ICAD4043A Develop and present a feasibility report

Assessment information

Welcome to the unit Develop and present a feasibility report (ICAD4043A). This unit is about researching and presenting a range of feasible scenarios or solutions for a client's business problem.

In this unit, you’ll do 5 tasks for a fictional manufacturer of small electrical appliances, NewElectrix. These tasks will allow you to demonstrate your skills and knowledge in Developing and presenting a feasibility report.

To do these tasks you’ll need to be able to:

• Analyse data and document client requirements
• Identify alternative solutions
• Examine alternative solutions against project constraints
• Develop and document a feasibility report
• Obtain client sign off on documentation

Task 1: Create a requirements document

Activity 1.1: Data flow diagram

Figure 1: Data flow diagram

Q: Which guidelines have not been followed in the above data flow diagram?

A: There are some example of unfollow guidelines of this diagram.

• Process description must have a verb – appointment diary does not explain what this process does.
• Data flow description must only use a noun – check appointment does not describe the data that is coming from the data store.
• The data store must have a name
• Appointment confirmation data cannot go from the data store directly to the patient, it must go through a process.
• No data goes into the data store – if nothing goes into it we cannot get anything out of it!
  

Activity 1.2: Create a Diagram 0

Create a Diagram 0 for the following system.

In a payroll system the time cards are submitted by the employees, pay cheques are issued to the employees, and information on the employee is given to the Tax Department. Further investigation reveals the following major functions:

• Hours worked are verified against the time card file.
• Salary deductions are calculated using the tax table file.
• Pay cheques are prepared and sent to the employee.
• A tax report is prepared and sent to the tax department.

A: There is no one correct answer for a DFD but it should have the same external entities, data, data flows and processes.

Activity 1.3: Research CASE tools

There are many different CASE tools on the market which automate the business process and data modelling of the system, and provide tools for recording the information. Go to the Queens University School of Computing archives website: http://www.cs.queensu.ca/Software-Engineering/case.html and choose the Case tools by category search. You could also try itmWEB: http://www.itmweb.com/case.htm. Have a look at two or three different CASE tools and find one that covers the ‘upper’ CASE area that we would use in the information gathering phase of a project.

Q: Write a short report of its features and functions.

A: The following is a sample format for a report on a CASE tool, showing the main points that should be included.

A sample report should contain the following sections:

• Product name and vendor – cost of the tool, if available
• Parts of the SDLC that it can be used in
• Functions, e.g. 1) Requirements management, including operational, system, user, functional, and non-functional requirements. 2) Decomposition and merging of requirements. 3) Requirements evolution
• Features, e.g. 1) Requirements can be automatically captured from existing documents using Word / Excel plug-ins 2) Requirements can be organised and analysed using search, selection, decomposition and merge tools. 3) Changes can be managed by version control tools. 4.) Graphics and video can be integrated from other desktop tools. 5) Automatic logging of edits

Task 2: Identify alternative solutions

Activity 2.1: Preparing a business solution

Consider the following scenario and write a brief response to each of the four questions below. Think about what will you need to consider and document to prepare possible business solutions.

Scenario

Widgets-R-Us have had a good five years. Since their launch they have grown to become one of Australia's top 20 Widget manufacturers. They are looking to expand their head office - they currently lease half a floor in a city skyscraper and are planning to take over the lease of the whole floor in six months time.

Before they proceed with the expansion, they have asked your IT company to provide three options for installing an IT network in the new office area. There will be 30 new employees moving into the space.

They would like you prepare a feasibility report for the planned network installation.

Q1: What do you need to know before you can begin to look at alternatives for this network installation?

A1: The information given here is very general in nature. Your task will be made easier if you can identify specific restraints and client needs for the project.

Restraints and client needs you need to consider might include:

• Budget - how much do they want to spend?
• Time frame - when is the implementation needed and does installation need to occur at a time when business will not be effected?
• Scope of the project - are they looking for just the network infrastructure (just cabling and network hardware) or a complete solution (including supply of all new desktop computers and software)?
• Technical requirements - consider internet capacity, networking, data transfer speeds, storage and processor capacity, security etc.
• Hardware requirements - is a new server needed? What kind of computers are needed?
• Usage requirements - what will the new computers be used for (for example, graphic applications demand greater computing capacity than accounting programs)
• Existing systems - how will the new installation fit with the existing set-up?
• Ongoing support - are there existing service agreements for IT support?

This is not a comprehensive list - you may be able to come up with more ideas for this.

Q2: How could you find the information referred to in Question A above?

A2: Your client requirements and the request to carry out the work will come from management of the organisation. If there is an existing IT department you will talk to them about their projected needs and the existing systems that need to be considered.

You may also need to make your own enquires among staff about specific IT needs.

Seek out existing technical documentation for the organisation's IT infrastructure and IT usage policies.

Methods you use to gather information can include interviews, questionnaires, document research, etc.

Activity 2.2: Business requirements

Q: Consider following small case study for Companion Pensioners Insurance and answer the following question.

Case study: Companion Pensioners Insurance

Last year, the insurance companies Civic Care and Your Insurance merged to form the specialist pensioners insurance company, Companion Pensioners Insurance. The following is an extract from the CEO’s report to the section heads of Companion Pensioners Insurance:
Since the merging of our two companies we have experienced great difficulties in integrating business practices and procedures. This is especially true in more remote branch offices.
The incorrect processing of customer requests has caused a backlog of unprocessed paper work, creating increased customer dissatisfaction. It is taking well over three weeks for requests to return to our customers, when it should be less than two.

We are considering using the existing corporate IT infrastructure to implement a centralised database of policies and procedures, accessed from the corporate Intranet. The job of maintaining policies and procedures will be handed to our Human Resources department.
Some of the business requirements that were identified as relevant to the selection of new technology included:

• Compatibility with existing operating systems and networking software
• Interoperability with existing corporate intranet
• Maintainable by staff with basic computer literacy skills (HR staff and branches)
• Centralised database accessed from multiple sites.

A series of product criteria tests were devised. The following is a list of tests that failed in the inspection of the new corporate intranet system:

• After logging on, users could not access their details from the online personnel system displayed on the web page.
• Ferndale branch staff could not access the procedures menu, select the list facility, or display the list of procedures.
• Windows XP would not load the plug-in for intranet access.

A: The business requirements that were not met include:

• Interoperable with existing corporate intranet
• Centralised database accessed from multiple sites
• Compatible with existing operating systems and networking software

Activity 2.3: Sourcing alternative solutions

Accenture is a large multinational company that specialises in outsourcing projects for a wide variety of industries. Go to their website and have a look at some of their outsourcing services. Read the description of their outsourcing project for the Sarah Lee company. (Got to: http://www.accenture.com.au/, then select 'Services', then 'By subject', 'Outsourcing', 'Application outsourcing', then look for the Sara Lee project).

Q: What strategy did Sarah Lee use to decide on their final "e-procurement" supplier?

A: Sara-Lee ran a double trial of two potential systems before deciding on the system that most closely matched their needs and delivered extra benefits in getting cheaper access to suppliers.
One key point of this activity is that when preparing a feasibility study, it is often worth carrying out extensive research on each alternative before deciding on the best solution.

Task 3: Examine alternative solutions against constraints

Activity 3.1: Perform a cost/benefit analysis

Suppose we had a proposed project with a $7,000 development cost. The operating costs of the new system are $1500 per annum and the operating costs of the old system are $5000 per annum.

Using an Excel spreadsheet, calculate the payback period, the NPV and the ROI over a five year period, assuming an interest rate of 5%.

Q: Based on your results, is the proposed system economically feasible? Should the project go ahead?

A:

Investment = $7000
Net benefit p.a.: $5000 - $1500 = $3500

Table: Present and Cumulative values

Development cost = $7,000

Payback period = No of years for development cost = cumulative value of savings
2 years = $6,507.94
portion of 3rd year = (7000—6507.94)/3023.43 = 0.16
Payback period = 2.16 years

NPV = cumulative savings—development cost
NPV = $8,153.17

Return on investment = NPV/development cost
ROI = 116.47% over 5 years
ROI = 23.29% per annum

In this case the project will probably go ahead. Because, the payback period is just over 2 years, the NPV is $8153.17 and the ROI is 23.29% per annum.

Task 4: Produce a feasibility report

Activity 4.1: Develop a recommendation

Develop a recommendation for the following small case study:

An organisation is trying to decide whether they should use Windows 2000 Professional or Windows XP as a desktop operating system. The business currently uses Windows 95 running on two Pentium 3 machines. The applications used include Microsoft Office 95 and MYOB version 7. There are two staff members who use the machines on a regular basis. Neither is familiar with either of the two options.

Q: What issues will you need to consider?

A: This type of recommendation should cover issues such as:

• hardware resources required and available
• current environment
• compatibility with current applications
• new features that may be useful
• costs of upgrading
• training requirements
• future directions
• any benefits from upgrading.

Task 5: Present a feasibility report for sign-off

Activity 5.1: Sign-off and quality management

Where do sign-off procedures fit in with your organisation’s quality management policies?
By this stage of your learning you will have discovered that some organisations use the ISO 9000 family of standards as a basis to certify the quality standards of their processes, other organisations prefer alternative measures, such as Six Sigma.

Q: Using a web search engine, research the fundamentals of ISO 9000, and find where sign-off procedures for documents fits into the system? Write a brief report on your findings (about 250 words).

A: The answers are vary. Information on ISO 9000 can be found at many sites Information may include the following points:

If your organisation has quality certification, ISO 9000 sets out the requirements for your quality management system. ISO 9000 is not a standard for ensuring a product or service is of quality; rather, it verifies the quality of the process, and how it will be managed and reviewed. So ISO 900 doesn’t guarantee the quality of the technical documents, it lays out the rules for the process for sign-off

Hence, ISO 9000 is directly related to your organisation’s procedures for sign-off, and those procedures may vary from one organisation to another.

There are four types, or levels, of documentation you will need to manage to achieve ISO 9000 standards for sign-off. These four levels form a hierarchy. The more detailed the document, the further down it belongs in the documentation hierarchy:

Table: The ISO 9000 documentation hierarchy

Fourth-level documentation includes all the records and forms which are generated by the working system.

ISO 9000 document generation and control

Under ISO 9000, every department issuing documents is free to designate its own procedures and channels for processing documents, including sign-off. This is a matter for your organisation to manage. Your management defines what your distribution network is, and who has authority for sign-off and release of procedures.

• Authority—Define who has the authority to sign off on documentation changes?
• Obsolete Documents—Describe what you do to these (shred, archive, etc).
• Distributions—Who gets the documents?
• Identification and revision—How do you identify documents? How do you track their revisions?
• Appendices and forms—Do you include appendices containing extra reference materials pertaining to each document for sign-off?
  

Key terms

Capacity: Ability of equipment or work groups to handle the volume of work.

CASE tool: CASE (Computer Aided Software Engineering) tools are software packages that help to automate software development.

Constraint: A factor, such as cost, that restricts the range of solutions.

Cost/Benefit Analysis: A systematic quantitative and qualitative comparison of the relative advantages and disadvantages of alternatives.

Data dictionary: A data dictionary is a centralised system for defining and storing information about the data and the processes that transform the data in some way.

Levelling: Breaking down a process in a data flow diagram into lower level processes, each with their own data flow diagram

Platform: The type of computer hardware and / or operating system. For example, Wintel; a platform combining Intel x86 compatible hardware and Windows operating system, Lintel; a platform combining Intel x86 compatible hardware and Linux operating system.

Response time: The amount of time taken to get a response from the computer to a request from the user. For example, how long it takes for the results of a query to appear on the screen after you have clicked the run option.

Standard operating environment (SOE): The standard equipment, both hardware and software, that a business uses. This may be a decision to use a specific combination of products, or all products from one supplier or vendor.

SWOT analysis: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats Analysis – this is the process of determining where an organisation is currently positioned.

Volumes of data: The amount of data being processed by a system. For example, the number of transactions processed in a day, week etc.

Version Control: Process for organising and documenting successive changes to a document or system.

Evaluation matrix: Table created to compare several options with regards to specific functions.

Network: Equipment and software needed to link computers in order to share data.

Server: Computer that is dedicated to handling communication and/or storage needs of the other equipment in the network.

Stakeholder: A person or organisation that has a legitimate interest in a project or entity.

Feasibility Study: The process of examining a number of solutions to a business problem, and reporting on which solution, if any, is worthwhile.

Net Present Value (NPV): Using a given discount rate, the cost of the initial investment is subtracted from the present value of expected future cash flows to give the net present value.

Payback period: The period of time it takes before the cost of your investment is recouped.

Return on Investment (ROI): The return for an investment expressed as a percentage.

Risk Analysis: A process assessing the risks associated with development of a system

ICAB4225A Automate Processes

Welcome to the Automate Processes (ICAB4225A) blog. This blog will help you understand about programming.

Assessment information

To successfully complete this unit, Automate processes (ICAB4225A) this blog will be shown about automate solutions by using basic scripting processes and application-specific scripting options.

Automating processes is an integral part of contemporary computing; using inbuilt scripting languages is a key part of that. Applications or systems administration personnel need to continually examine options to automate processes, to that way enhance performance.

To successfully complete this unit, this blog will shown how to design and develop algorithms.
Also need to be able to develop an algorithmic statement of a solution for a set process.

Assessment tasks will require you to show you are able to:

• Develop algorithms to represent solution to a given problem
• Describe structures of algorithms
• Design and write script
• Verify and review script
• Document script.

Task 1: Identify algorithm structures

Activity 1.1: Investigate flowchart symbols

Using a web browser, go to the Q-Skills website at: http://www.q-skills.com/flowchrt.html. Look at ISO9004.4. Section A.6.2 which describes four basic symbols to be used in flow charts.

Q: What are the four basic flowchart symbols and what do they represent?

A: Following table is shown the basic flow chart symbols and they represent.

Activity 1.2: Write an algorithm demonstrating sequence

Q: Write an algorithm that will accept two numbers, add them together, multiply by 27 to the total and then display the total.

A: This figure is an algorithm that accept and add two number together, then multiply by 27 to the totlal and display the total.

Activity 1.3: Write an algorithm demonstrating selection

Write an algorithm that will accept a test mark between 0 and 100. Display the grade that the student receives based on the table below:

A: The below ficgure shows an algorithm to accept a test mark between 0 and 100 and also display the grade that the student will receives.

Task 2: Apply algorithm structure to give a solution

Activity 2.1: Create an abstract design

Q: Write an algorithm to process the pay information for employees according to the following:

• To process each pay, the operator will input the hours worked and the pay rate.
• Tax of 30% is to be deducted from the gross pay.
• The information to be displayed is the gross pay, tax deducted and the net pay (gross pay minus tax).
• After processing each pay, the operator will be prompted to process another pay. If the operator types in the character ‘y’ (uppercase or lowercase), another pay is to be processed. Any other response to this prompt will end the program.

A: This is one of the possible solution.

Activity 2.2: Review abstract design

Design a set of inputs that could be used to conduct desk-checking of the algorithm below. The test data should test program flow control, correctness of calculations and assignments to variables. The algorithm should meet the program specifications presented in Activity 1.

Q: Perform a desk-check on the algorithm using your test inputs. Does the algorithm meet the program specifications? If not, what errors did you identify?

A: According to the algorithm in 2.1 answer, This algorithm does not meet program specifications because of two problems:

• Problem 1 — The gross pay is displayed twice and the net pay is not displayed.
• Problem 2 — If the operator responded with uppercase Y when prompted to process another pay, the algorithm stops.

The IF and the ELSEIF both test for the lowercase ‘y’. One of them should test for uppercase ‘Y’.

Task 3: Develop and verify script language for an algorithm

Activity 3.1: Translate an algorithm to script code

Translate the following algorithm into script code using Python. Execute your script with the numbers 3 and 5.
Q: What is the result displayed by the script? Describe what the code is doing using one sentence.

A: The value displayed for result should be 12.

Activity 3.2: Identify and correct a logic error

Q: Find and correct the logic error(s) in the script.

A: There are 3 logic error followed:

Logic error 1: In the while loop, the else should not change the loop control variable (gotConvertTo) to 1. This allows any character to be entered from the keyboard and the script continues. This line should be deleted.

Logic error 2: This is more like a ‘copy and paste’ error. The code executes as it should, but the output would be misleading. The print statement in the section where the original temperature is converted to Celsius (the last if), should read Fahrenheit where it reads Celsius. It should be:

if convertTo == 'c':
newTemp = temp—32 * 5/9
print 'Original temperature entered was',temp,'Fahrenheit'

Logic error 3: The mathematical formula to convert to Celsius requires that 32 be subtracted from the temperature BEFORE the multiply and divide. The code should enforce a change in the order in which the calculations would be performed to allow the addition to occur first. The addition part should be in parentheses to force the addition to occur fist as shown:

newTemp = (temp—32) * 5/9

Key terms

Algorithm: A procedure or set of steps to accomplish a specific task

Computer program: The embodiment of an algorithm in a computer language, so that it can be executed on a computer

Sequence: The simplest type of flow in algorithm design, where actions are carried out in the stated order; see also ‘selection’ and ‘iteration’

Selection: A flow-pattern in algorithm design, where a choice is made about which action to perform, depending upon a logical condition; the most common selection structure is IF/ELSE; see also ‘sequence’ and ‘iteration’

Iteration: a flow-pattern in algorithm design, also known as looping or repetition; actions are performed over and over again; a loop condition determines when the loop will finish; see also ‘sequence’ and ‘selection’

Pseudocode: A language-neutral representation used to show the logic, structure, and calculations of algorithms

Variable: A container with a name, to hold values during program execution; when a variable is declared in a program, some memory is set aside to hold its value

Software development life cycle (SDLC): A procedural framework for developing computer software and information systems

Top-down design: The development of a program by dividing the original complex task into smaller, less complex tasks, and then applying the same process to each smaller task, until the tasks translate easily into code statements

Desk-check: A code testing process where the code is manually executed

Walk-through: A review of requirements, designs and or code by a group; its purpose is to analyse the programmer’s logic and assumptions

Function:A named section of code that performs a particular task

Array: A collection of data items that can be accessed using a common name and an index

ICAA4041A Determine and confirm client business expectations and needs

Assessment Information To successfully complete this unit, Determine and confirm client business expectations and needs (ICAA4041A), you will need to be able to demonstrate the skills and knowledge required to determine client business requirements and verify the accuracy of the information gathered

To do this you will need to confirm that you have sufficient knowledge of investigation, interview and documentation techniques, and the ability to produce a clear statement of business expectations and needs, including critical business requirements.
Your assessment tasks will require you to show you are able to:

• Determine context of business needs and problem
• Gather information
• Confirm system specifications
  

1: Define and document business problems practice

In order to find a solution for a client’s business problem, it is necessary to fully define the problem in terms of its system boundaries and scope. Objectives and expected outcomes of a proposed solution must be identified and documented, along with the development methodology which is to be used. This documentation must then be submitted to the appropriate person to ensure that its contents are accurate. The skills and knowledge covered in this learning pack are:

• Identify outcomes
• Develop objectives
• Documentation according to organisational guidelines.

Activity 1: Context diagram

An external consultant has recommended the implementation of enhancements to the university’s student management system. The project brief is:

‘to add functionality to the StudentPlus management system to allow student enrolments, student attendance and student marks via the intranet’

The project brief also contains a broad list of the functions the system should support. They are:

• Student self enrolment for classes via internet
• Enrolled classes statement
• List of classes for each teacher
• Entry of student marks
• Entry of student attendance
• Results statement for each student

A: This below diagram is shown the context of student and management system to allow student enrolments, student attendance and student marks via the intranet.

Figure 1: Context diagram for student plus management system

2: Identify information gathering techniques

One of the key skills in determining solutions to business problems is making sure that you first know what the problem is.

While this seems an obvious statement, many clients are too close to a problem to be able to give you the information that may be essential to your role in a project. You need to be able to find the information that you require.

This blog will show different techniques that can be used to gather information for a project and will help develop your skills in interviewing and active listening.


Activity 2.1: Identify listening techniques

Scenario A

Customer: I would like to say that the computer I bought from your store keeps breaking down.
Vendor: Well, there must be something you’re doing that is not right. You’ve never used a computer before, have you? Don’t worry, you’re not the only one. I’ll see what’s wrong. I find that my customers who don’t have technical backgrounds always have trouble with their computers

Feedback A: The vendor is attacking the customer as a way of avoiding the issue and shirking his responsibilities. He could, instead, ask the customer to explain what goes wrong with the computer.

Scenario B

Client: The machine we hired from your company has been continually breaking down over the past two weeks.

Manager: What do you mean by ’continually’? Or do you mean ’continuously’? There’s a big difference between the two words. One means non-stop and the other means every now and again. Or do you mean ’constantly’?

Feedback B: The manager is avoiding the issue by ’nit-picking’. He did this to try to embarrass and belittle the customer. He was able to tell from the context exactly what the customer was saying but chose not to listen or respond. He could say: ’Tell me about the last time it broke down. How were you using the machine?’

Activity 2.2: Question types

Q: Name as many different types of questions as you can.
A: Following are a range of question types:

• reflective questions
• strategic questions
• open ended and closed questions
• organising questions
• what-if questions
• probing questions
• sorting and sifting questions
• divergent questions
• clarification questions
• devil’s advocate questions
• planning questions

3: Analyse data and document client requirements

This blog will provide you with the skills and knowledge you need to analyse and document the information that you have gathered about the problem, to identify the requirements of the new system, and to check that this meets the client’s needs.

The blog also includes information on how to analyse and document those requirements to determine the scope and problem or opportunity faced by the business.
Analyse gathered information to identify new system requirements and establish problem specifications.

• Document system requirements and problems.
• Check documentation to ensure it meets client business needs.
• Analyse client requirements to determine project scope, and the problem context or opportunity faced by the business.
• Document the client requirements, project scope, related problems and sources of information.

Activity 3.1: Data flow diagram

Figure 1: Data flow diagram

Q: Which guidelines have not been followed in the above data flow diagram?

A: There are including of:

• Process description must have a verb – appointment diary does not explain what this process does.
• Data flow description must only use a noun – check appointment does not describe the
  data that is coming from the data store.
• The data store must have a name
• Appointment confirmation data cannot go from the data store directly to the patient, it must go through a process.
• No data goes into the data store – if nothing goes into it we cannot get anything out of it!
  

Activity 3.2: Determine client requirements


Q: A spare parts business has identified the ability of customers to order parts online as an added–value requirement. What sort of added value will this provide to the business?

A: There will be many possibilities that you might identify, including:

• Improved customer satisfaction due to the ability to order from home or their business
• Increased productivity due to faster turn around time for the customer and less time required by the spare parts staff to answer phone queries and fill in order forms
• Financial benefits for the business associated with a possible reduction in the number of order entry staff needed
  

Key terms

System boundaries: Limits of the functionality of a system, showing interaction with other systems.

Development methodology: Standardised method of developing a system.

External Entity: Any system (manual or computerised), or person who interacts with the system being investigated.

Hawthorne Effect: The tendency to improve performance when under observation

Interviewee: The person who is being interviewed

Interviewer: The person who is conducting the interview (ie asking the questions)

JAD: Joint Application Design – a formal structured technique used to gather information in a group.

CASE tool: CASE (Computer Aided Software Engineering) tools are software packages that help to automate software development.

Data dictionary: A data dictionary is a centralised system for defining and storing information about the data and the processes that transform the data in some way.

Levelling: Breaking down a process in a data flow diagram into lower level processes, each with their own data flow diagram

Platform: The type of computer hardware and / or operating system. For example, Wintel; a platform combining Intel x86 compatible hardware and Windows operating system, Lintel; a platform combining Intel x86 compatible hardware and Linux operating system.

ICAA4233A Determine and apply appropriate development methodologies

Unit contents

For most tasks in this unit might undertake more than one way of carrying them out. The method I choose will depend on a variety of factors, but the most important considerations will often be which method will get the job done as quickly and efficiently as possible while ensuring that the result is the best I can achieve. Once I have identified the most appropriate method for the task, I must then make sure that I follow the method to achieve the required outcome. This involves a high level of planning to ensure that all areas have been addressed and close monitoring of the progress of the project so that it will be completed as planned.

This unit (ICAA4233A) will give you the knowledge and skills to determine and apply appropriate development methodologies for an information technology project. You will learn how to do the following:

• Determine and select appropriate methodology for a given activity


• Apply the selected development methodology
  

1: Determine and select appropriate methodology for a given activity

This blog will help you to determine and select an appropriate development methodology for a specific activity within an information technology environment.

In this topic you will learn how to:

• Determine and define subject activity
• Define the criteria for selection of development methodology
• Review and evaluate a range of traditional and non-traditional system development methodologies
• Select appropriate system methodology to suit the activity.

Determine and select appropriate methodology for a given activities

Activity 1: Knowledge of the client business domain

Visit the Coca-Cola website (http://www2.coca-cola.com/ourcompany/index.html) and read the company’s welcome statement. Does it give you a clear idea of the company’s core business? Which of the business documents mentioned in the reading notes for this section can you find on the site?

A: This welcome statement clearly indicates the goal of manufacturing, marketing and distributing non-alcoholic beverages. There are links to sections such as ‘Our Beliefs’, ‘Our Diversity’, ‘Leadership’ and so on, which would come under the heading of mission statements and strategic goals.


Activity 2—Obtain knowledge of the client business domain

Use the Internet to answer the following questions about the Environment Protection Authority Victoria as an example of a potential client.
Go to the website at http://www.epa.vic.gov.au/, then select About EPA and EPA Organisation chart.

Q 2.1: In which directorate would you find the Community Relations department?

A 2.1: Sustainable development

Q 2.2: Under which department does Regional Support Systems come?

A 2.2: Regional services

Q 2.3: If you wanted to apply for a job with the EPA, to which department would you address your application?

A 2.3: Human Resources

Q 2.4: If you had a complaint about excessive noise at a neighbouring business premises, to which department would you complain?

A 2.4: Atmosphere and Noise

Activity 3—Identify stakeholders

Read the scenario below:

Southern Dental Services is a small dental practice in a regional town. There are two dentists: Pamela Jones and Brian Huang. The practice has four support staff to manage the day-to-day running of the practice: Jane Emerson, who looks after the appointments; Brenda Gale, who handles the accounts; Keith Dickson, who manages the patient details; and Pauline Santoro, who organises the ordering of supplies, etc. Pauline obtains most of the supplies for the clinic from David Andrews, who runs a business selling medical and dental supplies. She orders all the other office-related products from Peter Smith’s business, OfficeStuff. The clinic has five hundred patients on its books, some of whom, like Mrs Mary O’Halloran, have been coming to the clinic since it opened ten years ago.

Q: For each of the people listed here (Peter Smith, Keith Dickson, Mary O’Halloran, Brian Huang, David Andrews, Pauline Santoro), identify which type of stakeholder they represent from the following three choices: supplier, staff or client. Complete the table and check your answers in the Feedback.

A: Following table is shown the identifying stakeholders.

Determine and select methodology quiz

1. Answer TRUE or FALSE:

Q 1.1: An organisational chart gives an overview of staff and the functions of a business.

A 1.1: True

Q 1.2: An incremental methodology is best used for a system that has a clear, fixed set of objectives.

A 1.2: False

Q 2: A mission statement states the main purpose of the organisation and usually incorporates which of the following goals?

A 2: financial, social and/or environmental goals

Q 3: What is a traditional system development methodology?

A 3: Waterfall model

Q 4: Which methodology requires a high level of user involvement throughout the project?

A 4: Rapid application development (RAD)

2: Apply the selected development methodology

Refering to the previous section, you should already know about determining and selecting appropriate methodology for a given activity. This blog will help you to apply the appropriate systems development methodology to an activity.

In this section you will learn how to:

• Create a project plan
• Clearly describe project tasks
• Define suitable project controls
• Estimate task duration and cost
• Sequence tasks
• Estimate resource requirements
• Monitor project flow
• Review and document the project.
  

Apply the selected development methodology activities

Activity 1: Work breakdown structure

Try the top down method and break down the following goal into several tasks and subtasks and develop a simple work breakdown structure (WBS).

Q: Develop a work breakdown structure for the LAN for Urban Wear’s new retail outlet.

A: This table is a possible WBS. Remember that every project manager may approach the tasks differently and this is just a sample for you to try out your WBS skills.

Activity 2: Factors that impact on time estimates

Q: What factors could impact on your time estimate for the installation and configuring of the workstations for the LAN from Activity 1?

A: There are many factors that may impact the installation and configuration of the workstations including delayed delivery of hardware, slippage of task dependencies (for example, if the network has not been configured before installation of workstation stats, it will not be possible to use the disk cloning tool to install the standard operating environment); workers skill level; availability of tools.

Activity 3: Determining the positions required

Your company, Herriard, which has a staff of 600 full time and 200 part time employees, has decided to introduce sales training techniques on their Intranet site. The training course needs a Learning Management System (LMS) which allocates units of work to the staff. Once in the system, the staff can receive automated feedback and trainers can view staff progress through the system. Herriard has decided to get an off-the-shelf product and adapt it to the company’s needs. You have been given the job of managing the project.

Q: List the job roles or positions that you would include in your team.

A: The team could be comprised of the following:

• an instructional designer to design the structure of the site and to train staff
• course writers
• a graphic designer to create a shell to reflect corporate identity
• a development team of 1–2 programmers to adapt the off-the-shelf Learner Management System to company needs
• a part-time network engineer
• a part-time server support

Activity 4: Gantt chart
In your notebook, draw a Gantt chart corresponding to the specifications in the table below

Table: Gantt chart specifications

Figure : Gantt chart

Apply the selected development methodology quiz

Q 1: Which three processes are involved in the development of a project?

A 1: planning, assessing and monitoring

Q 2: Project controls are usually designed to focus on which three major aspects of project measurements?

A 2: monitoring and tracking progress, determining variation from plan, taking corrective action

Q 3: In which phase of a project would you estimate activity duration and resources?

A 3: Planning phase

Q 4: What is the primary goal of a project review?

A 4: to answer questions about the conduct of the project for the benefit of future projects