Chapter 9 • Methodologies for Custom Software Development 367Old SystemNew SystemParallel
StrategyPilot
Old System Strategy
New SystemOld System New SystemPhasing
StrategyCutover
StrategyOld System New SystemFIGURE 9.4 Implementation Strategieswho will use the system, and these changes must be antici-
pated and planned for well before the actual
Implementation phase begins. Ideas for user training as
well as other “best practices” for change management will
be discussed in a subsequent project management chapter
(Chapter 11).
INSTALLATION Both IS specialists and users play crit-
ical roles in the Installation step, which includes build-
ing the files and databases and converting relevant data
from one or more old systems to the new system.
Depending on the extent to which the data already exist
within the organization, some of the data conversion
burden might also fall on users. In particular, data in
older systems could be inaccurate and incomplete, re-
quiring considerable user effort to “clean it up.” The
cleanup process, including the entering of revised data,
can be a major effort for user departments. Sometimes
the cleanup effort can be accomplished in advance. In
other situations, however, the data cleanup is done as
part of the new system implementation. In this latter sit-
uation users have a lot of data verifications to do and
conversion edits to resolve, sometimes without the bene-
fit of additional staff, while the staff also learn the new
system.
Another crucial installation activity is training the
system’s end users, as well as training other users affect-
ed by the new system. If this involves motivating people
to make major changes to their behavior patterns, plan-
ning for this motivation process needs to start well be-
fore the Implementation phase. User participation in the
earlier phases can also help the users prepare for this
crucial step. Similarly, user training needs to be planned
and carefully scheduled so that people are prepared to
use the system when it is installed but not trained so far
in advance that they forget what they learned. If user re-
sistance to proposed changes is anticipated, this poten-
tial situation needs to be addressed during training or
earlier.
Installing the hardware and software is the IS organi-
zation’s responsibility. This can be a challenge when the
new system involves technology that is new to the IS or-
ganization, especially if the technology is on the “bleeding
edge.” The major problems in system installation, howev-
er, usually lie in adapting the organization to the new sys-
tem—changing how people do their work.
Converting to the new system might be a difficult
process for the users because the new system must be inte-
grated into the organization’s activities. The users must not
only learn how to use the new system but also change the
way they do their work. Even if the software is technically
perfect, the system will likely be a failure if people do not
want it to work or do not know how to use it. The
conversionprocess therefore might require attitudinal
changes. It is often a mistake to assume that people will
change their behavior in the desired or expected way.
Several strategies for transitioning users from an old
system to a new one are commonly used (see Figure 9.4).
This is a critical choice for the effective implementation of
the system, and this choice needs to be made well in ad-
vance of the Implementation phase by a decision-making
process that includes both IS and business managers.
Good management understanding of the options and
trade-offs for the implementation strategies discussed next
can reap both short-term and long-term implementation
benefits.
In the parallelstrategy, the organization continues
to operate the old system in parallel with the new system
until the new one is working sufficiently well to discon-
tinue the old. This is a conservative conversion strategy
because it allows the organization to continue using the
old system if there are problems with the new one.
However, it can also be a difficult strategy to manage be-
cause workers typically must operate both the old system
and the new while also comparing the results of the two
systems to make sure that the new system is working
properly. When discrepancies are found, the source of the
problem must be identified and corrections initiated.
Parallel conversion can therefore be very stressful. A par-
allel strategy also might not even be feasible due to
changes in hardware and software associated with the new
system.
Thepilotstrategy is an attractive option when it is
possible to introduce the new system in only one part of
the organization. The objective is to solve as many imple-
mentation problems as possible before implementing the