Description:

In your text, Information Technology for Management: On-Demand Strategies for Performance,

Growth and Sustainability, Chapter 13, the opening case was “Denver International Airport (DIA)
Learns from Mistakes Made in Failed Baggage-Handling System Project.” The project was intended
to integrate baggage handling at all three of the airport’s concourses into one single reliable
baggage system. The project was burdened with unrealistic expectations, but it was still approved
for implementation despite expert warnings. The implementation proved to be a failure due to
numerous delays that impacted the opening of Denver’s international airport.

Prompt
There are many system development methodologies, including waterfall, iterative, DevOps, spiral,
lean, object-oriented, and agile.

For this activity, review the case study from Chapter 13. In a 1- to 2-page written document:

 Summarize the SDLC steps taken in the case study.

 Describe at least three points of failure.
 Select one methodology you would use to yield a successful implementation and justify its
use.
 Explain how the points of failure would be successfully addressed by the new
methodology.

Answer:

Denver International Airport (DIA) Learns from Mistakes Made in Failed Baggage-Handling System
Project

This classic project management case illustrates almost every possible project management mistake
and the lessons that were learned from it. It documents a project disaster that occurred in the
development of the baggage-handling system at Denver International Airport (DIA) in the late 1980s
and early 1990s. The failure of the baggage-handling system propelled DIA into newspaper
headlines across the country, and people joked that if you were flying to Denver, you had to go to
Chicago to pick up your luggage! To this day, it remains the classic example of how not to conduct a
project.
 1. Summarize the SDLC steps taken in the case study:
The SDLC is a multiple-stage approach used by IT professionals to develop high-quality ISs from
planning and analysis to support and maintenance. The SDLC provides a framework for many
different systems development methodologies. Typical SDLC activities include gathering the user
requirements, determining budgets, creating a logical systems design, creating a physical systems
system, building and testing the system, writing detailed user and developer documentation,
training users, and maintaining the system. The activities performed throughout systems
development vary betting on the dimensions and quality of the system.

STEPS OF THE SDLC:

The SDLC consists of five steps. The SDLC steps are planning, analysis, design,
implementation/testing, and support/maintenance. Each stage consists of well-defined
tasks supported by the scope of the project. The SDLC is an Associate in nursing unvarying method,
not a linear one. This means that when results from one step are assessed, they can be revised if
needed, and a previous stage can be revisited before continuing to the next step

Five steps of SDLC:

Explanation of steps:

Systems Planning To begin the SDLC, a business unit submits a systems request based on a
business need, and systems planning begins. The systems request begins the planning
process by describing the problem or desired changes. The purpose of the planning stage is
to perform a preliminary investigation and to find out if the request is feasible. A feasibility
study determines the probability of success of a proposed system and provides a rough
assessment of its technical, economic, organizational, and behavioral feasibility. The
feasibility study is critical to the system development process because, when done properly,
the study can prevent companies from making expensive mistakes, such as those
experienced at DIA in the gap case, wherever systems are created that may not work, that
may not work with efficiency, or that individuals cannot or won't use.

Systems Analysis Requirements analysis is critical to the success of the project. The purpose
of the analysis is to investigate and perceive the matter known within the starting stage by
gathering user necessities. This can be accomplished by observing how the business process
that the system will support is carried out, interviewing users, sending out a questionnaire,
or applying knowledge gleaned in developing similar systems.

Implementation and Testing Implementation, or preparation, is the method of changing

from a recent system to a new system. During this stage of the SDLC, the system is put in
place, and there are four ways that the new system can be installed. We decide the four
"Ps" of systems conversion: plunge, parallel, pilot, and phased. Within the plunge, or direct
conversion, the previous system is stopped, therefore the new system is turned on at a
specific time. This kind of conversion is the least expensive; however, it's the riskiest if the
new system doesn't work as planned. In a very parallel conversion, the previous system and
therefore the new system operate at the same time for a specific amount of your time. This
kind of conversion is the costliest how but last risky. A pilot conversion introduces the new
system in one location, or with one cluster of individuals, to check it out. Once the new
system works properly, it's extended to the whole organization. A phased conversion
introduces parts of the new system, like individual modules, in stages. Every module is
assessed, and once it works properly, alternative modules are introduced till the complete
new system is operational.

Support and Maintenance Once the new system’s operations area units are stable audits of
area units are performed throughout the operation to assess the system’s capabilities and
confirm if it's getting used properly. Maintenance should be maintained strictly in the
slightest degree of time. Users of the system ought to be maintained so far regarding the
most recent modifications and procedures. This section additionally involves supporting
users in their use of the system in keeping with any service level agreements (SLAs) that will
be in situ. The deliverable from the support and maintenance stage is the SLA. Since most
ISs ought to be updated considerably or replaced when many years of operation, systems
development may be a repetitive method as maintenance turns into the event of a
replacement system.
3. Select one methodology you would use to yield a successful
implementation and justify its use.

Systems Development Methodologies While there is only one SDLC, there are many
different methods associated with creating it. The major systems development
methodologies are waterfall, object-oriented, and agile. Here I’m going to explain the
waterfall methodology and its uses.

WATERFALL MODEL:

The falls Model was the primary SDLC Model used widely in systems

development. Generally referred to as “structured analysis,” the falls Model may be
a serial, prophetic approach. It’s easy to use and perceive however is kind
of inflexible. Victimization of the falls Model, every section of the SDLC should be completed
before the following section will begin. There’s no chance to travel back to a previous stage
and no overlapping within the phases. Recordkeeping is very necessary within
the falls technique to stay everything on target inside every clearly outlined stage in step
with the project arrange. Falls Model may be a serial, prophetic systems development
methodology that's easy to use and perceive, however inflexible.

Waterfall Method.

Uses of Waterfall Method:

The water Model is especially helpful for tiny systems and the short-run comes once it's not
possible that necessities can amendment and once there aren't any ambiguous necessities.
A drawback of developing system victimization the water Model is that it doesn’t afford a
lot of reflection or revision. This could be problematic since users of square measure are
infamous for seeing opportunities for dynamic or adding options throughout the
development
1. Describe at least three points of failure.

DIA’s baggage-handling system was a crucial element within the town of Mile-High

City’s conception to construct a brand new progressive aerodrome that will position Denver
as an associate shipping hub. By automating baggage handling, craft turnaround was to
be moved as very little as a half-hour. Quicker turnaround meant airlines may minimize on-
ground time, which might be DIA’s competitive advantage.

November 1989: DIA construction work starts.

Following is the timeline of the major events and project management mistakes:

 Poor planning and impossible expectations In the Gregorian calendar month of 1992, DIA
visited a contract with BAE Systems to finish the project in time for the October 1993
opening—ignoring professional proof that the timeline was not possible to realize.

 Lack of due diligence Contract terms between DIA, BAE, and project specifications was
beat come in solely 3 conferences. The frenzy to contract neglected the feasibility analysis.
The pressure to maneuver quickly drove them to skip crucial due-diligence steps.

 Excluded key stakeholders BAE and also the aerodrome project management team
excluded key stakeholders—the airlines that had narrowed with DIA—during the
negotiations. Excluding stakeholders from discussions within which key project selections
square measure created is often a losing strategy.

 Ignored interface design the baggage-handling system had to interface with the
aerodrome. that's as a result of the style of the planning look of the building was started
before the luggage system design was celebrated, the designers of the physical building
solely created general allowances for wherever they thought the luggage system would go.
The allowance of areas within which the luggage system would operate painted the
interface between the planning of DIA and also the baggage system. To form effective
selections regarding a way to style DIA, the United States intelligence agency designers
ought to have worked with specialists in planning the luggage system. DIA had sharp corners
that needed turns that baggage carts cannot navigate. To stay carts from declension the
rails, the speed of the system had to be attenuated to thirty cars per minute. This
transformation pissed off passengers World Health Organization had to attend
extraordinarily long times to select up their baggage, therefore eliminating DIA’s
competitive advantage of quick baggage work time.
 4. Explain how the points of failure would be successfully addressed by
the new methodology.

From a project management perspective, the baggage-handling system was doomed from the
beginning. No one knew a way to style the baggage-handling system or accomplished the
complexness of the computer code necessities. The choice to proceed with one integrated system
at DIA knowing that the point couldn't be met, not considering attainable risks, and creating
different irrational selections, contributed heavily to project failure. As a result, the DIA baggage-
handling project was a spectacular failure that teaches the North American nation loads regarding
project communication and scope creep and has become the classic example of how to not manage
a project. And, at DIA, the large project failure has a light-emitting diode to raise project
management practices.