Feasibility Study (MIS 09.06.2021)

Feasibility Study

Feasibility is defined as the practical extent to which a project can be performed successfully.

To evaluate feasibility, a feasibility study is performed, which determines whether the solution considered to accomplish the requirements is practical and workable in the software.

1. Information such as resource availability,

2. cost estimation for software development,

3. benefits of the software to the organization after it is developed and

4. cost to be incurred on its maintenance are considered during the feasibility study.

 

The objective of the feasibility study is to establish the reasons for developing the software that is acceptable to users, adaptable to change and conformable to established standards.

 

Various other objectives of feasibility study are listed below.

1. To analyse whether the software will meet organizational requirements.

2. To determine whether the software can be implemented using the current technology and within the specified budget and schedule.

3. To determine whether the software can be integrated with other existing software.

Types of Feasibility

Various types of feasibility that are commonly considered include (1) technical feasibility, (2) operational feasibility, and (3) economic feasibility.

 

1. Technical feasibility assesses the current resources (such as hardware and software) and technology, which are required to accomplish user requirements in the software within the allocated time and budget. For this, the software development team ascertains whether the current resources and technology can be upgraded or added in the software to accomplish specified user requirements.

 

Technical feasibility also performs the following tasks. 

a) Analyses the technical skills and capabilities of the software development team members.

b) Determines whether the relevant technology is stable and established.

c) Ascertains that the technology chosen for software development has a large number of users so that they can be consulted when problems arise or improvements are required.

 

2. Operational feasibility assesses the extent to which the required software performs a series of steps to solve business problems and user requirements. This feasibility is dependent on human resources (software development team) and involves visualizing whether the software will operate after it is developed and be operative once it is installed.

 

Operational feasibility also performs the following tasks.

a) Determines whether the problems anticipated in user requirements are of high priority.

b) Determines whether the solution suggested by the software development team is acceptable.

c) Analyses whether users will adapt to a new software.

d) Determines whether the organization is satisfied by the alternative solutions proposed by the software development team.

 

3. Economic feasibility determines whether the required software is capable of generating financial gains for an organization. It involves the cost incurred on the software development team, estimated cost of hardware and software, cost of performing feasibility study, and so on.

 

For this, it is essential to consider expenses made on purchases (such as hardware purchase) and activities required to carry out software development.

 

In addition, it is necessary to consider the benefits that can be achieved by developing the software. Software is said to be economically feasible if it focuses on the issues listed below.

a) Cost incurred on software development to produce long-term gains for an organization.

b) Cost required to conduct full software investigation (such as requirements elicitation and requirements analysis).

c) Cost of hardware, software, development team, and training.

 

Feasibility Study Process

Feasibility study comprises the following steps.

1. Information assessment: Identifies information about whether the system helps in achieving the objectives of the organization. It also verifies that the system can be implemented using new technology and within the budget and whether the system can be integrated with the existing system.

 

2. Information collection: Specifies the sources from where information about software can be obtained. Generally, these sources include users (who will operate the software), organization (where the software will be used), and the software development team (which understands user requirements and knows how to fulfill them in software).

 

3. Report writing: Uses a feasibility report, which is the conclusion of the feasibility study by the software development team. It includes the recommendations whether the software development should continue. This report may also include information about changes in the software scope, budget, and schedule and suggestions of any requirements in the system.

 

4. General information: Describes the purpose and scope of feasibility study. It also describes system overview, project references, acronyms and abbreviations, and points of contact to be used.

 

a) System overview provides description about the name of the organization responsible for the software development, system name or title, system category, operational status, and so on.

 

b) Project references provide a list of the references used to prepare this document such as documents relating to the project or previously developed documents that are related to the project.

 

c) Acronyms and abbreviations provide a list of the terms that are used in this document along with their meanings.

 

d) Points of contact provide a list of points of organizational contact with users for information and coordination.

 

For example, users require assistance to solve problems (such as troubleshooting) and collect information such as contact number, e-mail address, and so on.