A project life cycle can be defined in the following way:
Strategy Planning
In most organisations there will be a formal mechanism for deciding which areas of the business require new or enhanced computer systems. This is referred to as strategy planning and will involve assessing the relative priorities of different areas, with a view to initiating one or more development projects.
Feasibility Study
Before any systems development begins in earnest we will need to establish its feasibility, although in some instances there is no choice in the matter; computer services are sometimes required to help the business remain competitive or comply with legislation. The ideas that come out of the strategy planning are often vague and untested so some assessment of their feasibility will have to be carried out before committing expensive resources to a project that cannot be cost justified or that are technically impossible.
Systems Analysis
Once a project is underway, we need to establish the requirements of the users, and hence the business. The objective is to concentrate on what the software should deliver and not how it should deliver it.
System Design
We then translate the systems analysis findings into a computer system design which details how the needs will be satisfied. The system design phase provides a blueprint for the building, testing and introduction of the new system.
Implementation
It is during the implementation phase that the programs are finally constructed and hardware is installed. Training is delivered to users and assistance in migrating to the new system is provided.
Maintenance
The maintenance phase covers the period when the system is up and running in support of the business. During the maintenance phase the software is kept up to date in responding to change requirements and system errors. In terms of the total development effort required over the life of a system it has been estimated in the past that 70% has been expended in the maintenance phase.