When you’re in a development position, you may encounter the system development life cycle while working on a project. As a professional, understanding the phases of a system development life cycle and why they’re important may help you more effectively implement it. Learning about the system development life cycle can give you the knowledge and skills required to perform your duties effectively throughout a project.
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In this article, we discuss the system development life cycle, explain how it works, list its different phases and offer tips for working within it.
What is the system development life cycle?
The system development life cycle is a series of stages encompassing the creation and development of a new computer-based system. This life cycle covers the full process of creation, from ideation through development, release and maintenance. Using the system development life cycle provides a structure for the development process and offers guidance to staff working on the project by clarifying expectations at each phase.
How the system development life cycle works
The system development life cycle works like an assembly line, where users complete each process phase before moving on to the next. This helps users produce high-quality systems that match client expectations, meet deadlines and fulfill customer requirements.
Computer systems can be complex and often link systems from multiple software vendors, and system development life cycles allow developers and engineers to focus on one phase at a time and simplify the development process. They can choose from various software development life cycle (SDLC) methodologies or models, such as Waterfall, Agile, Spiral, or Incremental, to help them develop systems throughout the life cycle phases.
7 phases of system development
When managing or operating within a system development life cycle, it’s beneficial to know the phases involved. Some companies or teams may modify this structure to combine one or more phases, but a common structure for a system development life cycle includes:
1. Planning
Planning helps systems engineers and developers identify whether a new system can help a business achieve its strategic objectives. A preliminary plan sometimes called a feasibility study, can allow development teams to outline the resources they need to build new infrastructure or upgrade existing services. This life cycle phase helps teams discover potential problems and work toward solutions.
The planning face may contain several steps within it. A company may undertake an initial analysis to define the project’s objectives and fully understand the problem it’s studying. During brainstorming, the company or team members discuss potential options for the system, including techniques to use and goals to target.
2. Systems analysis
The systems analysis phase is less theoretical and focuses more on practical application. This allows you to perform a functional assessment and finalize the client’s or users’ needs for the system in development. This confirms that plans satisfy all mandatory objectives before progressing to future steps.
A company may use a variety of tools during this analysis period. This may include internally developed systems and public or commercial software and analysis methodologies. The information gathered during this phase may allow the company to make alterations, if needed, before beginning design and development.
3. Systems design
During the system’s design phase, you and your team complete the detailed planning of the system you’re developing. This includes identifying any key components and defining the structure of the system.
This is an important step because it allows you to create the infrastructure for your development project. High-quality work during this phase provides a foundation for further development and creates an opportunity for success for yourself and others working on the team.
4. Development
During development, you begin the functional creation of the new system. This provides the first opportunity for practical assessment of the system as it develops. This also allows for the identification of any potential flaws in the development or the planning process.
The development phase also includes troubleshooting solutions for any potential errors discovered. By assessing an area of concern and thinking about ways to ease that concern, you may develop innovative approaches you can use to create the final system more effectively.
5. Systems testing and integration
Testing during development and before formal release is an important step for maintaining the quality of a project. The systems testing and integration phase allows you to perform quality control by testing your components against expectations and assessing their ability to integrate with any software related to your system development. If necessary, you may apply updates to your plans and execution to raise the overall quality.
A systems testing and integration phase is often an iterative process. A company may complete multiple rounds of testing and assessment during development. This allows for the assessment of responses to earlier concerns and checks the new approach for any areas requiring further development.
6. Implementation
The implementation phase is your opportunity to introduce the developed system to the end users. This may include a commercial release for a product manufactured for outside sale or implementation within an organization for internally developed systems. You may also choose to do so using a limited release, such as internal or closed beta testing, in which you grant access to a smaller population than your ultimate goal.
This phase provides the opportunity to learn through practical assessment by those who use the system in their personal or professional lives. An effective quality control phase can help to minimize the potential for errors during this phase because final implementation commonly requires a significant expansion of the number of users. There may still be potential areas of concern you discover after implementation, so you may then apply your debugging and troubleshooting process to these areas to correct them.
7. Operation and maintenance
The operation and maintenance phase occurs during the effective use of the product by end users. Providing updates and adjustments to the software system after release allows you to alter it to better match the needs of users. You may also respond to any errors that occur and alter the system to account for any other issues.
This is also an opportunity for you to better customize the system to its users by adjusting or adding new features based on use. By responding to any unforeseen uses of the system, or to any requests end users have made, you can add or change features within the system to make it more effective for those who use it.
Tips for the system development life cycle
Here are some tips you can use to maximize the effectiveness of the system development life cycle:
Ask for feedback
At the conclusion of your project, ask for feedback from the client, end users, developers and anyone involved in your system development process. You can use the feedback to enhance aspects that worked well and address areas that need improvement. Important questions to ask might be:
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Did we effectively involve our development teams in the process to make sure everyone understood the project requirements and feasibility concerns?
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Did we deliver a product that met our client’s specifications?
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Did we meet the timeline requirements? If not, what can we do to improve our processes in the future?
Emphasize security
It’s important to both consider the functionality of the system and maintain high levels of security throughout the process. In addition to protecting the system from potential harm during development, it also provides safety and security for end users after release. Releasing a product with security liabilities can impede its functionality and profitability, so it’s important to ensure you provide all the necessary safety measures to protect the company and its users.
Plan carefully
Coding and implementation are important to the life cycle, but spending time planning your project effectively can allow for better communication when you develop the system. Designing a master document that details requirements, expectations and pseudocode can be helpful. Make sure everyone understands the system requirements and desired features before you continue with the project.
Assess your process
Just as it’s beneficial to receive feedback from users on the system at the completion of the project, it’s beneficial to assess your process after you’ve completed it as well. This allows you to identify strengths and find areas for improvement within your development process. You can apply the information you learn from this to future projects to improve their quality.
