Managers face a continual crisis in the systems development process; Information systems departments develop systems that businesses cannot use. At the heart of the problem is a proverbial “great divide” that separates the world of business from the world of information systems. Few departments seem able or ready to cross this gap.

A major reason for the resulting information systems development crisis is that many large systems currently handling corporate information needs are seriously out of date. As a result, companies are looking for ways to improve existing systems or to build new ones.

Another reason for the crisis is the widespread use of PC-based systems that has spawned a high level of user expectation that IS departments are not meeting. As computer usage increases, users are seeking more powerful applications that are not avail¬ able on many older systems.

The costs of the great divide can be devastating for unprepared companies. An East Coast chemical company spent more than $ 1 million on a budgeting and control system that was never used. The systems department created an administrative budgeting system; the department’s expertise was technical excellence, not budgets. As a result, the new system completely missed the mark when it came to meeting business needs.

Another example of poor systems development eomes from a Midwestern bank. It used an expensive computer-aided software engineering (CASE) tool to develop a system that users ignored because there had been no design planning. A senior analyst for Franklin Savings Association said, “They built the system right, but, unfortunately, they didn’t build the right system.”

So what is the solution? The first step in effective systems design is a thorough business analysis, not a systems analysis. A business analysis includes a thorough review of how a business operates and how the functions of the business relate. Only with this understanding can systems professionals and business managers communicate effectively when developing an integrated system.

In addition, businesses are seeking managers who have a systems background, because they provide a liaison between the systems department and the finance and accounting departments, helping business managers to communicate their needs clearly.

What is still missing is more involvement between systems staff and end users. Systems designers must take more time to interact with end users. In addition, business managers must provide their employees with the training time required to make the system work right.

Required

a. What is the great divide in the systems development process? What are the rea¬ sons for this gap?

b. What are the suggested solutions to the information crisis? How will the systems approach to development help?

c. Discuss the role that a systems designer, a business manager, and an end user can take to narrow the great divide.

d. Who plays the most vital role in the effective development of the system?