Book Name: System Analysis and Design

Author Name: Kendall and Kendall

Chapter Name: Systems, Roles, and Development Methodologies
‘System, Roles, and Development Methodologies’ introduces the basic concept
about systems analyst and their roles. It also describes the fundamentals of three
development methodologies and the need of CASE tools.
System analysis and design, as performed by systems analyst, seeks to understand
what humans need to analyze data input or data flow systematically, process or
transform data, store data, and output information in the context of a particular
organization or enterprise. The analyst must be able to work with people of all
descriptions and be experienced in working with computers. The system analyst
plays and balance many roles at a time but their three primary roles are:
 Consultant: They provide expert advices to address information system
issues and also bring fresh perspective.
 Supporting Expert: They draw on professional expertise concerning
computer hardware and software and their uses in the business.
 Agent of Change: The most comprehensive and responsible role that the
systems analyst takes on is that of an agent of change, whether internal or
external to the business. An agent of change can be defined as a person
who serves as a catalyst for change, develops a plan for change, and works
with others in facilitating that change.
Analysts also have many important qualities such as they are expert in problem
solving, skilled communicator etc. They need to take systematic approach in order
to solve any problem. For this the systematic development life cycle (SDLC)
approach can be used. The life cycle can be divided into seven phases. They are:
 Identifying problems, opportunities, and objectives: In this first phase of
the systems development life cycle, the analyst is concerned with correctly
identifying problems, opportunities, and objectives. This stage is critical to
the success of the rest of the project, because no one wants to waste
subsequent time addressing the wrong problem.
 Determining human information requirements: The next phase the
analyst enters is that of determining the human needs of the users involved,
using a variety of tools to understand how users interact in the work context
 with their current information
systems.
 Analyzing system needs: The next phase that the systems analyst
undertakes involves analyzing system needs. Tools such as data flow
diagrams (DFD) to chart the input, processes, and output of the business’s
functions, or activity diagrams or sequence diagrams to show the sequence
of events, illustrate systems in a structured, graphical form.
 Designing the recommended system: In the design phase of the SDLC, the
systems analyst uses the information collected earlier to accomplish the
logical design of the information system. The analyst provides for users to
complete effective input to the information system by using techniques of
good form and Web page or screen design.
 Developing and documenting software: During this phase the analyst
works with users to develop effective documentation for software, including
procedure manuals, online help, and Web sites featuring Frequently Asked
Questions (FAQs), on Read Me files shipped with new software.
Documentation tells users how to use software and what to do if software
problems occur.
 Testing and maintaining the system: Before the information system can be
used, it must be tested. It is much less costly to catch problems before the
system is signed over to users. Some of the testing is completed by
programmers alone, some of it by systems analysts in conjunction with
programmers. A series of tests to pinpoint problems is run first with sample
data and eventually with actual data from the current system. Often test
plans are created early in the SDLC and are refined as the project progresses.
 Implementing and evaluating the system: This last phase involves training
users to handle the system. Vendors do some training, but oversight of
training is the responsibility of the systems analyst. This process includes
converting files from old formats to new ones, or building a database,
installing equipment, and bringing the new system into production
Another approach is agile approach which is based on values, principles, and core
practices. The four values are communication, simplicity, feedback, and courage.
Two words that characterize a project done with agile approach are interactive and
incremental. Exploration, planning, iterations to the first release, productionizing,
and maintenance are the five stages of agile modeling development process.
Object oriented analysis design is the third approach that can be used in system
development. This approach uses the object oriented programming concepts that
have become codified in UML, a standardized modelling language in which objects
that are created include not only code about data but also instructions about the
operations to be performed on the data. Developing system using this approach can
be reused many times.
A system analyst needs to choose the appropriate approach for the development of
the system. For this the analyst needs to understand the organization, budget their
time and resources and develop a project proposal, interview organizational
members to gather data and observe how business is currently transacted. Based on
the result of these activities one of the approach is selected for developing the
system.
Analysts who adopt the SDLC approach often benefit from productivity tools, called
Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE) tools that have been created
explicitly to improve their routine work through the use of automated support. It
helps them to increase their productivity, communicate more efficiently with users,
and integrate the work that they do on the system from the beginning to the end of
the life cycle. There are two types of CASE tools. An upper CASE tool which allows
the analyst to create and modify the system design, support the modeling of an
organization’s functional requirements, assist analyst and users in drawing the
boundaries for a given project and help them visualize how the project meshes with
other parts of the organization. They also use lower CASE tools which are used to
generate computer source code, eliminating the need for programming the system.
The content of this chapter is well written and understandable. It has given me a
clear idea about what is system analysis, who are system analysts and their
importance, qualities, and role. It has also described about the three approaches that
can be used to analyze and design the system. When to use which approach is briefly
described here which is really important to know because of system varieties. While
analyzing the system the analysts can use CASE tools which increase their
productivity and ease workload.