When it comes to making the right IT decision systems analysis places a crucial role. Systems analysis is as the name states the analysis of systems. Whether you are planning to purchase a solution where no IT system exists or upgrading a current IT system a systems analysis should be conducted. Systems analysts may follow have many different steps they undertake in an analysis, but they generally follow a small set of steps. The first is to (1) identify the problem, then (2) identify alternative solutions, (3) fact finding, (4) analysis, and (5) evaluation.

In order to begin conducting a systems analysis a problem must be identified. During this step a scope statement is generally created to outline the purpose of the project. As a consultant I generally meet with clients during this step to discuss their needs and identify problems that they are trying to solve. For the second step you should identify what the current methods or technologies are being used. An example is copying and faxing carbon copies from a remote office to a central office. The problem is that there is a high cost associated with making copies and faxing the documents. The current method is a copier, fax machine, and labor from employees. Alternative solutions are purchasing a digital sender to scan and email the documents, or to handle the documents electronically. All possible solutions to the problem should be looked at and information gathered on a variety of products that can potentially solve the problem.

Step three is the fact finding phase, although much of this may occur during phase one and two. The fact finding phase is gathering documentation and conducting interviews to collect information about the current problem. This is an incredibly important step that should not be skipped. In order to select the correct solution you must thoroughly investigate what is currently involved with the problem or you may miss key procedures or problems during candidate solution selection. Fact finding can consist of interviews with managers and key stakeholders, questionnaires, and documentation gathering.   

Step four consists of analyzing the data that has been collected. During this phase it is useful to create diagrams to show how processes and stakeholder groups interact and are involved with the problem. Use cases of current process can be an excellent way of organizing policies and procedures with the current method of handling the problem and use cases of how the processes will be with the different candidate solutions. During this step I usually create a use case model diagram that shows how the current method and candidate solutions will work. In addition I create stakeholder diagrams and context diagrams to show the actors and processes involved with the problem. 

The final step is evaluation. In order to make the proper decision the financial benefits as well as qualitative benefits of each solution must be measured and compared to the current method of handing the problem. It is important to look at a variety of low cost and high cost solutions to the problem, you may be surprised at the results. During the analysis of a mobile GPS tracking system for a trucking fleet that I conducted we were surprised to discover that one of the most expensive options actually resulted in the highest return on investment with a relatively quick time to payback. A candidate systems matrix should be used to evaluate the benefits of each solution and a feasibility analysis matrix should be used to measure different categories of feasibility such as operational, technical, economic, and schedule. To show economic benefit and feasibility I find it important to measure net present value, time to payback, and return on investment.

Conducting a systems analysis right will give you a side by side comparison of the different features, benefits, and feasibility of different solutions for a problem. The benefit of a good systems analysis is that a complex problem and even more complex solutions to that problem can be easily communicated in a short report. An in depth analysis can be hundreds of pages, but the information needed for management to make a decision can be put into a report less than ten pages of mostly tables and charts. Using weighted rankings for different categories of features and feasibility provide management with a few simple numbers that show which candidate solution stands above the rest and why.