Deck 13: Managing the Systems Development Life Cycle

Question 1

The objective of systems planning is to link systems projects to the strategic objectives of the firm.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

An accountant's responsibility in the SDLC is to ensure that the system applies proper accounting conventions and rules and possesses adequate control.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

According to the text,a stakeholder is an end user of a system.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

One-time costs include operating and maintenance costs.

Question 5

Instead of implementing an application in a single big-bang release,modern systems are delivered in parts continuously and quickly

Question 6

The first step in the SDLC is to develop a systems strategy

Question 7

When determining the operational feasibility of a new system,the expected ease of transition from the old system to the new system should be considered.

Question 8

All of the steps in the Systems Development Life Cycle apply to software that is developed in-house and to commercial software.

Question 9

Because of the robustness of modern technology,businesses today see infrequent changes in their IT systems and much longer system life spans.

Question 10

When the nature of the project and the needs of the user permit,most organizations will create the system in-house rather than rely on a commercial package.

Question 11

The majority of the cost of a system is incurred in the new systems development phase of the life cycle.

Question 12

When the nature of the project and the needs of the user permit,most organizations will seek a pre-coded commercial software package rather than develop a system in-house.

Question 13

When preparing a cost-benefit analysis,design costs incurred in the systems planning,systems analysis and conceptual design phases of the Systems Development Life Cycle are relevant costs.

Question 14

Project initiation is the process by which systems proposals are assessed for consistency with the strategic systems plan and evaluated in terms of their feasibility and cost-benefit characteristics.

Question 15

System maintenance is often viewed as the first phase of a new development cycle.

Question 16

The Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC)concept applies to specific applications and not to strategic systems planning.

Question 17

In the conceptual design phase of the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC),task force members are focused on selecting the new system design.

Question 18

Mixing technologies from many vendors improves technical feasibility.

Question 19

Existing (maintained)applications are the prototypes for their new versions.

Question 20

A tangible benefit can be measured and expressed in financial terms.

Question 21

An example of an intangible benefit is

A) expansion into other markets
B) reduction in supplies and overhead
C) more efficient operations
D) reduced equipment maintenance

Question 22

Examples of recurring costs include

A) software acquisition
B) data conversion
C) personnel costs
D) systems design

Question 23

The payback method is often more useful than the net present value method for evaluating systems projects because the effective lives of information system tend to be short and shorter payback projects are often desirable.

Question 24

Protection from inadvertent disclosures of confidential information is part of the detailed

A) operational feasibility study
B) schedule feasibility study
C) legal feasibility study
D) economic feasibility study

Question 25

Legal feasibility identifies conflicts between the proposed system and the company's ability to discharge its legal responsibilities

Question 26

The formal product of the systems evaluation and selection phase of the Systems Development Life Cycle is

A) the report of systems analysis
B) the systems selection report
C) the detailed system design
D) the systems plan

Question 27

A tangible benefit

A) can be measured and expressed in financial terms
B) might increase revenues
C) might decrease costs
D) all of the above

Question 28

Intangible benefits

A) are easily measured
B) are of relatively little importance in making information system decisions
C) are sometimes estimated using customer satisfaction surveys
D) when measured,do not lend themselves to manipulation

Question 29

When studying the detailed feasibility of a new project

A) prototyping does not affect the schedule feasibility analysis
B) the need for user training will influence the schedule feasibility analysis
C) protection from fraud and errors will influence the schedule feasibility analysis
D) a cost-benefit review will affect the schedule feasibility analysis

Question 30

One time costs include all of the following except

A) site preparation
B) insurance
C) programming and testing
D) data conversion

Question 31

Examples of one-time costs include all of the following except

A) hardware acquisition
B) insurance
C) site preparation
D) programming

Question 32

Site preparation costs include all of the following except

A) crane used to install equipment
B) freight charges
C) supplies
D) reinforcement of the building floor

Question 33

Recurring costs include: hardware maintenance,software acquisition,software maintenance,insurance,supplies,personnel costs.

Question 34

An example of a tangible benefit is

A) increased customer satisfaction
B) more current information
C) reduced inventories
D) faster response to competitor actions

Question 35

When implementing a new system,the costs associated with transferring data from one storage medium to another is an example of

A) a recurring cost
B) a data conversion cost
C) a systems design cost
D) a programming cost

Question 36

The testing of individual program modules is a part of

A) software acquisition costs
B) systems design costs
C) data conversion costs
D) programming costs

Question 37

During the detailed feasibility study of the project,the systems professional who proposed the project should be involved in performing the study.

Question 38

A cost-benefit analysis is a part of the detailed

A) operational feasibility study
B) schedule feasibility study
C) legal feasibility study
D) economic feasibility study

Question 39

Which technique is least likely to be used to quantify intangible benefits?

A) opinion surveys
B) simulation models
C) professional judgment
D) review of accounting transaction data

Question 40

Intangible benefits are not physical,but can be measured and expressed in financial terms.

Question 41

All of the following are reasons why new systems fail except

A) the user is not involved in the development of the system
B) system requirements are not clearly specified
C) systems analysts rely on prototyping models
D) system development techniques are ineffective

Question 42

The degree of compatibility between the firm's existing procedures and personnel skills and the requirements of the new system is called

A) technical feasibility
B) operational feasibility
C) schedule feasibility
D) legal feasibility

Question 43

The ability of a system to protect individual privacy and confidentiality is an example of

A) schedule feasibility
B) operational feasibility
C) legal feasibility
D) economic feasibility

Question 44

Which step is not used to evaluate a systems proposal? An analysis of the project's

A) feasibility factors
B) ability to eliminate nonessential activities and costs
C) ability to provide a competitive advantage to the firm
D) use of Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE)tools in developing the system proposal

Question 45

The role of the steering committee includes

A) designing the system outputs
B) resolving conflicts that arise from a new system
C) selecting the programming techniques to be used
D) approving the accounting procedures to be implemented

Question 46

The accountant's role in systems analysis includes all of the following except

A) specify audit trail requirements
B) prepare data gathering questionnaires
C) suggest inclusion of advanced audit features
D) ensure mandated procedures are part of the design

Question 47

A disadvantage of surveying the current system is

A) it constrains the generation of ideas about the new system
B) it highlights elements of the current system that are worth preserving
C) it pinpoints the causes of the current problems
D) all of the above are advantages of surveying the current system

Question 48

Project planning includes all of the following except

A) specifying system objectives
B) preparing a formal project proposal
C) selecting hardware vendors
D) producing a project schedule

Question 49

Which of the following is not a tool of systems analysts?

A) observation
B) task participation
C) audit reports
D) personal interviews

Question 50

The systems analysis report does not

A) identify user needs
B) specify requirements for the new system
C) formally state the goals and objectives of the system
D) specify the system processing methods

Question 51

The systems steering committee is responsible for all of the following except

A) assigning priorities
B) determining whether and when to terminate systems projects
C) analyzing the technical feasibility of the project
D) budgeting funds for systems development

Question 52

Aspects of project feasibility include all of the following except

A) technical feasibility
B) economic feasibility
C) logistic feasibility
D) schedule feasibility

Question 53

Reasons that a new systems implementation may be unsuccessful include all of the following except

A) organizational restructuring required by the new system results in displaced workers
B) end users do not understand the strategic merits of the new system
C) employees are not trained to use the system
D) system development team members include representatives from end-user departments

Question 54

After the systems analysis phase of the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC)is complete,the company will have a formal systems analysis report on

A) the conceptual design of the new system
B) an evaluation of the new system
C) users' needs and requirements for the new system
D) a comparison of alternative implementation procedures for the new system

Question 55

Strategic systems planning is important because the plan

A) provides authorization control for the Systems Development Life Cycle
B) will eliminate any crisis component in systems development
C) provides a static goal to be attained within a five-year period
D) all of the above

Question 56

Systems analysis involves all of the following except

A) gathering facts
B) surveying the current system
C) redesigning bottleneck activities
D) reviewing key documents

Question 57

Typically a systems analysis

A) results in a formal project schedule
B) does not include a review of the current system
C) identifies user needs and specifies system requirements
D) is performed by the internal auditor

Question 58

The systems project proposal

A) provides management with a basis for deciding whether or not to proceed with the project
B) supplies an input to the project planning activity
C) links the objectives of the proposed system to the system's scheduling requirements
D) prioritizes the proposal in relation to other system proposals

Question 59

Recurring costs include all of the following except

A) data conversion
B) software maintenance
C) insurance
D) supplies

Question 60

Project feasibility includes all of the following except

A) technical feasibility
B) conceptual feasibility
C) operational feasibility
D) schedule feasibility

Question 61

Why is it important that the systems professionals who design a project not perform the detailed feasibility study of the project?

Question 62

Explain an advantage of surveying the current system when preparing a systems analysis for a new systems project.

Question 63

What is the balanced scorecard?

Question 64

What are two purposes of the systems project proposal?

Question 65

When a company is doing financially well,why is the customer perspective measure important?

Question 66

Contrast reactive and proactive management styles.

Question 67

Distinguish between escapable and inescapable costs.Give an example.

Question 68

Why is cost-benefit analysis more difficult for information systems than for many other types of investments organizations make?

Question 69

The role of the accountant/internal auditor in the conceptual design phase of the Systems Development Life Cycle includes all of the following except

A) the accountant is responsible for designing the physical system
B) the accountant is responsible to ensure that audit trails are preserved
C) the internal auditor is responsible to confirm that embedded audit modules are included in the conceptual design
D) the accountant is responsible to make sure that the accounting conventions that apply to the module are considered by the system designers

Question 70

What is the internal business process perspective?

Question 71

What is the learning and growth perspective?

Question 72

List at least three one-time costs and three recurring costs in system development.

Question 73

What is a systems selection report?

Question 74

List four types of facts that should be gathered during an analysis of a system.

Question 75

Why is the payback method often more useful than the net present value method for evaluating systems projects?

Question 76

____________________ benefits can be measured and expressed in financial terms,while ____________________ benefits cannot be easily measured and/or quantified.

Question 77

Explain why accountants are interested in the legal feasibility of a new systems project.

Question 78

Explain the five stages of the systems development life cycle?

Question 79

List two ways that a systems project can contribute to the strategic objectives of the firm.

Question 80

When developing the conceptual design of a system,

A) all similarities and differences between competing systems are highlighted
B) structure diagrams are commonly used
C) the format for input screens and source documents is decided
D) inputs,processes,and outputs that distinguish one alternative from another are identified