HS2011 Current System Analysis and Modelling Assignment

Read the case carefully and if students need more detail either about the business or the assignment, they
should talk to the lecturer or tutors, preferably before starting the task during the tutorial classes or go to the
scheduled consultation time or email to make an appointment if necessary.
This assignment will require you to complete Milestone 1 - problem analysis, which includes understanding
business in general, their challenges, current system issues/problems, essential functional/non-functional
requirements and limitations. Milestone 2 – Data Modelling which uses some of the models of a Structured
Approach, such as Event table, Data fragments, a context diagram, DFDs, ERD and DFD documentation to
illustrate the current system.

Milestone 1: The Report Components

Create a business report with:
Cover Page
• Document Title
• Author(s) information
Table of Contents
• You have to use Microsoft Word build-in function when creating a Table of Contents.
Executive Summary
• What this assignment is about and what you want to achieve (the Executive Summary is different to
Introduction and must be about 100 words in length).

Introduction
• Why conduct system analysis and design for a business?
• BA role, the business and IS analysts need to have a “big picture” view of any business and their
information systems. You are required to list the major responsibilities which you should take on to help
the business. What is your basic plan, where you start, what you do and what you want to achieve?
• The purpose of your work
• The structure of your report
• Where did you collect data and information for completing the report?
Company/Business Background
• What is the business, and what does this business do? (A brief description of their current business
operation, products and services. Please notes that you should read the case description, understand it and provide a summary. You shouldn’t copy the case description which we provide directly to your
report. Max, 100 words.)
• What are some of the challenges the business (internal and external) currently facing and how they
impact on overall business future development?
• In your opinion, what are the three major problems which you consider are the most important for the
business and explain why they are important. What are some of the opportunities when these problems
are solved? How would the organisation be better off by solving this problem or taking up this
opportunity? You are welcome to add on problems/issues which not currently listed, but which you
consider are essential to address. You should provide reasoning.
• Clearly explain the current system’s objectives and constraints. Please note: you need to read the case
description to understand what the current system does.
Scope (Current System)
• A written statement of functional/non-functional requirements (you are required to list them all with a
brief explanation for each of them).
• Discuss the techniques of identifying the use cases.
Documentation
• Data dictionary
o Complete TWO (2) key Data flow descriptions (Logical data dictionaries)
o Data element descriptions (Physical data dictionaries, at least 1 of the key data entities)
• Process Descriptions
o A brief description for each of the key processes (top level processes in level 0 DFD)
written in plain English
o Write at least ONE lower level process description in structured English

Appendices (Ensure your pages are numbered for easy reference)
You should include the following information in appendices:
• Events table, DFD fragments, context diagram, levels 0 & 1 DFDs and ERD (Please see below modelling
requirements for the current system).
• The appendices should also contain any other documents that might be useful for reference or too
detailed or lengthy to put into the main part of the document.

Milestone 2: Modelling requirements for the current system

Provide a structured analysis of the functional requirements of the system presented as a set of logical data flow
diagrams and prepare a data model represented as an entity-relationship diagram for the current system.
The set of data flow diagrams should include:

• Identify 5 to 6 key events, please notes that:
o for each key function, you must have at least one event link to it;
o ‘cancellation’ or ‘updating’ related events shouldn’t be included in your list of events;
o You should have at least one state, and one temporal event is included in your list of events.
• You should create an event table to list all these identified events, and each event should be matched
with a DFD Fragment.
• A Context Diagram: This must be for the entire Allure investment. You need to show relevant external
agents together with data flows between the system and the external agents.
• A set of levelled data flow diagrams which includes:
o Level 0 DFD which includes all top-level processes, key data stores, key data flows and key
external entities.
o At least 1 top-level process from this Level 0 DFD is decomposed to level 1 DFD.
• An Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD): It should be a high-level data model (many to many
relationships is acceptable in this unit).
You will be assessed on your application of data flow diagrams according to the following criteria:
o DFD syntax
o DFD data conservation (also commonly known as “balancing” or data consistency in some
textbooks)
o Quality of names
o Logical, not physical
o Quality of modelling is more important than quantity
Consistency - not only should each view (data flow, process, data store) be accurate and readable, but also the
views must be consistent with each other, so the whole analysis makes sense.
Preferably, diagrams should be generated by using Visio Pro or other virtual tools but students may use the
drawing capabilities of other packages.
Notes on Formatting and Structure
It is expected that all work submitted will have been edited for spelling, grammar and clarity. Your report needs
to follow our standard format. Pages need to be numbered and your name must also appear on each page, not
just the cover page. Evidence of attention to layout and structure needs to be present.