Implementation and system management

Abstract

In this chapter we will discuss the main points of an automation project, and look at various aspects of the day-to-day and long-term management of an automated system. In an introductory book such as this, it is not possible to go into the fine detail of systems analysis: the reader can be referred to standard textbooks on the subject (such as that by Daniels and Yeates [1]). In this chapter, however, we do look at the importance of staff participation and involvement in the design and implementation of automation, since current thinking places a great deal of emphasis on this as a means to effectiveness and efficiency. We will also consider some of the effects upon staff of the implementation of an automated system, in the light of speculation and reported research on the subject of the effects of IT in general.