FEDERAL TVET INSTITUTE SCHOOL OF CIVIL

TECHNOLOGY
System analysis and management techniques assignment 1

Name:- Zeytuna Husen

Id. No:- TTME/094/14

Dec , 2022
Fact Finding Techniques and Decision Making Techniques2
Fact Finding Techniques
• To learn about the existing system, system analysts needs to collect data related to the system.

• Usually, the data is related to organization, staff, documents used, formats used in the input and
output processes are collected.

• This information is obtained through fact finding tools i.e. Review Documents, Questionnaires,
Observations and interviews2

• Through fact finding, we are able to gather useful information about:

– Department Objectives

– Decisions made and the facts upon which they are based.

– What is done, to what purpose, who done it, where it is done?

– Critical factors affecting the business

– Staff and equipment costs.2

• Interviews

• Questionnaires

• On site Observation

• Reviewing organization documents2

Interviews
• Personal interview is a recognized and most important fact finding technique.

• In this system analyst gathers information from individual through face to face interaction.

• Interviews are used to find the facts, verify fact, clarify facts, get the customer involved, identify the
system requirements and know all the options.

• The interview is usually conducted by the system analyst.

• To conduct interview, the interviewer must have personality which helps him to be familiar with
strangers or different types of people.3

Why Interviews are carried?

• To study / get knowledge / identify of working system.

• To explore relationship between information systems and users.

• To study the drawback of current system.3

About Interviewers

• Interviewing is an art, few analysts learn it in school or universities.

• But the most of them develop expertise through experience.

• The interviewer’s art consists of creating a permissive situation in which the answers offered are
reliable.3

Types of Interviews
• Structured Interview

– Structured Interview are those where the interviewee is asked a standard set of questions in a
particular order.

– All the interviewees are asked the same set of questions.

– Here the questions are predefined questions.

– There are two types of formats for conducting this type of interviews.3

• Structured Interview

– Open Response Format

• It is in which the respondent is free to answer in his own words.

• Example : Why you are dissatisfied with current system processing?

– Close Response Format

• It is in which limits the respondents to opt their answers from a set of already prescribed choices.

• Example: Are you satisfied with current system processing?4

• Unstructured Interview

– Unstructured Interview are those in which interviews are taken in a question and answer format

– Here the respondents are free to answer in their own words.4

Differentiate Structured and Unstructured Interviews4

Structured Interview4 Unstructured Interview

It is one way to insure that those same questions It is less structured and individual interviewer can
get asked to all candidates4 determine what they are going to ask the
candidate4

All candidate are evaluated using a Common A standardized rating scale is not required4
Rating Scale4

Interviewers are in agreement on Acceptable Interviewers do not need to agree on Acceptable

Answers4 answers4

It is non flexible4 It is completely flexible4

This method is less time consuming4 It is more time consuming4

Questionnaires
• They are useful when the system analyst require to collect information from a large number of people.

• It is useful in situation when interview on individual manner cannot be conducted.

• There are two types of Questionnaires:

– Open Response Based

 – Closed Response Based5

• Open Response Based

– It requires no response direction or specific response

– This form is also used to learn about the feelings, opinions, and experiences of the respondents.

– This information helps in the making the system effective because the analyst can offer subsequent
modification as per the knowledge gained.5

• Closed Response Based

– The objective is to collect the factual information of the system.

– In this case the respondents have to choose from a set of given responses.

– Thus the respondent can express their liking for the most favorable one from possible alternatives.

– The questions can be Fill in the blanks, True or false, ranking, MCQ etc.5

Differentiate Open Response and Closed Response Questionnaires

Open Response Close Response5

It offers more flexibility and freedom to Closed form is more specific in nature5
respondents5

It is useful when it is required to explore certain It is used when factual information is required.
situation5
5

It requires a lot of time for evaluation Questions are quick to analyze but typically most
costly to prepare.5
5

It allows the people to express an opinion without It limits the people to the set of alternatives been
being influenced by the researcher5 offered

It main objective is to get the information and data It main objective to collect the factual information
about the essential and critical design features of of the system5
the system5
 6Record Review

• Records and reports are the collection of information and data accumulated over the time by the users
about the system and its operations.

• This also give us a knowledge on the requirements of the system and the modifications its has
undergone

• It may be limited if not updated.6

• The drawback of using this method is that practically the functioning of the system is generally
different from procedure shown in records.6

On site Observation
• Observation allows analysts to gain information they cannot obtain by any other fact finding
techniques

• The main advantages of this method is analyst personally goes to the site and discovers the
functioning of the system.

• By this method the analyst can get the direct knowledge of the activities, operations, processes of the
system on site.6

• This information is very meaningful as the analyst gets closer to the system

• The main limitation of this method it is time consuming and the analyst should not take conclusion
directly.6

• The System analyst can know about two things:6

What Should Happen? 6 What actually occurs?

Standard Operating Procedures6 Delay in doing work6

Controls and checks for accuracy6 Skipped Steps6

Properly completed Documents 6 Extra components needed6

Efficient and timely, completion of work Information not in required files.6

7

Tools for System Development

• A tool is any device that is used to improve the performance of a task such as the development of
System

• Tool is a device which accomplishes the task generating some output.7

• Analysis Tools

• Design Tools

• Development Tools

• Testing Tools7

Tools for Documenting Procedures and Decisions

• Documentation is a process to help users of software and other people to use and interact with the
system.

• The method available for documenting analyzing the logic or decision of a process includes

– Decision Tree

– Decision Table

– Structured English7

Note
• Policy

– It is a set of rules that govern some task or function in the business.

– Policies consist of rules that can often be translated into computer programs.

• Procedures

– It put the policies into action.

– Policies are implemented by procedures.

– Procedures represent executable instructions in a computer programs7

 Decision Concepts
• Conditions and Decision Variables:

– Good and Bad are two specific alternative conditions that can be applied to System Development.

– Conditions may vary, which is why it is also know as Decision Variables.

– In documentation the decision of how to process any procedures, the investigator must identify all
the conditions.8

• Actions

– Actions are alternatives the steps, activities or procedures that an individual may decide to taken
when a set of conditions occurs or may occur.8

Relationship between Conditions and Actions

Conditions Actions

Possible States of Leads to Selection Alternatives, steps, activities or

Events of procedures , that can be taken
when a pecific decision is made8
8

Decision Tree
8

• A decision tree is diagram that presents conditions and actions sequentially.

• Enable a business to quantify decision making

• Useful when the outcomes are uncertain

• Places a numerical value on likely or potential outcomes

8• Allows comparison of different possible decisions to be made8

8Steps to Construct a Decision Tree8

 • Identify all conditions9

• Find out values these conditions may take or assume9

• List all the possible outcome9

Decision Table9
Possibility of events
• Decision table is based on logical relationships just as the truth table.
9• It is a tool that helps us look at the “complete”combination of conditions9

• A decision table is a table with various conditions and their corresponding actions.9

• Decision tree is a two dimensional matrix. It is divided into four parts

– condition stub

– action stub

– condition entry

– action entry 9

• Condition stub shows the various possible conditions.

• Condition entry is used for specifying which condition is being analyzed.

• Action stub shows the various actions taken against different conditions.

• Action entry is used to find out which action is taken corresponding to a particular set of
conditions.9

Steps for Building Decision Table

1. List out all the conditions and actions

2. Combine conditions which describe the only two possibilities of a single condition. In other
words, delete conditions which can be derived from the response of the other conditions.

3. Make yes or no response and mark actions to be taken for each rule with X.9

4. Combine redundant rules to simplify table.

5. Check for the completeness9

 Note

• No of rules = 2 raise to power Conditions

• There are certain conditions whose values do not affect the decision and always result in the
same action.

• These rules can be consolidated into a single rule.10

Structured English
• This method is used when the decision area is not very complex.

• This method uses narrative statements to describe a procedure.

• Structured English consists of:

– Structure logic or instructions organized into nested and group procedures. –

Simple English statements such as addition modify, multiply and so on.10

•10Structured English consists of three basic types of statements to describe a process:

– Sequence

– Decision Structures

– Iteration Structures10

•10Sequence Statements:

– It is a single step or action included in a process.

– It does not depend on existence of conditions, and when encountered it is always taken.

– It usually describes a process.

– For example process to buy book from bookstore.10

• Decision Structures:

– It is a way of showing decision analysis.

– It describes actions taken if some condition is true.

 – For example:

IF basic Salary > 5000

lt = 10% of basic

IF basic salary < 5000

lt = 8% of basic11

Data Dictionary
• A data dictionary is a computer file that contains descriptive information about the data items
in the files of a business information system.

• A data dictionary is a computer file about data.

• Data Dictionary is used for documentation and

analysis purpose.11

Importance of Data Dictionary

• Manage the details.

• Communicate Meaning.

• Document System features.

• Facilitate Analysis.

• Locate Errors and Emissions.11