21.4 Mark Mitton, the liaison to the IS department, has eliminated all but the best three systems.
Mark developed a list of required features, carefully reviewed each system, talked to other
users, and interviewed appropriate systems representatives. Mark used a point-scoring system
to assign weights to each requirement. Mark developed Table 21-4 to help him select the best
system.
a. Use a spreadsheet to develop a point-scoring matrix and determine which system Mark
should select.
b. Susan Shelton did not agree with Mark’s weightings and suggested the following
changes:
Flexibility 60
Reputation and reliability 50
Quality of support utilities 10
Graphics capability 10
When the changes are made, which vendor should Mark recommend?
Based on Susan’s changes, Mark should now select project #3. Project #1 scored 6285 points,
project #2 scored 6330 points, and project #3 scored 6610 points.
c. Mark’s manager suggested the following changes to Susan’s weightings:
Reputation and reliability 90
Installation assistance 40
Experience with similar systems 40
Training assistance 65
Internal memory size 10
Will the manager’s changes affect the decision about which system to buy?
Based on further revisions by his manager, Mark should now select project #2. Project 1
scored 6055 points, project #2 scored 6550 points, and project #3 scored 6490 points.
d. What can you conclude about point scoring from the changes made by Susan and
Mark’s manager? Develop your own weighting scale to evaluate the software packages.
What other selection criteria would you use? Be prepared to discuss your results with
the class.
e. What are the weaknesses of the point-scoring method?
21.5 Nielsen Marketing Research (NMR), with operations in 29 countries, produces and
disseminates marketing information. Nielsen has been the primary supplier of decision
support information for more than 70 years. NMR’s most recognizable product is the
Nielsen television ratings. Nielsen is one of the largest users of computer capacity in the
UnitedStates. Its information system consistently ranks above average in efficiency for
its industry. NMR hired IBM to evaluate outsourcing its information processing. NMR
wanted to know whether outsourcing would allow it to concentrate on giving its
customers value-added services and insights, increase its flexibility, promote rapid
growth, and provide it with more real-time information.
What are the benefits and risks of outsourcing for NMR?
THE BENEFITS OF OUTSOURCING:
AMONG THE RISKS OF OUTSOURCING ARE THE FOLLOWING:
A major risk is entering an inflexible agreement that does not provide the company an “out”
for future unanticipated circumstances.
Another risk is losing too much control over your information system by outsourcing. NMR
will want to make sure that it works closely with the outsourcer to oversee the development
Do the benefits outweigh the risks? Explain your answer.
21.6 A large organization had 18 months to replace its old customer information system with a new
one that could differentiate among customer levels and provide appropriate products and
services on demand. The new system, which cost $1 million and was installed by the IS staff
on time, did not work properly. Complex transactions were error-prone, some transactions
were canceled and others were put on hold, and the system could not differentiate among
customers. The system was finally shut down, and transactions were processed manually. New
IS management was hired to build a new system and mend the strained relationship between
operations and IS.
So what went wrong? IS couldn’t—or wouldn’t—say no to all the requests for systems
enhancements. Eager to please top management, IS management ignored the facts and
assured them they could build a scalable system that was on time and on budget. Another big
mistake was a strict project schedule with little flexibility to deal with problems and
unforeseen challenges. Developers never spoke up about any glitches they encountered along
the way. More than a dozen people (including the CIO) lost their jobs because of their roles in
this disaster.
a. What could IS management have done differently to make this project successful?
b. What in-house development issues are demonstrated in this case?
c. How could the in-house issues have been addressed to prevent the system’s failure?
21.7 Meredith Corporation publishes books and magazines, owns and operates television stations,
and has a real estate marketing and franchising service. Meredith has 11 different systems
that do not communicate with each other. Management wants an executive information
system that provides them with the correct and timely information they need to make good
business decisions. Meredith has decided to use prototype to develop the system.
a. Identify three questions you would ask Meredith personnel to determine systems
requirements. What information are you attempting to elicit from each question?
What is Meredith’s background and what are its goals and objectives? It is difficult to
help a company without knowing where it is coming from and where it hopes to go.
b. Explain how prototype works. What would the system developer do during the iterative
process step? Why would you want the fewest iterations possible?
1. At Meredith, the prototype process would begin by interviewing personnel in order to
identify system requirements for the prototype. The focus should be on what output
c. Would you want the prototype to be operational or nonoperational? Why? If it were an
operational prototype, what would have to happen? If it were a nonoperational
prototype, how would the prototype be used?
The answer to these questions will vary depending on the student’s view of the situation.
Some of the points the student should bring up are:
Nonoperational Prototype.
d. Suppose the company decides the prototype system is not practical, abandons it, and takes
some other approach to solving its information problem. Does that mean prototype is not a valid
systems development approach? Explain your answer.
process.
21.8 Norcom, a division of a large manufacturer, needed a new distribution and customer service
system. The project was estimated to take 18 months and cost $5 million. The project team
consisted of 20 business and IT staff members. After two years, the CIO was fired, and the
company hired a CIO with expertise in saving troubled projects. The new CIO said three
grave errors were committed.
1. IT picked the wrong software using a very naïve request for proposal process.
2. IT did not formulate a project plan.
3. No one “owned” the project. The IT staff assumed the users owned the project, the users
believed the IT staff owned it, and management believed the vendor owned it.
The CIO developed a 2,000-line plan to rescue the project. Three months later, the system
failed, even with IT staff and consultants working on it day and night. The failed system was
to have been the company’s preeminent system, but it could not even process customer orders
correctly, resulting in complaints about late shipments and receiving the wrong goods.
After three years and $4 million, the new CIO polled the staff anonymously. Only two said the
project could be saved, and they had staked their careers on the project. The message that the
project was not worth saving was very hard for the CIO to give. It was likewise hard for the
division president to receive it; he could not accept the idea of killing a project that cost so
much money. He finally accepted the decision and all the ramifications involved, including
corporate IT taking control of all IT operations at his division.
a. List the primary components of an RFP.
b. Identify possible components or deficiencies in Norcom’s RFP that could have led the
new CIO to claim that it was naïve or insufficient.
c. Identify possible approaches Norcom could have used to evaluate RFP responses.