CHAPTER FOUR

SYSTEMS PLANNING AND

SELECTION

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 Chapter outline
4.1. Identifying and Selecting Projects
4.2. Initiating and Planning System Development Project
4.3. Assessing Project Feasibility
4.4. Building the Baseline Project Plan
4.5. Electronic Commerce Application

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 INTRODUCTION
 The first phase of the systems development life
cycle is systems planning and selection that deals
with:

Identifying, selecting, initiating, and planning projects.

 There are two primary activities in this phase:


General method for identifying and selecting projects
and

Project initiation (beginning) and planning, and present
several techniques for assessing project feasibility.
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 1.1. Identifying and Selecting
Projects
 The first step is to identify the need for a system,
which can be the result of:
 Problems in existing system or process
 New feature required in an existing system
 A new idea for which in Information System is
required
 A requirement to improve efficiency in the
organization
 Compulsory standards or bench marks by an
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external organization Ex. Government
Identifying and Selecting Projects..
 Sources of projects (request)
1. Management and business units: who
want to replace or extend an existing
system

2. Info. System Managers who want to

make a system more efficient: who want to
make a system more efficient and less
costly.

3. Formal planning groups: want to improve5

Identifying and Selecting Projects..
 During this activity, a senior manager, a
business group, an IS manager, or a
steering committee identifies and
assesses all possible systems
development projects.
 Next, those projects believed most likely
to produce significant organizational
benefits, given available resources, are
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 The Process of Identifying and Selecting IS
Development Projects
1. Project identification
 Projects are identified by
 Top management
 Steering committee
 User departments
 Development group or senior IS staff
 Top-Down Identification
 Senior management or steering committee
 Focus is on global/strategic needs of
organization
 Bottom-Up Identification
 Business unit or IS group
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 Don’t reflect overall goals of the
 The Process of Identifying and Selecting IS
Development Projects ….
2. Classify and rank development
projects

Assessing the merit of potential projects is the

second major activity in the project identification
and selection phase.

 The criteria used to assign the merit of a

given project are:
 Value chain Analysis
Strategic alignment

Potential benefits
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Resource availability
 Table 4-1 summarizes the criteria commonly used to evaluate projects .

Evaluation Criteria Description

2. Classify and rank development
Value chain analysis Extent to which activities add value and costs when developing products and/or
services; information systems projects providing the greatest overall benefits will

projects be given priority over those with fewer benefits

The criteria
 alignment
Strategic used
Extent to which to
the project isassign the
viewed as helping
strategic objectives and long-term goals
themerit
organization of a
achieve its

given project
Potential benefits
are:
Extent to which the project is viewed as improving profits, customer service, etc.,
and the duration of these benefits
 Value chain Analysis
Resource availability Amount and type of resources the project requires and their availability
 Strategic alignment
Project size/duration Number of individuals and the length of time needed to complete the project

Technical  Potential
Levelbenefits
of technical difficulty to complete the project successfully within given time
difficulty/risks and resource constraints

 Resource availability
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 The Process of Identifying and Selecting IS
Development Projects ….
3. Select development projects
 Factors:
 Perceived needs of the organization
 Existing systems and ongoing projects
 Resources available

Evaluation criteria

Current business conditions

Perspectives of the decision makers
 The decision-making process can lead to numerous
outcomes.
 Accepted:- funding to conduct the next SDLC activity has been
approved.
 Rejected:- the project will no longer be considered for
development.
Delayed:
 10
FIGURE 4-3:- Numerous factors must be considered when selecting a
project
In summary, systems development projects are
undertaken for two primary reasons;
 To take advantage of business opportunities

 To solve business problems.

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 The Process of Identifying and
Selecting IS Development Projects ..
 Deliverables and outcomes
 Primary deliverable of this phase is a schedule
of specific IS development projects.
 Selected project doesn’t necessarily result in a
working system, due to incremental commitment.
 Incremental commitment
 Continuous reassessment of project after each phase
 Incremental commitment means that after each subsequent SDLC
activity, you, other members of the project team, and organization
officials will reassess your project. 12
 The Process of Identifying and
Selecting IS Development Projects ..
 Deliverables and outcomes
 Primary deliverable of this phase is a schedule of
specific IS development projects.
 Selected project doesn’t necessarily result in a
working system, due to incremental commitment.
 Incremental commitment
 Continuous reassessment of project after each phase

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 4.2. Initiating and Planning System
Development Projects
 The objective of project initiation and
planning is to transform a vague system
request document into a tangible project
description.
 Two activities occur during project initiation
and project planning.
 Project initiation focuses on activities designed
to assist in organizing a team to conduct project
planning. (SSR)
 Project planning is the process of defining clear,
discrete activities and the work needed to
complete each activity within a single project.
(BPP)
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The process of Initiating and planning
IS Development Projects
 Activities performed during Project
initiation (Elements project Initiation):
 Establishing the Project Initiation Team
 Establishing a Relationship with the
Customer
 Establishing the Project Initiation Plan
 Establish Management Procedure
 Establish the Project Management
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 planning IS Development
Projects…
 The objective of Project Planning:
 Baseline Project Plan (BPP)
 Internal document
 Statement of Work (SOW)
 Outlines objectives and constraints
of the project to the customer
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 planning IS Development
Projects….
 Activity Performed during Project Planning

Describing the projects scope, Alternative, and
feasibility

Dividing the project into manageable tasks

Estimating resources and creating a resource plan

Developing a preliminary schedule

Developing a communication plan

Determining project standards and procedures

Identifying and assessing risk

Creating a preliminary budget

Developing a Statement of work

Setting a Baseline plan

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 The process of Initiating and
planning IS Development Projects
 Deliverables and Outcomes
 Baseline Project Plan (BPP)

Scope

Benefits

Costs

Risks

Resources
 Statement of Work (SOW)

Describes deliverables

Outlines work needed to be performed

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 Initiating a Project
d. Establishing management procedures.
 Successful projects require the development
of effective management procedures.
 In some organizations, many of the mgt
procedure would be established as standard
operating procedure.
 In establishing procedures, you are
concerned with developing.
 Team communication and reporting procedure,
 Job assignments and roles, project change
procedures, and
 Determining how project funding and billing
will be handled.
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 Feasibility
 Six Categories
 Economic
 Operational
 Technical
 Schedule
 Legal and contractual
 Political
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 1. Economic Feasibility
Concerned with assessing the financial
benefits and costs associated with the project.
Cost – Benefit Analysis


Determine Benefits


 Tangible Benefits: - can be quantified in monetary

terms
 Examples
 Cost reduction and avoidance
 Error reduction
 Increased flexibility
 Increased speed of activity 21
 1. Economic Feasibility…

Intangible Benefits: whose value cannot be
precisely determined
 Examples
 Increased employee morale
 Competitive necessity
 More timely information
 Promotion of organizational learning and
understanding

 Determine Intangible Costs

 Intangible Costs
 Cannot be easily measured in dollars 22
 1. Economic Feasibility…
 Examples:
 Loss of customer goodwill
 Loss of employee morale

 Tangible cost
 Can easily be measured in dollars
 Example: Hardware

 It includes one-time (capital) and recurrent cost

 One-Time Costs
 Associated with project startup, initiation and
development 23
 Planning the Project
 Varied and numerous activities will be
performed during project planning.
a. Describing project scope, alternatives,
and feasibility.
 The purpose of this activity is to
understand the content and complexity of
the project.
 The scope answer the following question
 What problem or opportunity does the
project address?
 What are the quantifiable results to be
achieved?
 How will success be measured?
 How will we know when we are finished?
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 Economic Feasibility
 One-Time Costs
 Associated with project startup, initiation and
development
 Includes
 System Development

 New hardware and software purchases

 User training

 Site preparation

 Data or system conversion

 Recurring Costs
 Associated with ongoing use of the system
 Includes:
 Application software maintenance

 Incremental data storage expense

 New software and hardware releases

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 Consumable supplies
 2. Technical Feasibility
 The purpose of assessing technical feasibility is:
 Assessing of the development organization’s ability to
construct a proposed system.
 understanding of the possible target hardware, software,
and operating environments

 All projects have risk and that risk is not necessarily

something to avoid.
 Understanding the sources and types of technical
risks proves to be a valuable tool when you assess a
project.
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 2. Technical Feasibility..
 The amount of technical risk associated
with a given project is contingent on
four primary factors:
 project size,
 project structure,
 The development group’s experience with
the application and technology area, and
 The user group’s experience with
development projects and application area

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 2. Technical Feasibility..
 Using these factors for conducting a technical risk
assessment, four general rules emerge:
 Large projects are riskier than small projects.
 A system in which the requirements are easily obtained and
highly structured will be less risky than one in which
requirements are messy, ill-structured or unstructured .
 The development of a system employing commonly used or
standard technology will be less risky than one employing
novel or not standard technology.
 A project is less risky when the user group is familiar with
the systems development process and application area. 28
 3. Operational Feasibility
 Operational Feasibility
 Assessment of how a proposed system solves
business problems or takes advantage of
opportunities
 Your assessment of operational feasibility should
also include an analysis of how the proposed
system will affect organizational structures and
procedures.
 Clear understanding of how an IS will fit into the
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 4. Schedule Feasibility
 Schedule Feasibility
 Assessment of timeframe and project completion
dates with respect to organization constraints for
affecting change
 For example, a system may have to be operational
 By a government imposed deadline,
 By a particular point in the business cycle (such as the
beginning of the season when new products are
introduced),
 By the time a competitor is expected to introduce a
similar system. 30
 5. Legal and Contractual Feasibility
 Legal and Contractual Feasibility
 Assessment of legal and contractual
ramifications/consequence of new system
 Possible legal considerations might include
 Copyright or non disclosure infringements,
 Labor laws,
 Antitrust legislation (which might limit the reaction of
systems to share data with other organizations),
 Foreign trade regulations (for example, some countries
limit access to employee data by foreign corporations),
and
 Financial reporting standards as well as current 31
or
 Legal and Contractual Feasibility
 Contractual obligations may involve: -
 Ownership of software used in joint ventures,
 License agreements for use of hardware or software,
 Nondisclosure agreements with partners, or elements of a
labor agreement (for example, a union agreement may
preclude certain compensation or work monitoring
capabilities a user may want in a system).
 if your organization has historically used an
outside organization for specific systems or
services that you now are considering
handling your self, this feasibility is a greater
important. 32
 Political Feasibility
 Political Feasibility
 Assessment of the how key stakeholders in
organization view the proposed system.
 Since an information system may affect the
distribution of power, the construction of an
IS can have political ramifications.

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4.4. Building the Baseline Project
Plan
 All the information collected during project
initiation and planning is collected and
organized into a document called the
Baseline Project Plan.
 Once the BPP is completed, a formal review
of the project can be conducted.
 This presentation called a walkthrough
 The focus of this review is to verify all
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Building the Baseline Project Plan
 Four Sections
 Introduction
 System Description
 Feasibility Assessment
 Management Issues
 Introduction
 Brief overview
 Recommended course of action
 Project scope defined
 Units affected
 Interaction with other systems
 Range of system capabilities

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Building the Baseline Project Plan
 System Description
 Outline of possible alternative solutions
 The description is at a very high level-narrative
format.
 Collecting and structuring information in a more
detailed and rigorous manner during the analysis
phase
 Your objective is only to identify the most obvious
alternative solutions.
 Feasibility Assessment
 Project costs and benefits
 Technical difficulties
 High-level project schedule
 work breakdown for the next one or two life-cycle
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Building the Baseline Project Plan
 .
 Management Issues
 Outlines concerns that management may have about the
project
 Team composition- Provides a description of the team
member roles and reporting relationships.
 Communication plan- Provides a description of the
communication procedures to be followed by management,
team members, and the customer.
 Project standards and procedures -Provides a
description of how deliverables will be evaluated and
accepted by the customer.
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 Planning the Project
i. Developing a Statement of Work.
It is developed primarily for the customer.
This document outlines work that will be done

and clearly describes what the project will

deliver.
The statement of Work is useful to make sure that
you, the customer, and other project team
members have a clear understanding of the
intended project outcomes.

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Reviewing the Baseline Project Plan
 The customers, management, and development
group review the Baseline Project Plan, before
the next phase of the SDLC can begin.
 Objectives
 Assure conformity to organizational standards

 All parties agree to continue with project

 A common method for performing this review (as

swell as reviews during subsequent life-cycle
phases) is called a structured walkthrough.

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Reviewing the Baseline Project Plan
 Walkthrough
 Peer group review of any product created
during the systems development
organizations.
 Participants
 Coordinator
 Presenter

 User

 Secretary

 Standards Bearer

 Maintenance Oracle

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Reviewing the Baseline Project Plan
 Activities
 The coordinator by providing a Walkthrough
Review Form can make sure that a qualified
individual is assigned to each walkthrough role.
 After the presentation completed the
coordinator polled each representative for his or
her recommendation concerning the work
product.
 The suggested changes were recorded by the

secretary on a Walkthrough Action List and

given to the analyst to incorporate into a final
version of the baseline plan.
 Advantages
 Assures that formal review occurs during
project
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 4.5. Electronic Commerce
Application
 System planning and selection process for
Internet-based electronic commerce
application projects is no different than other
projects
 Special issues need to be taken into account
 Electronic Commerce (EC)
 Internet-based communication designed to
support business activities

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Electronic Commerce Application
 Internet
 Worldwide network of networks used for electronic
commerce
 Intranet
 Internet-based communication to support business
activities within a single organization
 Extranet
 Internet-based communication to support
business-to-business activities

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Electronic Commerce Application
 Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)
 The use of telecommunications technologies to
transfer business documents directly between
organizations
 Internet vs. Intranet/Extranet Applications
 Intranet/Extranet – Developer knows
 What application will be run and used.
 The speed of network connection.
 The type of communication device.

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Electronic Commerce Application
 Internet – Developer faces various
unknowns.
 Users
 Where is the user located? What is their expertise,
education, or experience
 Connection speed
 Access methods

 Web browser, personal digital assistant, web enable

cellular phone.

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 Any Questions?

End of Chapter Four

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