Contemporary Approaches and Techniques for the Systems Analyst

A recent survey of methodologies and techniques currently used in organiz.ations for developing information systems indicates significant trends that call for a revision of the Information Systems (IS) Systems Analysis and Design (SA&D) course to define what methodologies, techniques, models, and tools need to be taught. As authors of analysis and design textbooks, we are particularly concerned about these trends, as are all who are involved in information systems educational programs. Each program needs to consider how to incorporate three fundamental changes on the SA&D curriculum - the growing popularity ofobject-oriented techniques, the emergence of the iterative approach, and the increasing adoption of the agile approach. This article discusses these three fundamental changes and references research describing the recent trends. Based on this research and on our experience teaching and writing about analysis and design, we make some recommendations. Given the vast number of topics in analysis and design, it is time to seriously consider including two courses in the IS curriculum that can deal with the breadth of the system related topics in the contemporary environment. In terms of functional requirements and analysis issues, we argue for employing a use case driven approach. We recommend that the SA&D courses use Unified Modeling Language (UML) whenever possible for modeling; however, we note some of the usability problems of UML. We suggest that the time has come to drop the data flow diagram (DFD). We also consider the impacts of the outsourcing trend on the course coverage

The Benefits of Object Oriented Development: Toward a Framework for Evaluation

This paper describes the initial efforts to explore the benefits of OO development by describing a framework for categorizing benefits based on phases of system development and by level of analysis. The level of analysis of OO benefits can be the enterprise level, the project level, and the individual developer level. The framework was tested by conducting structured interviews with information systems professionals to assess their perceptions of the reasons for selecting OO technology and OO benefits at the three levels of analysis. The initial results indicate that OO is selected for use for a variety of reasons, but primarily because of perceived productivity benefits. The greatest benefit is thought to be at the enterprise level or project level, with fewer benefits for the individual programmer. Of the benefits often mentioned in the literature, OO being a more natural way of thinking for developers did not appear to be supported

An Exploration of the Diffusion of Object-Oriented Systems Development

This study tests the applicability of Rogers’ (1995) diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory to a particular information technology innovation: object-oriented systems development (OOSD). Survey data from 150 experienced developers are analyzed using LISREL structural equation modeling techniques to determine the factors associated with OOSD adoption. Results indicate that the developer’s receptiveness to OOSD is the primary determinant of its adoption, followed by the perceived process benefits of easier programming, improved modularity, and flexible development. The influence of one’s coworkers and supervisors is shown to have a small but significant effect on the rate of OOSD adoption

Analysis and Design in the IS Curriculum: Taking it to the Next Level

Recent surveys of methodologies and techniques currently used in organizations for developing information systems indicate significant trends that call for a revision of the Information Systems (IS) Systems Analysis and Design (SA&D) course to define what methodologies, techniques, models, and tools need to be taught. Several course-related and environment governed trends seem to impact the coverage, including the growing popularity of object-oriented techniques, the shortening of the life cycle and the emergence of the iterative approach, the increasing adoption of the agile approach, the rising importance of UML, the outsourcing trend leading to global distribution of SA&D work, and the rate of change in the technical and business environments. The scope of the SA&D course has increased. Yet, most MIS degree programs have just one SA&D course. The typical SA&D instructor faces a number of difficult questions when trying to fit the much larger range of topics into a single course. A panel at the Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS) 2007 conference evaluated how the trends impact the coverage of the SA&D course and made recommendations on how these trends can be addressed. Based on the panel discussion, this paper tackles the many challenges of teaching analysis and design in the IS curriculum and taking it to the next level

Integrating SDLC and ITSM to \u27Servitize\u27 Systems Development

IT Service Management (ITSM) is generating much interest in industry as the quality and reliability of IT services are increasingly recognized as a critical factor for business success. Academic researchers have been slower to respond to industry demand for IT service management research and coursework. This paper argues that academia has an important role to play in integrating ITSM concepts and skills into traditional information systems coursework, specifically system development. The core systems analysis and design course is used to illustrate how IT service management concepts and models can be introduced into existing coursework to support the focus on IT services required by industry today, eventually reducing the growing percentage of IT budgets currently attributed to the operation and maintenance stages of ‘nonservitized’ systems development projects

Correlated Factors of Success: Personality, Creativity and Academic Achievement Among IS Students

Escalating demand for emerging IS personnel and a rapidly changing technological environment currently challenge many academic institutions attempting to attract, retain, and properly prepare the next generation of IS professionals. While in some instances attractive salaries and increased recruiting have attracted more students to the major, many academic programs still struggle with retaining and properly educating tomorrow’s IS employees. With that in mind, this study is designed to take a fresh look at today’s IS student in an attempt to identify some of the more significant factors related to success in the field. Specifically, factors related to personality, creativity, and other student attributes are studied to determine their relationship to a student’s success in the IS major. Results of the effort indicate that while personality type does play a role in the success of students, the aspects of creativity studied here are not significantly related to achievement. Additional analyses provide insight into other characteristics that are related to academic achievement or success in the study of information systems

Adopting and Implementing a Software Development Methodology: An Organizational Perspective

Although much has been written about better aligning Information Systems (IS) with the business, too often organizations perceive software development as though it exists in its own little cocoon. Selection of a formal software development methodology (FSDM) is usually left to the IS area which focuses on the detail component levels and features of an FSDM. The authors instead approach an FSDM evaluation from an organizational perspective. An organizational systems level (OSL) model should first be used to examine the potential impacts of a new FSDM on human resource policies and practices, organizational culture, structure and design, and work design and technology. Critical success factors (CSF) for an organizational FSDM are also discussed

Toward a Framework for Understanding Object-Oriented Development Practices

This paper describes specific object-oriented system development cases that resulted from interviews with system developers in a variety of large Midwestern firms. Four object-oriented projects are described, reflecting thediversity of the types of systems and types of technology involved. A few typical issues are discussed. This is the first phase of a research project that seeks to understand issues related to object-oriented development. Additional research is planned todefine and measure key development issues, and this will require developing a instrument based on the findings from these cases

The Human Capital Value of OOP

If object-oriented programmers are more productive than other programmers, they should be paid more, assuming that wages are determined based on the value of a worker\u27s marginal productivity. The human capital model is used to assess the current salary premiums of programmers who know object-oriented programming (OOP). While the human capital model employed quantifies this premium, it also controls for the effects of different amounts of technical experience and different levels of education (highest attained degree) that the programmers possess. Using two samples, the incremental value of OOP skills is shown to be about the same over the two different time periods (2000/2001 and 2003)