Selecting the Best Alternative Design Strategy

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Selecting the Best Alternative Design Strategy

• MBA 597
• Spring 2003

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Systems Analysis

• Three Major Activities
• Requirements determination
• Requirements structuring
• Alternative generation and selection
• Concurrent and iterative

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Selecting the Best Alternative

• Generate a comprehensive set of alternative
  design strategies
• Select the one that is most likely to result in
  the desired system
• Design strategy
• system functionality
• hardware and system software platform
• method for acquisition

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Generating Alternative Design Strategies

• Create multiple combinations of
• Capability sets
• Bare minimum most elaborate -or-
• Area A Area B Area C
• Implementation environment (platform)
• Sourcing

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Deliverables

• At least three substantially different design
  strategies
• The design strategy deemed most likely to yield
  the desired result
• Baseline Project Plan to accomplish the chosen
  strategy

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Features of Systems

• Data to be stored
• Output to be provided
• Analyses to be performed
• Performance to be achieved
• Accessibility
• Response time
• Turnaround time

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Constraints and Situational Factors

• Date/time when needed
• Available financial and human resources
• Immutable aspects of the current system
• Legal and contractual restrictions
• Proprietary nature of data or algorithms
• Importance of system to organizations success

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Outsourcing

• Highly outsourced
• Outsourcer develops and runs system on its own
  platform
• Client provides input, receives output
• Minimally outsourced
• Outsourcer operates and maintains clients
  systems
• Client or other party develops systems

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Sources of Software
Table 7-3 contains a good comparison of these

• Hardware manufacturers
• Often provide systems software
• Prepackaged software companies
• Standardized applications
• Custom software companies
• Client-specific solutions
• Enterprise solutions software companies
• Cross-functional systems
• In-House development
• Development or customization for
  organization-specific needs

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Off-the-Shelf Software

• Usually less expensive
• Criteria for selecting a vendor and product
• Cost
• Functionality
• Meets our needs
• Speed of operation
• Application flexibility
• Vendor support
• Vendor viability
• Documentation
• Ease of installation

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Hardware and Software Issues

• Use current system
• Less expensive
• Staff familiarity
• High probability of integrating with current
  systems
• No cost to convert existing systems
• Acquire new system
• Software might not run on current system
• Opportunity to upgrade or expand other systems
• Radical change possible

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Choosing the Best Alternative

• Weighted factor approach
• Determine factors and importance (weight)
• Rank each alternative on every factor
• Multiply and sum

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