the issues we look at include: Technical - is the solution practically possible to make? Economic - how much is it going to cost? Legal Issues – which laws are going to govern the solution? Operational – what impacts will the solution have on the staff? Schedule – can it be made within a reasonable time frame? If different solutions are available then feasibility of each will be calculated and one will be recommended and justified.

Current System Your feasibility study needs to start off describing the current system which the company you are studying for this unit uses Your current system section needs to a description of each major activity including: What goes on? People involved? Where is data stored? Where does the data to be stored come from? How is the data updated / deleted from the system? A table could be used to summarise the processes, inputs and outputs during each major activity.

Major Activity Summary Table ProcessInputsStorageOutputs DataSourceOutputForm ProcessInputsStorageOutputs Data InputSourceOutputForm Subject teachers submit grades Student name Subject Grade TeacherMaster grade sheet Grades copied from master grade sheet to grade card for each student Student name Subjects studies Grade for each subject Master grade sheetStudent grade card Handwritten on card At a school each student gets a grade card with their subject grades on

Issues and Requirements Identify what is wrong with the current system Identify what the new system should be able to do In groups identify issues faced by Kasbah News when using their current system and the things which they need to new system to do. Write up these parts of your feasibility study.

Possible Solutions Paper based system - NO!!!!!! Off the shelf – Ready made and to use Use Google to find one e.g. Customised off the shelf – use application software to make a solution e.g. Database, Spreadsheet Bespoke – Made from scratch in programming language Think about how Kasbah News could utilise each of the possible solutions. Within your feasibility study describe each solution including – what the solution is, how it meets the needs, and technology required

Off The Shelf Ready made, Just install and go, Need to find out what features it has - describe them and how will be used by Kasbah News, Include some screen shots / example reports What else is needed?? Minimum PC Spec Additional hardware (sound card, mouse??) OS Additional software Printer Internet

Customised Off The Shelf Use the data storage and other features of ready made software, Could be a database (Access), Spreadsheet (Excel), Describe what new system will do Store the data (In a designed data structure) Search / Sort using Use forms to enter / amend data Reports showing information GIVE SPECIFIC EXAMPLES OF WHAT SYSTEM WILL DO What else is needed?? Minimum PC Spec - Additional hardware (sound card, mouse??) OS Additional software Printer Internet

Bespoke – Written From Scratch Fully customisable can do just about anything within realms of reality!!! Need to develop the data structure from scratch – SQL?? Rest of system is written in a programming language – JAVA, VB.NET, Describe what your dream system for Kasbah will do – SMS, s, web based account manager, pay online???? What else is needed?? Minimum PC Spec Additional services (internet host, sms gateway, SQL) Additional hardware (sound card, mouse??) OS Additional software Printer Internet

Technical Feasibility “Is it likely that it can be built?” Can the system be developed and implemented using existing technology? new technology? Is the necessary expertise and infrastructure available to develop, install, operate and maintain the proposed system? Is the proposed system able to meet initial performance expectations? accommodate expected new use and functionality over the ‘medium term’?

Economic Feasibility “Is the projected return worth the investment?” Used to select between projects: if there are several alternative opportunities for investing resources, which one gives the best rewards? will the investment of resources in a particular project be worthwhile? how worthwhile will it be? Cost-benefit analysis: calculate the tangible costs and benefits of the system

Legal Feasibility “Will doing this violate laws or contractual agreements?” Are there legal responsibilities? Liabilities? Governing bodies to satisfy? What about moral issues?

Operational Feasibility “If built, is it likely that the system will really address or solve the business problem and will the staff be able to use it?” Will the system meet the needs and expectations of the organisation? If built, is it likely that the system will really address or solve the business problem? Will staff actually be able to use it and make them more productive? What training will be needed to use it? Operational factors also to consider include: corporate culture, staff resistance or receptivity to change, management support for the new system, the nature and level of user involvement in the development and implementation of the system, direct and indirect impacts of the new system on work practices, anticipated performance and outcomes of the new system compared to the existing system

Schedule Feasibility “Is it likely to be built in time to realise benefits and/or meet constraints?” Will the system be constructed in time to realise benefits and meet constraints? For each of the proposed solutions make notes on there TELOS feasibility – use a subheading for each. Try and include as much depth and explanation as possible.

One of your solutions will be the better option, Use the findings from your TELOS feasibility and cost benefit analysis to present which solution is the best – take all factors into consideration, You will need to fully recommend the chosen solution including a comparison with the others e.g. “I have chosen solution X instead of Y because” “I have chosen solution X instead of Z because” Recommending A Solution

Bespoke vs. Off The Shelf AdvantagesDisadvantages Bespoke Tailored to your exact needs – may not be a commercial package available, Written to work with specific hardware Can be tweaked and edited once installed, Use new techniques “ground breaking software” High development costs, Time to develop, Can be faulty as not fully tested or not work at all – London Ambulance System!!! Off The Shelf One off purchase - “everything in the box” Shop around for best deal or product – may be for sale at different prices Good level of support – ask others already using, Tried and tested by many Training available for common packages Cannot be edited May not fulfil needs entirely

Feasibility Study Contents Current system, Problems with current system, What the new system must do, Solution #1 Description of the solution What will it have to meet the users needs? TELOS Cost Benefit Solution #2 Description of the solution What will it have to meet the users needs? TELOS Cost Benefit Solution #3 Description of the solution What will it have to meet the users needs? TELOS Cost Benefit Recommendation of which solution is most appropriate.

Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) Used to determine how cost effective solutions are, They compare the costs of making / installing a solution with the estimated benefits, Useful when discussing the economic feasibility of a solution, A CBA has three main parts – costs, benefits, comparison, Costs are quite simple to calculate (although think about Wembley stadium) however the benefits of a solution are difficult to determine until its actually up and running.. The system should be paid off within its life time to be worth while – 5 years is often a systems life span but often it ends up being longer.

CBA - Costs Costs to include on a CBA include: Hardware, Software, Development / Programming Fees, Installation and Training Fees, Maintenance and Enhancement Fees. Costs are often set out in a table – using a spreadsheet will help with the mathematics and layout:

CBA - Benefits Benefits to include on a CBA include: Cost savings, improved productivity, better quality information, Benefits are estimates – using a spreadsheet will help with the mathematics and layout:

CBA – Figures of Merit Figures which allow a comparison to be made between the costs and the benefits so a conclusion can be drawn, Easiest figure to draw calculate is the difference between the benefits and the costs each year – a cumulative total will then show if the solution pays for itself or not, The number of years to Payback a solution can be determined from the line equation of a graph plotting the cumulative total against years, Payback uses formula y=mx+c ∴ x = c/m as y = 0 Other calucaltions are: Net Present Value (NPV) – takes inflation into account (can use NPV() function in excel) Internal Rate of Return (IRR) – measures to effective interest rate earned by a possible solution (can use IRR() function in excel)

CBA – Figures of Merit Example Full example 1Full example 1, Full example 2Full example 2