CCT 355: E-Business Technologies

Class 10: Past and Future: A consideration of legacy systems, and Final Project/Exam Considerations

Final Project (repeated)• Identify a real organization that you have real contact with • Identify business information systems needs (as defined in this

course – do *not* only suggest simple e-commerce solutions, web design/marketing solutions, etc. - the former no one hires consultants for, the latter is interesting, but not this course.)

• Think people, process, context as well as technology

People• Who are the main stakeholders in this organization? What are

their skills/interests? Are they likely to be champions of change? Resisters? Helpers? Bystanders?

• Who are major customers/clients of organization? Allied partners? Main competitors?

• Are they likely to be champions of change? Helpers? Resisters? Bystanders?

Process• What does this organization do? • What might it like to do with more resources/time/technology

support, etc.? • What can it do better? (e.g., are there processes that can be

made more efficient through information systems change?)• What should it probably *not* do?

Context• What are larger contextual, regulatory, macroeconomic,

strategic, etc. factors influencing this organization at present?• Are there changes in these factors that might post medium- to

long-term challenges or opportunities?

Then think technology!• What information systems improvements can you identify

(based on what you’ve learned about the organization!)• What resource implications are involved in implementing

these solutions?• Feel free to offer a range of options – sometimes there are

cheap to expensive options, less to more powerful, etc.• Feel free to critique and note limitations of your options• Make sure proposed solutions a) meet the organization’s

profile and needs and b) are feasible given organizational financial, human, time resource constraints

• Implementation not required – but should be implementable.

Use either BMG or Change Management Simulation!• Which one? Depends on context• Small organization where most people are on board for

change – no need to analyze through change management simulation material

• BMG can apply to most situations

Final Exam• Check exam schedule for time/location – presently Thurs. Dec

20th 1-3pm, RAWC• Some MC questions (15-20 questions, no trick questions, but

no easy ones!)• Definition questions based on terminology presentations• Integrated case study• If you understand content, you should be fine – if you just

memorize it, less so.• Understanding = applying to new context as it arises – so study

accordingly

Looking to future…• Mobile access/m-commerce – and design constraints and

considerations for continuous/mobile computing• Enterprise 2.0 – integrating best of social web in enterprise

applications• Cloud computing/freemium options (and their limitations!)• Open-source options challenging established tools

…without forgetting the past!• “legacy” systems – systems that have been up and active for

years (even decades!)• Why do organizations hang on to legacy systems?• *Not* enough to dismiss these systems as irrelevant• Remember change management simulation – all sorts of real,

perceived, smart and less than smart reasons for resistance

Integrating legacy systems• Some are essential – can’t be thrown out without significant

impact on operational success in short-term• Middleware – integrates old systems into new, but can be

kludgy and awkward• Transition strategies for legacy system – short-, middle- and

long-term • Training/support for what (inevitably) goes wrong

Example: SLATE2• SLATE 1 issues – Web 1.0ish (lots of publishing, not much co-

creating/sharing), tech-centered infrastructure, formal training vs. experimentation, “support”

• SLATE 2 – more social, more awareness of end user issues, range of training options

• Slow transition – over a year• Still issues based on legacy practices, organizational culture –

e.g., reception in the arts

Example: UT/Sheridan email• Both moved to Outlook recently from previous webmail/email

services• Glitches in transition, training…• Lesson: don’t assume people read update emails!• Questions on timing – Sheridan did this last month (!) – August

would have been far better!

Summary: Simple, Complicated and Complex Problems• Technology is surprisingly easy – it works or it doesn’t, and

when it doesn’t it’s usually a simple or complicated problem• Simple problems – Problem has identifiable roots, easy to

diagnose and relatively simple/obvious solutions (example?)• Complicated problems – Problem may have cascading

cause/effect relations, can be hard to discern, multiple-step solutions – but still ultimately solvable (example?

• Many problems in technology/information systems are complex – interweaving web of causes/effects over short and long term, may require more emotional and political negotiation than technical, fundamentally unsolvable (but with better/worse resolutions)