Commercial Packages.

When the nature of the project and the needs of the user permit, most
organizations will seek a pre-coded commercial software package rather than develop a new system
from scratch.
Maintenance and Support. Maintenance involves both acquiring and implementing the latest
software versions of commercial packages and making in-house modifications to existing systems to
accommodate changing user needs. Maintenance may be relatively trivial, such as modifying an
application to produce a new report or more extensive, such as programming new functionality into a
system. Another aspect of maintenance includes a establishing a user support infrastructure. This
could include help desk services, providing user training and education classes, and documenting user
feedback pertaining to problems and system errors.
2. What is the balanced scorecard?
ANS:
The balanced scorecard (BSC) is a management system that enables organizations to clarify their
vision and strategy and translate them into action. It provides feedback both from internal business
processes and external outcomes to continuously improve strategic performance. When fully
deployed, the balanced scorecard transforms strategic planning from an academic exercise into
operational tasks.
3. Define the feasibility measures that should be considered during project analysis and give an example
of each.
ANS:
Technical feasibility is an assessment as to whether the system can be developed under existing
technology or if new technology is needed. An example might be a situation where a firm wants to
completely automate the sales process. A question would be-Is technology available that allows sales
to be made without humans?
Economic feasibility is an assessment as to the availability of funds to complete the project. A
question would be-Is it cost feasible to purchase equipment to automate sales?
Legal feasibility identifies any conflicts with the proposed system and the companys ability to
discharge its legal responsibilities. An example would be a firm that is proposing a new mail order
sales processing system for selling wine.
Operational feasibility shows the degree of compatibility between the firms existing procedures and
personnel skills and the operational requirements of the new system. Do the firm have the right work
force to operate the system? If not, can employees be trained? If not, can they be hired?
Schedule feasibility pertains to whether the firm can implement the project within an acceptable time
frame. An example would be a new ticket sales system for a sports team. The system would need to be
implemented prior to the start of the new season.
4. Explain the role of accountants in the conceptual design stage.
ANS:
Accountants are responsible for the logical information flows in a new system. Alternate systems
considered must be properly controlled, audit trails must be preserved, accounting conventions and
legal requirements must be met. The auditability of a new system depends in part on its design
characteristics.
5. Contrast the feasibility study performed in the systems analysis phase of the Systems Development
Life Cycle (SDLC) with the study performed in the systems selection phase of the SDLC.

ANS:
A preliminary feasibility study for the project as a whole is performed in the systems analysis phase of
the SDLC. Five aspects to project feasibility are considered: technical feasibility, economic feasibility,
legal feasibility, operational feasibility, and schedule feasibility. The preliminary analysis is based
largely on the judgment and intuition of the systems professionals.
In the systems selection phase of the SDLC, the same five feasibility factors are considered for the
specific system features that have been conceptualized and for each conceptual design alternative. The
economic feasibility study in the detailed analysis includes a cost-benefit analysis for each alternative.
6. Explain why the Systems Development Life Cycle is of interest to accountants. What is the
accountants role in the Systems Development Life Cycle?
ANS:
The information system requires a significant financial investment. Accountants are concerned that
the capital investment involved in acquiring an information system is properly handled. Also, the
information system gathers the data used to prepare financial statements. Accountants must be certain
that the information system is applying accounting principles properly and that the system itself has
adequate internal controls. Any deficiencies in the information system could result in misstated
financial statements.
Accountants have three roles in the Systems Development Life Cycle. Accountants are users of the
information system and as such must be able to communicate their needs to the systems designers.
These needs include audit trail requirements, depreciation models, and other accounting techniques.
Accountants are members of the SDLC development team and are expected to provide information
about the requirements of the system including security needs. Finally, accountants are auditors of the
information system and determine what audit features should be designed into the system.
7. What are three problems that account for most system failures?
ANS:
Most system failures can be traced to three problems:
a. poorly specified system requirements, due to communication problems between users and systems
professionals, the iterative nature of the process, and the need to rework parts of the system;
b. ineffective development techniques for presenting, documenting, and modifying systems
specifications; and
c. lack of user involvement during critical development stages.
8. What is Industry analysis and why do managers do it.
ANS:
Industry Analysis provides management with an analysis of the driving forces that affect their
industry and their organizations performance. Such analysis offers a fact-based perspective on the
industrys important trends, significant risks, and potential opportunities that may impact the
businesss performance.
9. Why is the announcement of a new systems project so critical to project success?
ANS:
Change is threatening to many individuals. A new system can be perceived as putting jobs at risk in
the name of efficiency, as a threat to organizational structure, and as requiring job skills that some
users fear they lack. The announcement of a new system must include upper management support and
an explanation of the business rationale for the system and the expected benefits for ultimate users.

10. Contrast the preliminary project feasibility study with the feasibility study performed in the systems
evaluation and selection phase of the SDLC.
ANS:
A preliminary feasibility study for the project as a whole is performed in the systems needs analysis
phase of the SDLC. Five aspects to project feasibility are considered: technical feasibility, economic
feasibility, legal feasibility, operational feasibility, and schedule feasibility. The preliminary analysis is
based largely on the judgment and intuition of the systems professionals.
In the systems evaluation and selection phase of the SDLC, the same five feasibility factors are
considered for the specific system features that have been conceptualized and for each conceptual
design alternative. The economic feasibility study includes a cost-benefit analysis for each alternative.
11. Part of systems planning is a project feasibility study. Several feasibility issues can be raised. What
are they? Explain the key concerns.
ANS:
The key feasibility issues include: technical, economic, legal, operational, and schedule. Technical
feasibility relates to whether the proposed system can be developed with existing technology or
requires new. Economic feasibility relates to cost questions. Legal fe