Phases, Steps, Tasks, Deliverables
Phasesare the set of fundamental stages in a process of change in any project development. Tasks are fragments of work to be done. Way of carry out a particular task like execution is a Technique. Materials produced during the task accomplishment are the Deliverables. Every project have different phases. Each phase contains series of steps performed based on techniques to produce deliverables.
Planning:
Planningphase is the process of understanding why the system to be built and how to build it. It has two steps. Project initiation is to identify the business value of the system and also includes brief explanation about how the system supports to create business value. Project management is another phase describes to plan the work, selecting the suitable staff for project and usage of techniques to control and direct the project towards accomplishment. System request, feasibility analysis, project plan are the deliverables in planning phase.
Analysis:
Analysisphase describes when system is going to use what purpose by whom at where. In this phase, the project team experiments with current system to identify the opportunities for further improvement to develop new system. It has three steps. Analysis strategy is developed to guide the project team about the way of analyzing current system and its problems and then further possible improvements can be made build the new system. Requirements gathering is a second step includes the process of encapsulating all the useful inputs from project sponsor and various other sources to develop the concept of new system. Combined document of analyses, concepts and models is called System proposal. System proposal, analysis and initial design are the deliverables in Analysis phase.
Design:
Designphase decides how the system actually will operate in almost every aspect of the project. It has four steps. Design strategy determines the proper approach for acquiring like whether the system will be developed by company or outsourced to another company. System architecture describes the types of infrastructure to be used. Interface design specifies how the users can navigate throughout the system. Database and file specifications defines the actual location of the data to be stored and its type. Finally, program design represents plan and outline for the programs that need to be written. System specification is the deliverable in Design phase.
Implementation:
Implementationis the final and requires more attention phase in entire project describes which systems is actually built. It has threesteps. Construction includes testing and writing the system. Installationis the process of replacing old systems with newly developed systems. Training plan to teach users about the usage and changes of new system. Support plan is monitoring the system to identify the changed needed for the system. Programs, Manuals, Training materialsare the deliverables.
Waterfall Development Limitations:
Waterfall developmentis a sequential design process and original structured methodology still used today. Though it has highly structured physical environments, few noticeable advantages let the waterfall development few steps down. It follows the life cycle. Requirement must be precisely known prior to implementation. So that it is difficult to make changes after the process is underway. One phase has to complete to move into next phase. Lengthy deliverables result to poor communication. If the project team misses important requirement, it is almost impossible go to previous phase or making any changes.
SCRUM:
Scrumis an iterative and incremental process of project development. It is the flexible project development strategy which enables the team to self-organize by collaborating with all other team member and also daily face to face communication among the team members as a team work to reach the common goal. However, it has some limitations. It is a small team methodology and team size must not exceed more than seven members. Iteration is not as easy as it seems. They have to argue about the points and analyze their productivity. It is hard to complete in smaller sessions.
Selection of appropriate development methodology:
Selection of appropriate development methodology is not an easy task because of many available methodologies. There few key factors in choosing the right methodology. Clarity of user requirementsis essential factor because if the user requirements for the system mare unclear, it is very difficult to understand and explaining them about the needed system. Familiarity with technology is another factor specifies that the system must work with the new technology. Which means, the system has to be designed with some familiarity with the base technology. So that the tools might be capable for doing what actually needed. System complexity is as name suggest that how complex is the designed system. It require careful and in detail analysis and design. System reliability is usually important factor in developing the system. Prior to the development, if the priority of reliability is high, the project team test many different approaches before completing the design. Time pressure is one of the key factor in development. Every project has a deadline and for some short time scheduled projects, it is very difficult to select the methodology to complete the project in a given time. Finally, Schedule visibility is determining a project is on schedule.
Systems Analyst Role:
Systems analystfocuses on information system issues surrounding the system. He develops the ideas which helps to improve business process and also designs new business processes and information system. Finally, Systems analyst ensures that the system satisfies to information standards.
Systems analyst, Business analyst, Infrastructure analyst :
System analystidentifies how technology can improve business process. Business analyst analyze the key business aspects of the system and identifies how the system will provide business value. He is also responsible for new business processes and policies along with systems analyst. Infrastructure analyst focuses on technical issues surroundings like how the system interact with company’s technical infrastructure. He ensures the system conforms to infrastructure standards and identifies any infrastructure changes needed to support the system.