Whether using the classical SDLC or an object-oriented approach, the analyst first defines the problems and objectives of the system. These form the foundation of determining what needs to be accomplished by the system. Methods like Six Sigma (refer to Chapter 16 for details) start with a problem definition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A problem definition usually contains some sort of problem statement, summarized in a paragraph or two. This is followed by a series of issues, or major, independent pieces of the problem. The issues are followed by a series of objectives, or goals that match the issues point by point. Issues are the current situation; objectives are the desired situation. The objectives may be very specific or worded using a general statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here are some examples of business questions relating to business objectives:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Needless to say, the systems analyst needs to understand how a business works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The last part of the problem definition contains requirements, the things that must be accomplished, along with the possible solutions and the constraints that limit the development of the system. The requirements section may include security, usability, government requirements, and so on. Constraints often include the word not, indicating a limitation, and may contain budget restrictions or time limitations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The problem definition is produced after completing interviews, observations, and document analysis with the users. The result of gathering this information is a wealth of facts and important opinions in need of summary. The first step in producing the problem definition is to find a number of points that may be included in one issue. Major points can be identified in the interview in
\na number of ways:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once the issues have been created, the objectives must be stated. At times the analyst may have to do a follow-up interview to obtain more precise information about the objectives. After the objectives are stated, the relative importance of the issues or objectives must be determined. If there are not enough funds to develop the complete system, the most critical objectives must be completed first. The identification of the most critical objectives is best done by users (with the support of analysts), because users are domain experts in their business area and in how they work best with technologies in the organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One technique is to ask the users to assign a weight for each issue or objective of the first draft of the problem definition. This is a subjective judgment by the user, but, if a number of users all assign weights and they are averaged together, the result might reflect the bigger picture. After the weights have been determined, the problem definition issues and objectives are resequenced in order of decreasing importance, the most important issues listed first. There is software such as Expert Choice (www.expertchoice.com) and other decision support software that can assist with the weighting and prioritizing of objectives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Besides looking through data and interviewing people, try to witness the problem firsthand. When looking at the same situation, an employee may view a problem very differently than a systems analyst does. This also gives analysts the opportunity to confirm their findings. In this way they use multiple methods, thereby strengthening the case for taking appropriate action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Catherine\u2019s Catering is a small business that caters meals, receptions, and banquets for business and social occasions such as luncheons and weddings. It was inspired by Catherine\u2019s love of cooking and her talent for preparing fine meals. At first it was a small company with a handful of employees working on small projects. Catherine met with customers to determine the number of people, the type of meals, and other information necessary to cater an event. As their reputation for creating superb food and the quality of the service began to blossom, the number of events started to increase. The building of a new convention center, along with a prospering business community in the city, increased the number of catering events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Catherine was able to manage the business using spreadsheets and word processing but found difficulty in keeping up with endless phone calls about what types of meals were available, changes to the number of guests attending the event, and the availability of specialty dietary items, such as vegan, vegetarian, low-fat, low-carbohydrate, and so on. Catherine\u2019s decisions to hire a number of part-time employees to cook and cater the events meant that the complexity of scheduling personnel was becoming overwhelming to the new human resources manager. Catherine decided to hire an IT and business consulting company to help her address the problems her catering enterprise was facing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After performing interviews and observing a number of key staff, the consultants found the following concerns:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The problem definition is shown in the illustration below. Notice the weights on the right, representing an average of the weights assigned by each employee. Objectives match the issues. Each objective is used to create user requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n