Baker, Richard

Mbogo, Adrian
Miller, Kayla
Mullis, Thomas (leader)
Puckett, Charles
West, Jasmine

Group 2, Discussion #1
Chapter 1, Questions 6-10

Question #6
Compare enterprise computing systems to transaction processing systems. Provide three
examples of each type of system
Enterprise computing and Transaction processing are two very valuable tools that help company
executives to monitor, plan, and strategize company decisions based on the data that is being
captured. Although these tools are similar in nature, there are some differences. Enterprise
computing deals with the organizations overall operations whereas transaction processing deals
with one aspect of that operation.
According to our text, enterprise computing refers to information systems that support
company-wide operations and data management requirements (Rosenblatt, 2014). The basic role
of enterprise computing is to integrate all of the computing systems functions so that managers
and executives can make strategic business decisions and allocate the proper resources to an area
of the business. For business leaders to rely on enterprise computing means that the right system
requirements must be in place and operating at peak efficiency. This means having the right
hardware, personnel, software, and networking packages available to get the job done. If the
system is implemented in the right way then enterprise computing can help executives to make
decisions that can make the company become more efficient and reduce the costs of operations.
Transaction processing is one aspect of enterprise computing. Instead of looking at the
big picture transaction process looks at one component of the system. Transaction processing
systems process data generated by day to day businesses operations (Rosenblatt, 2014). The
basic role of TP is to perform a specific task. Some examples of a task that may be processed are
sales, booking, monetary, or claims assessments. TP systems must be monitored and maintained

constantly because there are large amounts of data that can be captured through these systems.
This system needs to be fail-safe because this is the first line of processing data. The data has to
be read, interpreted, processed, and filed into the correct database. This in turn allows the correct
databases to update and thus contributing to the overall enterprise computing system.
3 Examples of each:
Enterprise Computing- Wal-Mart's inventory control system, Boeing's Production control
system, and Hilton Hotels' reservation system.
Transaction Processing- Customer order processing, accounts receivable, and warranty claim
processing.
Question #7
What are the four organizational levels common to many businesses? Which level typically
requires data that supports long-term strategic planning and the overall business enterprise? What
level of worker might rely heavily on transaction processing systems?
In system analysis, it is critical that the analyst understand the companys organizational
structure in order to fully comprehend which positions are responsible for which processes and
decisions and what information is required of those positions to perform their specific tasks.
Most corporate structures are organized as follows, with the Top Managers reporting to a board
of directors elected by the companys shareholders (Rosenblatt 18):
Top Managers develop long-range plans, called strategic plans, which define the companys
overall mission and goals (Rosenblatt 18).

Middle Managers and Knowledge Workers are just below the top management level and focused
on somewhat shorter timeframes, Middle Managers provide direction, necessary resources, and
performance feedback to supervisors and team leaders. Knowledge Workers provide support for
the organizations basic functions (Rosenblatt 18, 19).
Supervisors, also referred to as Team Leaders, oversee operational employees and carry out dayto-day functions. They coordinate operational tasks and people, make necessary decisions and
ensure that the right tools, materials, and training are available (Rosenblatt 19).
Operational Employees are users who rely on Transaction Processing systems to enter and
receive data they need to perform their jobs (Rosenblatt 19).
From these descriptions, we can see that Top Managers typically require data that supports longterm strategic planning and overall business enterprise, while Operation Employees typically rely
heavily upon Transaction Processing systems.
Question #8
Describe three systems development tools and three development methods.
When creating a new system in the IT field; analysts may use several tools and methods that
assist in developing and implementing new designs. Although there are many tools that one may
use to implement a new design the following three tools can assist greatly when developing the
system: the modeling tool, prototyping tool and a computer aided systems engineering tool.
The modeling tool is an overall representation of a system that can be analyzed, tested and
modified by the developer (Rosenblatt 19). This tool allows analysts to simplify the systems
information by using various models to showcase the systems components.

The prototyping tool can be best described as an early working version of an information
system (Rosenblatt 20). The prototype tool can be an effective tool to incorporate because it
allows a chance for users to test the model before a system is fully implemented. Although the
prototype can be a bridge to a full operating system, it can lead to early decision making that
hinder the full potential of the system.
The computer aided systems engineering tool is an efficient information system tool that
provides a backbone framework when implementing a new design. The design can follow either
a structured or an object oriented analysis. Users may access the tool and browse through several
models that fit their desired system requirements and have an operating system fully functioning
in a short period of time.
Several methods can be orchestrated when it comes to developing a new system. The following
three methods have been known to be the most used:
Structured analysis method: uses data to represent the system. When using the method, the
system development is scaled in phases and when each phase is met the systems progress is
evaluated. This method requires a lot of written documentation to be most efficient and can be
costly when upgrading or making changes to your system (Rosenblatt 22).
Object oriented analysis method: combines the systems data and the processes into an object that
represents people, things, transaction and events (Rosenblatt 24). This method allows data
sharing in a system and requires minimal effort when integrating other programming languages.
Agile/Adaptive Method: Is the most recent method used in system development. This method
relies on an increment development strategy where the system goes through several revised
changes before the final product is implemented. The developer must periodically adjust to the

system depending on the requirements. This method requires great communication to be efficient
and developers must possess great technical and communication skills.
Question #9
What are the phases of the SDLC waterfall model? Who was Barry Boehm, and what did he
have to say about spiral models?
SDLC stands for Systems development Life Cycle. There are five (5) steps in the SDLC
waterfall model: Systems planning, Systems Analysis, Systems Design, Systems
Implementation, and Systems support and security. In the systems planning phase of the SDLC
model, the IT department receives a systems request, which describes issues or desired changes
to or within the current system. The purpose of the phase is to perform a preliminary
investigation, much like a detective might conduct a preliminary investigation of a complaint
made by a citizen in the jurisdiction of his police station. In the Systems analysis phase, you
continue the investigation that you began in the previous phase, and come up with a system
requirements document that describes the requirements of the users and managers of the system,
as well as costs and benefits, and outlines alternative development strategies. The net phase is the
systems design. You will get to design the new system; make a prototype, and present it to the
users and managers of the system for review. If your users and managers don't understand the
design you have come up with, that is a big problem. You should always make sure that all three
parties involved, that is, the users, managers, and the systems analysis experts completely
understand the new design and that it functions exactly the way the users and managers need it
to. The next phase is systems implementation. It's time to put the new system up for the users
and, if necessary, train its users and managers. The last phase is systems support and security. For

this stage, the staff maintains, upgrades, and fixes the system, the objective of this phase is to
maximize the return on the IT investment.
Barry Boehm was a noted software engineer that came up with spiral models. He stated that each
phase of the spiral model must have a specific goal that is accepted, rejected, or modified by the
user, or client. Each stage produces feedback, which enable the team to reach the overall goal.
Question #10
Review the IBM history on page 4, and then consider the powerful statement shown in Figure 133 on page 33. Is there a connection between the two? Why or why not?
- I believe that there is a connection between the statement on Page 33 and the history of IBM on
page 4. When some of the greatest people gather it is unusual for anything less than spectacular
to happen. Great minds that have an idea of how to make the world a better place, make available
and free info easier for everyone to get when needed, and create technology that not only
benefits just a certain kind of people, but for everyone in between. The ideas are presented to
everyone which then helps someone ass information to the original idea. With everyone
bouncing ideas off of each other, progress is inevitable. The way we progress with one another
shows that when we work together, we can achieve more than we ever imagined. Like IBM, it
doesnt matter how we start out. When we work together we can improve, advance, and grow
technology like never before.

Works Cited

Rosenblatt, H. J. (2014). Systems Analysis and Design (Tenth ed.). Boston, Massachusetts, USA:
Cengage Learning.