Software Requirements Analysis Chapter 2

Course Information

• Course Title: Software Requirements Analysis and Design
• Course Code: ACS2913
• Instructor: David Tenjo
• Semester: Fall 2022
• University: The University of Winnipeg

Chapter 2 Outline

• RMO Consolidated Sales and Marketing System Project
• Systems Analysis Activities
• What are Requirements?
• Stakeholders
• Information Gathering Techniques
• Models and Modeling
• Documenting Workflows with Activity Diagrams

Learning Objectives

• Describe systems analysis activities
• Explain the difference between functional and non-functional requirements
• Identify and understand different kinds of stakeholders and their contributions to requirement definition
• Describe information-gathering techniques and when each is best applied
• Describe the role of models in systems analysis
• Develop UML activity diagrams to model workflows

Overview

• Chapter 1 introduced System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) and demonstrated its use for a small project
• Systems analysis activities are detailed in this chapter
• This chapter expands the SDLC processes to cover a wider range of concepts, tools and techniques
• A larger Ridgeline Mountain Outfitters (RMO) project will be used to illustrate analysis and design
• Core process 3: Discover and understand details of the problem or need—the focus of systems analysis

Ridgeline Mountain Outfitters (RMO)

• RMO has elaborate information systems that support operations and management
• Customer expectations, modern technology, and competitive pressures led to the need for a new system to support sales and marketing
• A new Consolidated Sales and Marketing System was proposed as a major project from the RMO strategic planning process

RMO Information Systems Strategic Plan

• Technology architecture: set of computing hardware, network hardware, topology, and system software employed by the organization
• Application architecture: information systems that support the organization (information systems, subsystems, and supporting technology)

RMO Existing Application Architecture

• Supply Chain Management (SCM): 5 years old, Java/Oracle. Interfaces with SCM tradeshow system
• Phone/Mail Order System: 12 years old, Visual Studio/MS SQL. Reached capacity, minimal integration
• Retail Store System: Older package solution, minimal integration
• Customer Support System (CSS): Web-based, evolved over years, minimal integration

Proposed Application Architecture

• Integrate SCM and New CSMS
• Diagram shows integration of SCM, online sales, phone sales, retail sales, and customers to the proposed Consolidated Sales and Marketing System

New Consolidated Sales and Marketing System (CSMS)

• Sales Subsystem, Order Fulfillment Subsystem, Customer Account Subsystem, and Marketing Subsystem
• Integrates online, phone, and retail stores
• Tracks shipments, rates products and services
• Provides shopping history, linkups, and rewards ("mountain bucks")
• Includes promotional packages and partner relationships for more complete merchandise information and reporting

Systems Analysis Activities

• The New Consolidated Sales and Marketing System (CSMS) requires understanding and discovering extensive and complex business processes and business rules
• The SDLC indicates the project starts by identifying the problem, obtaining approval, and planning the project (as seen in Chapter 1)
• Details of project planning activities are omitted to get to the core of systems analysis-discovering and understanding
• Gather Detailed information, Define requirements, Prioritize requirements, Develop user-interface dialogs, Evaluate requirements with users

Types of Requirements

• Functional requirements: Activities that the system must perform. Shown as use cases in Chapter 1
• Non-functional requirements: System constraints and performance goals. Example types are usability, reliability, performance, and security requirements

FURPS+ Requirements Acronym

• Functional, Usability, Reliability, Performance, Security
• Even more categories...

Additional Requirements Categories

• Design constraints: Specific restrictions for hardware and software, languages, tools, and protocols
• Implementation requirements: Specific languages, tools, protocols, etc.
• Interface requirements: Interface links to other systems
• Physical requirements: Physical facilities and equipment constraints
• Supportability requirements: Automatic updates and enhancement methods

Stakeholders

• Stakeholders are people with an interest in the successful implementation of the project
• Internal stakeholders: Persons within the organization (e.g., employees)
• External stakeholders: Persons outside the organization (e.g., customers, suppliers)
• Operational stakeholders: Persons regularly interacting with the system (e.g., order clerks)
• Executive stakeholders: Persons who don't directly interact but use the information or have financial interest.
• Stakeholders examples for RMO related to CSMS system: phone/mail sales order clerks, warehouse and shipping personnel, marketing personnel. , marketing, sales, accounting, and financial managers, senior executives, customers, external shippers (e.g., UPS and FedEx)
• Stakeholder organization chart for RMO is included

Summary (Various)

• Systems analysis activates correspond to core SDLC ("Discover and understand details")
• System projects originate from information system strategic plan, which includes technology architecture plan and application architecture plan
• RMO CSMS Project will be used to illustrate analysis and design
• Systems analysis involves defining system requirements (functional and non-functional)
• Analysis activities include gathering detailed information, defining requirements, prioritizing requirements, developing user-interface dialogs, and evaluating requirements with users.
• FURPS+ (Functional, Usability, Reliability, Performance, Security) is an acronym for system requirements.
• Stakeholders include those interested in project success (internal, external, operational, executive).