Text D: System Analyst

Job description. A system analyst designs new IT solutions to improve business efficiency and productivity. Working closely with the client, analysts examine existing business models and flows of data, discuss their findings with the client, and design an appropriate improved IT solution. They produce outline designs and costings of new IT systems, specifying the operations the system will perform, and the way data will be viewed by the user, present their design to the client and, once it is approved, work closely with the client team to implement the solution.

Typical work activities. Work activities depend on specific type of IT system and the size and nature of the organization, but typically involve:

· liaising extensively with clients, presenting proposals to them;

· analyzing clients' existing systems;

· translating client requirements into highly specified project briefs;

· identifying options for potential solutions and assessing them;

· drawing up specific proposals for modified or replacement systems;

· producing project feasibility reports;

· working closely with developers and a variety of end users;

· ensuring that budgets are adhered to and deadlines met;

· drawing up a testing schedule for the complete system;

· overseeing the implementation of a new system;

· planning and working flexibly to a deadline;

· writing user manuals and providing training to users of a new system.

Agree or disagree with the following statements.

1) A system analyst investigates the requirements of a business or organization, its employees, and its customers in order to plan and implement new or improved computer services.

2) The job of a system analyst doesn’t require the ability to identify problems and research technical solutions.

3) Good communication skills are essential for interacting with managers and other employees.

4) Depending on the organization and its size, he or she might also be called a systems consultant, a systems engineer, an information analyst, or a business analyst.

5) A system analyst doesn’t have to determine which people and what kind of software, hardware, and monetary resources are necessary or available to solve the problem.

Find the words with an opposite meaning in the text.

Fill in the correct words from the active vocabulary.

1) … is the study of an activity, a procedure, even an entire business, to determine what kind of computer system would make it more efficient.

Read the sentences translating the Russian fragments into English.

1) Computers often provide ways to make businesses run more efficiently, and they can supply (своевременную) information that helps improve customer service.

Answer the questions.

1) What data does a system analyst typically gather and analyze?

SPEAKING PRACTICE

Speak on the following topics.

1) What is a system development life cycle?

2) How does the project team discover what happens in the current system?

3) What qualities should information have in order to be useful?

4) Describe typical work activities of a system analyst.

UNIT 5: SYSTEM DESIG

Active vocabulary