Case Study: Developing An Information System For Mary’s Iyvon Business

Task 1: System development methodologies

1. System development methodologies:

The term ‘system development methodology is often utilized to define the frameworks utilized for designing, developing and controlling the  activities/ processes associated with the development and implementation of any information system (Fitzgerald, 2016).

 The following website development methodologies are wide utilized for the development of information systems:

1. Methodology 1:Waterfall model of system development methodology:

The waterfall model is considered as the most popular method of system development: often referred to as the ‘traditional method of system development, the waterfall model essentially one of the most linear and rigid methods of system development (Hovelja, Vasilecas and Vavpoti? 2015). According   to researchers Vallance et al. (2013), the said model has the following characteristics:

1. All the activities associated with the project are divided into specific stages: however, overlapping of   such phases is acceptable to certain extents.
2.   The waterfall model emphasises particularly on the development of the appropriate plans required for completing the project, along with  the  assessment of the specific requirements  of  the system being designed and  the  analysis  of  the total time and budget required  for the completion of  the system,  besides  considering the implementation process itself (Vijayasarathy  and Butler 2016).
3.    The waterfall model incorporates an effective project control, documentation and monitoring   process so as to complete the implementation of the information system within the timeline committed to the client end.

The following diagram provides a pictorial representation of the different phases associated with the waterfall model of system development methodology:

Figure:   The waterfall model of system development methodology

 The work activities performed in the above mentioned stages are being tabulated in the section below:

1. Phase 1: Analysis of System requirements-The very first phase of the waterfall model is associated with the specific requirements of the client, which in turn facilitate the identification of functionalities that would be included in the information system being developed (Tarun 2016).
2. Phase 2: System development-In this stage of the development process, the information system is designed based on the requirements and functionalities identified in phase 1.
3. Phase 3:System Testing- The system implemented in phase 2 of the cycle is subjected to various test processes, so as to make sure of the functionalities of the system (Bahrudin 2016). Needless to say, the issues identified during this phase are resolved before moving on to the next phase of the implementation cycle.
4. d. Phase 4:System implementation- This particular phase of the system development process is associated with the implementation of the system at the client side.
5. Phase 5:Client acceptance-This is the last phase of the information system development process which marks the acceptance of the implemented system from the client end.
6. Methodology 1: Spiral model of system development methodology:

The  spiral  model of  system development  presents  a combination between  the iterative model of   system  development   along with  the linear mechanism  followed  in the waterfall model (). According to authors Vijayasarathy  and Butler (2016), the spiral model  essentially emphasizes on the incremental  development and  release  of   an information  system,  thus refining the  initial  prototype  through several iterations  or ‘spirals’.

Author Tarun (2016) has discussed the characteristics particular to this specific system development methodology, some of   which are being outlined in the following section:

1. The spiral model aims  at the reducing  the risk associated with the  information system development  process and  thus divides  each activity  into  several  phases,  thus making  the task of identifying  and mitigating  the  risks associated  with each activity much easier.
2. Each trip of the spiral consists of the following elementary phases:
3. determining the objectives, alternatives, and the constraints associated with the iteration,
4. an evaluation of  the alternatives along with the identification and  mitigation  of risks (Hovelja, Vasilecas  and Vavpoti? 2015).
5. development and verification  of the  deliverables identified during the iteration and
6. developing  plans for the new iteration

1. Selecting the appropriate system development methods:

Out of the twos system development methodologies discussed in the section above, the utilization of the waterfall model would be preferable due to the following reasons:

1. Time management: The waterfall model ensures that the development process is conducted in a linear manner, with one task starting with the end of its predecessor.  Therefore, the time required for the completion of each activity can be estimated successfully, along with the fact that the linear fashion of work ensures that the activities are completed within a very short time (Fitzgerald, 2016). In contrast to this, in case of the spiral model, it is much difficult to estimate the total time required for the completion of each activity, along with the fact that due the incremental nature of development takes a longer period to complete.

The calculations provided in Appendix A  an insight  into the time required for developing the information system that Mary  intends to build:

1. Complexity:  Managing the Spiral model of system development methodology is much more complex than that of the waterfall model, as it does not include any effective project control, documentation and monitoring  process(Vijayasarathy  and Butler 2016).

Figure: Cost and benefits of project

 

Figure: Break Even Analysis 

 

Figure: Payback analysis 

 

Figure: Cost Benefit Analysis using Present Value

Figure: WBS of the project

The WBS of the project , as depicted in the figure above is utilized for the identification of the activities  to be  conducted during the lifecycle of the project. The WBS would be essentially utilized by the project manager for developing the schedule and  budget of the project.

 

Figure: Gantt chart of the project

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Hovelja, T., Vasilecas, O. and Vavpoti?, D., 2015. Exploring the influences of the use of elements comprising information system development methodologies on strategic business goals. Technological and Economic Development of Economy, 21(6), pp.885-898.

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Tarun, I.M., 2016. QuiQ: A New Systems Development Methodology Suitable for E-Business Projects. Philippine Journal of Arts, Sciences & Technology, 1(1), pp.72-82.

Vallance, S., Duffy, A., Whitfield, R.I., Mendibil, K., Hird, A., McCabe, J. and Turner, N., 2013. Using systems engineering for the development of decision making support systems (DMSS): an analysis of system development methodologies (SDM). In Engineering Effective Decision Support Technologies: New Models and Applications (pp. 23-42). IGI Global.

Vijayasarathy, L.R. and Butler, C.W., 2016. Choice of Software Development Methodologies: Do Organizational, Project, and Team Characteristics Matter?. IEEE Software, 33(5), pp.86-94.