A Good System Analyst

Note: Assignment 1 of System Analysis and Design

What is a System Analyst?

By my own understanding, a system analyst is a specialist in formulating or designing solutions, specifically by developing information systems, for a wide variety of businesses and other organizations that needs support in technological aspect. By information system, as what was in our report on Systems Analysis and Design with the topic “The World of Information Systems Analyst”, we mean components that are interrelated to each other that collect raw data, process them, store them on a standard manner, and output information needed as a part of the business task. Examples of information systems that are useful in businesses are Human Resource Information System (HRIS) where different information on members of an organization or employee of a business group could be accessed such as background information, payroll, number of working hours, and others; and Financial Accounting Management Information System (FAMIS) where bookkeeping, calculations, and even generating presentation for financial statements are done. System analysts, according to money.usnews.com, are usually those who graduated with a bachelor’s degree on computer science, information science, or engineering.

Role of a System Analyst

The role of a system analyst has something to do with the system development life cycle (SDLC). It is for the fact that a system analyst does the following:

• A system analyst investigates the problem.

o   The first step of the system development life cycle is to investigate the current status of the client company or what is the problem all about. System analyst gathers basic information of everything the system is all about. He or she interviews some of the employee who are going to be the users of the system, or asks the person who truly understands the whole process or the flow of the business (for example, in an enrollment system, a system analyst should know what would be the different steps of the enrollment, who are the people involved in this step, or how long will the operational time be). The system analyst would also ask the client to define his or her basic requirements that the to-be-system must have. 

• A system analyst analyzes the situation.

o   After the system analyst gathers enough information, he or she would now analyze the situation. He or she would work on understanding everything that happens during the operation of the system. The system analyst studies the problem, what is the possible reason why such problem arises, and what would be the best way to solve the problem considering many things such as efficiency, cost, and other components critical to a business. In analyzing, a system analyst would still be in constant communication to the client for it would be faster to understand the unique process of the business.

• A system analyst designs the solution.

o   By fully understanding the problem, the system analyst could now design the system. He or she creates the database design, the user interface, and other important parts of the system while still considering the wants and needs of the client company. The system analyst also decides what tools and approaches he or she must use for the system to be finished on time and efficiently.

• A system analyst develops what he designed.

o   In this step, the system analyst now uses different tools such as programming tools and other utilities needed in developing systems. The system analyst now may also be called a system developer. He or she develops the system based on the design created, where he displays his or her skills in programming, constructing the system by modules for an easier approach. 

• A system analyst installs the system.

o   In this stage, the system has now attained the defined requirements of the client. The system is now to be deployed in the operation area ready to be tested by the users. The system analyst should train the users on how to use the finished system or how it works. 

• A system analyst evaluates the installed system.

o   Even though the system has finished developing, the system analyst should now evaluate how the users reacted to the system or how are they with the system. He or she should know if the client is happy with the resulting system the system analyst has developed. If there are any requirements failed to meet, the system analyst should handle the failure and continue developing it until the client is satisfied.

• A system analyst should maintain the system.

o   There is no perfect system. Eventually, bugs and malfunctions will occur and as a system analyst, he or she should be prepared for the worst. Thus, a system analyst should know how to maintain the system where possible bugs and malfunctions will be prevented. 

The above mentioned role of a system analyst is not true at all times. It is not true in a way that in the above case, we are assuming that the system development is done only by a system analyst. This is true to small scale businesses who can only afford to hire a system analyst and let him or her develop it right away. In medium or large-scale businesses, some businesses have separate people whose specialty is in system analysis or system development only. Nonetheless, we can say that a system analyst could also be a system developer.

A system analyst, basically, should be a business problem solver. He or she must resolve different problems on the field of business by developing solutions that are generally information systems. Problems on business may be manual processing of data which would be slower compared to when automated, but there are also problems that cannot be solved by automating the system. Information system should still have human support for its formula is hardware plus software plus peopleware.
By creating systems as a solution to business problems, system analyst is already translating business requirements to IT projects. This role of a system analyst is basically the framework of the solution to business problems. The work of the system analyst is to know how to translate business to information technology.

Skills of a System Analyst
On our discussion on the class, we have identified three general skills a system analyst must have. These are categorized into technical, business, and people knowledge and skill.

Technical Knowledge and Skills
Being a system analyst, he must be at least a technical type of a person. And being technical, we have different areas to be familiar for us to be a good system analyst.

• Computers/ Peripheral Devices (Hardware)

o   Knowing the basic parts of a computer is very essential to become a system analyst. It is the basic requirement for a system analyst because a system deals not only with the software but also the hardware. In creating systems for businesses, the software created by a system analyst must be compatible with a certain type of hardware. There must be no compatibility issue between a software and hardware. That is the reason why in an analysis of a system, there is requirement to specify the hardware definitions to be used for the system to work well.

• Communication Networks and Connectivity

o   One thing a system analyst that must keep in mind is that a business is composed of lots of departments and branches. And all the works of each part must be integrated or connected to each other. That is why a system analyst must also be knowledgeable enough to be able to create a system that is enabled to be networked throughout the whole business organization. Creating systems with networking could be done by having a web based software or offline systems connected or equipped with networking devices such as routers, cables, and etc.

• Database and Database Management System (DBMS)

o   A system always deals with data and then processes it to become information. And when we talk about lots of data to process, we would eventually come up to have a database to be able to have a secure and better way of storing data. Knowing how to manage data is essential in data analysis because it is concerned with the nature and use of data. It involves the identification of the data elements which are needed to support the data processing system of the organization, the placing of these elements into logical groups and the definition of the relationships between the resulting groups. Having to do all of these, a system analyst should be able to develop a good database design. Designing a bad database design could lead to data reliability issue and other forms of damage to the data.

• Programming Language

o   As a system analyst, it is not really required to become a full fledge programmer. What is required to become a system analyst is the skill just enough to be able to have a decision in terms of choosing what programming language to use for the system he is working on. A system analyst isn’t necessary to program the whole system he is at work at. It is because in a company project, there are also pure programmers who do the coding part of a system development, and the system’s analyst part is just by managing the whole project and required to plan what the developers must do. So even just by having the basic knowledge on programming languages, it is already enough to become a system analyst; but having the skill to code while being a system analyst is really an advantage to have a good career in the IT world.

o   Talking about programming languages, learning how to use them is easy when you know how to program; and by knowing how to program means to have the logical skill in understanding the flow of the program. Basically, when someone switches learning another language, it would be easy then for them to adapt the new language because the only part the analyst must know is the new syntax of the language. 

• Operating Systems and Utilities

o   Another thing to consider when creating a system is to what type of platform of computers is the system to be installed on. And when we talk about platforms, we also talk about operating systems. An operating system, as what is defined during our class discussion in the subject operating systems, is a set of programs containing instructions that coordinates all the activities among computer hardware resources. Operating systems are very important to a computer for it is a requirement for a computer to work. Thus, a basic knowledge on operating systems is important for a system analyst to know.

Business Knowledge and Skills

Another skill a system analyst must possess is the ability to become a business-minded person. He must think like he is an expert in business while not forgetting about being technical.

• Business Functions Performed by Organization

o   To know every function performed by each employee of a business organization is one of the most important tasks a system analyst has to do. Thus, he must have the skills to become knowledgeable on each function done by the whole organization. He must somehow become the employee that uses the system that he creates. A system analyst must be able to integrate all the functions needed to create the system that encompasses all the works done by the employees. 

• Strategies, Plans, Traditions, and Values of the Organization

o   To be able to work well with the workers of the organization a system analyst works with, he must basically know the general plan of the organization. A system analyst must be able to cooperate and jive with what is normal on the organization he is on to. Working with people you don’t feel comfortable will lead to a system with functionality that may have failed to match the requirements of the users. So to effectively create a system that will surely accord with the system requirement, the system analyst must somehow become a part of the organization that cooperates with the other members.

• Organizational Structure

o   The knowledge on the organizational structure of the organization is very essential in terms deciding the accessibility of a certain data or information or functionality to every user if the system. Accessibility is a critical item that a system must define clearly for it tells who can access a file at a certain time or who can only access that file. With that, the skill in knowing the organizational structure is an important work to do for a system analyst.

• Organization Management Techniques

o   Managing the organization pertains to the management of every resource the organization have. Different control techniques provide managers with the type and amount of information they need to measure and monitor performance. The information from various controls must be tailored to a specific management level, department, unit, or operation. So to ensure complete and consistent information, organizations often use standardized documents such as financial, status, and project reports. And as a system analyst, he must be skilled enough to integrate these techniques in the system. He must know other techniques that are more efficient that this type of technique for a better usage for the users. as for the fact that an organization has different departments where they have different things to manage, a system analyst must know what type of technique to use for each area.

• Functional Work Processes

o   To know each function of every employee of an organization is not enough to create a system. The most important thing to know is the whole process itself, and having the skill to look outside the box while also considering the inside of the box is a key skill for a system analyst. Looking outside the box while also considering the inside of the box means knowing the general process of the business flow and each functions happening at every point of the process. 

People Knowledge and Skills

As a system analyst, he must work with other people during his job on analyzing systems. And so a system analyst must be able to have skill in handling people.

• Need To Understand People

o   Understanding people is a skill only available to open minded persons. As a system analyst, he must deal with the people of the organization he is working for. And as the system analyst analyses the system, he must think like the people who will use the system he is making. A system analyst must consider how long the users will be able to learn to use the functionality of the system. Situations like when employees encounter changes that they are incapable of solving on their own should be considered by a system analyst, thus, having to know how to react to change. 

• Interpersonal and Communication Skills

o   As system analyst gathers information on the system that he analyses, he must have the skills to communicate effectively with the other people. He must know how to motivate them in telling him what kind of information he needs from them. And with cooperation that is a helpful thing for the company, he might be able to understand the complexity and workings of the organization in order to provide necessary support. Having to do all these things, a system analyst must be really good in interpersonal and communication things. 

Characteristics of a System Analyst

Based on the roles and skills of a system analyst, I have come up to a list of characteristics that a system analyst have.

1. A system analyst is a strategic person. 
2. A system analyst is an understanding individual. 
3. A system analyst is an open-minded entity. 
4. A system analyst is adaptive to changes. 
5. A system analyst is a professional in communication.

Me as a System Analyst

As a Computer Science student, and as of now, I can say that I have some of the skills and characteristics a system analyst possesses. As I am still currently studying, my skills are gradually growing and eventually, I know that it is very possible that I could really become a system analyst. To become a system analyst is really not an easy process. Being a system analyst needs a lot of brain works for you to become a full fledge one. One thing I can say for sure is that we must always remember that enjoying the process to what we would want to become is the key to be successful in the career that we chose. 

Source:
http://money.usnews.com/money/careers/articles/2010/12/06/best-careers-2011-computer-systems-analyst