System Development Life Cycle: Phases I & II – Planning And Analysis

Systems Development Life Cycle

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Systems Development Life Cycle

The Systems Development Life Cycle Process (SDLC) is a framework involving different stages or steps performed in developing a new system. These stages can be referred to as requirement gathering, design, implementation, testing, installation and maintenance (Balaji, & Murugaiyan, 2012). The process aims to produce a high-quality system that can be completed in the given time under certain conditions. In addition, the software created meets the requirements of the business. Every stage in the process offers a deliverable that is helpful in the next stage. This paper seeks to cover the initial two stages of SDLC in case of the development of new HRIS for Larson Property Management Company.

Introduction and Plan

HRIS is the software implemented by companies to perform the basic functions of the human resource department such as payroll and employee management. These systems help a company in managing employees’ and candidates’ database. In the case under discussion, Larson Property Management is an organization dealing with the management of commercial properties. Currently, the company's operations are reliant on the legacy HRIS that was implemented 10 years ago, but the number of employees at that time was just 100. Now the company has more than 1000 employees and has experienced noteworthy expansion over the past few years. The current HRIS system is the cause of trouble for the HR department owing to its limitation to perform many functions.

In addition, the current system lacks the ability of storage and retrieval of employee data. As a result, the company has to rely on the manual entry of application records, data related to test results and employment offers, by a clerk. The manual system of data entry has many issues, such as, applicant’s documents are missing and they are facing trouble to locate the needed documents. Besides, the HRIS has limited capacity, and currently, it has also reached its optimum capacity. This process of manual data entry results in inefficiency in HR functionalities and also enhances the cost. Clerks hired are also paid for their services and the whole process of recruitment gets delayed, overall impacting the performance and functions of the company. Thus, the company plans to use an updated HRIS to enhance HR functionality (Aggarwal, & Kapoor, 2012).

Needs Analysis

I, being the HR director intend to replace the current system to address these issues pertaining to recruitment. For this purpose, a new system is needed with the sophisticated applicant tracking system so that we can eradicate the paper-based and manual hiring system. The new system is also required to manage requests and approval of job openings alongside the tracking of a candidate's performance by a query function. The new system must also have an online facility to expedite job posting and recruitment process, and it must allow performing HR functions through a web browser. All of this is not possible with the current system, hence the need for transition is imperative. Thus, the company plans to use an updated HRIS to enhance HR functionality.

A change team can be helpful in the transition to the new systems in this case. The change team members are responsible for assessing the needs of the new system. Members in the change man agent team will play a key role in the change process and these include change leader, change consultant, change agent and facilitator. The leader is an HR director who is the initiator; the consultants will collect data about new system needs, and the other two will be responsible for making change strategy and facilitating change. Open-ended questionnaires will help to obtain qualitative data about the current limitation of existing systems, problems they are having onboard and their opinion of what can solve the problems in a better way. For instance, the five questions that could be asked are:

What are the current problems you are facing?

What are the current department needs that the current system fails to solve?

What should be happening in the department?

What sort of system can fulfill the current needs efficiently?

What elements in the new system will ensure the attainment of departmental goals and objectives?

Other questions that can be part of the need assessment questionnaire can relate to system functionality, need for new system training, the kind of flexibility in the system needed by users, and the information needs to use the new system. All of the data collected will be shared with the vendors and incorporated in the development of the new system.

Conclusion

A human resource information system is an online platform for all HR needs of an organization. Alongside the management of HR-related functions, it also assists HR professionals in managing employees' and applicants' data. In the era of evolving technological advancements, every organization must obtain benefits from HRIS. The business case for using HRIS is a single platform, data integration, accuracy, and automation (Tursunbayeva, Pagliari, Bunduchi, & Franco, 2016). The information systems have to be updated according to the evolving business needs. The company has already implemented an HRIS but one that is ten years old, with limited storage and operational capacity. A current updated system is the need of the company to eliminate manual data entry, for high storage capacity, and to enhance its functional ability. The new HRIS will allow the company to decrease the likelihood of missing files, and employees' and applicants' data. In addition, it will also assist in saving time and cost owing to the automated functions, online functionality, query function, and applicant tracking system.

References

Aggarwal, N., & Kapoor, M. (2012). Human resource information systems (HRIS)-Its role and importance in business competitiveness. Gian Jyoti E-Journal, 1(2), 1-13.

Balaji, S., & Murugaiyan, M. S. (2012). Waterfall vs. V-Model vs. Agile: A comparative study on SDLC. International Journal of Information Technology and Business Management, 2(1), 26-30.

Tursunbayeva, A., Pagliari, C., Bunduchi, R., & Franco, M. (2016, April). What does it take to implement Human Resource Information System (HRIS) at scale? Analysis of the expected benefits and actual outcomes. In Proceedings of the 31st Workshop on Strategic HRM. Segovia, Spain.