SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT PROJECT – Spring 2024

OVERVIEW

A Sacramento-area client has hired your project team to develop a web-based Information System which will automate one or more business functions. You will conduct all activities and prepare all deliverable products associated with the development process. At the conclusion of your study, deliver a high-quality system to your client.

PROJECT INITIATION

Locate a company or agency that is interested in either automating a manually based information system or enhancing its current computer-based system. You may choose any type of organization (company or agency). If you choose a small company, cover a fairly wide range of business functions. If you choose a medium- to large-sized company, confine your scope to a more narrowly defined business application (e.g., customer billing and collection). It is better to have a deeper, more comprehensive analysis of a narrow-sized application scope. 

Explain to your client that your project team is willing to help them define their requirements and build a new system. They can use your study for either custom development or software package selection. Your consulting services could easily cost your client $20,000. You are willing to provide this service free in return for the client's cooperation for the project. 

Perform a quick feasibility analysis to ensure that the potential project is viable and complete the SystemScope.doc. Here are some things to consider: 

  • Your Use Case Diagram must have at least three meaningful processes
  • Your project must result in deliverable software in one of the following forms: 
    • Automated replacement of current manual system
    • Substantial reprogramming of an existing automated system
    • New automated interface to be placed on existing automated system
    • A new web site or a significant improvement of an existing web site.
    • Other (by prior approval)
  • Your project must be web based (we will further discuss the architecture)
  • DBMS is client specific
  • I permit students to work on a project for their employer under the following assumptions: 
    • The entire group supports this project
    • The client understands that the entire team will be involved in the development process (interviews, e-mail, prototyping, programming, etc.) and the client cannot be involved in assigning tasks for the group
    • The student that works for the client, will not be the primary contact with that client
    • This project is not part of the student's (who works for the client) regular work

PROJECT DELIVERABLES

1. TEAM COMPOSITION (TC) - 0 points

The MIS 161 teams will consist of 5 team members assigned one of the following roles:

  • Project Manager/Lead Systems Analyst
  • Database Developer/Administrator
  • Web Developer/Lead Programmer
  • Web Developer/Programmer
  • Network Designer/Administrator/Integrator

You will form groups in class on the specified date. I will provide you with the paper forms and you must complete the names of the group members, phone numbers, class schedules, work schedules, and roles. You must also include the agreed upon weekly team meeting times. 

NOTE: Because you have a primary role, it does not mean that you will not be involved in activities outside your primary role. You will be involved in all project activities but you are expected to lead in the activities within your primary role.

Other

  1. The Project Manager is the systems developer who initiates the project
  2. In addition to the primary role, each developer must also assume a supporting role

Deliverables 

  1. The completed project team composition (emailed by the PM).
  2. Each team member's resume (optional)

Grading 

Note that this deliverable will not be graded.

2. PROJECT SCHEDULE (PS) - 10 points

From the description of the project deliverables described in this document, create a project Gantt Chart to:

  • Include all deliverables described in this document as summary activities.
    • Beginning day for summary activities is the day after the previous deliverable is due. Ending day for summary activities is the deliverable due date.
    • Include all tasks within each summary activity. Should, at least, include all tasks that have deliverables.
    • Examine the class schedule to assign tasks.
  • For each task in the Gantt chart provide name of the developers responsible (2 developers should be assigned the same task who will work together for the completion of the task)

Grading 

2.1

Gantt Chart

10

3. DESIGN REVIEW (DR) - 30 points

Review the design of your system (from MIS 160) and make the necessary changes.

  1. Product Backlog (user stories organized by product features and prioritized)
  2. Use Case Diagrams
  3. Design Level Class Diagrams
  4. Systems Analyst Recommendations (application architecture)

Grading 

3.1

Project Backlog

25

3.2

Use Case Diagrams

5

3.3

Design Class Diagrams

0

3.4

Systems Analyst Recommendations

0

4. SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION (SI) - 50 points

In this phase you will build, assemble, and integrate all software modules.

Deliverable

  1. Custom Coding/Solution Development (if applicable)
    • Source Code listing
    • Project/solution files generated by your IDE
  2. System documentation
    • Description of development tools used (IDEs, editors, wizards, etc.)
    • Development standards used
    • Other info for future development
  3. Change request (not graded). For each change made from your Design Review, complete a separate system change request

Grading 

4.1

Coding/Solution Development

40

4.2

System documentation

10

5. PROJECT TESTING (PT) - 20 points

Software application testing is an umbrella term that covers several types of tests. Our book discusses seven types of test. We will only focus on some of those tests. In this phase you will develop test cases and test data for the tests described below. I will send you a State template developed by the California Department of Technology (CDT) to use for your testing efforts.

Deliverable

  1. Acceptance Testing - Test each object or component alone to discover potential errors that exist in the code. 
    1. Update your User Stories and add the acceptance criteria for each User Story.
    2. Test your system against your acceptance criteria.
  2. System Testing - Test the combination of objects and component integration that coexist and work with other objects and components in your entire system.
  3. Usability Testing - Test to determine whether the system meets user requirements. At minimum, you will test whether the system functions as expected and whether the user interface make the system easy to use. 

Grading 

5.1

Acceptance Testing

10

5.2

System Testing

5

5.3

Usability Testing

5

NOTE: For System and Usability Testing, you will test another team's project and not your own. I will assign you a project for testing.

6. SYSTEM DEPLOYMENT (SD) - 20 points

In this phase you will make the new system operational. 

Deliverable

  1. Software and hardware acquisition
  2. Package and installation of system components
    • Installation - Installation description including the installation date and deployment method used (i.e., direct, parallel, phased). 
    • Installation instructions - A document to show step by step how to install your system.
  3. User Documentation - Written and other visual information describing who the system works and how to use it in a form of a user's reference guide. The purpose of a reference guide is to provide information on how users can use the computer system to perform specific tasks. The information in a user's guide typically is ordered by how often tasks are performed or any other logical order. Note that most user documentation is often delivered online in hypertext format.    
  4. Conversion and initialization of data

Grading 

6.1

Software and hardware acquisition

0

6.2

Package and installation of system components

5

6.3

User Manuals

15

6.4

Conversion and initialization of data

0

7. PROJECT PRESENTATION (PP) - 10 points

In this phase you will present your solution to your client. 

Deliverable

  1. Present your results to management - Prepare a 20-25-minute presentation addressed to your client. During the presentation address the need for the system, the objectives of the system, the designed solution, demonstrate your finished product, and also demo some of the system maintenance tasks (demo User Stories).

Grading 

7.1

Present your results to management

10

8. POST IMPLEMENTATION EVALUATION REPORT (PIER) - 10 points

In this phase you will perform all activities in closing down your project. 

Deliverable

  1. Evaluate your project (template will be provided)
  2. Scrum Retrospective
  3. Conduct post-project interviews
  4. Evaluate team members (see last section below)

Grading 

8.1

Project Evaluation

0

8.2

Scrum Retrospective

5

8.3

Conduct post-project interviews

5

8.4

Evaluate team members (see Peer Evaluation below)

0

PEER EVALUATION

In the MIS workplace, you will be asked to evaluate your subordinates, your peers, and even your managers. In this class you must complete the peer evaluation forms provided below.

I will average the Percent Contribution over all forms submitted for each team member. This average will be used to allocate project points for that team member. For example, if the team members feel an individual contributed 80% towards the team project (all deliverables), then that individual will receive 80% times the total team points awarded for the semester. If a team member fails to evaluate one or more of his/her peers, it will be assumed that the contribution was 100%.