Liam Barnett is an Art Auctioneer, who has worked in the Art Gallery and Museum industry for decades. He has identified a market opportunity for short-term displays. He contracted IBIS consultancy company to undertake a feasibility study for his business idea, by researching into potential clients and art sources. IBIS has predicted that the short-term display demand for art exhibits is steadily growing. They also identified that both collectors and businesses would be keen to create an income by lending art for short-term displays. The report also highlights other opportunities for an established platform, such as art storage. An online platform for short-term art reservations would be the first of its kind in the world.

Liam has not run an online business before, but he was able to source an investor and secure some contracts with art owners and businesses to source artworks. To minimise the risk, Liam’s investor would only allocate a fixed budget for the platform. Liam was also able to sign an agreement with FastCouriers to transport delicate paintings globally between storage sites and the museums/galleries. FastCouriers has agreed to assess the quality of the art pieces and wrap and prepare them for transport. They have transport insurance to cover any damages. The automated FastCourier system is one of the most popular systems used by Art Auction Houses in the world. Liam is yet to approach museums and art galleries with his proposal but would like to give them a launching date for the new system. It is the art owners’ responsibility to arrange insurance for the paintings. Liam has decided to use the PayPal system to complete payments, as it is a much simpler way to do online business.

Once registered on the platform, art owners can list multiple paintings. They don’t need to pay to add their paintings details to the rental collection. The system must calculate the reservation cost, based on different types of information, such as the type of the painting, Era, painter’s name, and market value of the painting, when a museum applies for a reservation. The art owners have to pay a commission to Liam, if their art piece is reserved by a museum/art gallery.

Art museums should be able to browse for paintings that are available to rent. The reservation and transport costs are paid by the museums and galleries. Liam’s company wants to provide safety assurance for the paintings; therefore, they have a standard that each museum/gallery should meet before they can make a reservation. Once a museum/gallery is approved, they can make reservations. If reservations are approved by the art owners, then FastCourier will receive a request online. The registered venues (museum /gallery sites) receive new lists of available artworks via regular emails.

Liam is intending to outsource the operation, such as invoicing, monitoring the reservations, approving venues, maintaining artwork lists, and managing payments to Admin and Co, who provide administration support for many online systems.

Answer the following specific questions.

1. Conduct a SWOT analysis for the proposed platform in the above scenario. Ensure you include two strengths, two weaknesses, two opportunities, and two threats. [8 marks]

How do you minimise each threat that you have identified above? [2 marks]

List one strategy for each threat.

Given the nature of the information system, is Liam planning to develop the platform in house or outsource the development? What software development methodology is suitable for this project? Justify your answer with a minimum of two reasons. [3 marks]

Draw a context diagram for the proposed platform. [10 marks]

List seven user stories for the proposed platform using the following format: [7 marks]

As a ____________ I want ___________.

Draw an entity-relationship diagram (ERD) for the proposed platform. [10 marks]

Clearly show the entities, attributes, identifiers, relationships, and multiplicities/ cardinalities. Resolve any many-to-many relationships.