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STUDY GUIDE FOR MODULE NO. 5

SYSTEM PLANNING

MODULE OVERVIEW

This module will teach you strategies, tools, and techniques for project management as applied to
information systems projects. These also provide process-centric survey of key project
man-agement tools and techniques as they apply to systems analysis and design and you will know
that you understand the basics of project management when you can.

MODULE LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of the module, the students are expected to:

1. Identify feasibility checkpoints in the systems life cycle.
2. Identify alternative system solutions.
3. Define and describe six types of feasibility and their respective criteria.
4. Perform various cost-benefit analyses using time-adjusted costs and benefits.
5. Write suitable system proposal reports for different audiences.
6. Plan for a formal presentation to system owners and users.

LEARNING CONTENTS (Strategic Planning – A Framework for IT Systems Development)

Strategic planning
Is the process of identifying long-term organizational goals, strategies, and resources. A
strategic plan looks beyond day-to-day activities and focuses on a horizon that is three, five, ten, or
more years in the future. The IT team must deliver IT resources to support the firm’s long-term
strategic goals. Therefore, IT managers and systems analysts must understand and participate in
strategic planning activities. IT managers have to prepare for long-range needs, such as a new data
warehouse, even as they handle immediate problems, such as a logic bug in the payroll system. In
most companies, the IT team reviews each IT-related proposal, project, and systems request to
determine if it presents a strong business case, or justification.

Planning
The demand for new or replacement systems exceeds the ability and resources of most
organizations to conduct systems development projects either by themselves or with consultants.
This means that organizations must set priorities and a direction for systems development that will
yield development projects with the greatest net benefits. As a systems analyst, you must analyze
user information requirements, and you must also help make the business case—or justify why
the system should be built and the development project conducted.
The reason for any new or improved information system (IS) is to add value to the
organization. As systems analysts, we must choose to use systems development resources to
build the mix of systems that add the greatest value to the organization. How can we determine
the business value of systems and identify those applications that provide the most critical gains?
Part Two addresses this topic, the first phase of the systems development life cycle (SDLC),
which we call planning. Business value comes from supporting the most critical business goals
and helping the organization deliver on its business strategy. All systems, whether supporting
operational or strategic functions, must be linked to business goals. The two chapters
in this part of the book show how to make this linkage. The source of systems projects is either
initiatives from IS planning (proactive identification of systems) or requests from users or IS
professionals (reactions to problems or opportunities) for new or enhanced systems.
In this module we outline the linkages among corporate planning, IS planning, and the

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identification and selection of projects. We do not include IS planning as part of the SDLC, but the
results of IS planning greatly influence the birth and conduct of systems projects. Planning makes
a strong argument that IS planning provides not only insights into choosing which systems an
organization needs, but also describes the strategies necessary for evaluating the viability of any
potential systems project. A more frequent source of project identification originates from system
service requests (SSRs) from business managers and IS professionals, usually for
very focused systems or incremental improvements in existing systems. Business managers
request a new or replacement system when they believe that improved information
services will help them do their jobs. IS professionals may request system updates when
technological changes make current system implementations obsolete or when the performance
of an existing system needs improvement. In either case, the request for service must be
understood by management, and a justification for the system and associated project must be
developed. We continue with the Petrie Electronics case following Chapter 4. In this case, we
show how an idea for a new IS project was stimulated by a synergy between corporate
strategic planning and the creativity of an individual business manager.

THE BUSINESS CASE

Refers to the reasons, or justification, for a proposal. A strong business case suggests that the
company should pursue the alternative, above other options, because it would be in the firm’s best
interest to do so.

Strategic planning is the process of identifying long-term organizational goals, strategies, and
resources
⚫ Strategic Planning Overview
 SWOT analysis
– series of questions managers ask during strategic planning

- What are our major strengths, and how can we maximize

them?
- How can we strengthen our IT functions, people,
infrastructure?

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- What are our major weaknesses, and how can we overcome

them?

- How should we address weaknesses in IT resources and

capability?

- What are our major opportunities, and how can we take full advantage
of them?

- What IT plans do we have to support business opportunities?

- What major threats do we face, and what can we do about them?

- What can we do to deal with potential threats to IT success?

FROM STRATEGIC PLANS TO BUSINESS RESULTS

• MISSION STATEMENT – describes a company for its stakeholders and briefly states that
company’s overall purpose, products, services, and values. Stakeholders include anyone
affected by the company’s operations, such as customer, employees, supplier, stockholders
and members of the community. Mission Statement – is just the starting point. Next The
company identifies a set of GOALS that will accomplish the mission.

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To achieve those goals, the company develops a list of shorter-term objectives.

Objectives also might include tactical plans, such as creating a new Website and training a
special customer support group to answer e-mail inquiries. Finally, the objectives translate
into day-to-day business operations, supported by IT and other corporate resources. The
outcome is a set of business results that affect company stakeholders.

The Role of the IT Department in Project Evaluation

✓ Management leadership and information technology are linked closely and
remarkable changes have occurred in both areas.
 team oriented – is the norm, some companies see the role of the IT department
 Gatekeeper – responsible for screening and evaluating systems requests.

LEARNING CONTENTS (Factors that Affect Systems Projects)

The factors that Affect System Projects

• Internal Factors
– Strategic plan
– Top managers
– User requests
– Information technology department
– Existing systems

• External Factors
– Technology
– Suppliers
• Just-in-time (JIT)
– Customers
• Customer Relationship
Management (CRM)
– Competitors
– Economy
– Government

Information Systems Projects

• Main Reasons for Systems Projects

– Systems request
– Improved service
– Support for new products and services
– Better performance
– More information
– Stronger controls
• Encryption and biometric devices
– Reduced cost

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Information Systems Projects

• Project Management Tools

– All IT projects, large and small, must be managed and controlled
– Project management begins with a systems request, and continues until the project
is completed or terminated
• Risk Management
– The process of identifying, evaluating, tracking, and controlling risks to minimize their
impact.
– Every IT project involves risks that system analysts and IT project managers must
address

Evaluation of Systems Requests

• Systems review committee or a computer resources committee evaluate systems projects
• Systems Requests Forms
– A properly designed form streamlines the request process and ensures consistency
• Systems Review Committees
– Most large companies use a systems review committee to evaluate systems
requests
– Many smaller companies rely on one person to evaluate system requests instead of
a committee
– The goal is to evaluate the requests and set priorities

LEARNING CONTENTS (Feasibility Analysis and the System)

FEASIBILITY STUDIES
As shown in Figure below a feasibility study uses four main yardsticks to measure a
proposal: operational feasibility, economic feasibility, technical feasibility, and sched-ule
feasibility.
How much effort should go into a feasibility study depends on nature of the
request. For example, if a department wants an existing report sorted in a different order, the
analyst can decide quickly whether the request is feasible. On the other hand, a proposal by the
marketing department for a new market research system to predict sales trends would require
much more effort. In either case, the systems ana-lyst should ask these important questions:
• Is the proposal desirable in an operational sense? Is it a practical approach that will solve a

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problem or take advantage of an opportunity to achieve company goals?

• Is the proposal technically feasible? Are the necessary technical resources and people
available for the project?

FEASIBILITY STUDY EXAMINES OPERATIONAL, TECHNICAL, ECONOMIC, AND

SCHEDULE FACTORS

OVERVIEW OF FEASIBILITY

OPERATIONAL FEASIBILITY
Operational feasibility means that a proposed system will be used effectively after it
has been developed. If users have difficulty with a new system, it will not produce the
expected benefits. Organizational culture can also affect operational feasibility. For instance,
a system that works well in a highly structured workplace might be very unpopular in a more
relaxed corporate culture. Operational feasibility is difficult to measure with precision but
must be studied very carefully. The following questions would help predict a system’s
operational feasibility:
✓ Does management support the project? Do users support the project? Is the cur-rent
system well liked and effectively used? Do users see the need for change?
✓ Will the new system result in a workforce reduction? If so, what will happen to the
affected employees?
✓ Will the new system require training for users? If so, is the company prepared to
provide the necessary resources for training current employees?

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✓ Will users be involved in planning the new system right from the start?
✓ Will the new system place any new demands on users or require any operating
changes? For example, will any information be less accessible or produced less
frequently? Will performance decline in any way? If so, will an overall gain to the
organization outweigh individual losses?
✓ Will customers experience adverse effects in any way, either temporarily or
permanently?
✓ Will any risk to the company’s image or goodwill result?
✓ Does the development schedule conflict with other company priorities?
✓ Do legal or ethical issues need to be considered?

ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY
Economic feasibility means that the projected benefits of the proposed system out-weigh
the estimated costs usually considered the total cost of ownership (TCO), which includes
ongoing support and maintenance costs, as well as acquisition costs. To determine TCO,
the analyst must estimate costs in each of the following areas:
✓ People, including IT staff and users
✓ Hardware and equipment
✓ Software, including in-house development as well as purchases from vendors
✓ Formal and informal training, including peer-to-peer support
✓ Licenses and fees
✓ Consulting expenses
✓ Facility costs
✓ The estimated cost of not developing the system or postponing the project Tangible
costs, such as those listed above, usually can be measured in dollars. But intangible
costs also must be considered. For example, low employee morale might not have
an immediate dollar impact, but certainly will affect the company’s performance.
In addition to costs, tangible and intangible benefits to the company must be
assessed. The systems review committee will use those figures, along with the cost
estimates, to decide whether to pursue the project beyond the preliminary investigation
phase.
Tangible benefits are benefits that can be measured in dollars. Tangible benefits
result from a decrease in expenses, an increase in revenues, or both.

Examples of tan-gible benefits include the following:

✓ A new scheduling system that reduces overtime
✓ An online package tracking system that improves service and decreases the need for
clerical staff
✓ A sophisticated inventory control system that cuts excess inventory and elimi-nates
production delays
Intangible benefits are advantages that are difficult to measure in dollars but are
important to the company.

Examples of intangible benefits include the following:

✓ A user-friendly system that improves employee job satisfaction
✓ A sales tracking system that supplies better information for marketing decisions
✓ A new website that enhances the company’s image
The development timetable must also be considered, because some benefits might
occur as soon as the system is operational, but others might not take place until later.

TECHNICAL FEASIBILITY

Technical feasibility refers to the technical resources needed to develop, purchase,

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install, or operate the system.

When assessing technical feasibility, an analyst should consider the following points:
✓ Does the company have the necessary hardware, software, and network resources? If not,
can those resources be acquired without difficulty?
✓ Does the company have the needed technical expertise? If not, can it be acquired?
✓ Does the proposed platform have sufficient capacity for future needs? If not, can it be
expanded?
✓ Will a prototype be required?
✓ Will the hardware and software environment be reliable? Will it integrate with other
company information systems, both now and in the future? Will it inter-face properly
with external systems operated by customers and suppliers?
✓ Will the combination of hardware and software supply adequate performance? Do clear
expectations and performance specifications exist?
✓ Will the system be able to handle future transaction volume and company growth?

Keep in mind that systems requests that are not currently technically feasible can be
resubmitted as new hardware, software, or expertise becomes available. Development costs
might decrease, or the value of benefits might increase enough that a systems request
eventually becomes feasible. Conversely, an initially feasible project can be rejected later.

SCHEDULE FEASIBILITY
Schedule feasibility means that a project can be implemented in an acceptable time
frame. When assessing schedule feasibility, a systems analyst must consider the inter-
action between time and costs. For example, speeding up a project schedule might make a
project feasible, but much more expensive A systems request must pass several tests,
called a feasibility study, to see whether it is worthwhile to proceed further

Evaluating Feasibility
1. The first step in evaluating feasibility is to identify and weed out systems requests that are
not feasible
2. Even if the request is feasible, it might not be necessary
3. Feasibility analysis is an ongoing task that must be performed throughout the systems
development process

Setting Priorities

• Factors that Affect Priority

– Will the proposed system reduce costs? Where? When? How? How much?
– Will the system increase revenue for the company? Where? When? How? How
much?
– Will the systems project result in more information or produce better results? How?
Are the results measurable?
– Will the system serve customers better?
– Will the system serve the organization better?
– Can the project be implemented in a reasonable time period? How long will the
results last?
– Are the necessary financial, human, and technical resources available?
– Whenever possible, the analyst should evaluate a proposed project based on
tangible costs and benefits that represent actual (or approximate) dollar values

• Discretionary and Nondiscretionary Projects

– Projects where management has a choice in implementing them are called
discretionary projects.
– Projects where no choice exists are called nondiscretionary projects.

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LEARNING CONTENTS (Preliminary Investigation Overview)

⚫ Planning the Preliminary Investigation

✓ During a preliminary investigation, a systems analyst typically follows a series of
steps
✓ The exact procedure depends on the nature of the request, the size of the project,
and the degree of urgency

Preliminary Investigation Overview

STEP 1: UNDERSTAND THE PROBLEM OR OPPORTUNITY

➢ Determine which departments, users, and business processes are involved.
➢ A popular technique for investigating causes and effects is called a fishbone
diagram, or Ishikawa diagram.

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Fishbone or Isikawa Diagram

A fishbone diagrams is an analysis tool that represents the possible cause of a problem as a
graphical outline.
When using a fishbone diagram, an analyst first states the problem and draws a main bone with
sub-bones that represent possible causes of the problem.

FISHBONE DIAGRAM
(a.k.a. Cause-and-Effect Diagram or Ishikawa Diagram)

STEP 2: DEFINE THE PROJECT SCOPE AND CONSTRAINTS

➢ Project scope
➢ Project creep
➢ Constraint

⚫ Step 2: Define the Project Scope and Constraints

 Present versus future
 Internal versus external
 Mandatory versus desirable

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 Regardless of the type, all constraints should be identified as early as possible to

avoid future problems and surprises

CONSTRAINT- is a requirement or condition that the system must satisfy or an outcome that the
system must achieve. A constraint can involve hardware, software, time, policy, law or cost. System
constraints also define project scope.
Example: the order entry system must accept input from 15 remote sites;The human
resource information system must produce statistics on hiring practices;

STEP 3: PERFORM FACT-FINDING

➢ Fact-finding involves various techniques
➢ Depending on what information is needed to investigate the systems request, fact-
finding might consume several hours, days, or weeks
➢ During the fact-finding, you might analyze organization charts, conduct interviews,
review current documentation, observe operations.

Fact-Finding Ethics
⚫ Fact-Finding often brings systems analysts into contact with sensitive information.
 Company plans
 Employee salaries or medical history
 Customer credit card, social security, or other information
⚫ Ethical behavior includes:
 Systems analysts must not misuse that information.
 Systems analysts must protect that information from people who would misuse it.

Otherwise:
 Systems analyst loses respect, credibility, and confidence of users and management,
impairing ability to do job.
 Organization and systems analyst could have legal liability
 Systems analyst could lose job

Perform Fact-Finding

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A. Analyze Organizational Chart

B. Conduct Interview
C. Review Documentation
D. Observe Operations
E. Conduct User Survey
* Fact-finding – the formal process of using research, meetings, interviews, questionnaires,
sampling, and other techniques to collect information about system problems, requirements, and
preferences. It is also called information gathering or data collection.

A. Analyze Organization Charts

✓ Obtain organization charts to understand how the department functions.

B. Conduct interviews- The primary method of obtaining information during the

preliminary investigation is the interview.
✓ Determine the people to interview.
✓ Establish objectives for the interview.
✓ Develop interview questions.
✓ Prepare for the interview.
✓ Conduct the interview.
✓ Document the interview.
✓ Evaluate the interview.
B. Review documentation – might not be up – to-date, so you should check with users
to confirm that you are receiving accurate and complete information.
C. Observe operations - to see how workers carry out typical tasks.
D. Conduct a user survey-to obtain information from larger group by conducting a
user survey.

STEP 4: EVALUATE FEASIBILITY

➢ Evaluate the project’s:

a. Technical Feasibility
b. Economic Feasibility
c. Operational Feasibility
d. Schedule Feasibility
e. Risk Feasibility

Step 5: Estimate Project Development Time and Cost

- What to obtain and how?

- What Sources and difficulties?
- Conduct interview? How long?
- Conduct survey? Who? How long?
- How much ?
- Due (time) of report?

⚫ Step 6: Present Results and Recommendations to Management

➢ The final task in the preliminary investigation is to prepare a report to management
➢ The format of the preliminary investigation report varies from one company to
another

LEARNING CONTENTS (SIX TESTS FOR FEASIBILITY)

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SIX TESTS FOR FEASIBILITY

Operational feasibility – a measure of how well a solution meets the system requirements.
Cultural (or political) feasibility - a measure of how well a solution will be accepted in an
organizational climate.
Technical feasibility – a measure of the practicality of a technical solution and the
availability of technical resources and expertise.
Schedule feasibility – a measure of how reasonable the project timetable is.
Economic feasibility - a measure of the costeffectiveness of a project or solution.
Legal feasibility - a measure of how well a solution can be implemented within existing
legal/contractual.

OPERATIONAL FEASIBILITY
✓ How well proposed system solves the problems and takes advantage of
opportunities identified during the scope definition and problem analysis phases
✓ How well proposed system satisfies system requirements identified in the
requirements analysis phase
✓ Is the problem still worth solving?

CULTURAL (OR POLITICAL) FEASIBILITY

✓ Does management support the system?

✓ How do end users feel about their role in the system?
✓ What end users may resist or not use the system? How can this be overcome?
✓ How will the working environment change? Can users and management adapt to the
change?

TECHNICAL FEASIBILITY
✓ Is the proposed technology or solution practical?
✓ Do we currently possess the necessary technology?
✓ Do we possess the necessary technical expertise?

SCHEDULE FEASIBILITY
✓ Are specified deadlines mandatory or desirable?
✓ Are mandatory deadlines realistic for proposed solution?

ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY

During Scope Definition

✓ Do the problems or opportunities warrant the cost of a detailed study and analysis of
the current system?
During Problem Analysis
✓ After a detailed study of the current system
✓ Better estimates of development costs and benefits
During Decision Analysis
✓ Requirements now defined
✓ Development costs can be better estimated
Legal feasibility

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✓ Copyrights
✓ Union contracts
✓ Legal requirements for financial reporting
✓ Antitrust laws
✓ National data and work laws

LEARNING CONTENTS (COST BENEFITS ANALYSIS)

Cost Benefit Analysis

⚫ Spending versus Investing

⚫ Two Steps:
1. Producing the estimates of cost and benefits
2. Determining whether the project is worthwhile

1. PRODUCING COSTS AND BENEFITS

⚫ Cost
✓ Money flowing from the organization
✓ The sum value of costs of items needed to implement the system
✓ Operating Costs - are expenses
✓ Development Cost - capital investment
✓ Benefits - The sum value of the savings made

⚫ Useful Life
✓ The period of time during which an asset will have economic value and be usable.
The useful life of an asset is sometimes called the economic life of the asset
⚫ Salvage Value
✓ Is the “re-sell” value or scrap value of the asset at the end of its life
⚫ Depreciation
✓ A decrease in value of property

2. DETERMINING IF PROJECT IS WORTHWHILE

⚫ The costs and benefits are used to determine whether a project is economically feasible.

⚫ Two Ways:
1. Payback method
2. Present value method

⚫ PAYBACK METHOD
✓ Defines the time required to recover the money spent on a project

⚫ PRESENT VALUE METHOD

✓ Determine how much money it is worthwhile investing now in order to receive a
specific return in a particular period
✓ Present Value
The current value of future cash flows.
✓ Return on Investment (ROI)
Percentage rate that measures profitability by comparing the total net benefits
received from a project to the total cost (investment) of the project
✓ Internal Rate of Return
Interest rate received for an investment consisting of payments and income that
occur at regular periods. (should be ≥ minimum desired rate of return of the

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company)
✓ Payback Period
A measurement of the time period required to recover the project’s initial
investment

LEARNING CONTENTS ( THE SYSTEM PROPOSAL)

Organizing the Systems Proposal

While the project charter serves the purpose of identifying objects, determining scope, and
assigning responsibilities, the analyst still needs to prepare a systems proposal that includes much
of the detail about system needs, options, and recommendations. This section covers both the
content and style that makes up a systems proposal.

WHAT TO INCLUDE IN THE SYSTEMS PROPOSAL?

Ten main sections comprise the written systems proposal. Each part has a particular
function, and the eventual proposal should be arranged in the
following order:
1. Cover letter.
2. Title page of project.
3. Table of contents.
4. Executive summary (including recommendations).
5. Outline of systems study with appropriate documentation.
6. Detailed results of the systems study.
7. Systems alternatives (three or four possible solutions).
8. Systems analysts’ recommendations.
9. Proposal summary.
10. Appendices (assorted documentation, summary of phases, correspondence, and so on).

A cover letter to managers and the IT task force should accompany the systems proposal. It
should list the people who did the study and summarize the objectives of the study. Keep the cover
letter concise and friendly.
Include on the title page the name of the project, the names of the systems analysis team
members, and the date the proposal is submitted. The proposal title must accurately express the
content of the proposal, but it can also exhibit some imagination. The table of contents can be
useful to readers of long proposals. If the proposal is less than 10 pages long, omit the table of
contents.

The executive summary, in 250 to 375 words, provides the who, what, when, where, why,
and how of the proposal, just as would the first paragraph in a news story. It should also include
the recommendations of the systems analysts and desired management action, because some
people will only have time to read the summary. It should be written last, after the rest of the
proposal is complete.
The outline of the systems study provides information about all the methods used in the
study and who or what was studied. Any questionnaires, interviews, sampling of archival data,
observation, or prototyping used in the systems study should be discussed in this section.
This detailed results section describes what the systems analyst has found out about
human and systems needs through all the methods described in the preceding section.
Conclusions about problems workers experience when interacting with technologies and
systems that have come to the fore through the study should be noted here. This section should
raise the problems or suggest opportunities that call forth the alternatives presented in the next
section.
In the systems alternatives section of the proposal, the analyst presents two or three
alternative solutions that directly address the aforementioned problems. The alternatives you

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present should include one that recommends keeping the system the same. Each alternative should
be explored separately. Describe the costs and benefits of each situation. Because there are
usually trade-offs involved in any solution, be sure to include the advantages and disadvantages of
each. Each alternative must clearly indicate what users and managers must do to implement it. The
wording should be as clear as possible, such as, “Buy notebook computers for all middle
managers,” “Purchase packaged software to support users in managing inventory,” or “Modify the
existing system through funding in-house programming efforts.” After the systems analysis team
has weighed the alternatives, it will have a definite professional opinion about which solution is most
workable.
The systems analysts’ recommendations section expresses the recommended solution.
Include the reasons supporting the team’s recommendation so that it is easy to understand why it is
being made. The recommendation should flow logically from the preceding analysis of alternative
solutions, and it should clearly relate the human–computer interaction findings to the choice offered.
The proposal summary is a brief statement that mirrors the content of the executive
summary. It gives the objectives of the study and the recommended solution. The analyst should
once morestress the project’s import ance and feasibility along with the value of the
recommendations for reaching the users’ goals and improving the business. Conclude the proposal
on a positive note.
The appendix is the last part of the systems proposal, and it can include any information
that the systems analyst feels may be of interest to specific individuals, but that is not essential for
understanding the systems study and what is being proposed.
Once the systems proposal is written, carefully select who should receive the report.
Personally hand the report to the people you have selected. Your visibility is important for the
acceptance and eventual success of the system.

LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Individual Assessment Task

Refer to the case scenario:
1. One of your coworkers says, “Mission statements are nice, but they really don’t change
things down here where the work gets done.” How would you reply?
2. Discuss how a company’s financial status can affect systems projects. 3. The vice
president of accounting says to you, the IT director, “This request procedure takes too long. My
people know what they are doing, and their systems requests are necessary and important.” She
suggests that the IT department bypass the initial steps and immediately get to work on her
requests. What would you say to her?
4. When setting priorities for system requests, the highest priority goes to projects that
provide the great-est benefit, at the lowest cost, in the shortest period of time. How would you
reconcile projects that can produce good results in the short term versus projects that can produce
excellent results in the long term?
5. The final task in the preliminary investigation is to summarize the results and
recommendations in a report and/or in a presentation. Which form of communication, written or oral,
do you think is the most effective for conveying your findings to management?

Instructions for document format before submission:

Encode your final answers in MS Word and submit on or before the given deadline. Your answer for
each question should be a maximum of 10 sentences only. Check grammar, spelling errors before
submitting. Place your name, year level and section at the beginning of the page.

Group Assessment Task

Instructions for group composition and submission

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 FM-AA-CIA-15 Rev. 0 10-July-2020

Study Guide in (SAD 101 – SYSTEM ANALYSIS AND DESIGN) Module No._5_

Create a group consisting of 3 members. Discuss the given case scenario among your members
and answer the following questions. Encode your final answers in MS Word and submit on or before
the given deadline. Each answer should be a maximum of three sentences only. Check grammar,
spelling errors before submitting. Place group members’ names at the beginning of the page.

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Use the Internet to find three examples of corporate mission statements.
2. Prepare a SWOT analysis of your school or your employer.
3. A mind map is a diagram used to visually organize information. Identify a tool that
supports the cre-ation of mind maps and explain how they can be a valuable part of strategic
planning.
4. Visit the website for an IT magazine and find an article that discusses business cases.
Summarize the article and what you learned from it.
5. Think of a problem you have experienced at school or at work and draw a sample
fishbone diagram with at least two levels.

Instructions for document format before submission:

Encode your final answers in MS Word and submit on or before the given deadline. Your answer for
each question should be a maximum of 10 sentences only. Check grammar, spelling errors before
submitting. Place your name, year level and section at the beginning of the page.

SUMMARY
Systems planning is the first phase of the systems development life cycle. Effective
information systems help an organization support its business processes, carry out its mission, and
serve its stakeholders. During strategic planning, a company examines its purpose, vision, and
values and develops a mission statement, which leads to goals, objectives, day-to-day operations,
and business results that affect company stake-holders. SWOT analysis examines strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. SWOT analysis can be used at the enterprise level and for
individual projects. During the systems planning phase, an analyst reviews the business case,
which is the basis, or reason, for a proposed system. A business case should describe the proj-ect
clearly, provide the justification to proceed, and estimate the project’s financial impact.
Systems projects are initiated to improve performance, provide more information, reduce
costs, strengthen controls, or provide better service. Various internal and exter-nal factors affect
systems projects, such as user requests, top management directives, existing systems, the IT
department, software and hardware vendors, technology, cus-tomers, competitors, the economy,
and government.
During the preliminary investigation, the analyst evaluates the systems request and
determines whether the project is feasible from an operational, technical, economic, and schedule
standpoint. Analysts evaluate systems requests on the basis of their expected costs and benefits,
both tangible and intangible.
The steps in the preliminary investigation are to understand the problem or oppor-tunity; define
the project scope and constraints; perform fact-finding; analyze project usability, cost, benefit, and
schedule data; evaluate feasibility; and present results and recommendations to management.
During the preliminary investigation, analysts often use investigative tools such as fishbone
diagrams. The last task in a preliminary investigation is to prepare a report to management. The
report must include an estimate of time, staffing requirements, costs, benefits, and expected results
for the next phase of the SDLC.

REFERENCE

1. Scott Tilley 2020. System Analysis and Design 12 edition. Cengage Learning, Inc.

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 FM-AA-CIA-15 Rev. 0 10-July-2020

Study Guide in (SAD 101 – SYSTEM ANALYSIS AND DESIGN) Module No._5_

2. Valacich, Joseph S. and George, Joey F., 2017. Modern System Analysis and Design
8th edition. Pearson Education, Inc.
3. Bentley, Lonnie D., Whitten, Jeffrey L., 2007. System Analysis & Design Methods 7th
edition, McGraw-Hill Education.
4. https://psu.vitalsource.com/#/books/9780357117897/cfi/64!/4/2@100:0.00
5. https://psu.vitalsource.com/#/books/9780357117897/cfi/88!/4/4@0.00:48.6
6. file:///C:/Users/Sarah%20Ferrer/Downloads/Six_Tests_For_Feasibility.pdf

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