DS33010 - PRINCIPLES OF SYSTEMS ANALYSIS

Module Identifier

DS33010

Module Title

PRINCIPLES OF SYSTEMS ANALYSIS

Academic Year

2003/2004

Co-ordinator

Dr Christine J Urquhart

Semester

Available all semesters

Other staff

Miss Alyson Tyler, Mr John Nelson, Ms Tanya C Rogers

Course delivery

Lecture

15 Hours

Seminars / Tutorials

5 Hours

Assessment

Assessment Type	Assessment Length/Details	Proportion
Semester Assessment	Essay: of 1,250-1,500 words discussing a systems analysis issue	50%
Semester Assessment	Group Project: One Group Project (planning a systems analysis project)	50%

Learning outcomes

At the end of the module students should be able to:

Design questionnaires and interview schedules;
Identify and represent users''''information requirements, using a variety of charting techniques;
Consider the organisational issues involved in changing an information system;
Analyse in outline the information flows within a system.

Brief description

Systems thinking and systems behaviour, including the systems approach to management; the role of organisational culture in change and the application of chaos theory to organisational behaviour; questionnaire and interview techniques for assessing user information requirements; principles of soft systems methodologies; use of rich pictures and charting techniques UML use cases, introduction to project management techniques.

Reading Lists

Books
** Recommended Consultation
Armstrong, P. and Dawson, C (1996) People in organisations London: Elm

Journals
Information Systems Journal (available as an electronic journal)

Books
** Recommended Consultation
Avgerou, C. and Cornford, T (1998) Developing information systems: concepts, issues and practice 2nd. Basingstoke: Macmillan
Avison, D.E. and Shah, H (1997) The information systems development cycle: a first course in information systems Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill
Bennett, S., McRobb, S and Farmer, R (2002) Object-oriented sytems analysis and design using UML 2nd. Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill
Bertalanffy, L Von (1968) General systen theory: foundations, development, applications London: Allen Lane, Penguin Press
Britton, C. and Doake, J (1996) Software system development: a gentle introduction Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill
Checkland, P.B (1981) Systems thinking, systems practice Chichester: John Wiley
Checkland, P.B. and Scholes, J (1990) Soft systems methodology in action Chichester: John Wiley
Dewitz, S (1996) Systems analysis and design and the transition to objects London: McGraw-Hill
Handy, C (1993) Understanding organisations 4th. Harmondsworth: Penguin
Handy, C (1994) The empty raincoat London: Hutchinson
Huczynski, A. and Buchanan, D (2000) Organizational behaviour: and introductory text 4th. London: FT Prentice Hall
James, B (1989) The systems analysis interview: a guide to interviewing in organisations Manchester: NCC
Katz, D. and Kahn, R.L (1978) The social psychology of organisations 2nd. Chichester: Wiley
Open University: T247 Working with systems Milton Keynes: Open University
Parker, D. and Stacey, R (1994) Chaos, management and economics: the implications of non-linear thinking London: IEA
Sauer, C (1993) Why information sytems fail: a case study approach Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill
Skidmore, S (1997) Introducing systens analysis Oxford: Blackwell
Taylor, D (1998) Object technology: a manager's guide Radeing, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley
Underwood, P (1996) Soft systems analysis and the management of libraries, information services and resource centres London: LA Publishing
Whitten, J. and Bentley, L (1997) Systems analysis and design methods 4th. Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill
Wilson, D.C. and Rosenfeld, R.H (1996) Managing organizations: text, readings and cases 2nd. London: McGraw-Hill

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 6