Alternative Methods of System Development

Application software refers to a set of pre-written application software programs that can be sold or leased. Lastly, outsourcing involves using an external vendor to develop an organization's information system. Prototyping is an effective approach to developing systems because the prototypes are refined repeatedly until they meet end-user requirements. It allows users to provide information requirements. 

There are a number of approaches to alternative system building. Some of these methodologies include the system life cycle, outsourcing, application software package and prototyping. A system lifecycle applies a phased approach to developing systems. Prototyping refers to the process of developing an experimental system quickly for demonstration and evaluation to allow the end user to define the information requirements (Popescu et al., 2017). Application software refers to a set of prewritten application software programs that can be sold or leased. Lastly, outsourcing involves using an external vendor to develop an organization's information system. 

One of the organizations that have used an alternative approach for developing their system is the Ford Company. The specific method used by this firm is the prototype technique. This approach was used because of its efficiency. According to the firm, prototyping saves the company up to $439k of lead time (Popescu et al., 2017). It takes the company only a few times to print the prototypes, irrespective of whether they are metals or plastics. This allows the firm to determine within 24 hours whether a particular part needs to be included in the system development. 

Some of the factors that were considered in selecting this approach include cost and time. Prototypes have been reported to save a significant amount of lead time, which translates to quicker response time to customer request (Mabogunje, 2015). I believe this is true because prototyping source often performs more than one function. It covers both the quality control checks and finishing as well. This makes it a cost effective approach of developing systems. 

In conclusion, prototyping is an effective approach to developing systems because the prototypes are refined repeatedly until they meet end-user requirements. It allows users to provide information requirements. Moreover, prototyping is less costly and efficient because it does not involve a lot of stages unlike other approaches such as the systems life cycle.

Reference 
 
Mabogunje, A. (2015). The development process: A spatial perspective. Routledge. 
Popescu, S., Dale, C., Keegan, N., Ghosh, B., Kaner, R., & Hedley, J. (2017). Rapid prototyping of a low-cost graphene-based impedimetric biosensor. Procedia Technol, 27, 274-276.