You are planning a preliminary investigation of Dr. Jones’s request. For each step, describethe steps you will take, the methods you will use, and the information you will seek. Alsoexplain how you plan to define the project’s scope, and why this task is so important.

What will be an ideal response?

Preliminary investigation steps
• The first step is to understand the problem or opportunity. The analyst should develop a business profile of New Century’s operations to determine which departments, users, and business processes are involved.
• The second step is to define the project scope and constraints. At this point, you want to define the specific boundaries, or extent, of the project. Along with defining the scope of the project, you need to identify and classify any constraints, which might involve hardware, software, time, policy, law, or cost. A clear definition of project scope and constraints will avoid possible misunderstandings between you and New Century.
• The third step is to perform fact-finding. To do this, you have to examine organization charts, conduct interviews, review current documentation, observe operations, and carry out a user survey. When conducting interviews during the preliminary investigation, you should interview people who have a broad knowledge of the system and can give you an overview of the business processes involved. Depending on the situation, you might talk to new Century staff members to obtain more detail about day-to-day functions.
• The fourth step is to determine feasibility. At this point you will have analyzed the situation, defined the project scope and constraints, performed fact-finding, and estimated the costs and benefits of the new system. Now you can review the results and make an initial determination about operational, technical, and economic feasibility.
• The fifth step is to prepare an estimate of how much time and money it will take to complete the next systems development phase, systems analysis. Also, you should prepare a rough estimate for the overall project, so New Century can understand the full cost impact and timetable.
• The sixth step is to present your results and recommendations to Dr. Jones and the other partners. You will want to prepare a written report and deliver a brief presentation.

Project scope
It is important to define the project scope to establish the extent of the project or specific boundaries. Without a defined project scope, New Century’s information system could get too broad. In this case, Dr. Jones is seeking a large encompassing information system that could easily get out of hand. You need to know exactly what requirements the system must meet to prevent project creep as the systems design and development moves forward. The next step is to determine all deadlines budget limitations, any other constraints, and obtain a clear understanding of the new system’s features and capability. For example, you may begin by meeting with Dr. Jones to gain an understanding of the organization and activities of the clinic and to learn more about what he and his associates have in mind for this project. Then they would meet with Anita Davenport, possibly more than once. They might suggest that Dr. Jones sit in on at least the beginning of the first meeting with Anita to help define the scope of the investigation and to discuss New Century’s office systems in general. Your main objective is to obtain a clear definition of the system requirements, and by establishing the project scope, you will determine the boundaries of the preliminary investigation itself.