EBS Case Introduction

In this section you will learn the background information that will prepare you to understand and complete each of the milestones of this case study. This information includes a history of the business, a description of the businesss current facilities, and the descriptions of the problems that triggered the project.

General Company Information

The Conover Insurance Company, Inc. serves nearly 10 million customers nationwide, offering a variety of products and financial services, such as pension funds, annuities, automobile insurance, homeowner insurance, and life insurance products. More than 800 companies entrust Conover Insurance Company to manage their life insurance and other financial funds. Conover Insurance Company employs more than 4,100 people and reported 2002 revenue of more than $40 million.

The Human Resources Department has become top priority in improvements for the coming year. The projects objective was to significantly decrease processing time and increase the functionality in our current employee information benefits and services. In order to meet the new technology improvement addressing our current Human Resource processing, other departments, systems and/or business will be impacted, from with our company and outside of our company.

Note: See the organization charts at the end of this document for more details.

Case Background

Information Systems (IS) headquartered in Orlando, Florida, employs approximately 4,100 employees throughout the United States. IS provides leading edge technologies, distributed computing, mainframe, micro, communication, and consulting services to its parent company Corporation, headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, as well as to external customers including the U.S. government. In addition, IS is responsible for the development and support of all the internal systems that support their day-to-day business processes and operations.

In this milestone, you will perform Cause-Effect Analysis on the Employee Benefits System (EBS) and document your findings using the Problems, Opportunities, Objectives, and Constraints Matrix. The PIECES framework, originally developed by James Wetherbe and then adapted by the authors, can serve as a useful tool to classify the various problems, opportunities, and directives identified in Milestone 1.

Objectives

After completing this milestone, you should be able to: Perform a Cause-Effect Analysis to be able to thoroughly understand a systems problems, opportunities, and/or directives that triggered the project. Use and understand the PIECES framework for classifying problems, opportunities, and directives. Complete the Problems, Opportunities, Objectives, and Constraints Matrix. Complete the List of Business Activities based on Requirement analysis.

Prerequisites

Before starting this milestone, the following topics should be covered: The problem analysis phase Chapters 3 and 5 PIECES framework Chapters 3 and 5 Problem analysis techniques Chapter 6 Milestone 1 Solution

Assignment Now that we have completed the preliminary investigation of the system and gained approval to proceed, we can attempt to gain a better understanding of the current system. In this assignment we will use our results of Milestone 1, plus the Case background information, in order to perform cause-effect analysis. The results of this activity will provide us a better understanding of the problems, opportunities, and constraints of the current system.

Activities 1. To complete the Problems, Opportunities, Objectives, and Constraints Matrix, using facts presented in the case introduction. Use the PIECES framework as a model to classify the problems, opportunities, and directives. 2. To compile a List of business activities based on business requirements. It has to include the main tasks which have to be implemented.

Deliverable format and software to be used are according to your instructors specifications. Deliverables should be neatly packaged in a binder, separated with a tab divider labeled Milestone 2.

FILL IN THE CHART WITH INFORMATION GIVEN

CAUSE AND EFFECT ANALYSIS		SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT OBJECTIVES
Problem or Opportunity	Causes and Effects	System Objective	System Constraint
	Cause (s): Effect(s):
	Cause (s): . Effect(s):
	Cause (s): Effect(s):
	Cause (s): Effect(s):
	Cause (s): 1. Effect(s):
	Cause (s): Effect(s):
	Cause (s): Effect(s):
	Cause (s): Effect(s):