Answer to Question #173393 in Mechanical Engineering for mohamed

Question

Case Studies

A hospital named XYZ requires a laboratory management system and has

contacted your firm. You have 20 programmers, out of which 15 are busy with

other projects for the time being. The hospital intends to acquire laboratory

equipment, which they want to interface with the computer system. The annual

evaluation of the hospital is due soon, in which computerization initiatives are

appreciated.

The owner of a video store has contacted you to develop a system to keep track

of videos and rentals. He feels that with the growing number of customers, such a

system will greatly help in managing accounts and providing better customer

service.

Question:

1. With the illustration of a diagram identify the process model that you think

will be most appropriate for each of the above situations.

2. Justify the choices of the process models you identified in question 1.

Answer 1

The best process model to use in this scenario is the Agile software development method. The reason why this model is suitable in this case is that it provides high-quality products, focuses on the business value, encourages transparency, and encourages the involvement of both users and other stakeholders. Encouraging the participation of different stakeholders and the users helps in fine-tuning the requirements of the project. Besides, it also allows for changes to be made in the project just in case the system requirements keep on growing. Communication between different stakeholders also helps in eliminating guesswork and predicting the costs and schedule of the project.

However, the Spiral model cannot be used in this case because it is very costly in terms of development. The Spiral model also relies on phases-wise development. If one phase fails, the entire project will be affected. Low-risk projects are not supposed to be developed using this model. Given the conditions of the project I am asked to develop, it would be better to avoid the Spiral model because it may continue indefinitely making the project completion and delivery to be affected.