Data Analyis

Data analysis is a prerequisite to cost/benefit analysis. System investigation and data gathering lead to an assessment of current findings. Our interest is in determining how efficiently certain steps are performed, how they contribute to achieving the intended goals, and the cost of making improvements. Let us return to our safe deposit scenario (from Chapter 4) to illustrate the point

This safe deposit department was authorized to double its capacity from 4,000 to 8,000 boxes in an effort to meet increased demand. Consequently, the number of employees changed from three to five, with one employee assigned full-time to billing. Analysis of the data collected made it obvi011S that customers were frequently billed too late, too often, or not at all. Access to customer information or status of vacant boxes was a nightmare. Customer lines were long, and service was jeopardized.

The representative facts for the safe deposit department are shown in such as the volume of work, nature of processes, physical facilities, and personnel. From the analysis, the system design requirements are identified. These features must be incorporated into a candidate system to produce the necessary improvements. The system requirements are:

1. Better customer service

 2.    Faster information retrieval.

 3.      Quicker notice accuracy.

 4.    Better billing accuracy.

5. Lower processing and operating costs.

 6.  Improved staff efficiency.

7. Consistent billing procedure to eliminate errors.

To achieve these design objectives, several alternatives must be evaluated, there is seldom just one alternative. The analyst then selects those that are feasible economically, technically, and operationally. The approach may emphasize the introduction of a computerized billing system, replacement of staff, improved billing practices, changes in operating procedures, or a combination of several options.

As you can imagine, each approach has its benefits and drawbacks. For example, one alternative is to introduce a computer-based safe deposit tracking and billing system designed to improve billing accuracy and notice preparation and lower processing and operating costs. It would also promote staff efficiency by allowing the existing staff to concentrate on customer service and provide online information on box availability and the like. The drawbacks include lying off the billing clerk who recently got married and strong resistance by the majority of the staff to a computerized environment.

Another alternative might be simply to devise a semiautomatic (ferries wheel type) system that organizes master cards and customer records and improves their access. A word processing system might be introduced to speed the preparation of billing notices. The edit feature of word processors would improve the accuracy in billing preparation. If these were the only two alternatives available, which alternative must be selected? An analysis of the costs and benefits of each alternative guides the selection process. Therefore, the analyst needs to be familiar with the cost and benefit categories and the evaluation methods before a final selection can be made. Details on these topics are given in the next section.