Research Articles Base: Development

Community, Business And Entertainment Plans Of TV Stations And Government Of Ghana

COMMUNITY, BUSINESS AND ENTERTAINMENT PLANS OF TV STATIONS AND GOVERNMENT OF GHANA        Ghana Government will be constructing 400 megawatt electrical facilities to further strengthen supplies of electricity to the community the prospected thermal plant will add up to the hydropower generation to bring more services to their people. This will also protect their country in major breakdown of electrical facilities because of climate change. The proposal development of the thermal plant is expected to be implemented in the next three years 2012 to 2014 this will solve electricity problem of the country but most importantly the project will bring hope and economic development.       The fund will come from the National Government and the Millennium Development Account (MDA) and Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCA) of the United States. This has been decided during the USA, Africa Business Summit of 2011, the project will benefit Ghana and Mozambique and it is expected to increase the electrical services for more than 10% of their needs. Source: (http://vibeghana.com/2011/10/19/government-to-pump-300m-into-energy-sector/). Due to this reasons Community Access Television in South Africa has already planned on opening up more networks in major cities in South Africa including Ghana. The plan is expected to carry on diverse community shows more production, distribution and exhibition of programs in the years to come.       The Ghanaian government believed that it is necessary to develop more educational program to be able to give more accurate information to their people that in most areas access to information has been somehow limited to radio broadcast and that the operations of television stations will further increase literacy in their society that broadcasting will play a critical role in addition to education, communication and freedom to learn. The government further request station to plan on television programs that entices more than entertainment but informative, educational and comprehensive business solution that can uplift the livelihood of their people.       Local Television in Ghana including Metro TV, TV3, Ghana Net, GTV and Fantasia and other network also support in their broadcast the aims of the government to further enhance entertainment and business programs in order to help people the access to livelihood and wealth creation that they may even receive programs that are broadcast in Australian Community. The plans will really enhance media communication, open up business communities and may even break the monopoly of television stations. Local televisions should take advantage of creating an educational programs for children and business programs for entrepreneurs and programs in health to eliminate health concerns in their country. Ghana has taken its continuous steps to expand more electricity so that television will soon be experienced in most of their areas.       Community Television will be the one to watch, they already started their plans and continue to develop to expand and gain popularity if the Ghanaian Community will gain access only if they have electricity subscriptions the programs will definitely empower people. GBC-TV in Ghana includes news and commentary, variety show, drama, sports and educational programs particularly their programs includes Science World that features comprehensive topics about plants, animals, people and their inventions and innovation. Hobby Time is a program for young and old it can be an outlet to crafts and business creation. Our Health is a program for everyone who wants to learn a healthy lifestyle to know more about the cure of their diseases and first aid home advice are all included. These programs will soon expand entirely in Ghana.       The development plan of electricity expansion and distribution will largely exhibit a great help for the poor, the broadcast of Community Television and the participation of free channels in Ghana will ensure that it will benefit all of them. The Government and their people expected the participation of most TV stations of Ghana to further strengthen the country to showcase good reliable programs although there are still many challenges that they need to face in order to facilitate good broadcast entirely to the whole country. Problems such as funding, manpower and technical broadcast media experts, legality and rights to broadcast that most stations would need to confirm that their shows are legally allowed by their producers to release in national television to protect them from copyrights infringement.       The cost of maintenance is also an issue that they need to overcome and most of all they must make sure that they do not exercise explicit contents using verbal word or written words that is bad for the children, they must also prevent the program that are sexually immoral. There are also regulations such as quality and clarity of broadcast and sustainability in order to broadcast the most reliable, entertaining and educational programs. Ghana has already started their steps to increase availability in broadcast media as early as 2005 survey shows that their communities rely on information; 94% on radio, 65% on TV, 46% on the world of mouth, 47% on newspaper while only 35% on local leaders. Ghana is on their way for broadcast media access in the next few years hopefully, if all this plans will work out perfectly. Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Community, Business And Entertainment Plans Of TV Stations And Government Of Ghana

COMMUNITY, BUSINESS AND ENTERTAINMENT PLANS OF TV STATIONS AND GOVERNMENT OF GHANA Ghana Government will be constructing 400 mega...

Community Development In Nigeria

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA       Nigeria is still a part of developing countries of Africa and the presence of Community Development in most location and villages creates a great impact in empowering its people to alleviate the major causes of poverty. However scarcity and famine still reside in their country but the Community Development Organizations have somehow result in the prevention of such occurrences they are able to come up with various ideas and opportunity to create employment, livelihood and financing for new enterprise development so that people can also create their own individual means of decent living. Opportunities are there, people just need to seek and they will find.       The role of Local Government and Community Development in Nigeria has been closely related although they are a separate entity the government provide funding that are usually divided into major economic expenses particular in infrastructure, education, health, livelihood and economic development in close monitoring of the condition of its people although they have a centralized effort while doing so, due to this reasons however their programs is still not enough to uplift the lives of their people. The Community Development Organizations are usually private institutions who voluntary group themselves to help people through profit and non profit or charitable means. Their funding usually comes from their own investment or through collective means.          Community Development Committee (CDC) is the official government legislative body that will control most of organizations in Central Agricultural Zone of Delta State in Nigeria but most of organizations are also controlled according to their types of business orientation. There are countless Community Development Organizations in Nigeria. Development Impact For Nigeria (DIFN) is an organization whose main objective is to reduce poverty in their country they also address the issues that is health related including HIV or AIDS. The strategic development plan of this group focused on funding livelihood and enterprise development, energy conservation, education, youth and social works and sustainable employment for the year 2011 to 2014. http://difn.org.uk/nigeria_programme_development.html       The Nigerian Network of Non Government Organizations (NGO) and Community Base Organizations (CBO) usually focus on Community Development they include all the list of the organizations who contributed to the growth of the community that somehow reduce the poverty by increasing sustainable livelihood development programs, job creation, agricultural, education, youth and women empowerment and more. They include 20 National Organizations and over 800 members across the nation they are medical, social, ethnic, youth, financial and other institutions gathered together to provide sustainability and poverty alleviation in their community. http://www.nnngo.org/content/resource-materials       The Statoil Hydro Community Development supports empowerment in Akassa Nigeria their program is based on security and stability development and environmental preservation they have partnered with 19 communities to bring all together the opportunities and possibilities. Micro credit, education for the youth, health, natural resources management, women empowerment and livelihood training for agricultural and fishery is also included in their programs. Statoil realized that the innovation and technology can bring new opportunity to their regions through participative efforts of their organization and the communities who greatly appreciate their programs. The Akassa Development Funding (ADF) has taken a more viable solution to provide to the people the proper funding to realize the development and implementation of their program with the help of its members and the local government they believe that they can eradicate the issue of poverty as long as they continue to work hand in hand.  http://www.statoil.com/AnnualReport2008/en/Sustainability/Society/Pages/5-6-3-3-3_CommunityDevelopmentInNigeria.aspx            Nigeria Micro-Financing, Banks and  other Financial institution has more than 500 organizations that are also actively participating in community based development by providing various sources of funds and loans for qualified individual, business organizations and enterprising individual who would like to expand or establish a viable business opportunities within the community. Collectively they have served millions of their clients in most parts of Africa. There are also international organizations who are also involved in community development in their country this includes World Health Organization (WHO), International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank (WB) who support most organization and provide funding for various programs for livelihood, health, education and economic development that includes community programs. http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/13711/1/MPRA_paper_13711.pdf       The role of the Government and Community Development Organizations in Nigeria compliments the overall sustainability and progress in order to end the causes of poverty however it is up to their people to take advantage of this opportunities in their hand because no matter what opportunities are available and the resources are there but still people must take their steps to use it all to end poverty in their nation. Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Community Development In Nigeria

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA Nigeria is still a part of developing countries of Africa and the presence of Community Developm...

The Construction of an Information System that enhances “the Flexible Work Practices” to a Company

The Work-based Project Introduction During the turn of the century, the world experiences more drastic changes than before, which include changes in the environment, culture, education, knowledge, the society, and technology. The world has evolved into a massive ball of information and technology that led to the expansion and the development of the society in several aspects. However, despite the improvement of the performance of many companies, these changes also contributed to the distress of some, which are not apt for these changes. From this, it can be understood that, existing and persisting in the business industry is not as easy as it seems. Because of these, many business organisations and companies are encountering a variety of problems and issues that determine the success or failure in the business arena and in the industry. These problems and issues arise from the external and internal changes that the company encounters. With regards to this, certain business improvement procedures should be practiced in order to enhance the business practices and development of the company. In this paper, the discussion of the construction of an Information System that enhances “the Flexible Work Practices” to my company will be shown. Change is a part of every organisation. Sooner or later, organisations have to change and adapt to a competitive environment, it is a must for organisations to change in order to stay on top of the competition.  This paper will be discussing the issues of business improvement efforts within our company.             The Business Improvement             Project life cycle, basically subdivides the project into a number of definable phases or stages.  In the case of our company, the development of an information system that enhances “the Flexible Work Practices” are considered with respect to the efforts that will enhance the business practices of our company. These were divided into four (4) phases/stages as adopted in Cleland, & Gareis (1994) i.e. concept and initial phase, design and development phase, implementation or construction phase, and commissioning and handover phase (See Figure 1). Figure 1.  Project Life-Cycle               Basically, the business improvement efforts in our company are often implemented to provide a facility or to produce a product that will give a client a return on investment. And in our case, the implementation of project in our company is to enhance the “Flexible Working Practices” of our employees.  By looking at the bigger picture the designers are able to trade-off the cost of the construction with the cost of maintenance, upgrading, expansion and disposal over the life of the facility.  The extreme case would be a cheap construction which turned out to be expensive to maintain, difficult to upgrade and expand, and an environmental disaster to dispose to.             One of the methods in addressing the problem is to make the company responsible for all aspects of the life-cycle, thus eliminating any short term construction gains. These are often called BOT contracts (Built, Operate and Transfer), or BOOT (Built, Own, Operate and Transfer), or ROT contracts (Refurbish, Operate and Transfer) where a company is given a licence to finance, build, operate and sell. Governments find these contracts attractive as they are seen to provide facilities without having an impact on budget (Burke, 2003).      Time Planning             A time plan or a schedule must be prepared to enable the manager to budget time and energy effectively.  Timescales and time allocation is allows the company to eliminate wastage and allocate resources appropriate to tasks importance (Blair 2009). With setting the appropriate timescale, the company can focus and prioritise the activities in accomplishing the project. Timescales also allows the persons involved in the project become prepared for meetings, monitor project progress, and plan each day and week efficiently (Blair 2009). This would enable the company assess the progression of project and make certain improvements when necessary. Proper time allocation also allows the company to reject excessive workloads and ensure that long-term projects are not neglected (Blair 2008). With proper monitoring of projects, short-term goals can be easily completed and long-term goals can be given priority.   Figure  2. Project Plan and Timescales 		 		Classical Project Schedule (10 weeks) 		 		time frame (weeks) 		 		payment 		 		involved staff 		 		1st 		 		2nd 		 		3rd 		 		4th 		 		5th 		 		6th 		 		7th 		 		8th 		 		9th 		 		10th 		　 		 		PM* 		 		SA* 		 		AP* 		 		 		Project Kick-off 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		Signing the Agreement 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		30% 		 		Y 		　 		　 		 		Preparation of Project Plan 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		Y 		 		Y 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		 		Implementation Process 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		User Requirement Capture / Gap Analysis 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		20% 		 		Y 		 		Y 		　 		 		Programs Development 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		Y 		 		Y 		 		Y 		 		Training IT / User 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		Y 		 		Y 		 		Y 		 		User Acceptance Test 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		Y 		 		Y 		 		Y 		 		Parallel Run 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		30% 		 		Y 		 		Y 		 		Y 		 		Live Run　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		　 		 		20% 		 		Y 		 		Y 		 		Y * PM: Project Manager, SA: System Analyst, AP: Analyst Programmer               In implementing the new IS development as for our company, several problems may occur. However, despite the presence of these problems, they can be solved by effective communication. One of the problems to be encountered is dealing with the impetus for change, for all organisations are resistant to change. An organisation will only undertake change when it can no longer meet the demands placed on it in the current mode of operation, and these demands come from customers, the problems the organisation is attempting to solve, and by the threat of competition from other companies (Ward 2009). Through effective speaking and listening, both the employees and the management can focus on informing each other of their beliefs and perceptions regarding the new implemented system. With this, the employees can speak to the management of their fears and lack of knowledge regarding the system. Moreover, the management or the leader can ask the project manager to make some adjustments regarding the problem, such as providing training for the staff and making the software program more user-friendly.   Time Definition By definition, time management is actually the ability to efficiently help give more worth to the time and energy spent with the goal to make life better and easier. As indicated in the previous presentation i.e. Figure 2, the timescales of the project will be divided into two major parts (i.e. Project Kick-off and Implementation process). Basically, these defined stages are based on the network analysis presented in the next section. For the success of any business project on careful planning, the manager must plan, organise, and control a project that consists of a number of interrelated activities.  The best known network models are PERT which stands for Program Evaluation and Review Techniques and CPM which stands for Critical Path Method.              PERT is used to plan the program in advance and to estimate the expected completion time of the entire project (Cleland & Gareis 1994).  It indicates the activities that might need modification regarding completion time.  In short, PERT allows the manager to compare actual progress of each activity and concentrate those activities that are behind schedule and may cause delay of the project. On the other hand, the CPM was developed to aid in the scheduling of some management works like routine plant overhaul, maintenance and construction work.  Since such work projects fall under repetitive operations of which the management has experience on data involving time and cost among others, and relatively small variance in their performance time, and CPM reasonably assumed that the completion time for each activity involved in a work project is known.  Moreover, the CPM incorporates no statistical analysis in its determination of time estimates.  Thus, in accordance to the convenience use of CPM, our company consider the use of this method.   Cost Planning There are main activities involves in the cost management project that includes cost monitoring and cost control.  These activities need to be thoroughly and carefully followed up based on the project requirement. In our company, project cost management includes cost monitoring and cost control which will be shown in preceding sections. Actually, finding ways to reduce costs sometimes may be crucial to firms and is a necessity most of the time. The learning phenomenon and the learning curve offer opportunities for cost reduction programs in general and in the pre-project planning areas in particular. In the pre-project planning stage, the type of learning curve to be used subsequently may be affected by the level and content of organisational planning. More precisely, the more preplanning that is done in all aspects associated with the launching of a new IS, the lower the cost of the initial unit. With the cost of the initial unit being the starting point of the learning phenomenon, the lower it is through effective pre-project planning, the greater the savings generated by the resulting learning curve.   Earned Value Analysis   When running an improvement business project, it is important to understand the values and issues that workers have in order to address them and keep everyone on board for the duration of the project. Workers are not always keen to participate but engaging them at this early stage of the project will help ensure success. With respect to the success of the projects, the approach to arrive at a price base for the purpose of tender assessment must be considered.  From the presentation, several factors can be determined, which need improvement. Primarily, the contracts to be used in the projects must be appropriate, which suits the style and preferences of its employees. The management style of the project managers must then be given enough attention to ensure the organisation and control of the tenderers. Function also includes organising, which determines what needs to be done, how will it be done and who will do it, leading to directing and motivating all parties and resolving conflicts, controlling, and making sure that the organisation has achieved its stated purpose (De Bono, 2005). In short, the scope in the project management entails the refreshing and reinforcing of the tasks and responsibilities of the project manager. Due to the problems and the target project plan that have been distinguished by our company, it is decided to create a plan in relation to project measures.   Implication and Financial benefits of Business Improvement             The changes in technology and management underwent by our company allowed us to adopt serious changes in strategy and development. From the desire to cope with the technological advancements of the century, the company is making plans of implementing a new Information Systems technology that will enhance the flexible work practices of our employees. Basically, the opportunities before our company are significant.  The company has the technical solution and the market expertise to become the dominant force in the market i.e. to enhance the flexibility of employees. But as is typical in the software industry, the window of opportunity will not remain open for long.  The possibilities are virtually limitless, but the company needs to introduce into the marketplace as soon as possible to ensure that they were able to take advantage of future opportunities even more lucrative than those presented herein. To be able to cope with competition against other companies, our company must therefore plan actions properly and implement the plan immediately. However, given the intention for change, the company must not also forget the presence of technical and non-technical problems that they can encounter, such as choosing the software program itself, its compatibility with the organisation’s system, budget, time and people. This is why, the adequate allocation of resources, including time and money must be planned accordingly to achieve success. In relation to this, effective management and well-planned project implementation must be practiced to encourage teamwork and business progress. This can be done through effective communication, with good interpersonal, speaking, writing and listening skills. Aside from these, the organisation can also seek professional help from IS professionals for additional guidance.   Conclusion             Planning is one of the fundamental functions in management. It underlies the factors that will lead the organisation into achieving its main goals. Thus, it is crucial to lay out a plan to organise the activities that are to be undertaken by the entire organisation. The process of planning though entails setting the desired outcomes and drafting the set of actions to be implemented. It is a complex process that will require analysis of the organisation’s strengths and weaknesses as well as the external factors such as the opportunities and threats. Moreover, an action plan needs to be implemented to assess the effectiveness of the set goals of the organisation. In order to this, the managers will have to communicate the information to subordinates. This undertaking entails competent interpersonal skills that will persuade and motivate the employees to work hard and in the long run, achieve the plans. In the case of our company, the planning of projects implementation should also include other external factors that might cause significant effect to the overall implementation of the project.  These factors are sometimes immeasurable since it is more related to the characteristics of project manager itself. To be able to carry out plans, the managers must provide continued motivation to the employees towards excellence and high performance. This pursuit involves the development of the managerial skills to create an efficient team that will lead to increased productivity. Observing the work conditions of the employees which involves the interaction and work flow is crucial to facilitate adjustments and improve the procedures.   References: Blair, GM (2009). Personal Time Management for Busy Managers, viewed 12 May, 2009, <http://www.see.ed.ac.uk/~gerard/Management/art2.html>.   Burke, R. (2003). Project Management: Planning and Control Techniques. (4th ed.). West Sussex, England: John Wiley & Sons.   Cleland, D.I. and Gareis, R. (Eds) (1994). Global Project Management Handbook, McGraw-Hill International Editions.   De Bono, S (2005). Assessing Managerial Attributes Case Study of Maltese Managers in the Service Industry, DBA Executive Summary.   Ward, JA (2009) Implementing Quality Initiatives in Information Systems, viewed 12 May, 2009, <http://www.jamesaward.com/implementing%20quality%20initiatives.htm>.     Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

The Construction of an Information System that enhances “the Flexible Work Practices” to a Company

The Work-based Project Introduction During the turn of the century, the world experiences more drastic changes than before, which ...

Development of Youth Programs for Skills

Development of Youth Programs for Skills Youth development involves the growth process which all young people go through to meet their basic personal and social needs and build skills and competencies.  People, programs and institutions involved in youth development are all working towards positive results in the lives of youth.  Adolescence is a time of great change.  Existing out-of-school programs are designed to catch the interest of the youth.  They are diverse in focus and varied in structure, and range from sports teams to drop-in recreation centers, from museum apprenticeships to mentoring relationships between an individual teen and an adult.  “What distinguishes youth development programs from the vast array of ameliorative services is their emphasis on supporting the normal socialization and healthy development of young people.  If the entire spectrum of youth services can be thought of as a continuum, youth development services would be at one end and social control or incarceration would be at the other.  In between these ends of the continuum would fall primary prevention (of problems such as substance abuse, adolescent pregnancy, juvenile crime, and the like); short-term intervention; and long-term treatment.  While some youth development organizations may offer some prevention and intervention programs, their focus is on promoting normal development; providing environments and relationships that nurture and challenge young people; building their competencies; and treating them as resources.  Many measures were taken in this regards by stakeholders and they have benefited immensely.  The advantages are enormous while the disadvantages are at a minimum because it has improved the productivity of youth as well as the community.  The Canadian government, for instance, have instituted a Youth Employment Strategy Program (YES) to help young people.  They help by providing programs to get information and gain skills, work experience and abilities the youth would need to make a successful transition to the workplace.  Under YES, Service Canada offers the following three programs: 1.    “Career Focus provides funding for employers to help post-secondary graduates obtain career-related work opportunities in Canada to support their development of advanced skills, to help them make career-related links to the job market, and to assist them in becoming leaders in their field. 2.    Skills Link provides funding to community organizations to help youth facing barriers to employment – such as single parents, Aboriginal youth, young persons with disabilities, recent immigrants, youth living in rural and remote areas and high school dropouts – develop the broad range of skills, knowledge and work experience they need to participate in the job market. 3.    Summer Work Experience provides wage subsidies to employers to create summer employment for secondary and post-secondary students, and support the operation of summer employment offices. Youth Awareness, funded under Employment Insurance (EI) Part II, complements the Youth Employment Strategy. (Service Canada. Youth Employment Strategy Programs.  http://www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/epb/yi/yep/newprog/yesprograms.shtml, retrieved 18 April, 2011.)” The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies’ Plan 2009-2010 outlined their commitment to youth membership services, support derived from the constitutionally mandated functions and decisions of the Federation’s governance in field of youth development, youth leadership and capacity building are reinforced through activities and platforms planned in 2009-2010.  The membership services are supplemented by the program services developed to encourage and facilitate avenues for active youth participation and cooperation in achieving the Global Agenda goals.  The aim of the program is to encourage more young people to join the Movement and to enable them to engage in both meaningful services on a local and global level, as well as in decision making processes.  (Youth Development Program.  Plan 2009-2010 International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.  https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ifrc.org%2Fdocs%2Fappeals%2Fannual09%2FMAA0000609pyth.pdf, retrieved 18 April, 2011.  1.)” National Youth-Serving Organizations are the largest single category of youth development programs for early teens.  This includes 4-H, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Boys and Girls Clubs, YMCA, YWCA, Girls Incorporated, Camp Fire, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and Junior Achievement.  “Most hold a commitment to promoting prosocial values and building a variety of life skills (i.e. leadership, problem solving, and decision making), and most rely on small groups and trained leaders, both paid and volunteer, for program delivery.  Most adopt a pedagogy that involves hands-on education, cooperative learning, and age-appropriate programming strategies.  Grass roots youth organizations do a good job of reaching low-income adolescents.  They have limited budgets so they often focus on a limited amount of services which may include life-skills training, substance-abuse education, counseling, crisis intervention, community service, academic tutoring, communications skills, peer counseling, sex education, job readiness and career awareness, health education, physical fitness and sports, arts programs, and safe havens.  These groups are powerful resources which contribute to the healthy development of young people, especially those who live in high-risk environments.  (Need and Opportunity:  Youth Development Programs for Children (USA Experience).  Abuchi, Basil Benjamin.  https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.menacpi.org%2FCPI%2Fuploads2009%2FALP%2FBasil_Benjamin.doc, retrieved 18 April, 2011.  1-10.)”     Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Development of Youth Programs for Skills

Development of Youth Programs for Skills Youth development involves the growth process which all young people go through to meet their...

Implications Of Information Technology In System Development

Implications of Information Technology in System Development   Every organization without any exceptions needs information and a system to manage the information (Avison & Fitzgerald, 1998). This system for managing information is called an Information system and it can be totally manual, computerized or a mix of the two. The information system is not just popping up, but has to be created. This process of creating is the system development. Some authors also include the managing, maintenance and liquidation in the system development and this as parts of the system development lifecycle.   This essay shall illustrate systems development and how the traditional methods used before needs to incorporate information technology. Moreover, the benefits of IT in systems development shall also be assessed. A review of previous works and scholars shall be the basis for this analysis.   Systems development covers a broad array of information. When we talk of system development we point out the process of developing information systems and not just systems in general. Different authors differs in opinion of what the system development contains of and in what way we should develop. One uses concepts like methods, methodologies and tools but defines these concepts in different ways. Often can different methods use similar vocabulary and contain the same phases, but when we study the under laying philosophy they have not much in common. Avison & Fitzgerald says that from 1988 to 1994 the brand names of methodologies increased from 300 to 1000 (1998). They continue with claiming that many of them have much in common and are only differenced to special markets or situations and this often by marketing purposes.   Methods are used and then discharged, the method used yesterday seemed to be the perfect one, but soon there is a new and better one. The term method is so commonly used in IT community in the context of software development that hardly any effort was ever made to define its semantic. With hundreds of methods with which to develop IT systems anything that looks like some kind of a software development process or architecture framework or even notation for a system modeling is called a method (and sold as such) no matter how close it resembles one.   System development is an activity in which a systematic approach is taken to investigate the conditions to realize a computerized information system improve the business in a company or a organization and also in agreement with the result model, construct and introduce information system in a practical application (Nationalencyklopedin, 1995). System development is about to solve new unknown problems or to further elaborate solutions to known problems that occur in systems, which handle different kind of information (information systems). Maybe it is better to speak of information system development instead of system development in our science, but that would be too heavy to use in the long run according to Andersen (1994).   Basic foundations in system development Loen & Stolterman state that generally we seek for the perfect method, but claim that this is the wrong focus (1998). The result is mainly dependent of the participants of the process and will never be better than these. They continue with claiming that different methods are collections of history, experience and competence and should only be used as such collections. It s the methodology beyond that we should reflect and challenge in our developing process. Jan Stage has gone even further and claims that application of new system development methods even might be to compensate for the developers lack of competence and the only problem solved is their feeling of incompetence (Brejknes & Dahlbom, 1990). Other authors mean that system development moves toward a more industrial development process and therefore we should use the term Software engineering instead (Eriksson & Penker, 1996).   Methodologies This makes us move forward to the definitions of methodologies, method, etc. Loosely rendered from Eriksson & Penker (1996) and combined with thoughts from Avison & Fitzgerald (1998) and Loen & Stolterman (1998) we could make a hierarchical picture of the relationships between different concepts. For example the same tools may be used in several techniques. Though several authors agree about the relations about the order of method techniques tools, they differ in their view of methodology method. Sometimes the concept methodology is used in a way that other author s claim is method and vice versa. In classical theory of science methodology is the doctrine about a method (Nationalencyklopedin, 1994). This view of the relationship is adopted by Eriksson & Penker (1996) and they state that the methodology is the philosophy beyond the method. The philosophy is essential for understanding the method and then using it properly. You cannot compare methods without comparing the methodologies behind. The methodology as concept can in some ways be related with the concept paradigm. Examples of philosophies behind different methodologies are human aspects, scientific approach, pragmatic view, expert-lead development (Avison & Fitzgerald, 1998), user-lead development and developing with focus on the organizational competence (Bjerknes & Dahlbom, 1990).   Some authors lack a clear distinction between method and methodology. British Computer Society (BCS) defines an information system methodology as a recommended collection of philosophies, phases, procedures, rules, techniques, tools, documentation, management, and training for developers of information systems (Maddison, 1983). Avison & Fitzgerald (1998) have adopted this definition as we can see in their definition of system development methodology: A collection of procedures, techniques, tools, and documentation aids which will help the system developers in their effort to implement a new information system. Their definition continues, but the extract above is enough to show their view of sight. They continue with claiming that a methodology usually is based on some philosophical view, otherwise it s just a method. This is in our opinion the fundamental breaking point. The methodology is just the philosophical founding behind a method and the method is the collection that Avison & Fitzgerald describes. In some way we can agree with Maddison (1983) and see the methodology as the overall, which contains everything below in the hierarchy.   This view tends to bring more chaos than clearness, so we would prefer to see methodology as the philosophy behind the method and the method as the overall that contains everything below in the hierarchy. It may seem to be a slight difference, but although important.   Method Its common to briefly describe methods in general, when one tries to describe a method in particular. Therefore it seems like almost every spokesman for a method has his/her own definition of what a method is. Though this confusion we will try to find a general definition for the concept. If the methodology is the philosophy behind the method, than we can break that out from BCS definition of information system development; a recommended collection of phases, procedures, rules, techniques, tools, documentation, management, and training for developers of information systems (Maddison, 1983). The definition of methodology above by Avison & Fitzgerald is a method if it is not based on a philosophical view (1998). Eriksson & Penker have several definitions of methods (1996). First they state that methods help us to solve problems that are alike. Human has always worked according to methods, whether it is how to bake bread or how to forge a sword. There are needs for several methods because of different problems, situations and contexts. In the area of system developing the authors say that a method contains a concept of models, a developing cycle and different phases. Eriksson & Penker also tries to define method in an even more general way by saying that a method is a notation (representation, model) and a process (phases, flow). If we combine and relate the above-mentioned definitions of method, we may have an overview and a starting point to identify what a method for information system development in general contains.   With the picture from the Methodology-part fresh in mind we can say that with method as an overall concept it contains techniques and tools. These techniques and tools are yet usually not unique for just one method. Let us describe this with a simple example. The recipe of how to bake muffins is a sort of method. When you are to mix egg with sugar there are several ways to do this. Mix, stir, beat or whip are different techniques that you may choose and of course these techniques are used in other recipes as well. If you decide to whip you can use the tool electric mixer, of course there is nothing that says that you have to use a special brand, etc. So we may conclude this with that techniques and tools may be a part of a method but are not bounded to the method as concept.   The phases of development The process of an information system development method is the process from problem/idea to an implemented and functioning system. Methods use to contain certain phases of development and suggestions of in what order we are to do certain things, for example analyze, construction, and implementation. If we continue the definition of methodology, interrupted above, by Avison & Fitzgerald says (1998): A methodology will consist of phases, themselves consisting of sub-phases, which will guide the system developers in their choice of the techniques that might be appropriate at each stage of the project and also help them plan, manage, control and evaluate information system projects.   Once again we keep in mind that Avison & Fitzgerald mean that a methodology is simply a method if it lack of philosophy, but anyway we can conclude with that they count the phases and their sub-phases as parts of a method. Eriksson & Penker claims that the process of a method also includes a development cycle (1996). This development cycle control in what order things are to be done, both referring to the phases and within a phase. The authors give some examples of development cycles, such as iterative, incremental, sequential (waterfall), recursive, parallel, and fountain. We may agree with the statement that this development cycle exists and is essential, but we believe that this should be defined as a part of the philosophy behind the method as part of the methodology. The Organization and System Development One aspect of the organizational context of internal projects is the system designers’ interactions with users during the development process. Many studies have investigated and championed users’ participation in system development as a means to improving design (Wilson, 1991). Keil and Carmel (1995) described the different kinds of participative practices available in the product development and in-house environments. Despite the difficulties of accessing end users in product development projects, user involvement is still advocated as a way of gaining a better understanding of user needs (Grudin, 1991; Keil & Carmel, 1995). Advantages of IT in System Development Organizations has become increasingly interested in analyzing the organizational context of systems design (e.g., Curtis, Krasner, & Iscoe, 1988). Previous work has focused on product development organizations in identifying organizational constraints on the work of system designers (Grudin, 1991). This essay focuses on the evolution of different approaches to systems development and how information technology helps in achieving the strategic objectives of organization. Here the organizational context (in terms of shared beliefs, politics and inter- and intragroup relations) is seen as an agent for the success of the system development and IT enhancement. Traditional system development research has concentrated on seeking ways in which to design more usable interfaces. This search has tended to focus on the development of cognitive theories of user behavior in interaction with computer technology (user modeling) in order to define design parameters (e.g., Howes, 1995). With Suchman (1987) observations of situated action, participatory design projects (Greenbaum & Kyng, 1991), and sociological accounts of computer use in context (e.g., Button, 1993), this search has moved out of the laboratory and sought to take a more holistic view of the users’ world as a way of informing design (Wixon, Holtzblatt, & Knox, 1990 ). It is now quite widely accepted that we must understand users’ working practices in detail and in context to design technology that can be effectively incorporated in work systems (e.g., Blomberg, 1995; Markus & Keil, 1994), a perspective now enhanced by the interest in developing groupware. Another branch of information technology has sought to understand the design process from the perspective of system designers. Analogous to user modeling studies, some researchers have investigated the cognitive problem-solving strategies of designers (e.g., Guindon, 1990). As in Suchman (1987) account of users, Sharrock and Anderson (1993) emphasized the “situatedness” of such technical problem solving when viewed out of the laboratory. Again associated with the rise of interest in groupware, attention has now turned to the work of design teams and how designers collaborate on larger scale projects over time (e.g., Kraut & Streeter, 1995). From a system development perspective, there is a growing interest in modeling the software development process with IT (Fuggetta & Wolf, 1996), in the sense of creating procedures and plans to allow a more effectively managed process. Sommerville and Rodden (1996) argued that the use of particular development methods is consistent with particular organizational cultures; for example, hierarchical organizations may prefer traditional waterfall methods. For years, an inability to change those systems quickly has thwarted promising business innovations. But several new approaches to systems development are now able to deliver business benefit fast. Not all of them are technically elegant. Not all of them will work in every situation. But, taken as a group, they make even major changes to information systems possible in weeks or months — rather than the years required by traditional efforts. One reason that existing systems-building methods are so slow to deliver business benefit is that they are frequently shaped by the systems developer’s priorities, not those of the business itself. In the traditional development process, developers can become isolated from business needs. As a result, they spend a great deal of time solving technical problems that bring only marginal business benefit.   The inability of organizations to incorporate such design features can exacerbate conflict. Unfortunately for some program managers, some systems may have a structure that renders them unable to incorporate desirable features. Perrow (1984) notes that managers have comparatively little choice in the design of some of their systems. Development may require that all components lie in close proximity or be developed on site. A system’s functionality may be so specialized as to preclude the addition of new functions. By recognizing the role of technology in the accommodation of developments–and by recognizing differences among technologies in their ability to allow such accommodation—managers and employees can better understand why program outcomes vary (Klein, 2000).   System dynamics with the aid of information technology, on the other hand, can organize the descriptive information, retain the richness of the real processes, build on the experiential knowledge of managers, and reveal the dynamic behaviors that follow from different policy choices (Forrester, 1995).   References Andersen, E.S. (1994). Systemutveckling principer, metoder och tekniker. (A. Helleskog & Ů Forsberg trans.). Lund: Studentlitteratur. Avison, D.E. & Fitzgerald, G. (1998). Information Systems Development: Methodologies, Techniques and Tools. (2 ed.). Berkshire: McGraw-Hill Book Company Europe. Bjerknes, G. & Dahlbom, B. (1990). Organizational Competence in System Development. Lund: Studentlitteratur. Blomberg, J. (1995). Ethnography: Aligning field studies of work and system design. In A. Monk & N. Gilbert (Eds.), Perspectives on HCI: Diverse approaches (pp. 175-197). London: Academic. Curtis, B., Krasner, H., & Iscoe, N. (1988). A field study of the software design process for large systems. Communications of the ACM, 31, 1258-1287. Eriksson, H-E & Penker, M. (1996). Objektorientering handbok och lexikon. Lund: Studentlitteratur. Forrester, J. (1995) The Beginning of System Dynamics. The McKinsey Quarterly, No. 4. Fuggetta, A., & Wolf, A. (Eds.). (1996). Software process. Chichester, England: Wiley. Greenbaum, J., & Kyng, M. (Eds.). (1991). Design at work: Cooperative design of computer systems. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. Grudin, J. (1991). Systematic sources of suboptimal interface design in large product development organizations. Human-Computer Interaction, 6, 147-196.  Guindon, R. (1990). Designing the design process: Exploiting opportunistic thoughts. Human-Computer Interaction, 5, 305-344. Howes, A. (1995). An introduction to cognitive modelling in human-computer interaction. In A. Monk & N. Gilbert (Eds.), Perspectives on HCI: Diverse approaches (pp. 97-119). London: Academic Keil, M., & Carmel, E. (1995). Customer-developer links. Communications of the ACM, 38, 33-44. Klein, H. (2000) System Development in the Federal Government: How Technology Influences Outcomes. Policy Studies Journal, Vol. 28. Kraut, R., & Streeter, L. (1995). Coordination in software development. Communications of the ACM, 38, 69-81. Loen, J. & Stolterman, E. (1998). Design av informationsteknik materialet utan egenskaper. Lund: Studentlitteratur. Maddison, R.N. (ed.) (1983). Information System Methodologies. Chichester: Wiley Heyden. Nationalencyklopedin (vol. 13). (1994). Hoo Bokfoget Bra Bor Nationalencyklopedin. (vol. 18). (1995). Hoo Bokfoget Bra Bor Perrow, C. (1984). Normal accidents. New York, NY: Basic Books. Sharrock, W., & Anderson, B. (1993). Working towards agreement. In G. Button (Ed.), Technology in working order: Studies of work, interaction and technology (pp. 149-161). London: Routledge. Sommerville, I., & Rodden, T. (1996). Human, social and organisational influences on the software process. In A. Fuggetta & A. Wolf (Eds.), Software process (pp. 89-109). Chichester, England: Wiley. Suchman, L. (1987). Plans and situated actions. New York: Cambridge University Press. The Oxford English Dictionary. (vol.III & X). (1961). London: Oxford University Press. Wilson, J. (1991). Participation–A framework and a foundation for ergonomics? Journal of Occupational Psychology, 64, 67-80 Wixon, D., Holtzblatt, K., & Knox, S. (1990). Contextual design: An emergent view of system design. Proceedings of CHI ’90 Conference, 329-326. New York: ACM.               Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Implications Of Information Technology In System Development

Implications of Information Technology in System Development Every organization without any exceptions needs information and a system...