page 1 6 University of Toronto Department of Computer Science CSC340S Information Systems Analysis and Design January 16 2003 John Mylopoulos Assignment 1 Preparing a Feasibility Study Due Date 12 00 midnight Monday February 10 This assignment counts for 10 of your final grade You are expected to prepare a feasibility study for an information system project of your own choice to be carried out within an existing organization This project is meant to give you exposure to basic concepts discussed in the course but also to encourage you to look around for the type of work you may be doing in a few years as computer science professional The project is to be carried out by teams of three I Doing the Assignment This assignment has ten steps They are 1 Identify a problem within an existing organization that is amenable to information systems analysis techniques 2 Scope the problem i e choose how small or large a problem you will tackle during your feasibility study 3 Interview key people involved in the problem These may include your contacts others with responsibilities related to the feasibility study 4 Study relevant documents This may involve reading policy documents memos documentation on current systems and new objectives needs 5 Define alternatives for conducting business and for automation Define the criteria you will use evaluate and choose among these alternatives Your criteria should include cost benefit where applicable 6 Conduct an assessment of unusual circumstances or special attention items This may involve special requirements for particular employees or customers of the organization 7 Conduct an evaluation of the alternatives and choose the one that looks most promising page 2 6 8 Use use cases class diagrams and state activity diagrams to model business processes for the alternative you have selected along with relevant concepts 9 Write a report that describes the objectives of your study the problem you identified the alternatives you explored as well as your recommendations 10 Document your team s work and complete a team report see attached form II What to Hand In Please submit your assignment electronically by visiting the CDF electronic submission system at http www cdf toronto edu students submit html If you have hardcopy material that needs to be handed in please submit it directly to your tutor The assignment you hand in should consist of a report on the feasibility study that was conducted Assume that the report is being prepared for management This means that you need to be clear and concise about your recommendations and that you should present the basic ideas and recommendations in the report simply and with no extraneous information Other relevant information and supporting evidence is to appear in appendices Keep in mind that busy managers don t have the time to read long reports Your writeup should include information on the following items 1 An introduction describing the organization you chose to study the problem you identified and the process you followed during your study 2 The basic alternatives you considered and the criteria you used to evaluate them 3 A recommendation to proceed or not to proceed with an information system development project with supporting arguments 4 A conclusions section that summarizes the contents of your report and reiterates your recommendation 5 One or more appendices which describe in more detail i the organization for which the study was conducted ii the process used to gather information interviews review of written material etc iii the names and phone numbers of people you talked to details of any analyses you conducted iv use case class diagrams and state activity diagrams that describe the alternative you have chosen in more detail and the like page 3 6 III Suggestions Finding a Problem There are several things you may want to try here Start by considering previous employers but also friends relatives acquaintances who may be in a position to give you access to an organization that is willing to have you study one of their systems and prepare a feasibility study for an information system project Ideally the organization you find will be large with many departments etc and you will be dealing with a few people in one department Failing this you may want to try a small business e g a retail store a professional office Other possibilities for feasibility study projects include an information system for public software e g a help facility for Windows or Unix a public service that you are knowledgeable of e g driver license registration or one for which there is publicly available information e g OHIP related information systems In approaching an organization you should always talk to someone who has the authority to decide to assist you Remember that this project should be mutually beneficial and make sure you tell your client this In fact you should offer to present a copy of your final report to your client and make sure it is delivered What kind of project should you choose Ideally the organizational information system you study will have several people involved and possibly could include an existing computerized information system The following are examples of typical projects Computerize a given business system e g inventory sales Computerize a firm usually small which had not been computerized before Evaluate an existing computerized business system and recommending changes and modifications or even a new system Try not to bite off more than you can chew remember this is a course project You may find fairly early on that the project you have chosen is too large In this case perhaps a subsystem of the original problem can be chosen This should be done in consultation with your instructor or tutor In any case before you start looking around for a problem you may want to visit the course webpage http www cs toronto edu jm 340S and take a look at sample assignments from previous years Starting the Project Be sure to mention to the people you contact that you will need to conduct interviews with the organization s staff including the manager you are speaking with The interviews should be short page 4 6 Try to collect some basic background information on the organization its industry the system you want to study the library is a wonderful place to start Prepare a timetable of interviews contacts so that your client knows what to expect and when to expect it You will need to plan this schedule with your own time
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