Certification Summary

An enterprise architecture (EA) model documents an organization’s business and technical structure. It analyzes the various entities that belong to the company (for example, its people, strategy, and information) and the relationships between them. EA models often use common diagramming methods (for example, UML use case, activity, and state diagrams) to illustrate the architecture more clearly. The EA model also analyzes the technical assets of the company (for example, servers, networks, and data) to see how well the technical and business architectures support each other. Based on this analysis, a target architecture is developed as a map to show how a company needs to transform itself over the next few years.

A solution concept outlines the solution approach at a high level. The solution concept needs to be detailed enough so that the planning phase can begin. The solution concept generally states in a paragraph or two what the project team’s approach will be to solving the problem at hand.

Analyzing business and technical feasibility is the next step in the process. This step results in a “go or no go” decision being made about the project. The solution concept must be examined from both a business and a technical perspective to decide if the proposed solution is feasible. This is also where questions about the availability of certain technical skills within the organization will be considered.

Project scope incorporates a bit more reality into the project vision and solution concept. The purpose of the project scope is to outline specifically what application functionality will be delivered in the initial release and what is planned for future releases. The scope feeds directly into the planning phase of the project.

Finally, identifying key project risks is the last step of the envisioning phase. A risk is any event that could have a negative impact on a project’s costs, functionality, or schedule. If your project is relying on outside help, either from a vendor or from another project team within your organization, that should be mentioned here as a possible risk. Each identified risk is assigned a probability score and an impact score, and these can be combined to indicate the level of importance, or overall risk. Risks identified here will be mitigated in future phases of the project.

Two-Minute Drill

The Microsoft Solutions Framework

• The Microsoft Solutions Framework (MSF) is made up of two models and three disciplines: the process model, the team model, the project management discipline, the risk management discipline, and the readiness management discipline.

• The process model outlines a method for developing software solutions in which a large project is split into several smaller projects—a process called iterative development—and each of these smaller projects is split into five phases: envisioning, designing, developing, stabilizing, and deploying.

• The team model outlines a method for building a project team that centers around six key areas of responsibility: product management, program management, development, test, user experience, and release management.

Developing an Enterprise Architecture

• The enterprise architecture (EA) model is a document that outlines the business and technical structure of an organization.

• The EA model is used for transforming a business from its current architecture, called a baseline architecture, to its future architecture, called a target architecture.

• Understanding the EA model allows project architects to design solutions that meet the stated future needs and vision of an organization.

Developing a Solution Concept

• A solution concept is a high-level outline of a proposed solution.

• It states the overall vision for how the project will meet the requirements of the business.

Analyzing the Feasibility of a Solution

• There are three aspects to assessing the feasibility of a project: business feasibility, technical feasibility, and the feasibility based on the availability of resources.

• This is the “go or no go” decision of the envisioning phase.

Analyzing and Refining the Scope of the Solution Project

• The project scope incorporates the reality of time and budget into the solution concept.

• It describes what a project is able to deliver in its first release, which feeds into the planning phase of the project.

Identifying Key Project Risks

• A risk is any event that could potentially have a negative impact on the project’s schedule, cost, or functionality.

• Each risk is analyzed to determine its probability and impact.

Self Test

The following questions will help you measure your understanding of the material presented in this chapter. Read all the choices carefully because there might be more than one correct answer. Choose all correct answers for each question.

The Microsoft Solutions Framework

1.	Which of the following models are parts of the Microsoft Solutions Framework? (Choose all that apply.) Program model Process model Team model Project model
2.	Which of the following is the Microsoft Solutions Framework designed to provide: A step-by-step process for developing software A series of templates that can be used in Visual Studio .NET to create software quickly A way to develop software in half the time of traditional methods A set of rules related to building teams and embarking on solution design and development

Answers

1.

B and C. The process and team models are the two models contained in the solutions framework. x A and D are incorrect because they are not models within the MSF.

2.

D. The goal of the MSF is to share the vast experience of Microsoft and some of its partners in designing software and building project teams. x A is incorrect because the framework is not a step-by-step process for developing software. B is incorrect because there are no MSF templates for Visual Studio. C is incorrect because, although you may save some time designing software, using the MSF is not specifically designed to develop software in half the time. Its purpose is to help you develop the best solution possible with regard to the needs of the business.

Developing an Enterprise Architecture

3.	What is the purpose of creating an enterprise architecture model? Ensure that the business view of the enterprise is aligned with the technical view and that the best overall business and technical structure exists Map geographically where all the servers and networks are installed throughout an organization Define the roles and responsibilities of each individual in an organization Identify the systems and applications used throughout an organization
4.	Which of the following components belong inside the technical view of an enterprise architecture model? (Choose all that apply.) Infrastructure architecture Information architecture Integration architecture Organization architecture

Answers

3.

A. An EA model defines the current processes and procedures of an organization, as well as the structure of its technology. It concerns itself with aligning the business and technical views of the company. x B is incorrect because geographical mapping is not a core task in EA modeling. C is incorrect because it is a feature of the MSF team model and not EA modeling. D is incorrect because the identification of the systems and applications in the organization is only a small part of the overall purpose of the EA model. It is much more important to understand how those systems interconnect and how data flows throughout the organization.

4.

A, B, and C. Infrastructure, information, and integration architectures are three of the five components of the EA technical view. The other two are enterprisewide technical architecture and application architecture. x D is incorrect because there is no architecture within the EA model called organization architecture.

Developing a Solution Concept

5.	Which of the following details are likely to be part of a solution concept? (Choose all that apply.) A high-level description of the approach Results of performance tests between two vendor solutions A proof-of-concept application that proves a solution is viable Consideration of existing systems
6.	Which one of the following statements would you most likely see in a solution concept? The Employee class is a parent of the Manager class. The project will require two full-time developer resources—one will develop the data entry application, and the other will develop the database and stored procedures. The customer will be able to access the application over the Internet using any web browser. The project should take six weeks to develop, including QA testing.

Answers

5.

A and D. Solution concepts are high-level approaches to solving business problems. A solution concept should take into consideration existing systems in order to be considered the best possible solution. x B is incorrect because the solution concept is not concerned with low-level details such as performance test results. C is incorrect because proof-of-concepts involve feasibility, belong in the design phase, and should not be part of the solution concept, which is concerned with developing high-level concepts.

6.

C. A solution concept should propose a specific, high-level solution to the business problem at hand, without getting into too much detail. x A is incorrect because solution concepts do not deal with objects or classes. B is incorrect because even if the resources have been identified in advance, it is also too early to talk about specific assignments for these resources. D is incorrect because, although a rough schedule may be set in advance, the solution concept is concerned only with the approach to solving a business problem and not other planning or coordination tasks.

Analyzing the Feasibility of a Solution

7.	Tony, a solutions architect at Acme Corporation, is trying to assess the feasibility of adding online ordering to the company’s existing web site. He expects that the project will require new web server hardware that will cost $100,000, plus the purchase of an off-the-shelf e-commerce application that will cost $25,000. The three months it will take a developer to integrate the solution into the company’s web site will cost $40,000. Based on a survey of a handful of existing customers and taking into account the current level of traffic to the company’s web site, Tony expects approximately $40,000 a year in sales from the new web site. Based on these facts, which of the following statements best describes the project feasibility? The project is feasible because the project will pay for itself in only four years. The project is not technically feasible because there are other costs that need to be taken into account. The project is not feasible from a business point of view because it is likely that the hardware and e-commerce software will need to be upgraded again by the time the project pays for itself in four years. The project is not feasible from an availability of resources point of view because the developer does not have sufficient experience with the e-commerce software.
8.	What would the best course of action be if it were decided that a solution concept was not feasible during the envisioning phase? Continue to develop solution concepts until an appropriate solution can be found. Stop work on the project because the business problem cannot be solved. Continue on to the design phase because you cannot really tell if a project will be feasible this early in the process. Hire more development resources in order to overcome the feasibility issues.
9.	What are some of the valid reasons a project might not be feasible? (Choose all that apply.) The solution would take too long to develop. Several key project risks have been identified. The technical architecture does not exist to support the solution, and no money is available in the budget to build such an architecture. The project looks like it will require 30 hours a week of your time over the next two months, but you have another high-priority project that needs to be completed during that time as well.

Answers

7.	C. From the business point of view, this project will cost way too much for the expected benefit. By the time the deployment costs have been recouped, the server hardware and application software will likely need to be upgraded. x A is incorrect because the project is clearly not feasible from a business point of view— the costs far exceed the benefits. B is incorrect because cost is not a technical feasibility consideration. D is incorrect because, with proper documentation and vendor support, a smart developer should be able to install and configure application software.
8.	A. The purpose of developing a solution concept and analyzing it for feasibility before committing time and resources to a proper design is to determine if a project is infeasible at the beginning of the process. Just because one solution is infeasible does not mean another simpler solution would not be more feasible but still adequate for the user’s requirements. x B is incorrect because the infeasibility of one solution concept does not mean a solution to a business problem cannot be found. C is incorrect because it is not wise to invest time and money in a project that appears infeasible during the envisioning phase. D is incorrect because some feasibility issues, such as business feasibility and technical feasibility problems, cannot be overcome by hiring more resources.
9.	A, C, and D. These three reasons fall into the categories of business feasibility, technical feasibility, and availability of resources, respectively. All are reasons that are difficult or impossible to overcome and therefore need to be flagged as issues of feasibility. x B is incorrect because it is not impossible to overcome key project risks. Project risks can usually be managed. Simply having several key project risks is not enough to become a feasibility issue.

Analyzing and Refining the Scope of the Solution Project

10.	Which one of the following statements would you be most likely to see in a project scope? The first screen will have the words “Private Water Testing System” in the title bar, along with minimize and maximize control buttons. When the user attempts to log in, the system will authenticate their user ID and password against the SQL Server database located on DBO2. The first phase of the project will implement the data entry portion of the application, while the second phase will introduce some basic reporting. Use Case 12.1 documents how the customer will make an online purchase using the application’s web interface.
11.	Margaret is developing the next release of her company’s point-of-sale system. She has begun the developing phase of the project, and she has been asked to add some new functionality to the application that was not specified in the project scope. What is the industry term used to describe this event? Scope instrumentation Reenvisioning Scope development Scope creep
12.	Margaret has been asked to include new features late in the project development phase. She has asked the client to hold off until the next release, but the client absolutely insists that the new features be included in this release. What is the term used to describe the incorporation of changes into a project after the design phase has ended? Application redesign Client management Change management Rearchitecting

Answers

10.	C. A project scope provides the details of each version of a project and identifies, in general terms, what each version will deliver to the client. x A is incorrect because this type of statement is too specific, and belongs in the design phase. B is incorrect because these statements specify too much technical information and are part of physical design. D is incorrect because use cases are also design phase artifacts.
11.	D. Scope creep occurs when new requirements are added to the scope after the design phase is complete. x A, B, and C are incorrect because they are not industry-standard terms.
12.	C. Change management is the name of the process used to manage requested changes to the application requirements. These changes can be accepted, rejected, or deferred to a future release. x A, B, and D are incorrect because they are not industry-standard terms.

Identifying Key Project Risks

13.	Which of the following would be considered a project risk? (Choose all that apply.) The lead programmer might get hit by a bus. The client might request modifications halfway through the project that would require major changes to the application. Programmers may have overestimated the amount of time required to develop the program, and as a result it might be delivered early. Programmers may have underestimated the amount of time required to develop the program, and as a result it might be delivered late.
14.	Which of the following risk estimates need to be generated during the envisioning phase of the project? Probability Probability and impact Probability, impact, and project budget Probability, impact, and cost-benefit analysis
15.	Margaret is developing the next release of her company’s PC-based point-of-sale system. The major improvement in this release is that the system can provide regular (but not real-time) sales updates to the central reporting server throughout the day, instead of only a single update done overnight. A number of project risks have been identified. Which of the following risks would have the most serious impact on the project? The application will require more computer memory and hard disk space, so there is a risk that customers might have to upgrade their computer hardware to install the new version. Half of the developers are new to the project, so development might take two weeks longer than planned. The application will be more difficult to test, so all software flaws might not be fixed before release. The business requirements might change, so there is a risk of project delays and rework.

Answers

13.	A, B, and D. Project risks are events that may or may not occur and would negatively impact the project. x C is incorrect because finishing a project early would not have a negative effect.
14.	B. Estimates of probability and impact should be attached to key project risks to help assess how serious they are. You can even combine these two values into a single value to estimate total project risk. x A is incorrect because impact also needs to be estimated for an accurate reflection of the true level of risk. C and D are incorrect because total project budget and cost-benefit analysis are not a function of risk.
15.	A. Developing an application that would negatively impact the customer’s ability to upgrade from an older release would be the most serious risk. x B is incorrect because two extra weeks of development time on a big project is not considered serious. C is incorrect because testing will be performed, regardless of its difficulty. D is incorrect because changing business requirements can be easily managed through a change management process.

Lab Question

1.

You have been asked to design a PC-based point-of-sale (POS) terminal for a movie theater. Systems already exist for scheduling movies, and recording sales. The POS system will have to support only the action of purchasing tickets. A theater employee will be using the system to sell tickets to the customers as they walk in the front door. During the ticket-purchasing activity, the POS system will verify that there are enough available seats, calculate the cost of the tickets, accept payment, and send the tickets to be printed.

Define the solution concept, feasibility, and scope for this project and identify and evaluate the key project risks.

Answers

1.

The solution concept you visualized might, of course, be different from the one outlined here. You should be able to justify (in your own mind) any differences between your solution and this one. Keep in mind that the solution concept needs to be a high-level concept but detailed enough to be able to begin the design phase.

The solution concept for the movie ticket point-of-sale (POS) system is a custom Windows application that will be developed with a very simple user interface. The system will be developed to work with a touch-screen monitor, if possible, to eliminate the need for a keyboard and mouse at the cashier’s window. The POS system will need its own database to store the movie schedules that have been downloaded from the scheduling system and keep track of ticket sales by individual theater.

The system will be able to print tickets on an appropriate printer, as well as communicate with the sales and scheduling systems.

The application appears feasible from business, technical, and availability of resources perspectives. It should not be too costly to develop, and it does provide a benefit to the business. None of the technology envisioned in the solution should pose a problem. The application will not be a burden to computers or networks, and security will not be an issue. For the sake of this example, we will assume that suitable programming resources have already been identified so that will not be an issue either.

It does not make sense to break up the deployment of this application into multiple versions, so the scope of this release is to deliver the entire solution concept. The application will allow cashiers to sell tickets to customers and cause those tickets to print on the ticket printer. The application will integrate with back-end systems to download movie schedules and record sales information.

The key project risks are usually specific to an individual project or organization and are difficult to gather just from the user requirements. On this small project, if the application developer leaves before the project is finished, it will have a serious impact on the schedule. If it is not possible to get a touch-screen interface, it will have a slight impact on the quality of the POS system from the cashier’s point of view. Another risk is that if the application crashes in production, it will have a serious impact on the business in that it will not be able to sell tickets. Following a risk management strategy can reduce the negative impact of these risks on the project.