System planning: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 08:33, 8 January 2023

System Fundamentals^[1]

Identify the context for which a new system is planned[edit]

Identifying the context for which a new system is planned is an important step in the system development process. The context refers to the environment in which the system will be used, including the users of the system, the tasks the system will support, and the overall goals and objectives of the system. Understanding the context helps to ensure that the system is designed and developed in a way that meets the needs of the users and supports the overall goals of the organization. To identify the context for a new system, it may be helpful to consider the following questions:

Who will be using the system?
What tasks will the system be used to perform?
What are the overall goals and objectives of the system?
What constraints or limitations exist that could impact the design or development of the system?
What are the current processes or systems in place that the new system will need to integrate with or replace?

Identify the relevant stakeholders when planning a new system[edit]

Identifying the relevant stakeholders when planning a new system is an important step in the system development process. Stakeholders are individuals or groups that have a vested interest in the success of the system, and they can play a key role in its development and implementation. It is important to identify the stakeholders early on in the planning process so that their needs and concerns can be taken into account as the system is being designed and developed. To identify the relevant stakeholders for a new system, it may be helpful to consider the following questions:

Who will be using the system?
Who will be responsible for maintaining and supporting the system?
Who will be responsible for making decisions about the system?
Who will be impacted by the system, either positively or negatively?
Who has the authority to approve or reject the system?

Once the stakeholders have been identified, it is important to engage with them throughout the planning process to ensure that their needs are being considered and to build support for the system. This can be done through meetings, surveys, and other forms of communication.

Real-world practical advice[edit]

You should always be nervous when there is more than one person in charge of a project. We call this double-headed management, and it is very dangerous because you may get two very different specifications about the system. It is always a good idea to have only one single person who describes what a system should do. In project management, we call this a "senior customer" or a "senior user".

Standards[edit]

Identify the context for which a new system is planned.
Identify the relevant stakeholders when planning a new system.

References[edit]

↑ http://www.flaticon.com/

[1] ttp://www.flaticon.com/

[1]

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 [[file:system_fund.png|right|frame|System Fundamentals<ref>http://www.flaticon.com/</ref>]]
-How are systems planned? Are systems just thrown into the users face without any planning? Who should we talk with as we plan a new system?  '''What questions should we ask users, IT administrators, and finance stakeholders as we plan a new system?'''
+== Identify the context for which a new system is planned ==
+Identifying the context for which a new system is planned is an important step in the system development process. The context refers to the environment in which the system will be used, including the users of the system, the tasks the system will support, and the overall goals and objectives of the system. Understanding the context helps to ensure that the system is designed and developed in a way that meets the needs of the users and supports the overall goals of the organization. To identify the context for a new system, it may be helpful to consider the following questions:
-=== SL version ===
+# Who will be using the system?
+# What tasks will the system be used to perform?
+# What are the overall goals and objectives of the system?
+# What constraints or limitations exist that could impact the design or development of the system?
+# What are the current processes or systems in place that the new system will need to integrate with or replace?
-A stakeholder is a person with an interest or concern in something especially a business<ref>New Oxford American Dictionary (Second Edition)</ref>. A stakeholder is someone who might be:
-* Using a system
+== Identify the relevant stakeholders when planning a new system ==
-* Supporting a system
-* Realizing benefits from a system.
-* The organization or person paying for the system
-You must be careful to identify all the possible relevant stakeholders. Stakeholders will have different needs and desires. When you are planning a system, you need to account for the different needs and desires of different stakeholders. There are often stakeholder groups, or group of people within an organization who have similar needs and desires. '''A system must meet the need of the stakeholders who use it'''. We will work through two different examples to help you understand this idea.
+Identifying the relevant stakeholders when planning a new system is an important step in the system development process. Stakeholders are individuals or groups that have a vested interest in the success of the system, and they can play a key role in its development and implementation. It is important to identify the stakeholders early on in the planning process so that their needs and concerns can be taken into account as the system is being designed and developed. To identify the relevant stakeholders for a new system, it may be helpful to consider the following questions:
-The role of an end-user must be considered when planning a new system <ref> IB Computer Science Subject Guide </ref>
+# Who will be using the system?
+# Who will be responsible for maintaining and supporting the system?
-=== HL version ===
+# Who will be responsible for making decisions about the system?
+# Who will be impacted by the system, either positively or negatively?
-In addition to the material above, you should know and understand it is helpful to think of a stakeholder as a customer. A customer is a person or organization that buys goods or services from a store or business<ref>New Oxford American Dictionary (Second Edition)</ref>
+# Who has the authority to approve or reject the system?
-There are two different types of customers:
-Internal customers: people inside the company who will be using the new system
-External customers people outside the company who will be using the new system
-The big idea here is there are many different types of stakeholders, and you need to carefully understand WHO might be using a system and WHAT ROLE they have interacting and using your system.
+Once the stakeholders have been identified, it is important to engage with them throughout the planning process to ensure that their needs are being considered and to build support for the system. This can be done through meetings, surveys, and other forms of communication.
 == Real-world practical advice ==
 You should always be nervous when there is more than one person in charge of a project. We call this double-headed management, and it is very dangerous because you may get two very different specifications about the system. It is always a good idea to have '''only one''' single person who describes what a system should do. In project management, we call this a "senior customer" or a "senior user".
-== Do you understand this material? ==
-Imagine you are the chief information officer for a company. The company wants to plan a system that keeps track of employees, their birthdays, salaries, and date the employee was hired. What are ten questions you would ask as you plan this system? It may be helpful to review [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Context_analysis this wikipedia entry which discusses context analysis].
-Please consider the following examples, and answer the questions:
-=== Example 1 ===
-This is a simple example:
-A small business wants to plan a new system. The new system is a computer kiosk inside the store which allows customers to sign up for a email newsletter. If a custmer signs up for a newsletter inside the store, they will get a 10% discount on their first purchase at the store. The owner hopes this 10% discount will be an incentive for customers to sign up for the email newsletter.  The business will then regularly  email the customers special offers and savings. The business owner expects to benefit from this system by having increased sales. The customers expect to benefit from this system by having access to special offers, to save money, and to see what is new and trendy at their store.
-Question 1: List the stakeholders we should consult when planning this new system. Be careful, as there is a hidden stakeholder group that is not mentioned here!
-Question 2: Infer from the example what questions should be asked of each stakeholder group.
-== Do you have an advanced understanding of this material? ==
-=== Example 2 ===
-This is a complex example:
-A school of 900 students wants to plan a new system. The school hopes the new system is a secure web-based application which manages attendance data. The school administrators want to carefully track attendance for the students so it can identify when students have been absent for a customizable threshold. For example, the school might set a threshold of 5 absences within 30 days, which then automatically notifies the student, parent, and teacher there is a problem with attendance. The threshold might be 3 times within 10 days, or something like that. The system should keep track of attendance and tardies. The system should have customizable attendance codes. For example, "abscence for school trip", "excused abscence", "medical abscence" are all allowed abscence codes.
-School administrators expect to benefit by having data about attendance so they can support students and parents to be in school. School administrators also expect to benefit by giving parents and students information about attendance (so parents can support their children to be in school). Finally, school adinistrators expect to benefit by using attendance data to apply for government funding (as they can prove how many students were in class on a specific day).
-Parents expect to benefit by knowing when their children are in school or miss school. This way parents can support their children to be in school. Being in school is a '''shared value''' that the school hopes the parents share.
-Students expect to benefit by understanding how many days of school of they have missed. The school expects students to have a strong "ownership of learning" and manage their attendance.
-Question 1: List the stakeholders we should consult when planning this new system. Be careful, as there is a hidden stakeholder group that is not mentioned here!
-Question 2: Infer from the example what questions should be asked of each stakeholder group.
 == Standards ==
-* Identify the context for which a new system is planned. [[Level 2]]
+* Identify the context for which a new system is planned.
-* Identify the relevant stakeholders when planning a new system. [[Level 2]]
+* Identify the relevant stakeholders when planning a new system.
 == References ==