Principle for System Development

Principle for System Development is the process of defining, designing, testing, and implementing a new software application or program. It can include the internal development of customized systems, the creation of database systems, or the acquisition of third-party-developed software. The most effective way to protect information and information systems is to integrate security into every step of the systems development process, from the initiation of a project to develop a system to its disposition.

Some of the important principles of Software development are:

1. Get the system users involved.
2. Use a problem-solving approach.
3. Establish phases and activities.
4. Document throughout the development.
5. Establish standards.
6. Manage the process and projects.
7. Justify systems as capital investments.
8. Don’t be afraid to cancel or revise the scope.
9. Divide and conquer.
10. Design systems for growth and change.

Get the system users involved:

• User involvement in the field of information system development is usually considered as a vital mechanism to enhance system quality and ensure successful system implementation. User involvement is an important aspect of system development. Many methodologies concern with users in the development phases. It embodies the view of users, not systems analysts, programmers, or the data services organization

Use a problem-solving approach:

• The systems approach to problem-solving used a systems orientation to define problems and opportunities and develop solutions. Problems and opportunities are identified in the first step of the systems approach. A problem can be defined as a basic condition that is causing undesirable results. An opportunity is a basic condition that presents the potential for desirable results.

Establish phases and activities:

• The Establishment Phase is the first phase of the employment cycle. It deals in the process of understanding the kind of human resource required for the organization to achieve its goals. The development stage refers to a phase that a company goes through during the preliminary stage of its corporate life. Companies that are in this stage are characterized by their focus on early-stage business activities. Development stage companies are generally underfunded and likely to be on the lookout for sources of capital.

Document through development:

• System documentation provides an overview of the system and helps engineers and stakeholders understand the underlying technology. It usually consists of the requirements document, architecture design, source code, validation docs, verification and testing info, and a maintenance or help guide.

Establish standards:

• The System Management Standards provide practical guidance for organizations to establish strategic IT plans based on management strategies, to design and implement appropriate control to improve the effectiveness of IT investment, and to reduce the risks based on the IT strategic plan over the system life cycle.

Manage the process and projects:

• Projects big and small have a lot of moving parts. There’s so much to coordinate and track to get from Point A to Point B and execute a successful project. That’s why projects are broken down into smaller, more digestible pieces, also known as project phases. Project phases allow you to take your unwieldy project and organize it so that you can wrap your mind around it and make progress.

Justify systems as capital investments:

• A capital investment appraisal usually involves a statement of the initial investment cost, the on-going costs, and the anticipated benefits, as well as the calculation of a number of suitable investment performance indicators or statistics.

Divide and conquer:

• As computing technology has improved, we have tried to construct software systems that can deal with larger and more complex problems. In order to provide such solutions, the software systems themselves have become larger and more complex. Unfortunately, there is a limit to how much we can take in and understand at any one time. The Romans had a strategy called divide and rule. However, this covered the idea that it was easier to rule over groups in conflict with each other.

Design systems for growth and change:

• Design systems are becoming more important for businesses to drive value through their brand. As Customer Experience expectations become a key differentiation for brands, Design, and brand consistency across an organization becomes crucial. Companies are seeing the benefits that design systems can offer in helping to scale their brands and understanding the return on investment.

Where do Systems Development Projects Come From?

1. Systems development is the process of defining, designing, testing, and implementing a new software application or program. It could include the internal development of customized systems, the creation of database systems, or the acquisition of third-party-developed software. Written standards and procedures must guide all information systems processing functions. The organization’s management must define and implement standards and adopt an appropriate system development life cycle methodology governing the process of developing, acquiring, implementing, and
   maintaining computerized information systems and related technology.
2. System Development projects come from many activities performed during initiation and planning. It could also be completed during the next phase of the SDLC—systems analysis. Proper and insightful project initiation and planning, including determining project scope and identifying project activities, can reduce the time needed to complete later project phases, including systems analysis.

• Problem – an actual undesirable situation that prevents the organization from fully achieving its purpose, goals, and/or objectives.
• Opportunity – a chance to improve the organization even in the absence of an identified problem.
• Directive – a new requirement that is imposed by management, government, or some external influence/parties.

Planned Projects

• Project planning is often used to organize different areas of a project, including project plans, workloads, and the management of teams and individuals. The logical dependencies between tasks are defined using an activity network diagram that enables identification of the critical path.
• Project planning is inherently uncertain as it must be done before the project is actually started. Therefore the duration of the tasks is often estimated through a weighted average of optimistic, normal, and pessimistic cases.
• Project scope is oriented towards the work required and methods needed, while Product Scope is more oriented toward functional requirements. If requirements aren’t completely defined and described and if there is no effective change control in a project, scope or requirement creep may ensue.
• Project planning is a discipline for stating how to complete a project within a certain timeframe, usually with defined stages, and with designated resources.

Unplanned Projects

• Unplanned Projects are triggered by a specific problem, opportunity, or directive that occurs in the course of doing business.
• Unplanned work is any activity in the IT organization that can’t be mapped to an authorized project, procedure, or change request. Any service interruption failed to change, emergency change, or patch or security incident creates unplanned work.
• It could refer to anything from support escalations, to emergency outages, to feature requests coming in sideways, or stakeholder demands.
• This type of work can present several challenges to product managers and their cross-functional teams. It is an administrative body of system owners and information technology executives that prioritizes and approves candidate system development projects.

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