ORGANIZATION OF THIS BOOK
This book is organized by the phases of the systems development life cycle
(SDLC). Each chapter has been written to teach students specific tasks that analysts
need to accomplish over the course of a project, and the deliverables that will be
produced from the tasks. As students complete the book, tasks will be “checked
off ” and deliverables will be completed and filed in a project binder. Along the way,
students will be reminded of their progress by road maps that indicate where their
current task fits into the larger context of SAD.
Part 1 covers the first phase of the SDLC, the Planning Phase. Chapter 1
introduces the SDLC, the roles and skills needed for a project team, project initiation,
the systems request, and feasibility analysis. Chapter 2 discusses project
selection, the selection of an SDLC methodology for the project, and project management,
with emphasis on the work plan, staffing plan, project charter, risk
assessment, and tools used to help manage and control the project.
Part 2 presents techniques needed during the analysis phase. In Chapter 3,
students are introduced to requirements determination and are taught a variety of
analysis techniques to help with business process automation, business process
improvement, and business process reengineering. Chapter 4 focuses on use
cases, Chapter 5 covers process models, and Chapter 6 explains data models and
normalization.