2. Contents
ďŹ Discuss the analytical skills
ďŹ Describe the technical skills
ďŹ Discuss the management skills
ďŹ Identify the interpersonal skills
3. Relationship between system
analystâs skills and SDLC phases
ďŹ Interpersonal skills
⢠Project identification and selections phase
⢠Project initiation and planning phase
ďŹ Analytical skills
⢠Analysis phase
ďŹ Management skills
⢠Design phase
ďŹ Technical skills
⢠Implementation phase
⢠Maintenance phase
4. Analytical skills
for System analysts
ďŹ We will focus on four sets of analytical
skills. They are:
â System thinking
â Organizational knowledge
â Problem identification
â Problem analyzing and solving
5. Analytical skills for System analysts:
1. System thinking
ďŹ Systems and its characteristics
â System is an interrelated set of components, with identifiable
boundary, working together for some purpose
ďŹ A system has nine characteristics:
â Components----------------------Subsystems
â Interrelated components
â A boundary
â A purpose
â An environment
â Interfaces
â Input
â Output
â Constraints
7. System characteristics
ďŹ A component
⢠an irreducible part or aggregation of parts
that make up a system, also called a
subsystem
ďŹ Interrelated components
⢠Dependence of one subsystem on one or
more subsystems
ďŹ Boundary
⢠The line that marks the inside and outside
of a system and that sets off the system
form its environment
8. System characteristics
ďŹ Purpose
⢠The overall goal or function of a system
ďŹ Environment
⢠Everything external to a system that
interacts with the system
ďŹ Interface
⢠Point of contact where a system meets its
environment or where subsystems meet
each other.
9. System characteristics
ďŹ Constraint
⢠A limit to what a system can accomplish
ďŹ Input
⢠Whatever a system takes from its
environment in order to fulfill its purpose
ďŹ Output
⢠Whatever a system returns from its
environment in order to fulfill its purpose
10. A fast food restaurant as a system: Example
Environments: customers, food distribution, banks, etc.
Storage Office
Outputs:
Inputs: Prepared
Food food
Kitchens Dining
,labor,
cash, Room
etc. Trash
Contour Etc.
Boundary
interrelationship
11. Open and Closed systems
ďŹ Open system
⢠A system that interacts freely with its
environment, taking input and returning
output
ďŹ Closed system
⢠A system that is cut off from its
environment and does not interact with it
12. Logical and Physical system
description
ďŹ Logical system description
⢠Description of a system that focuses on the
system function and purpose without regard to
how the system will physically implemented
ďŹ Physical system description
⢠Description of a system that focuses on the how
the system will be materially constructed
13. Benefiting from systems thinking
⢠The first step in systems thinking is to be able to
identify something as a system.
⢠Identify where the boundary lies and all of the
relevant inputs
⢠Visualizing a set of things and their relationship as
system allows you to translate a specify physical
situation into more general.
⢠By decomposition
â The system into subsystems, we can analyze each
subsystem separately and discover if one or more
subsystem is at capacity.
â Its enabled us to determine its problem with
demand
14. Customer order
Customer Kitchen order
Kitchen
Receipt 1.0
Process
Customer
Food order Inventory data
2.0 3.0
Formatted Update
Goods sold Goods Update
Goods Inventory
sold file Sold file
data
Goods sold
file Inventory file
4.0 Daily inventory
Produce Depletion amounts
Management
Daily goods sold amount report
Management report Restaurant
manger
*Data flow diagram for fast food restaurant IS
15. Organizational skills
ďŹ Analyst should understand
â how organizations work
⢠Polices
⢠Terminologies, abbreviations, and acronyms
⢠Short/long term strategy and plans
⢠Role of technology
⢠The functions and procedures of the particular
organization you are working for
â How the department operates,
⢠its purpose,
⢠its relationship with other department
⢠its relationship with customers and suppliers
â Who the experts are in different subject
areas
16. Problem Identification skills
ďŹ (Pound 1969) Problem is the
difference between an existing
(current) situation and desired
(output) situation.
â The process of identifying problems is the
process of defining differences, so problem
solving is the process of finding a way to
reduce differences.
â Analyst should able to compare the current in
an organization to the desired situation.
18. Important system concepts
ďŹ There are several other system
concepts with which systems
analysts need to become familiar:
⢠Decomposition
⢠Modularity
⢠Coupling
⢠Cohesion
19. Decomposition
ďŹ Definition: The process of breaking
down a system into smaller component
â The purpose of decomposition is to allow
the system analysts to:
⢠Break a system into small, manageable
subsystem
⢠Focus on one are at a time
â Concentrate one component pertinent to
one group of users
â Build different components at independent
times
20. Modularity and Coupling
ďŹ Modularity
â Dividing a system up into chunks or modules of a
relatively uniform size. To Simplify the redesign and
rebuild process
ďŹ Coupling
â The extend to which subsystems depend on each
other.
â Subsystem should be independent as possible. If one
subsystem fails and other subsystem are highly
dependent on it, then the other will either fail
themselves or have problems functioning
22. Technical Skills (1)
ďŹ Many aspects of your job as a system
analyst are technically oriented.
ďŹ The following activities will help you stay
up-to-date:
â Read trade publications
â Join professional societies
â Attend classes or teach at a local college
â Attend many courses or training sessions
offered by your organizations
â Attend professional conferences, seminars,
or trade shows
â Participate in electronic bulletin, new groups
23. Technical Skills (2)
ďŹ You should be familiar as possible with
information technology:
â Microcomputer, micro station, workstation,
mainframe computers
â Programming languages
â Operating systems
â Database and file management systems
â Data communication standards
â Software for local and wide networks
â Web developing tools
â Decision support system generators
â Data analysis tools
â Data design tools
24. Management Skills
ďŹ System analysts are almost always
members of project teams and are
frequently asked to lead team.
ďŹ Management skills are very useful for
anyone in a leadership role.
ďŹ There are four class of management
skills:
â 1- Resources
â 2- Project
â 3- Risk
â 4- Change management
25. 1- Resource management
ďŹ Includes:
â Predicting resources usage (budgeting)
â Tracking and accounting for resources
consumption
â Learning how to use resources effectively
â Securing resources from abusive use
â Evaluating the quality of resources used
26. Assignment
ďŹ Describe your university or college
as a system.
â What is the input?
â What is output?
â What is the boundary?
â What is the components and their
relationship?
â The constraint
â The environment
ďŹ Draw a diagram of this system
27. Assignment
ďŹ Describe yourself in terms of your
abilities at each of the following
interpersonal kills: working alone verse
working with a team, interviewing,
listening, writing, presenting, facilitating
a group, and margining expectations.
Where are your strengths and
weakness? Why? What can you do to
capitalize on your strengths and
strengths areas where you are weak?
28. Interpersonal skills
ďŹ Communication skills
ďŹ Interviewing, Listening, and questionnaires
ďŹ Written and oral presentations
â Meeting agenda
â Meeting minutes
â Interview summaries
â Requests for proposal from contractors and vendors
ďŹ Working alone and with a team
ďŹ Facilitating groups
ďŹ Managing exceptions