Approaches for System Building in Digital Firm Era Essay

Approaches for System Building in Digital Firm Era - Essay Example The builders of system have to understand the impact of system change on organization and its processes as a whole. Generally, there are four kinds of system changes such as automation, shifts in paradigm, redesigning of business processes and rationalization. In any kind of systems development, there are six types of core activities that are vital for system effective building i.e. system analysis i.e. study and analysis of any problem or problems of existing systems along with requirements for solutions; system design i.e. information system solution specification which shows the way in which technical and organizational components will get integrated; programming i.e. making program of the system; testing the system; converting system if there is any kind of need for modification; production of final system for organization and maintenance of system so it functions smoothly and efficiently. Approaches for system-building in digital firms In modeling and designing information syste ms, two methodologies are used i.e. structured and object-oriented. In structured methodology, focus is on data and modeling processes separately; whereas, in object-oriented methodology, a model is viewed as a system in which a collection of objects bring together data and modeling processes. There are numerous methods of building systems that can be used by organizations. The four most common approaches used for system building are traditional system life cycle, prototyping, end-user development and Application Software packages and outsourcing (Oxford Economics, 2009). The oldest method is traditional systems life cycle in which systems are developed following formal stages; system building process proceeds to the next stage only after previous stage’s output is achieved. In prototyping, experimental systems are built rapidly and these systems are comparatively cheaper to other systems; they allow the end users to interact with the systems and evaluate their effectiveness. End-user development approach allows end users to develop information systems either on their own or by taking some help from specialists of information systems. Application software packages and outsourcing implies letting third parties develop information systems for the organizations; although this approach is relatively expensive but the systems developed under this approach are compatible with digital firm requirements from every aspect. Two approaches suitable for digital firm The two approaches most suitable for digital firms are prototyping and application software packages and outsourcing. Both these approaches help technology advanced organizations to successfully prosper within the digital industry as they allow the end users to easily interact and use the features of digital technology. In prototyping system building approach, a specific interactive system is designed which builds a model of a system to determine requirements of system. The primary aim of prototyping is to build an experimental system that is quick and inexpensive one for demonstrating and evaluating the users need for information requirements. The preliminary model of system or its important parts are built