The COO of Riordan Manufacturing, Hugh McCauley, wants to combine the current assortment of tools in use into a single integrated application. Riordan Manufacturing wants to take advantage of the most sophisticated, state-of-the art information systems technology that already exists in the human resources department (Riordan Manufacturing, 2006).
In the development phase, it is important for one to gather information from various sources to ensure the project efficiently performs its preferred job. To begin the information-gathering process, one will need to meet with the key management personnel, IT staff, and users to talk about what tasks are involved. Through this collaboration, the developers will be allowed to ask questions, as well as invite comments, ideas and acknowledge concerns. This collaboration will help to brainstorm and to comprehend better what the corporation needs to do to improve the overall process.
Another method that will be used to gather information for this project is conducting interviews. By interviewing selected individuals, it would help to figure out what works best for the company and what can be done to improve the human resources department in the future. After all the information is collected, documented, and studied, then the design phase can begin.
The design method that would be used for Riordan Manufacturing would involve the use of Joint Application Development (JAD).
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Joint application design
(JAD) is a process used in the prototyping life cycle area of the Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM) to collect business requirements while developing new information systems for the company. “The JAD process also includes approaches for enhancing user participation, expediting the development, and improving the quality of specifications.” It consists of a workshop where “knowledge workers and IT specialists meet, sometimes for several days, to define and review the business requirements for the system.”[1] The attendees include high level management officials who will ensure the product provides the needed reports and information in the end. This acts as “a management process which allows Corporate Information Services (IS) departments to work more effectively with users in a shorter time frame.”
Through JAD workshops, the knowledge workers and IT specialists are able to resolve any difficulties or differences between the two parties regarding the new information system. The workshop follows a detailed agenda in order to guarantee that all uncertainties between parties are covered and to help prevent any miscommunications. Miscommunications can carry far more serious repercussions if not addressed until later on in the process. Participants in this methodology would include users, managers, sponsors, and systems analysts. Allowing these participants to have a voice in determining what the company needs for improvement is essential as they can provide the most vital information on what is needed to improve the process of the company.
Riordan Manufacturing is a very large corporation with locations all over the world. Because of the size of the company, Riordan must have a system that is able to keep track of important information, such as employee names, birthdates, home address, phone numbers and social security numbers. This information should be able to be accessed from other locations, as well as the home office. There are other functions that a new and improved HR system could benefit from, such as inventory tracking. Other benefits include shipping and receiving of products.
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Information systems are necessary for supporting the business functions in a company. How well a company chooses the proper information systems can make the difference between a successful business and a failure. This paper will discuss information systems and how they impact organizations. Information Systems Support Business Processes in OrganizationsAny modern business requires information ...
Riordan Manufacturing is looking to take advantage of a more sophisticated state-of-the art information systems technology upgrade. Riordan’s main objective is to integrate its existing tools into a single application. The cost should be reasonable since we will be enhancing the existing system.
During the scope analysis the need of this integration will be discussed, as well as the amount of financial resources Riordan is willing to give to the project. The impact, whether positive or negative, will be addressed during the feasibility analysis. After this phase, recommendations and conclusions can be given and taken to determine the overall outcome of the project.
After gathering the information for the service request for Riordan Manufacturing, it will be determined that the integration of the existing system will be beneficial to the company’s HR department. The plan for this project will be built around the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS).
A work breakdown structure (WBS), in project management and systems engineering, is a deliverable oriented decomposition of the project into smaller components. A work breakdown structure element may be a product, data, service, or any combination thereof. A WBS also provides the necessary framework for detailed cost estimating and control along with providing guidance for schedule development and control. This will allow the plan to be broken down into a hierarchy, which represents the work to be done.
The first step in the plan is to analyze the current infrastructure. This will determine if Riordan’s current software will be able to support the new system. This process should last 60 days and cost $200,000.
The next step is the design phase in which the system requirements and use are determined. This phase will last three weeks and have an estimated cost of $75,000.
The next step is the Development phase, where developers will identify design parameters. Develop help-code and perform debugging.
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During project planning, project schedule and cost estimate are determines and accepted. Cost and time estimates will help determine the completion of the project. Once cost and time estimate are determined, the project can be executed and controlled. Execution refers to the process of the work and control refers to tracking the work to ensure that the project is on schedule and within budget. ...
The final phase is data migration. This consists of extracting data from the existing system and transforming it to conform to the new system. This process will only take 3 days and cost $5,000.
The next phase is testing. This phase will last 10 days and cost $25,000. During this phase is when there will be an exact replica of the new system. The Final steps include implementation, training, support and maintenance.
Before the diagram can be put into practice, it must be given formal approval by the COO. The diagram that will be illustrated will allow the corporation to integrate all of its facilities into one single application. This single application will improve the overall performance of its human resources department. The total cost of the project to development and implement will be $305,000 and will take a total of 3 months to complete. This completion date is within the six month deadline given by Mr. Mccauley.
References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joint_application_design
Riordan Manufacturing (2006).
Riordan Intranet. Retrieved August 26, 2014 from http://ecampus.phoenix.edu/secure/aapd/cist/libraries/IT Service Requests.htm
Bicara, Bedes (2009).
Bicara Property. Retrieved August 26, 2014 from http://bicaraproperty.wordpress.com/2009/08/19/scope-of-feasibility-analysis
Business Requirements (2006).
Retrieved August 26, 2014 from http://www.slideshare.net/Timothy212/business-requirements-document-brd
