Stems Analysis and Design Assignment
This assignment is meant to help you begin thinking about systems and processes in your everyday life.
Observation
• Visit a public place where information is being exchanged and transactions are taking place. It could be a coffee shop, a restaurant, a retail store, the Union, a country club of which you are a member (and of which membership your parents paid for) or any place of your choosing.
o Tip: it should be a relatively busy place with a lot going on.
• Observe how people are interacting with the transaction system. Things to think about:
o Are people waiting in line?
o Is the system responsive to changes?
- Example: does the introduction of coupons complicate the transaction?
o Do people seem indifferent, frustrated, or generally pleased with their interaction with the system?
• Either observe or make an educated guess about how the transaction system interacts withother transaction systems. Some things to think about:
o Is the customer account information stored in such a way that any branch or location of this business can look up the same information?
o Are there other systems that this system might interact with behind the scenes? How might that work?
- Example: might coupon-scanning software at a register need to interact with a manufacturer's system?
o See if you can view the human to computer interface of the transaction system.
- What does it look like, and how does it aid or detract from the efficiency of the people who use the system?
- What is the likely interaction software?
- Example: is it web-based, a native application, or paper? Is it integrated with Apple Pay or Google Wallet?
Recommendation
• Think about what could be improved in the whole transaction process. Some things to think about:
o How could the human to computer interaction be improved (or does it need to be)?
- Is there, perhaps, a different type of software that should be implemented?
o How could the transaction process be smoother? What are the bottlenecks and how could they be reduced?
• Propose at least three items of improvement based on your findings.
Deliverables
• Executive Summary (1 pageDouble)
• Recommendations (2 pagesDouble