ABSTRACT
Successful implementation of information systems depends heavily on a thorough and well-executed systems analysis and design (SA&D) effort. While organizations have been building information systems for nearly fifty years, information systems failure is still a common occurrence (Avison and Fitzgerald, 2006; Hardgrave, Davis, and Riemenschneider, 2003; Schmidt et al., 2001; Siau, Wand, and Benbasat, 1997; Smith, Keil, and Depledge, 2001). The field of systems analysis and design remains very much an art rather than a precise science. Traditionally, the area of systems development has suffered from abysmally low success rates, typically cited in the range of 25–35 percent. Even though David Rubinstein (2007) cited an overall doubling in success rates between 1994 and 2006, the success rates claimed in Rubinstein’s summary of a Standish Report still stand at about 35 percent. While the apparent improvement is welcome news, 65 percent of systems efforts are still considered failures. The stubbornly high failure rates in systems development projects highlight the continuous need for quality research in nearly every area of systems development.
