System Planning &

Requirements Gathering

Life Cycle - PHASE 1:

PLANNING
Planning phase involves establishing

a high-level plan of the intended project

and determining project goals
Primary planning activities include
1. Identify

and select the system for

development & Requirement gathering
2. Assess project feasibility
3. Develop the project plan

and Select the System

for Development

Organizations use different forms of evaluation

criteria and Techniques to determine which
systems to develop
Critical success factor (CSF) a factor that is
critical to an organizations success

PLANNING 2: Assess Project

Feasibility
Feasibility study determines if the proposed solution is
feasible and achievable from a financial, technical, and
organizational standpoint
Different types of feasibility studies

Economic feasibility study: (cost-benefit analysis)

identifies the financial benefits and costs associated with
the systems development project

Operational feasibility study: examines the likelihood

that the project will attain its desired objectives

Technical
feasibility
study:
determines
the
organizations ability to build and integrate the proposed
system

Schedule feasibility study: assesses the likelihood

that all potential time frames and completion dates will
be met

Legal and contractual feasibility study: examines all

potential legal and contractual ramifications of the
proposed system

PLANNING 3: Develop
the Project Plan
Developing

the project plan

difficult and important activity

is

The project plan is the guiding force

behind on-time delivery of a complete

and successful system

Continuous updating of the project

plan must be performed during every

subsequent phase during the SDLC

9-5

requirements
gathering
What techniques are available for

gathering
information
requirements?

about

Which technique is best? When is

each appropriate to use?

Fact Gathering
Techniques
Interviews
Questionnaires
Observation
Document / Procedure Analysis
JAD
Prototyping

Fact-Gathering Techniques
A. Fact Gathering Through Interviews
B. Fact Gathering Through
Questionnaires

Fact Gathering Through Interviews

Depth Interviews - Conversation

is guided largely by feelings and
interest
of Interviews
the
person
being
2. Structured
- Useful after
a
interviewed.
depth interview for obtaining answers to
1.

Interviews
Interview - a fact-finding technique whereby the
systems analysts collect information from
individuals through face-to-face interaction.
Find facts
Verify facts
Clarify facts
Generate enthusiasm
Get the end-user involved
Identify requirements
Solicit ideas and opinions
10

Types of Interviews and Questions

Unstructured interview conducted with only
a general goal or subject in mind and with
few, if any, specific questions. The interviewer
counts on the interviewee to provide a
framework and direct the conversation.
Structured interview interviewer has a
specific set of questions to ask of the
interviewee.
Open-ended question question that allows
the interviewee to respond in any way.
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Interviews
Types of samples

Convenient: Sample those people that are convenient i.e.

you have easy access.

Random sample: Every nth person on a list, or random

number generator.

Purposeful sample: those users that meet certain criteria.

Stratified sample: Sample obtained by the process of

dividing a population into categories representing distinct
characteristics and then selecting a random sample from
each category.

Prepare for the

Interview
Types of Questions to Avoid
Loaded

questions: Question which contains a

controversial assumption.
Leading questions: Question that suggests the answer
or contains the information the examiner is looking for.
Biased questions: Questions prepared in such a way
that a particular answer is favored over others.
Interview Question Guidelines
Use clear and concise language.
Dont include your opinion as part of the question.
Avoid long or complex questions.
Avoid threatening questions.
Dont use you when you mean a group of people.

13

Interviews
Conducting the Interview--practical

tips

Dont worry, be happy

Pay attention
Summarize key points
Be succinct and honest
Give interviewee time to ask questions
Be sure to thank the interviewee
End on time
And, dont ask unnecessary questions!

Interviews
Post Interview
Consider asking for more time if

necessary
Confirm major points identified with
interviewee
Look for Gaps and New Questions
Type up notes within 24 hours
(preferably immediately after the
interview is over

Questionnaires
Questionnaire a special-purpose document

that allows the analyst to collect information and

opinions from respondents.

Free-format questionnaire a questionnaire

designed to offer the respondent greater latitude

in the answer. A question is asked, and the
respondent records the answer in the space
provided after the question.

Fixed-format questionnaire a questionnaire

containing questions that require selecting an

answer from predefined available responses.
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Fact Gathering Through

Questionnaires

What types of
information
do you use to make
decisions?

1. Open-Ended Questionnaires - Persons

provide written answers to general
rather than specific questions.
2. Closed-End Questionnaires - Use for
routine situations or when a large
number of similar individuals would be

Questionnaires
A questionnaire is similar to a very

structured interview
Many of the same guidelines apply

Choosing respondents
Should

be representative of all users

Same types of samples
Convenient
Random sample
Purposeful sample
Stratified sample

Questionnaires

Response rates to questionnaires are commonly low over 15% is

sometimes considered very good.

Document/Procedure
Analysis
Great starting point
Gets analyst quickly up to speed with user jargon
Can create preliminary models, e.g. DFDs

Types of information to be discovered:

Problems with existing system
Opportunity to meet new need
Organizational direction
Names of key individuals
Values of organization
Special information processing circumstances
Reasons for current system design
Rules for processing data

Document/Procedure
Analysis
Four types of useful documents
Written work procedures
Describes

how a job is performed

Includes data and information used and created in
the process of performing the job or task
Business form
Explicitly indicate data flow in or out of a system
Report
Enables the analyst to work backwards from the
report to the data that generated it
Description of current information system

Joint Application
Design
Joint Application Design (JAD)
Brings together key users,

managers and systems analysts

Purpose: collect system
requirements simultaneously
from key people
Conducted off-site

Typical Room Layout for

JAD session

Joint Application
Design
Participants
Session Leader
Users
Managers
Sponsor
Systems Analysts
Scribe
IS Staff

Joint Application
Design
Supporting JAD with GSS
Group support systems (GSS) can be used

to enable more participation by group

members in JAD
Members

type

their

answers

into

the

computer
All members of the group see what other

members have been typing

Joint Requirements
Planning
Joint requirements planning (JRP) a process whereby highly
structured group meetings are conducted for the purpose of analyzing
problems and defining requirements.
JRP is a subset of a more comprehensive joint application development

or JAD technique that encompasses the entire systems development

process.
Joint Requirements Planning (JRP) is atechnique for drawing out user

requirements through joint planning sessions of software users and

information technology personnel.
These

informal sessions are workshops that provide an open

environment for people to discuss what they do, how they do it, and
what critical information they need to support their job responsibilities.
Written documentation defining these requirements results from a JRP
session.
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Steps to Plan a JRP

Session
1. Selecting a location
Away from workplace when possible
Requires several rooms
Equipped with tables, chairs, whiteboard,

overhead projectors
Needed computer equipment
2. Selecting the participants

Sponsors identify the participants for each JRP

workshop. Each needs release from regular duties

3. Preparing the agenda

Briefing documentation
Agenda distributed before each session
27

Typical Room Layout for JRP session

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Discovery Prototyping
Discovery

prototyping the act of

building a small-scale, representative or
working model of the users requirements in
order
to
discover
or
verify
those
requirements.

Rudimentary (primitive or undeveloped)

version of system is built

Goal: to develop concrete specifications for

ultimate system

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Prototyping
Quickly converts requirements to working version of

system

Once the user sees requirements converted to system,

will ask for modifications or will generate additional

requests

Is prototyping useful in any of these cases?

User requests are not clear
Few users are involved in the system
Designs are complex and require concrete form
History of communication problems between analysts

and users
Tools are readily available to build prototype

Prototyping
Drawbacks
Tendency to avoid formal documentation
Difficult to adapt to more general user audience
Sharing data with other systems is often not

considered
Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) checks

are often bypassed