CSF analysis is a method developed to guide businesses in creating and measuring success. It is widely used for technology and architectural planning in enterprise IT. Critical success factors are those factors which the management of organizations must focus and manage effectively.  For more such innovative content on management studies, join WeSchool PGDM-DLP Program: http://bit.ly/ZEcPAc Join us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/welearnindia Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/WeLearnIndia Read our latest blog at: http://welearnindia.wordpress.com Subscribe to our Slideshare Channel: http://www.slideshare.net/welingkarDLP

1. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
I.T. for Management
CHAPTER-6
Determining Information Need
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2. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
Critical Success Factor(Overview)
CSF analysis is:
• A method developed at MIT’s Sloan school by John
Rockart to guide businesses in creating and measuring
success
• Widely used for technology and architectural planning in
enterprise I/T
• A top-down methodology that is especially suitable for
designing systems as opposed to applications
• A reductionist method for going from an abstract vision
to concrete requirements Cont….
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3. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
What is Critical Success Factor
• A key area where satisfactory performance is
required for the organization to achieve its goals
• A means of identifying the tasks and
requirements needed for success
• At the lowest level, CSFs become concrete
requirements
• A means to prioritize requirements
Cont….
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4. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
What is Critical Success Factor
• Start with a vision: mission statement
• Develop 5-6 high level goals
• Develop hierarchy of goals and their success factors
• Leads to concrete requirements at the lowest level of
decomposition (a single, implementable idea)
• Along the way, identify the problems being solved
and the assumptions being made
• Cross-reference usage scenarios and problems with
requirements Cont….
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5. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
Start with a vision: mission statement
• Develop 5-6 high level goals
• Develop hierarchy of goals and their success factors
• Leads to concrete requirements at the lowest
level of decomposition (a single, implementable
idea)
• Along the way, identify the problems being
solved and the assumptions being made
• Cross-reference usage scenarios and problems with
requirements Cont….
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6. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
What is analysis?
Analysis is process of successively decomposing a system
into its constituent subsystem
Results of the Analysis
• Mission statement
• Hierarchy of goals and CSFs
• Lists of requirements, problems, and assumptions
• Analysis matrices􀂓Problems vs. Requirements matrix
• Usage scenarios vs. Requirements matrix
• Solid usage scenarios
Cont….
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7. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
Three prominent methods of analysis of information
system are:
• Data flow method
• Decision Analysis
• Object Analysis
System study:
The system study is a formal process of gathering every
thing relevant from standpoint of gathering clarity about the
purpose & functioning of a system
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8. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
The System study can be conducted by gathering following:
The user requirement document which outlines the basic
scope, purpose.
Any audit reports which can throw light on short comings on
present system
Tracing the workflow involves walking through the system to
understand how the physical work or service is being
delivered & how the associated information flow is
happening
One to one interview could be part of same experience for
tracking workflow …Cont
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9. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
Interviews have to be however to be planned well
getting time from busy executives
• Structured Questionnaires
Usually in the context of ERP systems and other
products organization builds standard checklist
• Inspecting Transaction document and other reports
browsing through an entire years transaction document
such as invoices ,purchase orders & relevant documents
provide a good insight into what could happen at an
operational level Cont…..
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10. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
• Many a times mangers & department heads tend to
describe a system from there past experience & as such
they may not be aware of the details of operational
aspects of the system
• It could also happen that even operational staff may be
new & there description may be inaccurate
• It could so happen that the person concerned may tend
to describe situations which are far from near past &
therefore tend to forget some significant situations
which may have happened in past, but may occur any
time in the future. Cont…..
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11. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
It is therefore always better to insist on a formal review of old
transactions documents and reports. This would give insight on
following
• The purpose of document
• Transaction volume & frequency
• Content of document
• Codification
• Redundant data elements
• Matching of output to input
• Redundancy
• Study of decision processes
• Modeling/prototyping
• Business events and business use cases Cont…..
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12. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
Documenting the facts gathering thru the system study
Many a times an analyst may have done a great job in
collecting large amount of data about system
• Some tools used for documenting data are
Flow Charts
Grid charts
Analysis of Questionnaires
Decision Trees/Table
Data flow diagram(DFD)
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13. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
Data Flow Diagram(DFD)
Data flow diagrams illustrate how data is processed by a
system in terms of inputs and outputs.
• Each process has a input (i.e. dataflow) & a output
(dataflow)
• The process transforms from input to output
• The input may come from another process a store of
data or from external entity
• The output could go to another process, to an
external entity or get stored in a data store
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14. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
Data Flow Diagram(DFD)
Symbols used are very simple & illustrated below
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15. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
The System Requirement Specification(SRS)
A more formal document covering all the above, along with
a description of the overall purpose of the system and
functionality expected, the Technology considerations, the
acceptance criteria is usually prepared
Such document is called System Requirement Specification
(SRS)
There is IEEE standard for preparing SRS document
It provides template outlining the various aspect of a
system. The SRS is reviewed jointly with the user
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16. Welingkar’s Distance Learning Division
Determining Information Need
End of Chapter 6
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