Authors: Steven Alter
Tags: 2005
Analysis and design methods for business professionals
are missing from the SA&D universe. Current SA&D
techniques are for IT professionals or consultants.
Business professionals may participate in projects and
approve SA&D by others, but no established techniques
directly address their need to be able to: think about systems without assistance from IT professionals, evaluate systems from a business perspective, participate effectively in system-related projects, communicate about the realities addressed by new or improved information systems. To confront this void, this paper describes an organized approach that business professionals can use for their own analysis and for clearer communication with IT professionals. It discusses the latest version of the work system method (WSM), aspects of which have been discussed previously. (Alter, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005) After summarizing unique aspects of WSM concepts and assumptions, it explains WSM’s three levels and presents recent examples illustrating WSM’s value.
Cite as:
Alter S. (2005). “The Work System Method: Confronting a Void in Systems Analysis and Design,” in AIS SIGSAND 2005, Cincinnati, OHIO, United States, April 23-24, 2005.
