Maximizing Benefits from IT Project Management

Chapter 4

The Systems Development Life Cycle—Introduction

Methodologies currently used to develop technological projects try to cover the elements of the system’s development life cycle (SDLC), which is essentially the succession of phases or stages that a system passes through from its inception until it is removed from operation and replaced by another newer or more adequate system that is needed to address business needs.

Each methodology prescribes this life cycle process in a different way, dividing the process into more or fewer steps, describing the activities in greater or lesser depth, and considering the application of many or only some technologies. However, all the various processes seem to reproduce a similar life cycle progression ...