IST 202 Final Ch. 9

What are data flows?

Data moving through an organization or within an information system

When managers make the business case for an information system, what do they base their arguments on?

Faith, Fear, and/or Facts

What are some examples of off-the-shelf application software?

For business information systems: Payroll (optical reading of time sheets to generating paychecks) and Inventory (automation of tracking, order processing, shipping, billing) For office automation: personal productivity (support for a wide range of tasks form word processing to graphics to e-mail)

What is the criteria used for evaluation?

Hardware criteria-sufficient computing resources? software criteria-meeting our needs? easy to use? maintenance requirements? other criteria-cost of license? types of implementation support and training available?

What is important for presenting the business case?

1 Know the audience 2 Convert benefits to monetary terms 3 Measure what is important to management

What are the four types of conversion in system implementation (phase 4 of SDLC)

1 Parallel-old and new systems used at same time 2 Direct-old discontinued one day, new used next day 3 Phased-parts of system implemented over time 4 Pilot (single location)-entire system used in one location

What are the steps in 3rd party acquisition?

1 system planning and selection 2 systems analysis 3 development of a request for proposal (RFP) 4 proposal evaluation 5 vendor selection

What are fact-based feasibilities?

1 technical (can we build it)-IT resources 2 economic (should we build it)-financial considerations 3 operational (if we build it, will they come)-user interest/capabilities

What are the four types of software maintenance?

1. Corrective-making changed to repair flaws in design/coding/implementation 2. Adaptive-changes to evolve functionality, accommodate to changing needs 3. Preventative-changes to reduce chance of future failure 4. Perfective-improvements not necessarily required

What are the two primary advantages customized systems have over general purpose commercial technologies?

1. Customizability- software can meet tailored organizational requirements. 2. Problem specificity- company only has to pay for features specifically required

What is the system construction process?

1. Identify a large organizational problem to solve 2. decompose a large problem into many small problems 3. translate each small problem into a computer program 4. piece together the separate computer programs into an overall comprehensive information system

What are techniques for collection system requirements?

1. Interviews 2. Questionnaires 3. Observations 4. Document analysis 5. Joint application design-group meeting based process where users jointly define and agree on system requirements or designs

What are the characteristics of different stakeholders involved in making IS investment decisions?

1. Management (reps or functional areas W/I firm) 2. Steering Committee (reps from interest groups in org) 3. User Department (reps of the intended users of system) 4. IS Executive (overall responsibility for managing IS dept., implementation, and maintenance of selected systems)

What are the user training options?

1. Offline tutorial: one person taught at a time in person or by paper-based exercises 2. Course: several ppl taught at once 3. Computer-aided instruction: one person taught by computer system 4. Interactive training manuals: combo of tutorials and computer-aided instruction 5. Resident expert: expert on call 6. Software help components: built-in system components to train users 7. External sources: vendors and training providers

what are intangible benefits?

A benefit of using a particular system or technology that is difficult to quantify. Examples: improvements in customer service resulting from faster turnaround on fulfilling orders. Better customer service can increase the value of the stock.

what are tangible benefits?

A benefit of using a particular system or technology that is quantifiable. Examples: reduction of order entry errors because orders are now tracked electronically and shipped automatically.

what are tangible costs?

A cost of using a particular system of technology that is quantifiable.

what are intangible costs?

A cost of using a particular system or technology that is difficult to quantify. examples: cost of reduced traditional sales, losing customers not "web ready", or losing customers if the web app is poorly designed or not up to par with competitor's websites.

what is change request management?

A formal process that ensures that any proposed system changes are documented, reviewed for potential risks, appropriately authorized, prioritized, and carefully managed.

What is weighted multicriteria analysis?

A method for deciding among different information systems investments or alternative designs for a given system in which requirements and constraints are weighted in the basis of their importance.

What is an embedded system?

A microprocessor-based system designed to perform only a specific, predefined task.

What is the systems development life cycle (SDLC) and what are its four phases?

A model describing the life of an information system from conception to retirement 1. systems planning and selection 2. systems analysis 3. systems design 4. systems implementation and operation (includes programming and testing)

What are non-recurring (one-time) costs?

A one-time cost that is not expected to continue after a system is implemented. examples: development team salaries, consultant fees, hardware/software purchases, implementation costs, training costs

What is break-even analysis?

A type of cost-benefit analysis to identify at what point (if ever) tangible benefits equal tangible costs.

what is a net-present-value analysis?

A type of the cost-benefit analysis of the cash flow streams associated with an investment.

What is pseudocode?

A way to express processing logic independent of the actual programming language being used. It's a representation of a the program's internal functioning.

What is prototyping?

An iterative systems development process in which requirements are converted into a working system that is continually revised through close work between analysts and users. (trial-and-error before making official decision)

What are recurring costs?

An ongoing cost that occurs throughout a life cycle of systems development, implementation, and maintenance. examples: upgrades and maintenance of the systems, communication costs, on-going training

What is a patch management system?

An online system that utilizes web services to automatically check for software updates, downloading and installing these "patches" as they are made available. vendors incorporate this in off-the-shelf sotware

What is redistribution?

Another reason why productivity lacks due to the fact that some new systems are only beneficial for individual firms rather than the economy as a whole. In a competitive situation, new innovations can be used to redistribute the pieces of the pie rather than make the whole pie bigger.

What is an example of mismanagement?

People implement new systems poorly because they rely on technology fixes when they require a joint technology/process solution.

What are proxy variables?

An alternative measurement of outcomes; used when it is difficult to determine and measure direct effects. It helps clarify the impact something will have on a firm. Measure the value different outcomes will have on a firm.

What is "making the business case"?

The process of identifying, quantifying, and presenting the value provided by an information system. Basically justifying why they should use a certain information system. It sells an investment, must have value for the company, go/no go decision, must have funding

What is a discount rate?

The rate of return used by an organization to compute the present value of future cash flows.

What is processing logic?

The steps by which data is transformed or moved, as well as a description of the events that trigger these steps.

What are "hot issues" with senior managers?

They should be easier to discover and aren't always financial reports. It could include cycle time (how long an order is processed), regulatory or compliance issues, customer feedback, and employee morale.

What is cost-benefit analysis?

This is an example of an economic feasibility. Techniques that contrast the total expected tangible costs versus the tangible benefits for an investment. techniques: simple cash flow, return on investment (ROI), Break-even point (BEP), net present value (NPV) TVM

What is the first step in making an effective presentation for making a business case?

Understanding the audience

Can companies combine off-the-shelf and customized systems?

Yes, they can modify systems they bought off-the-shelf to meet their specific needs.

What is the faith argument?

based on beliefs about organizational strategy, competitive advantage, industry forces, customer perceptions, market share, and so on.

What is the fact argument?

based on data, quantitative analysis, and/or indisputable factors.

What is the fear argument?

based on the notion that if the system is not implemented, the firm will lose out to the competition or go out of business.

Why are is there 3rd party (external) acquisition?

because there's limited staff, they're overworked and have limited skill sets

Describe the systems analysis phase

collecting requirements (may be most important part of systems development), modeling data (needs), modeling process and logic (model data flow and processing logic)

Describe the systems design phase

design chosen in phase 2 can now be built. human-computer interface, databases and files, processing and logic

What two categories are tangible costs divided in?

non-recurring costs and recurring costs

What is vendor selection?

picking the best proposal since there are multiple solutions. done by prioritizing and ranking best options. Can use weighted-scoring system as well.

Describe the systems planning and selection process

resources are limited, so projects must be limited. analyst gather info, build case. multiple approaches of selection: Formal IS planning process and Ad-hoc planning w/ steering committee.

What goes into a request for proposal?

summary of existing systems/apps, requirements for performance/features, reliability/backup/service requirements, criteria to evaluate proposals, timetable/budget constraints

what are the consequences of not properly using maintenance on information system software?

system malfunction, system failure, increasing unreliability, or opening the door for fraud or deliberate misuse.

What are time lags?

the reason why productivity is difficult due to the time it takes between when a company makes and investment and when the investment is translated into improvement.

Why do programmers use documentation?

to ease future maintenance and ensure reliability of a system. user-related documentation can range from user and reference guides, user training manuals and tutorials, and installation procedures and troubleshooting suggestions. These are written by users or professional technical writers. p 372

what is the focus of project management?

to ensure that projects meet customer expectations and are delivered within budget and time constraints.

What are the factors for evaluation of proposals

total cost of ownership, system features, benefits, benchmarks (measurement)

Describe the systems implementation and operation

transform that design into a working system like software programming and testing, system conversion, training, support. then eventually operating that new system

What are the benefits of off-the-shelf systems?

whether hardware or software, they are less costly, faster to procure, of higher quality, and less risky than customized systems.

What are the options for a new information system?

1. build it 2. buy a prepackaged system 3. outsource development to a third party 4. open source software

What are the different types of testing systems?

1. developmental: testing the correctness of individual modules and the integration of multiple modules 2. alpha: testing of an overall system to see whether it meets design requirements 3. beta: testing capabilities of systems in the user environment with actual data

What elements must be designed when building an information system? (systems design phase)

1. human-computer interface (the point of contact between a system and users) 2. databases and files 3. processing and logic (steps and procedures that transform raw data inputs into new or modified information)

What is the possible evaluation criteria for classifying and ranking projects?

1. strategic alignment 2. potential benefits 3. potential costs and resource availability 4. project size and duration 5. technical difficulty and risks

What are the well-known company examples?

Amazon, Microsoft, Sprint, DST systems, Garmin, Cerner, Hallmark, VML, Perceptive Software, Freightquote.com

Which process is the largest part of system development? Is it in the initial development or maintenance process?

Maintenance

What are the reasons for the productivity paradox?

Measurement, Time Lags, Redistribution, and Mismanagement.

What is the difference between customized and off-the-shelf software?

Off-the-shelf software can be used generically across many firms, but customized software is used when firms have specific needs

what is requirements collection?

The process of gathering and organizing information from users, managers, customers, business processes, and documents to understand how a proposed information system should function.

What is open source software?

Software for which the course code is freely available for use and/or modification.

What is total cost ownership (TCO)?

The cost of owning and operating a system, including the total cost of acquisition, as well as all costs associated with its ongoing use and maintenance. This is a goal of the total-cost analysis.

What is system efficiency?

The extent to which a system enables people and/or a firm to do things faster, at a lower cost, or with relatively little time and effort. Many business metrics focus on this unfortunately.

What is system effectiveness?

The extreme to which a system enables people and/or the firm to accomplish goals or tasks well. increases in productivity result from this.

What is the productivity paradox?

The observation that productivity increases at a lower rate than expected when new technologies are introduced.

Who is the project manager?

The person most responsible for ensuring that a project is a success. often, this is also the job of the systems analyst. They need a diverse set of management, leadership, technical, conflict management, and customer relationship skills.

What is system conversion?

The process of decommissioning the current system (automated and manual) and installing a new system in the organization.

What is system analysis and design?

The process of designing, building, and maintaining information systems. Individuals who perform these tasks are system analysts. They possess a unique blend of managerial and technical expertise.