Integration of office suite in DS and creating a basis for decision

The Danish Association of Social Workers - Integration of a new Office suite in DS

Background for the project

The office suite at the time in DS was cause to communication problems with municipalities and partners in connection with document exchange because of the lack of compatibility of DS' office suit with the other office suites. DS wanted to resolve this problem since good communication to the outside world is an important IT- and business-strategic aim for DS.

The challenges

The challenge is to create a thorough, well-documented and clear basis for decision for choice of office suite in DS. In connection with this we wish to answer the following questions:

1. How can a new office suite be integrated into DS, including integration with the other IT systems in the association and adaptation to the pc-users?
2. Can a new office suite improve communication with the outside world?
3. Which factors are of importance to DS on choice of office suite?
4. Can an open source office suite meet the demands to an office suite in DS?
5. How can a new office suite help the pc-users in DS with solving their tasks?
6. Which changes does a new office suite bring in DS?
7. Which system development model is most suited to produce a basis for decision for choice of office suite?

Project goals

• Preparation of a basis for decision for choice of office suite.
• Plan implementation of new hardware and software in DS including the necessary education of the users.

The solution

• We used the system development model SIV to identify and prioritize the requirements that an office suite must satisfy and which office suites that best live up to the requirements.
• We used Leavitt's model to indentify the actual problems in DS.
• We used Leavitt's model to find out which needs for change a new office suite brings.
• We made a SWOT analysis for DS to find out if DS is leading an IT-strategy that is in harmony with the association's possibilities. We discovered that DS' possibilities lies in better document exchange with the world outside.
• We used SIV to uncover how to adapt the office suite to DS.