Systems Analysis and Design

Harry J. Rosenblatt College of the Albemarle

Opening slide

Welcome

Introductions• About me• About you

About the course• Nine instructional units – four today and five tomorrow• Each unit reviews terms and concepts, and has hands-on tasks• Participants will see systems analysis from a student’s viewpoint

WelcomeUnit Topic

1 Systems Planning

2 IT Ethics, Part 1

3 Communication Tools and Requirements Modeling

4 Project Management

5 IT Ethics, Part 2

6 Modeling Tools

7 Financial Analysis Tools

8 ERDs and Data Design

9 Group Discussion: Sharing Experiences

WelcomeSome Thoughts …

• Systems analysis is similar to finding the ideal spouse. Methods and procedures might change over time, but the main goals remain the same.

• You cannot teach students to be systems analysts in a semester.

• You can teach students basic systems analysis concepts and transferable skills that will help them succeed in the workplace.

WelcomeWorkplace Success Skills

•IT literacy and basic SAD concepts•Communications skills, oral and written•Logic, problem-solving, and critical-thinking skills•Basic financial analysis skills•Ethics awareness•Ability to work in teams•Business savvy•Exposure to various systems development methods, from traditional to agile, because one size does not fit all

Welcome

Before we begin …

• Set up teams

• View a presentation that describes the new book

• Hold initial team meetings and work on tasks

Initial Team Tasks

A. Pretend that your team is a small IT consulting firm

B. Get to know your team members

C. Choose a name for your firm and create a letterhead with a slogan and a logo, using MS Word

Unit 1: Systems PlanningTextbook Topic Highlights

Chapter 1 Introduction to Systems Analysis and Design

• What is IT All About?

• Understanding Business Systems and Users

• Systems Development Tools and Methods

• Role of the Systems Analyst and the IT Team

Chapter 2 Analyzing the Business Case

• What is Strategic Planning and Why is it Important?

• What is a Business Case?

• Reasons and Factors Affecting IT Projects

• Four Ways to Measure Feasibility

Slide Title

FIGURE 2-3In the strategic planning process, a company’spurpose, vision, and values shape its mission statement, whichin turn leads to goals, objectives, business operations, andbusiness results that affect company stakeholders.

Unit 1 TasksA. Visit the SCR site and explore the SCR home page

and public links. Does it seem realistic? Is it user-friendly? Would you like to work for this company? www.scsite.com/sad8e/scr or www.scsite.com/sad8e/scr/internet

B. Read Discussion Topic 3 on page 37. How would you answer?

C. Create a mission statement for your team.

D. Review the four types of feasibility on pages 64-66. Which type would be the easiest to assess? Which would be the most difficult?

Unit 2: IT Ethics (Part 1)Textbook Topic Highlights

Chapters 1-12 A Question of Ethics Mini-case Feature

• Overview

• Ethical codes

• Question of Ethics – Sample on page 431

• Can you “teach” ethics? Should you?

Unit 2 TasksA. The CEO of your firm wants to know if the company

should adopt a formal ethics policy and require employees to commit to it in writing. Does your team agree with that suggestion? Why or why not?

B. Analyze the ethics case on page 122. What would your team say to Stephanie? Report back at 8:00 am tomorrow.

C. Provide an example of an ethical issue that a team member encountered – what was it, and what was the outcome?

Unit 3: Communication Tools and Requirements Modeling

Textbook Topic HighlightsToolkit Part 1 Communication

Tools• Guidelines• Style and readability issues• Oral and written communications skills• Effective presentations

Chapter 4 Requirements Modeling

• Modeling Tools – CASE, DFDs, UML, etc• System requirements checklist• Fact-finding and documentation tasks

Readability Examples

Sample Answer to Project 3 on page 631

Sample Answer to the Ethical Question example in Unit 3

Prescription Drug Label

Gettysburg Address

Jane's Run

Unit 3 TasksA. Write a short paragraph (3 or 4 sentences) to

describe the basic concept of bandwidth. You can use an analogy if that helps. The readability goals is 10th Grade level or lower.

B. Read about the three types of interview questions on page 156. Submit an example of each type.

C. Your school wants to know how users like the student registration system. Review the guidelines and sample on pages 162-163. Design a one-page questionnaire to gather the data.

Unit 4: Project Management

Textbook Topic HighlightsChapter 3 Managing Systems

projects• Overview of Project Management

• Gantt and PERT/CPM Charts

• Risk Management

• Project Management Software

Calculating task start and finish times

Start: Day 5 ID: 1 Start: Day 8 ID: 2

Finish: Day 7 Dur: 3 Finish: Day Dur:

Develop Plan Arrange Meetings

Let’s practice

Sample Calculations, page 109

Sample Calculations, page 109

Here’s a Tutorial That Might Help …

Unit 4 TasksA. Read Case in Point 3.3 on page 103 and answer the

questions in the final paragraph. Explain your reasons.

B. Study the Lightfoot Industries case on page 129. Then prepare a task list similar to Figure 3-17 on page 110. Using the task list, create a PERT chart. Use sticky notes to show task durations and the critical path. Sample answer (handout).

Unit 4 Sample Answers1. Prepare a list showing all tasks and their durations.

•Contact participants 1 day•Obtain approval 5 days•Arrange meeting room 4 days•Prepare agenda 11 days•Prepare information packets 4 days•Create visual aids 8 days •E-mail participants 1 day•Conduct JAD sessions 5 days

Unit 4 Sample Answers

Task Predecessor Tasks

1. Contact participants2. Obtain approval 13. Arrange meeting room 24. Prepare agenda 25. Prepare information packets 46. Create visual aids 47. E-mail participants 5, 38. Conduct JAD sessions 6, 7

2. Analyze the fact situation carefully to determine which tasks are concurrent, and which ones are dependent on other tasks.

Unit 4 Sample Answers

Unit 4 Sample AnswersAdditional handout: Countrywide Construction (page 128)

•Good example of building construction task sequence.

•Has a “sleeper” task that occurs early in the project, has a long duration, and is a predecessor task for the project’s final task.

Unit 5: IT Ethics (Part 2)Textbook Topic Highlights

Chapters 1-12

A Question of Ethics Mini-case Feature

• Team reports

• Other examples

• Personal experiences

Unit 6: Modeling ToolsTextbook Topic Highlights

Chapter 5 Data and Process Modeling

• Creating a set of DFDs

• Using decision tables and decision trees

Chapter 6 Object Modeling

• O-O terms and concepts

• Using O-O tools and diagrams for modeling

Chapter 11 Agile Development Section

• Overview of agile/adaptive development

• XP (Extreme Programming) terms and concepts

Sequence Structure

Selection Structure

Iteration Structure

• A Sales Policy with Two Conditions and Two Outcomes:

“If the customer’s credit status is OK and the product is in stock, accept the order. Otherwise, reject the order.”

• Now Follow the Steps on page 224 to Create the Table:

• A Sales Policy with Two Conditions and Two Outcomes:

“If the customer’s credit status is Ok and the product is in stock, accept the order. Otherwise, reject the order.”

• Now Follow the Steps on page 224 to Create the Table:

1. Place the name of the process in a heading at the top left.2. Enter the conditions under the heading, with one condition per

line, to represent the customer status and availability of products.3. Enter all potential combinations of Y/N (for yes and no) for the

conditions.4. Place an X in the action entries area for each rule to indicate

whether to accept or reject the order.

• The Same Policy with One More Condition …

“If the customer’s credit status is OK (or if the Credit Manager grants a waiver) and the product is in stock, accept the order. Otherwise, reject the order.”

• The Same Policy with One More Condition …

“If the customer’s credit status is OK (or if the Credit Manager grants a waiver) and the product is in stock, accept the order. Otherwise, reject the order.”

• Now the Table Has Eight Possible Rules Instead of Four

• Now look for redundant or unrealistic rules

“If the customer’s credit status is OK (or if the Credit Manager grants a waiver) and the product is in stock, accept the order. Otherwise, reject the order.”

Unit 6 TasksData and Process Modeling tasksA.Study Figure 5-22 on page 215. List all the things wrong in this diagram. B.Study the Claremont School case on page 235. Perform Tasks 1, 2, and 3. Sample answer (handout).

Object Modeling TasksC.Study the Pleasant Creek Bookstore case at the bottom of page 272. List all objects, attributes, and methods. Sample answer.

D.Identify possible use cases & actors. Sample answer.

Agile Modeling TaskE.Study Figure 1-29 on page 23. You also can do research on the Web. Is the Agile approach really meaningful, or is it just a fad?

Unit 7: Financial Analysis ToolsTextbook Topic Highlights

Toolkit Part 3 Financial Analysis Tools

• Measuring costs, benefits, and TCO

• Time value of money

• Specific tools: payback analysis, ROI, and NPV

• Using spreadsheet templates

Unit 7 TasksA. Read Discussion Topic 3 on page 672. Explain your answer, and

provide an example of a real-life situation.

B. Read Project 2 on page 672. You will do a net present value analysis of two lease proposals to see which one would be less expensive. To get you started, you will use an Excel spreadsheet template, so all you have to do is add the formulas and values. The adjustment factors you will need are in the table on page 667. Sample Answer (handout).

C. Read Discussion Topic 4 on page 672. What does your team think, and why?

Unit 8: ERDs and Data DesignTextbook Topic Highlights

Chapter 9 Data Design • Key concepts and terms

• ERDs (Entity-Relationship Diagrams)

• Cardinality

• Normalization

Definitions• Entity• Table or file• Field, Primary Key, Common Field, Foreign Key • Record

Drawing an ERD• The first step is to list the

entities and consider the relationship that links them

• You can represent entities as rectangles and relationships as diamond shapes

Three types of relationships can exist among entities

• One-to-one relationship (1:1)• One-to-many relationship (1:M)• Many-to-many relationship (M:N)

Note: The two entities in a M:N relation must be linked by another entity, called an Associative Entity

A CASE tool can help you create the model …

ORDER (ORDER-NUM, ORDER-DATE, (PRODUCT-NUM, PRODUCT-DESC, NUM-ORDERED))

Repeating Group

ORDER TABLE (UNNORMALIZED)

ORDER TABLE (UNNORMALIZED)

STUDENT (STUDENT-NUMBER , NAME, CREDITS, GPA, ADVISOR (COURSE-NUM, DESC, CREDITS, GRADE))

Repeating Group

STUDENT TABLE (UNNORMALIZED)STUDENT TABLE (UNNORMALIZED)

STUDENT TABLE IN 1NFSTUDENT TABLE IN 1NF

The repeating group has been removed by creating a separate record for each instance of a certain student taking a certain course. Now, all fields do depend on the primary key. But there is a problem: The primary key is NOT UNIQUE, and a properly designed table MUST have a unique primary key!

SOLUTION: Break the table into three separate tables, one for STUDENT, one for COURSE,and one for GRADE.

The repeating group has been removed by creating a separate record for each instance of a certain student taking a certain course. Now, all fields do depend on the primary key. But there is a problem: The primary key is NOT UNIQUE, and a properly designed table MUST have a unique primary key!

SOLUTION: Break the table into three separate tables, one for STUDENT, one for COURSE,and one for GRADE.

STUDENT (STUDENT-NUMBER, NAME, CREDITS, GPA, ADVISOR, COURSE-NUM, CREDITS, GRADE)

SOLUTION: Break the table into three separate tables, one for STUDENT, one for COURSES, and one for GRADE. Then ALL fields will be dependent on the primary key – the WHOLE key.

SOLUTION: Break the table into three separate tables, one for STUDENT, one for COURSES, and one for GRADE. Then ALL fields will be dependent on the primary key – the WHOLE key.

STUDENT (STUDENT-NUMBER, NAME, CREDITS, GPA, ADVISOR-NUMBER, ADVISOR-NAME)

COURSE (COURSE-NUMBER, COURSE-DESC, NUM-CREDITS)

GRADE (STUDENT-NUMBER, COURSE-NUMBER)

STUDENT COURSE GRADE

STUDENT TABLE IN 2NF –

Notice that in each table, all fields are functionally dependent on the primary key.

But there is still a problem:

At least one field is also dependent on another non-key field.

SOLUTION: Create a separate table for that field, with its own primary key.

STUDENT TABLE IN 2NF –

Notice that in each table, all fields are functionally dependent on the primary key.

But there is still a problem:

At least one field is also dependent on another non-key field.

SOLUTION: Create a separate table for that field, with its own primary key.

STUDENT TABLE IN 3NF –

Notice that ADVISOR-NUMBER and ADVISOR-NAME have been moved to a separate table, and linked with a common field – ADVISOR-NUM.

Now, all fields are functionally dependent on the primary key, the whole key, and nothing but the key!

STUDENT TABLE IN 3NF –

Notice that ADVISOR-NUMBER and ADVISOR-NAME have been moved to a separate table, and linked with a common field – ADVISOR-NUM.

Now, all fields are functionally dependent on the primary key, the whole key, and nothing but the key!

ADVISOR (ADVISOR-NUMBER, ADVISOR-NAME,ETC.)

Unit 8 TasksA. Read SWL Team Task 1 on page 444. Can your team

summarize the idea of normalization in three or four minutes, using plain English and simple examples?

B. Read Case in Point 9.1 on page 406. Draw an ERD for TopText Publishing. Sample answers for Tasks B and C (handout).

C. Read Project 3 on page 437. Using the sample ERD, design a table for each TopText Publishing entity, and add three sample records to each table.

Course Units and TopicsUnit Topic

1 Systems Planning

2 IT Ethics, Part 1

3 Communication Tools & Requirements Modeling

4 Project Management

5 IT Ethics, Part 2

6 Modeling Tools

7 Financial Analysis Tools

8 ERDs and Data Design

9 Group Discussion: Sharing Experiences

10 Conclusion

Systems Analysis and Design

Harry J. Rosenblatt College of the Albemarle

Opening slide