Chapter13BuildingInformationSystems21)Whatistheprimarydrivingfactorinfirmstoselectdomesticoutsourcingfirmstobuildsystemsolutions?A)totakeadvantageoftechnicalskillsthefirmdoesnothaveB)tosavelaborcostsC)toavoidchangemanagementissuesD)alloftheaboveAnswer:A22)ThefourkindsofstructuralorganizationalchangeenabledbyIT,inorderfromleasttomostrisky,areA)rationalization,automation,reengineering,andredesigning.B)rationalization,automation,reengineering,andparadigmshift.C)automation,rationalization,reengineering,andparadigmshift.D)automation,redesigning,restructuring,andparadigmshift.Answer:C23)Businessprocessesareanalyzed,simplified,andredesignedinA)businessprocessredesign.B)rationalizationofprocedures.C)automation.D)paradigmshifts.Answer:A

24)InautomationA)businessprocessesaresimplified.B)businessprocessesarereorganizedtocutwasteandeliminaterepetitive,paper-intensivetasks.C)standardoperatingproceduresarestreamlinedtoremovebottlenecks.D)employeesareenabledtoperformtheirtasksmoreefficiently.Answer:D25)Abankhasreworkeditsmortgageapplicationprocesssothatseveralstepsarehandledbycomputersoftware,andsomestepsarecombinedtoreducebottlenecksinprocessing.Thegoalistograduallyimproveitsefficiencyovertime.ThisisanexampleofA)automation.B)rationalizationofprocedures.C)paradigmshift.D)businessprocessredesign.Answer:B26)Anupscaleorganicfoodsgrocerychainisimplementinganinformationsystemthatwillenableittoaddsamedayhomedeliveryofgroceriestoitscustomers.ThisisanexampleofA)automation.B)rationalizationofprocedures.C)paradigmshift.D)businessprocessredesign.Answer:C27)Inorder,whatarethefirstthreestepsinBPM?A)(1)identifyingprocessesforchange,(2)analyzingexistingprocesses,(3)designingthenew processB)(1)analyzingexistingprocesses,(2)identifyingprocessesforchange,(3)designingthenew processC)(1)identifyingprocessesforchange,(2)designingthenewprocess,(3)implementingthenewprocessD)(1)analyzingprocessestochange(2)designingthenewprocess,(3)measuringtheoptimizedprocessAnswer:A28)________provide(s)amethodologyandtoolsfordealingwiththeorganization'songoing needtoreviseandoptimizeitsnumerousbusinessprocesses.A)BusinessprocessredesignB)BusinessprocessmanagementC)CASEtoolsD)TQMAnswer:B29)TheideathattheachievementofqualitycontrolisanendinitselfdescribesamainconceptofA)BPM.B)BPR.C)sixsigma.D)TQM.Answer:D

34)EnablingorganizationstomakecontinualimprovementstomanybusinessprocessesandtouseprocessesasthefundamentalbuildingblocksofcorporateinformationsystemsisthegoalofA)businessprocessmanagement.B)businessprocessredesign.C)workflowengineering.D)workflowmanagement.Answer:A35)Transferringdatafromalegacysystemtothenewsystemwouldbedefinedbywhichcategoryofsystemdesignspecifications?A)inputB)databaseC)manualproceduresD)conversionAnswer:D36)Determiningmethodsforfeedbackanderrorhandlingwouldbedefinedbywhichcategoryofsystemdesignspecifications?A)traininganddocumentationB)userinterfaceC)manualproceduresD)securityandcontrolsAnswer:B37)UnittestingA)includesallthepreparationsfortheseriesofteststobeperformedonthesystem.B)teststhefunctioningofthesystemasawholeinordertodetermineifdiscretemoduleswillfunctiontogetherasplanned.C)testseachprogramseparately.D)providesthefinalcertificationthatthesystemisreadytobeusedinaproductionsetting.Answer:C38)SystemtestingA)includesallthepreparationsfortheseriesofteststobeperformedonthesystem.B)teststhefunctioningofthesystemasawholeinordertodetermineifdiscretemoduleswillfunctiontogetherasplanned.C)testseachprogramseparately.D)providesthefinalcertificationthatthesystemisreadytobeusedinaproductionsetting.Answer:B39)AcceptancetestingA)includesallthepreparationsfortheseriesofteststobeperformedonthesystem.B)teststhefunctioningofthesystemasawholeinordertodetermineifdiscretemoduleswillfunctiontogetherasplanned.C)testseachprogramseparately.D)providesthefinalcertificationthatthesystemisreadytobeusedinaproductionsetting.Answer:D40)Inaparallelconversionstrategy,thenewsystemA)istestedbyanoutsourcedcompany.B)replacestheoldoneatanappointedtime.C)andtheoldareruntogether.D)isintroducedinstages.Answer:C41)Inthedirectcutoverconversionstrategy,thenewsystemA)istestedbyanoutsourcedcompany.B)replacestheoldoneatanappointedtime.C)andtheoldareruntogether.D)isintroducedinstages.Answer:B42)Changesinhardware,software,documentation,orproductiontoaproductionsystemtocorrecterrors,meetnewrequirements,orimproveprocessingefficienciesaretermedA)compliance.B)production.C)maintenance.D)acceptance.Answer:C43)Inwhatstageofsystemsdevelopmentaredesignspecificationscreated?A)systemsanalysisB)systemsdesignC)testingD)conversionAnswer:B44)Theprimarytoolforrepresentingasystem'scomponentprocessesandtheflowofdatabetweenthemistheA)datadictionary.B)processspecificationsdiagram.C)userdocumentation.D)dataflowdiagram.Answer:D45)Tounderstandanddefinethecontentsofdataflowsanddatastore,systembuildersuseA)adatadictionary.B)processspecificationsdiagrams.C)userdocumentation.D)dataflowdiagrams.Answer:A72)Asoftwarepackageevaluationprocessisoftenbasedonaseriesofquestionssenttovendors,calleda(n)________Answer:RFP,requestforproposal73)Duringthe________stageofsystemdevelopment,systemspecificationsthatwerepreparedduringthedesignstagearetranslatedintosoftwarecode.Answer:programming74)Asystemsanalysisincludesa(n)________thatisusedtodeterminewhetherthesolutionisachievablefromafinancial,technical,andorganizationalstandpoint.Answer:feasibilitystudy75)________containadetailedstatementoftheinformationneedsthatanewsystemmustsatisfy;identifieswhoneedswhatinformation,andwhen,where,andhowtheinformationisneeded.Answer:Informationrequirements76)A(n)________isthemodelorblueprintforaninformationsystemsolutionandconsistsofallthespecificationsthatwilldeliverthefunctionsidentifiedduringsystemsanalysis.Answer:systemsdesign77)________istheprocessofchangingfromtheoldsystemtothenewsystem.Answer:Conversion78)________describethetransformationoccurringwithinthelowestlevelofthedataflowdiagrams.Answer:Processspecifications

79)________ aresoftwaretoolsthatenableenduserstocreatereportsordevelopsoftwareapplicationswithminimalornotechnicalassistance.Answer:Fourth-generationlanguages80)________designisaprocessusedtoacceleratethegenerationofinformationrequirementsbyhavingend usersandinformationsystemspecialistsworktogetherinintensiveinteractivedesignsessions.Answer:Jointapplication81)Describeeachtypeoforganizationalchangeenabledbyinformationtechnology.Giveanexampleofeachtypeofchange,asitmightbeillustratedthroughtheoperationsofahotel.Answer:1.Inautomation,employeesareassistedwithperformingtasksautomatically.Inahotel,thismightmeanthatasystemissetupforthereservationsdesktorecordandprocesscustomerreservations.2.Inrationalizationofprocedures,standardoperatingproceduresarestreamlined.Inahotel,thismightmeanthatareservationsystemthatrequiredthreeorfourstepsforcheckingacustomerinwouldbereducedtooneortwosteps.3.Inbusinessprocessreengineering,businessprocessesareanalyzed,simplifiedandredesigned.Inahotel,thereservationandcheck-insystemmightbedesignedtoallowthecustomerstoreserveroomsandcheckinthemselves,withouttheneedofahotelemployeetoconfirmtheprocess.4.Inparadigmshift,theverynatureofthebusinessisrethoughtandnewbusinessmodelsaredefined.Inahotel,thismightmeanthattheideaofrentingroomsonanight-by-nightbasistoclientsmightberethoughtofasanextendedstayplace,orperhapsevenasacondominiumorotherbusinesstype.82)Whatisthebusinessimportanceofmanagingthequalityofbusinessprocesses?Describetwomethodsofqualitymanagement.Answer:Qualitymanagementisoneareaofcontinuousprocessimprovement.Qualityimprovementsinbusinessprocessescanincreaseefficiency,reducewaste,lowercosts,andcanraisethelevelofproductandservicequality.TwomethodsforachievinggreaterqualityareTotalQualityManagement(TQM)andSixSigma.InTQM,qualityistheresponsibilityofallpeopleandfunctionswithinanorganization.Everyoneisexpectedtocontributetotheoverallimprovementofquality.Six sigma isaspecificmeasureofquality,representing3.4defectspermillionopportunities.Mostcompaniescannotachievethislevelofqualitybutusesixsigmaasagoaltoimplementasetofmethodologiesandtechniquesforimprovingqualityandreducingcosts.83)Youareconsultingfortheinformationtechnologydivisionofastateuniversitytoguideandfacilitatethedesignofanewsystemforhandlingcollegeapplications,whichhaspreviouslybeenhandledentirelywithapaper- basedprocess.Theywouldliketosetupasystembywhichprospectivestudentscanapplyonline.Describeindetailtheirfirststepsandanystudiestheyshouldperformbeforedesigningthenewinformationsystem.Answer:Studentanswerswillvary,butshouldincludeanunderstandingofthefirststepofsystemsdevelopment systemsanalysis,alongwithfeasibilitystudiesanddetermininginformationrequirements.Anexampleansweris:Thecollegewillneedtoperformsystemsanalysis.Thisconsistsofdefiningtheproblem,identifyingitscauses,specifyingthesolution,identifyingtheinformationrequirements.Italsoincludesidentifyingtheprimaryownersandusersofdataalongwithexistinghardwareandsoftware,theproblemsofexistingsystems,examiningdocuments,workpapers,andprocedures;observingsystemoperations;andinterviewingkeyusersofthesystems.Thesystemsanalysiswouldincludeafeasibilitystudy todeterminewhetherthatsolutionwasfeasible,orachievable, fromafinancial,technical,andorganizationalstandpoint.Thefeasibilitystudywoulddeterminewhethertheproposedsystemwasagoodinvestment,whetherthetechnologyneededforthesystemwasavailableandcouldbehandledbythefirm'sinformationsystemsspecialists,andwhethertheorganizationcouldhandlethechangesintroducedbythesystem.Theyshouldidentifyseveralalternativesolutionsthattheorganizationcanpursue.Theprocessthenassessesthefeasibilityofeach.Awrittensystemsproposalreportdescribesthecostsandbenefits,advantagesanddisadvantagesofeachalternative.Itisuptomanagementtodeterminewhichmixofcosts,benefits,technicalfeatures,andorganizationalimpactsrepresentsthemostdesirablealternative.Theywillalsoneedtodefinethespecificinformationrequirementsthatmustbemetbythesystemsolutionselected.Thisinvolvesidentifyingwhoneedswhatinformation,where,when,andhow.Requirementsanalysiscarefullydefinestheobjectivesofthenewormodifiedsystemanddevelopsadetaileddescriptionofthefunctionsthatthenewsystemmustperform.84)Listanddescribeatleastninefactorsconsideredinthedesignspecificationsforanewsystem.Giveatleasttwoexamplesforeachone.Answer:Output.Medium,content,timingInput.Origins,flow,dataentryUserinterface.Simplicity,efficiency,logic,feedback,errorsDatabasedesign.Logicaldatamodel,volumeandspeedrequirements,organizationanddesign,recordspecificationsProcessing.Computations,programmodules,requiredreports,timingofoutputsManualprocedures.Whatactivities,whoperformsthem,when,how,whereControls.Inputcontrols,processingcontrols,outputcontrols,proceduralcontrolsSecurity.Accesscontrols,catastropheplans,audittrailsDocumentation.Operationsdocumentation,systemsdocuments,userdocumentationConversion.Transferfiles,initiateprocedures,selecttestingmethod,cutovertonewsystemTraining.Selecttrainingtechniques,developtrainingmodules,identifytrainingfacilitiesOrganizationalchanges.Taskredesign,jobdesign,processdesign,organizationstructuredesign,reportingrelationships85)Discusstheroleandinfluencetheuserplaysinsoftwaredevelopment.Answer:Theuseristheprimaryfocusofsoftwaredevelopment.Whetheranewinformationsystemsucceedsorfailslargelydependsontherolesofusers.Buildingsuccessfulinformationsystemsrequiresclosecooperationamongendusersandinformationsystemsspecialiststhroughoutthesystemsdevelopmentprocess.Ifusersareheavilyinvolvedinthedevelopmentofasystem,theyhavemoreopportunitiestomoldthesystemaccordingtotheirprioritiesandbusinessrequirements,andmoreopportunitiestocontroltheoutcome.Theyalsoaremorelikelytoreactpositivelytothecompletedsystembecausetheyhavebeenactiveparticipantsinthechangeprocess.Incorporatinguserknowledgeandexpertiseleadstobettersolutions.Theroleoftheuserinthedevelopmentofsoftwaredependsonthemethodofdevelopmentused.InSLDC,work;endusersarelimitedtoprovidinginformationrequirementsandreviewingthetechnicalstaff'swork.Inprototyping,usersareinvolvedthroughoutdevelopment,throughtheuseandreviewofiterativestepsoftheprototype.Inend-userdevelopment,theusersthemselvescreatethesystem.UsersaretypicallymoreinvolvedalsoinRAD,throughtheuseofprototypingandJAD.Injointapplicationdesign,endusersandinformationsystemsspecialistsworktogetherinaninteractivesessiontodiscussdesign.86)YouworkfortheITdepartmentofastartupASP,anditisyourjobtosetupthetestingprocessesforanewenterprisesystemthecompanywillbehosting.Describetheprocessesyouwillrecommend.Whatuniqueconsiderationswillyouhave?Answer:Thefirststepistopreparethetestplan.Anyindividualcomponentswillneedtobetestedseparately,first(inunittesting),andthenthesystemasawholewillneedtobetested(insystemtesting).Finallyacceptancetestingwillbeconductedtomakesurethesystemisreadytobeusedinaproductionsetting.Becausethisisahostedapplication,thesystemwillneedtobetestedasaccessedfromthevarietyofplatformsthataresupportedbytheapplication.IfthehostedapplicationsupportsbothMacandWindowsusers,thesystemanditspartswillneedtobetestedusingclientcomputersrunningthesesystems.87)Whatqualitiesofobject-orienteddevelopmentmakethismethodespeciallysuitableforInternetapplications?Answer:Object-orienteddevelopmentusestheobjectasthebasicunitofsystemsanalysisanddesign.Thesystemismodeledasacollectionofobjectsandtherelationshipsbetweenthem.E- commercecompaniesneedtobeabletoadd,change,andretiretheirtechnologycapabilitiesveryrapidly.Object-rienteddevelopmentallowsobjectstobereusedandrepackagedwithotherobjectstocreatenewsoftware,savingmoneyanddevelopmenttime.88)Identifyanddescribeeachofthefivesystemsdevelopmentapproaches.Answer:1)Systemslifecycleisasequentialstep-by-tepformalprocess,writtenspecificationandapprovals,limitedroleofusers.(2)Inprototyping,requirementsarespecifieddynamicallywithexperimentalsystemsinarapid,informal,anditerativeprocess;userscontinuallyinteractwiththeprototype.(3)Anapplicationssoftwarepackageiscommercialsoftwarethateliminatestheneedforinternallydevelopedsoftwareprograms(4)Inend-userdevelopment,systemsarecreatedbyendusersusingfourth-generationsoftwaretools,rapidandinformal,minimalroleofinformationsystemsspecialists.(5)Inoutsourcingsystemsarebuiltandsometimesoperatedbyanexternalvendor.

89)Whataretheadvantagesanddisadvantagesofprototyping?Describethestepsinprototyping.Giveatleasttwocircumstancesunderwhichprototypingmightbeuseful.Answer:Prototypingismostusefulwhenthereissomeuncertaintyaboutrequirementsordesignsolutions.Becauseprototypingencouragesintenseend-userinvolvementthroughouttheprocess,itismorelikelytoproducesystemsthatfulfilluserrequirements.Workingprototypesystemscanbedevelopedveryrapidlyandinexpensively.Rapidprototypingcanglossoveressentialstepsinsystemsdevelopment.Ifthecompletedprototypeworksreasonablywell,managementmaynotseetheneedforreprogramming,redesigned,fulldocumentationintestingtobuildapolishedproductionsystem.Thiscanbackfirelaterwithlargequantitiesofdataorlargenumbersofusersinaproductionenvironment.Thestepsinprototypingare:(1)Identifytheuser'sbasicrequirements,(2)developaninitialprototype,(3)usetheprototype,(4)reviseandenhancetheprototype.Prototypingmightbeespeciallyusefulindesigningend-userinterfaces,orsituationsinwhichtheusershavenoclearideasofwhattheirinformationrequirementsare.90)Whatisoutsourcing?Describetheadvantagesanddisadvantagestooutsourcingsoftwaredevelopment.Answer:Inoutsourcing,afirmhiresanexternalorganizationtobuildormaintainpartorallofitsinformationsystemsneeds.Thiscanincludesoftwaredevelopmentandhostingapplications,butthefirmmayalsohostanydevelopedapplicationsonitsownhardwarewhilehavingthevendorcreateandmaintainsoftwareorsystems.Thevendormaybedomesticorinanothercountry(inoffshoreoutsourcing).Thebenefittooutsourcingis,inthecaseofdomesticoutsourcing,beingabletodevelopsystemsthatin-housestaffmaynothavethetimeorskillstodo.Inthecaseofoffshoreoutsourcing,aprimarybenefitiscostsavings,ascostsandsalariesinforeigncountriescanbesignificantlyless.Disadvantageswouldincluderelinquishingsomecontroloverdevelopment,havingthirdpartyfirmsaccesstoprivilegedcompanydataandinformation.Itisalsopossibletounderestimatecostsinoutsourcing,whichincludecostsfortransferringknowledge,culturaldifferences,productivitylosses,andotherhumanresourceissues.1)ThemostcommonformofIT-enabledorganizationalchangeisautomation.Answer:TRUE2)Rationalizationofproceduresdescribesaradicalrethinkingofthebusinessmodels.Answer:FALSE3)Failuretoaddressproperlytheorganizationalchangessurroundingtheintroductionofanewsystemcancausethedemiseofanotherwisegoodsystem.Answer:TRUE4)TQMdescribesthemeasurementofqualityas3.4defectspermillion.Answer:FALSE5)Thoroughtestingisnotrequiredif,duringtheprogrammingstage,thedesigndocumentsaresufficientlydetailed.Answer:FALSEObjective:13.26)Thesystemisnotinproductionuntilconversioniscomplete.Answer:TRUE7)Documentationrevealshowwellthesystemhasmetitsoriginalobjectives.Answer:FALSE8)Adataflowdiagramoffersalogicalandgraphicalmodelofinformationflow,partitioningasystemintomodulesthatshowmanageablelevelsofdetail.Answer:TRUE9)Astructurechartisabottom-upchart,showingeachlevelofdesign,itsrelationshiptootherlevels,anditsplaceintheoveralldesignstructure.Answer:FALSE10)Object-orienteddevelopmentismoreincrementalthantraditionalstructureddevelopment.Answer:TRUE

11)Objectsaregroupedintohierarchies,andhierarchiesintoclasses.Answer:FALSE12)CASEtoolsfacilitatethecreationofcleardocumentationandthecoordinationofteadevelopmentefforts.Answer:TRUE

13)Theoldestmethodforbuildinginformationsystemsisprototyping.Answer:FALSE

14)Prototypingismoreiterativethantheconventionallifecycle.Answer:TRUE15)Aproblemwithprototypingisthatthesystemsconstructedusingthismethodmaynotbeabletohandlelargequantitiesofdatainaproductionenvironment.Answer:TRUE16)End-user-developedsystemscanbecompletedmorerapidlythanthosedevelopedthroughtheconventionalsystemslifecycle.Answer:TRUE17)Oneadvantageoffourth-generationtoolsisthattheycaneasilyhandleprocessinglargenumbersoftransactionsorapplicationswithextensiveprocedurallogicandupdatingrequirements.Answer:FALSE18)Insomeformsofoutsourcing,acompanyhiresanexternalvendortocreatethesoftwareforitssystem,butoperatesthesoftwareonitsowncomputers.Answer:TRUE19)Aprimarybenefitofoffshoreoutsourcingisthatthiscansubstantiallyreducehiddencosts.Answer:FALSE

20)Systemsdevelopmentactivitiesalwaystakeplaceinsequentialorder.Answer:FALSE