SOFTWARE PROJECT I Feasibility Study 1 What Is

SOFTWARE PROJECT I Feasibility Study 1

What Is a Feasibility Study? A feasibility study is an analysis that takes all of a project's relevant factors into account—including economic, technical, legal, and scheduling considerations—to ascertain the likelihood of completing the project successfully.

Before you begin…. Before you begin writing your feasibility study… 1. Identify how, where, and to whom you intend to sell a service or product 2. Figure out how much money you need to start your business and keep it running until it is established. 3. Assess your competition 3

Competitor Analysis Direct competition: These businesses offer the same products and services to the same clients within the same territory as your business. Secondary or indirect competition: Businesses that offer slightly different products and services or target a different client within the same territory. Substitute competition: Businesses that offer different products and services to the same clients in the same territory. Example: Robots vs Labors 4

Arenas Economic Feasibility This involves questions such as whether the firm can afford to build the system, whether its benefits should substantially exceed its costs, and whether the project has higher priority than other projects that might use the same resources. Technical Feasibility Study This involves questions such as whether the technology needed for the system exists, how difficult it will be to build, and whether the firm has enough experience using that technology. 5

Arenas Schedule Feasibility Study This involves questions such as how much time is available to build the new system, when it can be built (i. e. during holidays), interference with normal business operation, etc. Organizational Feasibility Study This involves questions such as whether the system has enough support to be implemented successfully, whether it brings an excessive amount of change, and whether the organization is changing too rapidly to absorb it. 6

Scenario e. Soft are planning to setup a new private communication network that will allow their clients and teams to communicate securely through video conferencing. This implementation requires a new set of hardware and software in the setting up of a secure intranet which the staffs will need to understand how to operate. e. Soft budgeted around 1 M to the proposed system and would like to finish the implementation within the next 16 weeks. 7

Feasibility Study Objectives • Raise funding • Satisfy grant awarding bodies, where appropriate, both financially and in terms of project outputs • Satisfy the directors that a project is viable determine the optimum facility mix to maximize revenue • Ensure that all parties agree on the key elements of a project • Form the basis for initial market and project planning, • Enable third parties to value operating contracts • Serve as a solid foundation for developing your business plan. 8

Feasibility Study vs Business Plan • A feasibility study is not a business plan. • The separate roles of the feasibility study and the business plan are frequently misunderstood. • The feasibility study is conducted before the business plan. • The feasibility study provides an investigating function and addresses the question of “Is this a viable business venture? ” • 9

Silly Reasons Given not to Perform FS Project leaders may find themselves under pressure to skip the “feasibility study” step and go directly to building a business. Individuals from within and outside of the project may push to skip this step. Reasons given for not doing a feasibility analysis include: � • We know it’s feasible. An existing business is already doing it. • Why do another feasibility study when one was done just a few years ago? 10

QA “ One who asks a question is a fool for five minutes; one who does not, remains a fool forever 11