Let’s create a hypothetical business case study and then apply Systems Analysis and Design (SAD) concepts to it.

Business Case Study: “Healthy Bites” Meal Delivery Service

Background:

Healthy Bites is a startup company that provides customized meal delivery services to health-conscious individuals. They offer various meal plans catering to different dietary needs (e.g., vegan, gluten-free, low-carb). Currently, they manage orders and deliveries manually using spreadsheets and phone calls, leading to inefficiencies, errors, and customer dissatisfaction due to late deliveries and incorrect orders. They want to develop an automated system to streamline their operations and enhance customer experience.

Objectives:

• Automate order processing and delivery scheduling.
• Improve order accuracy and reduce errors.
• Enhance customer communication and satisfaction.
• Optimize delivery routes and reduce delivery times.
• Scale the business to accommodate future growth.

Systems Analysis and Design (SAD) Application:

1. Planning Phase:

• Problem Definition: Inefficient manual processes, order errors, late deliveries, and customer dissatisfaction.
• Feasibility Analysis:
  • Technical: Feasible, as the required technology is readily available.
  • Economic: Cost-benefit analysis shows potential for increased efficiency and revenue.
  • Operational: The new system will streamline operations and improve workflow.
  • Schedule: A realistic timeline will be developed.
• Project Plan:
  • Team formation.
  • Timeline and milestones.
  • Resource allocation.

2. Analysis Phase:

• Requirements Gathering:
  • Interviews with staff and customers.
  • Surveys to gather feedback.
  • Analysis of existing manual processes.
• Requirements Analysis:
  • Vision Document:
    • Purpose: To create an automated meal delivery system that enhances customer experience and streamlines operations.
    • Scope: Order management, delivery scheduling, customer communication, and reporting.
    • Goals: Reduce order errors by 90%, decrease delivery times by 30%, and increase customer satisfaction by 20%.
    • Stakeholders: Customers, delivery staff, kitchen staff, management.
  • Software Requirements Specification (SRS):
    • Functional Requirements:
      • Online customer registration and profile management.
      • Meal plan selection and customization.
      • Automated order processing and payment.
      • Real-time delivery tracking.
      • Automated customer notifications.
      • Reporting and analytics.
    • Non-Functional Requirements:
      • Usability: User-friendly interface.
      • Performance: Fast response times.
      • Security: Secure payment processing and data storage.
      • Reliability: System availability and data integrity.

3. Design Phase:

• System Design Document (SDD):
  • Architecture Design:
    • Three-tier architecture: presentation, application, and data layers.
    • Cloud-based deployment for scalability.
  • Database Design:
    • Entity-relationship diagram (ERD) to model data entities (customers, orders, meals, deliveries).
    • Relational database schema.
  • User Interface (UI) Design:
    • Wireframes and mockups of the customer portal and administrative interface.
    • Responsive design for mobile devices.
  • Structured Analysis and Design (SAD) Models:
    • Data Flow Diagrams (DFDs):
      • Level 0: Context diagram showing the system and external entities.
      • Level 1: Detailed flow of data between system processes.
      • Example: A DFD showing the flow of customer order data from online submission to delivery scheduling.
    • Entity-Relationship Diagrams (ERDs):
      • Diagram showing the relationships between entities like Customers, Orders, Meal plans, and Delivery Drivers.
    • Structure Charts:
      • Hierarchical representation of the system’s modules and their relationships.
• Technology Selection:
  • Cloud platform (e.g., AWS, Azure).
  • Database management system (e.g., MySQL, PostgreSQL).
  • Web development framework (e.g., React, Angular).

4. Development Phase:

• Coding and implementation of the system based on the design specifications.
• Unit testing and integration testing.

5. Testing Phase:

• System testing to ensure all components work together.
• User acceptance testing (UAT) to validate the system against user requirements.
• Performance testing to evaluate system performance under load.
• Security testing to identify and address vulnerabilities.

6. Deployment Phase:

• Deployment of the system to the production environment.
• Data migration from existing spreadsheets to the new database.
• Training for staff and customers.

7. Maintenance Phase:

• Ongoing monitoring and support.
• Bug fixes and updates.
• Performance optimization.
• Gathering user feedback for future enhancements.

Industry Driven Techniques:

• Agile Development: Iterative development with frequent releases and feedback loops.
• DevOps: Automation of development, testing, and deployment processes.
• Cloud Computing: Scalable and cost-effective infrastructure.
• Security Best Practices: Implementing secure coding practices, access controls, and data encryption.

By following these SAD concepts and applying industry-driven techniques, Healthy Bites can develop a robust and scalable meal delivery system that meets its business objectives.