Williams Specialty Company is a small printing and engraving organization. When
ID: 427105 • Letter: W
Question
Williams Specialty Company is a small printing and engraving organization. When Pat Williams, the owner, brought computers into the business office five years ago, the business was very small and very simple. Pat was able to use an inexpensive PC-based account- ing system to handle the basic information-processing needs of the firm. As time has gone on, however, the business has grown and the work being performed has become significantly more complex. The simple accounting software still in use is no longer adequate to keep track of many of the company’s sophisticated deals and arrangements with its customers.
Pat has a staff of four people in the business office who are familiar with the intricacies of the company’s record-keeping requirements. Pat recently met with her staff to discuss her plan to hire an IS consulting firm to evaluate the organization’s information sys- tem needs and recommend a strategy for upgrading its computer system. The staff are excited about the prospect of a new system, because the current system causes them much annoyance. No one on the staff has ever done anything like this before, however, and they are a little wary of the consultants who will be con- ducting the project.
Assume that you are a systems analyst on the consulting team assigned to the Williams Specialty Co. engagement. At your first meeting with the Williams staff, you want to be sure that they understand the work that your team will be performing and how they will participate in that work.
a. Explain, in clear, nontechnical terms, the goals of the analysis of the project.
b. Explain, in clear, nontechnical terms, how functional models will be used by the project team to model the identified business processes. Explain what these models are, what they represent in the system, and how they will be used by the team.
Dennis, Alan, Barbara Wixom, David Tegarden. Systems Analysis and Design: An Object Oriented Approach with UML, 5th Edition. Wiley, 02/2015. VitalBook file.
Explanation / Answer
a.The goals of the analysis of the project
Development of accounting and financial information system
Which would involve
Account receivables record
General ledger
Inventory control record
Payroll record
Accounts payable record
b. The models that would be used in order to enhance the business process would be
Transaction processing system
Decision support system
Management information system
Executive support system
Office automation system
Transaction processing system would help to record every transaction made for the business purpose and would help to control those transaction.
Decision support system would provide managers with the necessary information and analysis through simulation and prediction and which would help to forecast the performance metrics of the business. This would eventually help to make better decisions for the managers
Management information system helps to analyse the data gather through the transaction processing system by processing the information for ease of understanding.
Executive support system helps to design the strategy of business by providing top management with readily accessible data of performance of entire organisation.
Office automation system help the staff members to share their knowledge and documents Excel sheet with colleagues of different departments instantaneously. It also helps to manage different files, presentations and personal calendars.
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