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Page ‹#›Information Systems Analysis and Design CSC3402002 Jaelson Castro and John MylopoulosThe Feasibility Study -- 1VI. The Feasibility StudyVI. The Feasibility StudyWhat is a feasibility study?What is a feasibility study?What to study and conclude?What to study and conclude?Benefits and costsBenefits and costsCost/Benefit analysisCost/Benefit analysisAccounting methodsAccounting methodsComparing alternativesComparing alternativesDo it!Information Systems Analysis and Design CSC3402002 Jaelson Castro and John MylopoulosThe Feasibility Study -- 2The Feasibility Study PhaseThe Feasibility Study Phase The objectives of a feasibility study are to find out if aninformation system project can be done (...is it possible?...is itjustified?) and to suggest possible alternative solutions. A feasibility study should provide management with enoughinformation to decide: Whether the project can be done; Whether the final product will benefit its intended users; What are the alternatives among which a solution will bechosen (during subsequent phases)? Is there a preferred alternative? After a feasibility study, management makes a go/no-godecision.••A feasibility study is aA feasibility study is a••management-oriented activitymanagement-oriented activityPage ‹#›Information Systems Analysis and Design CSC3402002 Jaelson Castro and John MylopoulosThe Feasibility Study -- 3What to Study? ...What to Conclude?What to Study? ...What to Conclude?I Things to be studied during the feasibility study phase: The present organizational system, including users, policies,functions, objectives,... Problems with the present system (inconsistencies, inadequaciesin functionality, performance,...,) Objectives and other requirements for the new system (whatneeds to change?) Constraints, including nonfunctional requirements on the system(preliminary pass) Possible alternatives (the current system is always one of those) Advantages and disadvantages of the alternativesI Things to conclude: Feasibility of the project and the preferredalternative.Information Systems Analysis and Design CSC3402002 Jaelson Castro and John MylopoulosThe Feasibility Study -- 4Types of FeasibilityTypes of FeasibilityOperationalOperational -- Define the urgency of the problem and theacceptability of any solution; If the system is developed, will it beused? Includes people-oriented and social issues: internal issues,such as manpower problems, labour objections, manager resistance,organizational conflicts and policies; also external issues, includingsocial acceptability, legal aspects and government regulations.TechnicalTechnical -- Is the project feasibility within the limits of currenttechnology? Does the technology exist at all? Is it available withingiven resource constraints (i.e., budget, schedule,...)?EconomicEconomic (Cost/Benefits AnalysisCost/Benefits Analysis) -- Is the project possible, givenresource constraints? Are the benefits that will accrue from the newsystem worth the costs? What are the savings that will result from thesystem, including tangible and intangible ones? What are thedevelopment and operational costs?ScheduleSchedule -- Constraints on the project schedule and whether theycould be reasonably met.Constraints may be Constraints may be hard hard or or softsoftPage ‹#›Information Systems Analysis and Design CSC3402002 Jaelson Castro and John MylopoulosThe Feasibility Study -- 5Operational Feasibility:Operational Feasibility:The PIECES FrameworkThe PIECES FrameworkThe PIECES framework can help in identifying operational problems tobe solved, and their urgency:PPerformance -- Does current mode of operation provide adequatethroughput and response time?IInformation -- Does current mode provide end users and managers withtimely, pertinent, accurate and usefully formatted information?EEconomy -- Does current mode of operation provide cost-effectiveinformation services to the business? Could there be a reduction incosts and/or an increase in benefits?CControl -- Does current mode of operation offer effective controls toprotect against fraud and to guarantee accuracy and security of dataand information?EEfficiency -- Does current mode of operation make maximum use ofavailable resources, including people, time, flow of forms,...?SServices -- Does current mode of operation provide reliable service? Isit flexible and expandable?Information Systems Analysis and Design CSC3402002 Jaelson Castro and John MylopoulosThe Feasibility Study -- 6More on Operational Feasibility:More on Operational Feasibility:Acceptability of Potential SolutionsAcceptability of Potential Solutions How do end-users and managers feel about the problem (solution)? It's not only important to evaluate whether a system can work butalso evaluate whether a system will work. A workable solution might fail because of end user or managementresistance. Does management support the project? How do the end users feel about their role in the new system? What end users or managers may resist or not use the system?People tend to resist change. Can this problem be overcome? Ifso, how? How will the working environment of the end users change? Can or will end users and management adapt to the change?Page ‹#›Information Systems Analysis and Design CSC3402002 Jaelson Castro and John MylopoulosThe Feasibility Study -- 7Technical Feasibility Is the proposed technology or solution practical? Do we currently possess the necessary technology? Do we possess the necessary technical expertise, and is theschedule reasonable? Is relevant technology mature enough to be easily applied toour problem? Some firms like to use state-of-the-art technology, but mostfirms prefer to use mature and proven technology. A mature technology has a larger customer base for obtainingadvice concerning problems and improvements. Assuming that required technology is practical, is it availablein the information systems shop? If the technology isavailable, does it have the capacity to handle the solution. If the technology is not available, can it be acquired?Information Systems Analysis and Design CSC3402002 Jaelson Castro and John MylopoulosThe Feasibility Study -- 8Schedule FeasibilitySchedule Feasibility We may have the technology, but that doesn't mean we have theskills required to properly apply that


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Toronto CSC 340 - The Feasibility Study

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