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48 Part 1 • SyStemS analySiS FundamentalS

Project Initiation
Systems projects are initiated by many different sources for many reasons. Some of the projects
suggested will survive various stages of evaluation to be worked on by you (or you and your
team); others will not and should not get that far. Businesspeople suggest systems projects for
two broad reasons: (1) because they experience problems that lend themselves to systems solu-
tions and (2) because they recognize opportunities for improvement through upgrading, altering,
or installing new systems when they occur. Both situations can arise as an organization adapts to
and copes with natural, evolutionary change.
Problems in an Organization
Managers do not like to conceive of their organization as having problems, let alone talk about
those problems or share them with someone from outside. Good managers, however, realize
that recognizing symptoms of problems or, at a later stage, diagnosing the problems themselves
and then confronting them are imperative if the business is to keep functioning at its highest
potential.
Problems surface in many different ways. One way of conceptualizing what problems are
and how they arise is to think of them as situations in which goals have never been met or are no
longer being met. Useful feedback gives information about the gap between actual and intended
performance. In this way, feedback spotlights problems.
In some instances, problems that require the services of systems analysts are uncovered
because performance measures are not being met. Problems (or symptoms of problems) with
processes that are visible in output and that could require the help of a systems analyst include
excessive errors and work performed too slowly, incompletely, incorrectly, or not at all. Other
symptoms of problems become evident when people do not meet baseline performance goals.
Changes in employee behavior such as unusually high absenteeism, high job dissatisfaction, or
high worker turnover should alert managers to potential problems. Any of these changes, alone
or in combination, might be sufficient reason to request the help of a systems analyst.
Although difficulties such as those just described occur in an organization, feedback on
how well the organization is meeting intended goals may come from outside, in the form of
complaints or suggestions from customers, vendors, or suppliers, as well as lost or unexpectedly
low sales. This feedback from the external environment is extremely important and should not
be ignored.
A summary of symptoms of problems and approaches useful in problem detection is pro-
vided in Figure 3.1. Notice that checking output, observing or researching employee behavior,
and listening to feedback from external sources are all valuable in problem finding. When react-
ing to accounts of problems in the organization, a systems analyst plays the roles of consultant,
supporting expert, and agent of change, as discussed in Chapter 1. As you might expect, roles for
the systems analyst shift subtly when projects are initiated because the focus is on opportunities
for improvement rather than on the need to solve problems.

Figure 3.1
To Identify Problems Look for These Specific Signs:
Checking output, observing
employee behavior, and listening Check output against performance criteria. • Too many errors
to feedback are all ways to help • Work completed slowly
the analyst pinpoint systems • Work done incorrectly
problems and opportunities. • Work done incompletely
• Work not done at all
Observe behavior of employees. • High absenteeism
• High job dissatisfaction
• High job turnover

Listen to external feedback from: • Complaints
Vendors and service providers • Suggestions for improvement
Customers. • Loss of sales
Suppliers. • Lower sales