Common Criteria for Deciding Whether to Buy or Build

Common criteria for deciding whether to buy or build a software solution would be to take a look at the System Development Life Cycle; Planning, Analysis, Design, and Implementation. Planning or initiation include a business problem, request for proposal, request for quote, and proposal/quote ie. first go/no go decision. Analysis or logistics of implementation include business requirements, technical requirements, and data requirements, and GAP analysis which helps a company compare actual performance with potential performance. Design includes logical/physical, technical specs, process flow/data flow, system architecture, data design, screen layouts, and navigation map/flow. Once these criteria are examined and the complexity is determined, a decision can then be made to buy or build a software solution. Implementation is turning it into a working system that has been tested and put into use including documentation, training procedures, support capabilities, and associated updates. A manager’s selection for off-the-shelf software can be established by deciding if the criteria of cost, functionality, vendor support, viability of vendor, flexibility, documentation, response time, and ease of installation will be greater and a smoother transition than producing an in-house software solution. The two most important aspects of purchasing an off-the-shelf software are vendor support and vendor viability. If a manager chose to produce in-house software, the support is a constant in that the programmers who created the software are available at any time, and know the ‘in’s and out’s of the software’, whereas if there is no vendor support from the purchased software you are taking a gamble which may prove unwise, and the credibility of the manager is no longer. Cost, functionality, flexibility, and documentation are criteria that depends primarily on the specific situation, ie. budget, and needs. Discuss the four phases involved in managing a project. Compare and contrast these phases with the SDLC. Explain any differences. Managing projects of all shapes and sizes requires a fluid, nonlinear framework that has applications across all essential elements of project planning. The four-phase process that suggests how to allow for readjustment between the phases are initiate, plan, execute, and evaluate. Initiate, this first project management phase, the preliminary work is done to clarify the problem or opportunity and how a solution would look. All interested parties are consulted and the project scope – what is in and what is out – is clarified as well as initial costs and timelines. Plan, determines whether the proposed project will be of real benefit to the organization. If it is, the project is approved and more detailed planning starts. Business benefits, project objectives, requirements, governance, scope and project management methods are agreed. The Project Manager draws up the detailed project schedule and task and budget allocations. Execute, project stakeholders are interviewed to ascertain the detailed requirements, possible solutions are discussed and decided upon. Next, the solution is designed, built and finally implemented. Project management activities in this phase also include managing the project budget and schedule, reporting project progress, communicating with stakeholders and responding to project risks, issues and proposed changes. Evaluate, The purpose of this final phase is to determine whether the project was a success and what was learned can be gleaned and applied to future projects ie. , did the project deliver on time, within budget and to scope and quality requirements? Comparing the four phases in managing a project; initiate, plan, execute, evaluate with the SDLC phases; Plan, Analysis, Design and Implement one will see many cross similarities; each describing approaches to a variety of tasks or activities that take place during the process. After each phase is finished, it proceeds to the next one; reviews may occur before moving to the next phase which allows for the possibility of changes. Reviews may also be employed to ensure that the phase is indeed complete; and is ready to progress to the next phase. Explain the three primary project identification and selection phase activities. Who should make the decisions about project approval in a business organization? What information is important to the decision? Project identification and selection consists of three primary activities: identifying potential development projects, classifying and ranking projects, and selecting projects for development. Identifying potential development projects is a process that can be performed by a key member in top management, a steering committee, the head of a requesting committee, the development group or IS manager. Projects by top management reflect broader needs of the organization since there is an understanding of overall business. Projects identified by a top management or steering committee are referred to as coming from a top-down source. Projects designed by individual mangers or the IS group are more focused on the needs rather than a broader scope; projects stemming from managers, or business units are referred to as a bottom-up source. Top-down and bottom-up initiatives are used in identifying and selecting projects, it will vary on the scope and needs of the project. Classifying and ranking projects can be performed by top management, a steering committee, business units, or the IS development group. The project requirements will vary by the organization administering it, one group may choose to meet monthly, whereas another chooses to meet quarterly. Meetings typically consist of reviewing ongoing projects as well as new project requests. Selecting projects for development is the final activity in the project identification and selection phase. Since the criteria for a project can change at any time, numerous factors must be considered when selecting a project; perceived needs of the organization, existing systems and ongoing projects, resource availability, evaluation criteria, current business conditions, and perspectives of the decision makers. Projects can be accepted or rejected which means funding is allocated or the project will no longer be considered for development. A project can be returned to the original requesters who are told to develop or purchase the requested system themselves. Also, the requesters of a project may be asked to modify or resubmit their request after making suggested changes or clarifications. Due to the process of incremental commitment a selected project does not necessarily result in a working product. After each subsequent SDLC activity, the members of the project team will reassess the project. This reassessment will entail a more detailed understanding of the system’s costs, benefits, and risks to determine if the project was a worthy as it was thought to be. How should a project team determine system requirements? What are common sources of requirements? What are the limitations for each? In addition, discuss four types of documents that would be helpful in determining future system requirements. During requirements and determination analysts gather information on what the system should do from as many sources as possible. Sources include users of the current system, reports, forms, and procedures. All of the requirements are carefully documented and made ready for structuring. Structuring includes taking the system requirements during determination and ordering them into tables, diagrams, and other formats that make it easier to translate into technical systems specifications. Some examples of requirement determination include, impertinence, impartiality, relaxing of constraints, attention to details, and reframing. Impertinence is questioning everything. Are all transactions processed the same way? Could anyone be charged something other than standard price? Will employees be allowed or encouraged to work for more than one department? Impartiality is finding the best solution to a business problem or opportunity. All issues must be considered to try to find the best organizational solution. Relaxing of constraints, assuming anything is possible and eliminates the infeasible. Organizations change and all policies and rules should be evaluated. Attention to details, everything must fit into place. If one element is out of place, the whole system will fail. Reframing, looking at the process in a new way. It is easy to assume the project will be the same or similar, but this assumption can lead to failed systems. Constantly challenging yourself will prove beneficial in this process. Specific examples to be gathered at the requirements determination phase are, the business objectives that drive what and how work is done, the information people need to do their jobs, the data handled within the organization to support the jobs, when, how, and by whom or what the data are moved, transformed and stored, the sequence and other dependencies among different data-handling activities, the rules governing how data are handled and processed, policies and guidelines that describe the nature of the business, the market, and the environment in which it operates, and key events affecting data values and when these events occur. It is important that the scope of the system not become to large and expansive that analysis paralysis not occur, this can become costly and time consuming, and can lead to an abundance of work. To deter this from happening analysts must focus on the system in need not the system in place. Documents that are helpful in determining future system requirements are administering written questionnaires ie. surveys to discover issues and requirements, business documents ie. iscover reported issues, policies, rules, and concrete examples, and conducting written interviews with open-ended and close-ended questions. Also directly observing users an give a more objective and accurate review. Read the following online article and discuss two ways to justify IT budgets. How would you explain your IT budget to your CFO? To justify an IT budget is to provide a quality ROI on any new initiative. If the CFO can’t understand the needs of various departments then the only way to their pocketboo k is to present them with a bottom line return on their investment. In the case of procuring an IT budget, executives are often less than forthcoming because of the lack of information they receive from department heads. CEO’s respond most favorably to requests for IT budgets which are cost justified with a simple ROI business case. The business case needs to specifically show how potential costs associated with liability, may be minimized by implementing a sound IT infrastructure. The potential liabilities, such as loss of production and/or loss of reputation are translated into actual dollars in the ROI. A good business case or a good investment analysis will also measure the probabilities of different ROI outcomes. An investment analysis is the examination and assessment of economic and market trends, earnings prospects, earnings ratios, and various other indicators and factors to determine suitable investment strategies. Explaining the IT budget to the CFO you should first examine core needs ie. bandwidth, Internet, phone and staff, and plan to manage them on a minimal investment. Explore reducing excess capacity in the server room, renegotiate vendor contracts and rethink software licenses. Assuring the CFO that you have taken all necessary steps in limiting the IT budget will prove that you have taken all necessary steps to ensure a minimal budget while providing an the required IT services. Revisit past assumptions, you may have a contract that replaces hardware every two years, which could be an unnecessary budget item, and could in return be replaced every four years. Show the CFO how improvements have helped customer experience and saved money. Give him/her a friendly remember that not investing in things that could be and important aspect to IT when the economy turns around can come back to bite you. IT’s value is determined by the relationship between what the organization will pay, ie. cost, and what it will get back ie. benefits. The larger the amount of benefit in relation to cost, the greater the value of the IT project.

Your Students’ English Language Skills

Your Students' English Language Skills BY gallantly How can improve English As the president of the English Language Society of the school, you wish to improve the students' standard of English. You want to give a talk to the students on how they can improve their English at one of the weekly school assemblies. Good morning to the principal, teachers and fellow students. As the president of the English Language Society of the school, indeed I felt honor to give a talk entitled â€Å"How to improve the students standard of English†. English is an international language.Many up-to-date information on internet are written in English. In order to grab the first hand information, we have no choice but to improve our English standard. There are many ways ones can improve your English if you have the will to do so. The most practical and cheap ways is to read more English story books, magazines and newspapers. You can read at any hour and anywhere. You can read at the bus-stop while waiting for a bus. All you need to do is always put an English material in your pocket or bag. There are some who felt that they need proper guidance to improve their grammar,English structures and even pronunciation. They choose to go for English tuition class. Well, its not a bad idea after all! You can get one to one attention from a tuition teacher, all you need to do is register yourself and pay up every month at any tuition center nearby. Always listening to English program on television and radio is both entertaining and learning. Beside getting your knowledge widen through National Geographic Channel and also get your pronunciation improve. What an excellence idea of killing two birds with one stone! Remember a proverb, â€Å"Practice made ones perfect†.Reading and listening a lot is not enough to improve your English. Put your English into practice will bring you surprising reward. Practical thing like speaking English with family members, classmates, teachers help a lot. Taking part in English Debate, Elocution contest, Drama Competition and poem recitation will bring marvelous improvement. Apart from oral aspect, ones can improve your written skill through Essay writing competition and even corresponding with pen-pals in English. To conclude, there are thousand and one ways to improve your English, so, lets get started. Thank you for listening.

Employment Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

Employment Law - Essay Example The terms and conditions also stated that he would get minimum of 20 sessions with the members of the company. Regarding health facilities, the company did not provide him with sick pay, and in case of absence due to ill health, he had to substitute himself with one of the company’s other trainers with prior permission from the company. The company did not entitle him to membership of the company’s pension scheme and was responsible for paying his own taxes and National Insurance. However, one fine day Tom was shocked to receive the termination letter from the company ending the contract with the Unfit Ltd. stating his continuous poor performance as the reason. According to the United Kingdom’s Employment Rights Act, 1996, all employees are supposed to have an employment contract with their employer, either in written or oral. It is further clarified that there is an express contract between employee and employer in case of no written contract is created, which m akes Tom and his employer liable to the employment rights act and mandates both the parties to follow the rules and regulation specified in the law (www.direct.gov.uk). There are few points for consideration on behalf of Tom on the basis of which he can make a claim for unfair dismissal from Unfit Ltd. Notice Period According to Employment Rights Act 1996, Sec. ... diate effect without prior notice is the only point which has can be put before tribunal for claim (www.legislation.gov.uk) As the reason specified by the Unfit Ltd, gym club is the ‘persistent poor job performance’, it is further clarified that even in the absence of written statements of terms and conditions of employment, an employee working for one month is liable to receive not less than one week of notice, unless dismissed for gross misconduct. The brief facts of the case does not mention the Tom’s period of employment and his date of ending the contract with Unfit Ltd. Tom has been employed for more than three years with the company, making him liable for receiving of termination notice from his employer for at least three weeks in advance, according to Sec 86 (1) (b) (www.legislation.gov.uk).. However, it has to be mentioned that termination in the contract is fair if the reason relates to the conduct of the employee under Sec. 98 (2) (b) which empowers th e employer to terminate the employee for its bad conduct or ‘poor job performance’. Even though the company has the right to terminate employee under section 98 (2) (b), it is necessary to give prior notice to the employee informing and explaining the reasons for his termination, three weeks in advance as mentioned in Sec. 86 (1) (b) (www.legislation.gov.uk). Since the employer, Unfit Ltd, gym club has not given any advance notice before immediate termination; Tom has the right to make a claim for unfair dismissal before Employment Tribunal under Employment Rights (Dispute Resolution) Act 1998 (www.legislation.co.uk). Further an employee is entitled to ask for a written statement from the employer stating the reasons of termination which is governed under Employment Rights Act 1996 under Sec. 92 (1)

Brain Computer Interfaces Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Brain Computer Interfaces - Term Paper Example entists have always speculated that EEG might prove helpful for a completely different kind of purpose, which is infact another way of sending messages to the brain, and instructions to the outside world. Until this discovery, the control and communication system solely depended on the muscles and nerves. But with EEG, communication with out the use of muscles and nerves is achieved with the help of brain computer interface. â€Å"Brain computer Interfaces a new communication and control option for individuals for whom convenient options are ineffective.†Ã‚   It provides a way of communication and control for those people who are disabled, for whom the normal way of communication is literally impossible. The goal of the BCI system is to listening to the brain, understand its intent, and then to materialize that intent without the involvement of muscles. This is the reason why BCI s is also termed as â€Å"mind reading technology† (Wolpaw, R & Birbaumer, Niels p.603). The BCI system reads the â€Å"Electrophysiological signals reflecting brain activity, and they are acquired from the scalp, cortical surface or from within the brain† (Wolpaw, R & Birbaumer, Niels) . They are transferred to measure certain signals which help in knowing the intent of the user. These signals are converted into commands. These commands, in turn, fulfil the user intent like operating a machine, speaking something, walking in a particular direction etc. The interfaces which are Invasive are directly implanted in the brain. These are normally used in blind or paralyzed patients. The interfaces which are semi invasive are implanted inside the brain but not within the brain of an individual. Non invasive interfaces â€Å"record the brain signals through a neuro-imaging procedure† (Brain Computer Interfaces). Brain Computer Interfaces still have a long way to go. Researches are being conducted to understand brain functioning and to map it efficiently to an electronic device. There is no doubt

Reebok Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Reebok - Essay Example ng strategy involves establishing trust between salespeople and retailers, giving retailers sufficient information about the products to ensure they conduct sales at ease and provide retailers with support after the sale. â€Å"Sean Neville the senior vice president and general manager of Reebok North America† confirms that the aim of the company is to sell quality products to the customer, and the retailer  used as an intermediary. The salespeople in the company ensure they think like the retailer selling goods to the consumer (Kerin, Hartley & Rudelius, 2011). This information is crucial because customers are able to know the objectives of Reebok. In addition, the customers are also able to know how the company operates. The information is also beneficial to retailers who ensure the company’s products reach customers. Competitors can also use the information to learn more about the company’s strategies that assist it to stay on top. The information draws the inference that Reebok is among the best companies known for sportswear. In addition, the information puts Reebok at the forefront as the one of the main manufacturers of sport shoes. Nonetheless, the information generates a number of questions too for instance; how the company communicates with retailers and customers, how the company deals with competitors and approaches the company uses to remain on top. In addition, further ideas also generated by the information that include; the style of operation of the company and how they do their business to ensure customers remain satisfied for many

Marketing Little Known destinations the island of Saaremaa, Estonia Essay

Marketing Little Known destinations the island of Saaremaa, Estonia - Essay Example One key question that needs to be addressed when thinking of the marketing efforts is whether to prioritize their marketing efforts at the established markets or look at newer markets such as distant European countries. As per the context established by the case, the tourism industry is changing very rapidly. The tourists are much more open to traveling to distant places to discover new and little known, but exotic destinations (Yong, 2006). Therefore, with regard to Saaremaa, the marketing efforts should be prioritized to build new markets. Europe is well known for exotic and small destinations and hence, the level of competition is high. Therefore, to attract customers from a new market, it is necessary to have a high focus on building the brand, ensuring sustainability as well as in targeting the right market segment. For example, Saaremaa is famous for its natural beauty, its rich history as well as the sweet-sour bread and beer. Hence, the brand Saaremaa for tourism should adequ ately encompass these different aspects. The initial marketing efforts can center on advertising Saaremaa to create awareness and the subsequent efforts can center on introducing specific theme related holidays such as an exotic theme that centers on the sweet-sour bread and beer in the food category or a historical theme holiday destination. Focusing on new markets will also make the destination popular among a wider set of customers who have various preferences of holidays and hence, it would open Saaremaa’s uniqueness to customers who prefer such destinations. However, it should be ensured that any steps of market expansion should not result in overcrowding. In addition, any word of mouth marketing may already work in the existing markets which will ensure that there is a steady flow of tourists from the already established markets. Therefore, prioritizing the new market will bring in customers from newer markets and at the same time, the customers from the existing market s will continue to visit because of the existing efforts and word of mouth (Holloway, 2004). 2. Should Saaremaa improve access by ferry or plan on the construction of a bridge to the mainland, as a means of expanding tourism? Or, conversely, should the island authorities aim to limit the appeal of the island in its existing isolation, by aiming to boost income from a smaller base of visitors to this island destination? One of the highlights of Saaremaa is how it is exotic and little known, but extremely beautiful and a perfect holiday get away. Therefore, on one hand it is important to build the tourism sector, it should be done in such a way that the pristine surroundings are not disturbed and the serenity of the place is not at risk because of overcrowding. Therefore, to sustain this exoticness and serenity, it is necessary to ensure that the place does not degrade in standard because of overcrowding. Overcrowding may mean more revenue because of increased crowd influx, but it als o can result in pollution, higher crime rates, more buildings and development (Doan, 2000). It can also mean that the natural beauty as well as tourist spots no longer provides peace and tranquility, thereby taking away the charm from the place. Hence, it is recommended that appeal of the island should be maintained by ensuring that there is some amount of isolation. In such cases, the challenge is how to improve the tourism industry without

Setting a Home Network Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Setting a Home Network - Term Paper Example Besides the easy handling of the XP ICS, by the XP computer as the ICS host the other benefit is using the internet connection Firewall. 3. Choice of a network technology The commonly available choices are the Ethernet and wireless LANs. When using an Ethernet LAN its essential to have the network interface card, or the NIC that ought to be fitted in each computer and then run the cabling between the computers. Just in case you don’t find the idea of opening the computer to fit/or to install the network card good for you, then get yourself a USB adaptor to assist you. Considering the size of the network, you may also find it necessary to have a network hub or router to provide interconnection between the PCs on the LAN. Two PCs can get by using an RJ-45 crossover cable; three or more computers require a hub or a multi – speed hub (also called a switch). For high – speed internet connection, a high – speed router is a good option. If you decide to have a wi reless LAN as your choice, you may also need an NIC for each and every PC (although there are versions that use USB adaptors as well) the major advantage of home environments is that a wireless LAN eliminates the need for cabling. Although on the contrary wireless LANs tend to be slower, less robust and most likely more expensive than the traditional Ethernet LANs. Wireless LANs particularly do not live up to their stated working range and you may encounter factors such as your construction and design in your home, in addition to interference from other devices which affect the performance of your wireless LAN. You may also need to add an expensive Access point to be able to extend the range of the LAN and more so it may not be sufficient. What is essential here is that if you make a choice of going wireless route, then ensure that the store will refund your money if the LAN will proof not to be reliable in performance within the range specified. 4. Make a list of hardware needed Co me up with a list that outlines the hardware you need for each computer, without forgetting any cabling, and purchase them. If you find it a little dazzling to make an appropriate choice and the configurations, then consider purchasing a networking kit. This kind of kits contain all that is needed to set up a two or three Pc network. If it’s possible, then look up for hardware that contains the Windows XP logo that indicates its fully compatible with XP. 5. Install the adaptors. Make an installation of the network adaptors and also install your modem on the ICS host computer(you may also let the computers connect to the internet independently by installing modems on each one of them) 6. Cable the computers Physically cable the computers and hubs or routers together, as usual you may not need to undertake this if you have decided to use the wireless option. When installing an Ethernet network and you have a lot of cabling work to be done then its preferable that you get a prof essional to come in and do this kind of work for you. It may not be cheap but to ensure that the work is perfectly done with minimal damage done to the walls, ceilings and the floors. 7. Switch it on Power all computers, printers and other peripherals. 8. Connect the ICS host Get to the ICS host computer and ensure it’s connected to the internet. 9. Run the network setup Wizard on