1. why information systems?
solve a problem
high costs of operation
lack of data integrity
inability to handle volumes
slow response/turnaround
etc.
realize an opportunity
new product or service
new tools available

2. strategic planning process

3. parallel activities: corporate strategic planning and information systems
Hoffer, George, Valacich. Modern Systems Analysis and Design. 2nd ed. Addison Welsey 1999.

4. factors affecting IT projects

5. factors affecting computer systems
strategic
short and long-term
strategy and plans
values and mission
formal
terminology
policies
standards and procedures
standards of practice
formal organization structure
job descriptions
external
government regulations
competitors: domestic and
international
products services and markets
role of technology in the business
informal
influence and inclinations of key personnel
who the experts are in different subject areas
critical incidents in the organization’s history
information organization structure
coalition membership and power structures

6. selecting the next project
how do we identify and select projects?
1. identify potential projects
2. classify and rank the projects
3. select projects for development
considerations?
size of project
strategic impact
cost/benefit ratio
organizational impact
urgency
value chain impact
resource availability
technological challenge
competitive edge
who is involved and why?
top management
steering committee
user departments
development group

7. system planning understand the problem or opportunity
define the project scope and constraints
perform fact finding
estimate the project’s benefits
estimate project development time and cost
present results and recommendations to management

8. project selection decisions
Hoffer, George, Valacich. Modern Systems Analysis and Design. 2nd ed. Addison Welsey 1999.

9. approving a project users and management IT department problems and
opportunities
service
request IT
architecture
long-range
plans
system
priority
board
approved
project
budget

10. baseline project plan report
introduction:
project overview
recommendations
system description:
alternatives
system description
feasibility assessment:
economic
technical
operational
legal/contractual
political
schedule
management issues:
the team
communication
standards and procedures
other project-specific topics
baseline project plan report
AKA proposal
statement
of work
deliverables
project plan

11. feasibility “What could possibly go wrong? We have a great team in IT!
We love a challenge.”
feasibility
large team
lengthy project
several departments involved
new application system
corporate reorganization is involved
users don’t think it’s a good idea
users can't agree on what's needed
management worried about funding it
user contribution will be large
leading-edge hardware
new methodology will be used
upgrade to latest development platform
economic
technical
operational
schedule
legal/contractual
political

12. example of resource planning
include a legend for any abbreviations

13. project planning

14. ces.asu.edu/.../management/gantt_chart.gif

15. intangible system costs
one-time project costs:
- labour
- materials
recurring costs:
intangible system costs
disruption of production or service
- inconvenience to customers
- etc.

17. costs per phase for a small system
(<5K lines of code)

18. software costs for a large system
(>10K lines of code)

19. cumulative costs VS cumulative benefits

20. return on investment

21. typical IT department organization

22. the art of project management
leadership
management
customer
relations
technical
problem solving
conflict
team
risk and change
Hoffer, George, Valacich. Modern Systems Analysis and Design. 2nd ed. Addison Welsey 1999.

23. project management methodology
establish project initiation team
establish relationship with customers
establish project initiation plan
establish management procedures
establish project management environment and project workbook 1
describe project scope, alternatives, feasibility
divide project into manageable tasks
estimate resources and create a resource plan
develop an preliminary schedule
develop a communication plan
determine project standards and procedures
identify and assess risk
create a preliminary budget
develop a statement of work
set a baseline project plan 2
project management methodology
execute the baseline project plan
monitor project against baseline plan
manage changes to the baseline plan
maintain project workbook
communicate project status 3
close customer contract
close down the project
conduct post-project reviews 4

24. Summary of Classic Mistakes
People-Related Mistakes
1. Undermined motivation
2. Weak personnel
3. Uncontrolled problem employees
4. Heroics
5. Adding people to a late project
6. Noisy, crowded offices
7. Friction between developers and customers
8. Unrealistic expectations
9. Lack of effective project sponsorship
10. Lack of stakeholder buy-in
11. Lack of user input
12. Politics placed over substance
13. Wishful thinking
Summary of Classic Mistakes
This material is Copyright © 1996 by Steven C. McConnell. All Rights Reserved.

25. Summary of Classic Mistakes
Process-Related Mistakes
14. Overly optimistic schedules
16. Insufficient risk management
17. Contractor failure Insufficient planning
18. Abandonment of planning under pressure
19. Wasted time during the fuzzy front end
20. Shortchanged upstream activities
21. Inadequate design
22. Shortchanged quality assurance
23. Insufficient management controls
24. Premature or too frequent convergence
25. Omitting necessary tasks from estimates
26. Planning to catch up later
27. Code-like-hell programming
Summary of Classic Mistakes
This material is Copyright © 1996 by Steven C. McConnell. All Rights Reserved.

26. Summary of Classic Mistakes
Product-Related Mistakes
28. Requirements gold-plating
29. Feature creep
30. Developer gold-plating
31. Push me, pull me negotiation
32. Research-oriented development
Technology-Related Mistakes
33. Silver-bullet syndrome
34. Overestimated savings from new tools
or methods
35. Switching tools in the middle of a project
36. Lack of automated source-code control
Summary of Classic Mistakes
This material is Copyright © 1996 by Steven C. McConnell. All Rights Reserved.