To aid in the LMS development, I have done research and reading on relevant project topics through different media of reference books, internet, and related-industries articles. The information which I have gathered and digested is of tremendous help in my project. My reviews of the literature which have significant contributed to my project's success are as follow:
Leave Management System (LMS)
Upon taking up this project, I have researched through book and internet on implementation of LMS in organizations. To find book solely on LMS is an uphill task, but I managed to retrieve from the internet on the design and implementation of a typical LMS in most of the organizations. From the website [1] of Skelta software company, it defines that LMS encompasses the processes employees use to request time away from work and supervisors use to grant or deny leave based on organization policies. It made me realized the important of automating the LMS from a manual system to a web-based one. It not only promotes organizational efficiency by streamlining the leave workflow. Total cost of administering leave policies are also reduced through its ability to build in specific processes based on unique requirements of individual organization. Below is a typical workflow for a LMS.
Figure 6.1 LMS Workflow
Web Application System
Zak [2] discusses that web application encompasses many technologies, languages, platforms, and needs. In traditional and basic definition, it is like computer-based application in that it allows you to store, query, and interact with data in and from a database, but it extends well beyond that. Simply put, a web application is a website that contains static and dynamic pages working together to facilitate interaction between a user and a web server. He defines the differences between web client-side development and server-side web development, which helps me to learn the complexity of a dynamic web application development from a wider perspective in implementing the LMS. (Refer to Figure 6.2 [3] )
Figure 6.2 Process of a Dynamic Website
Stakeholders Requirement
Dr. Trish [4] and a book 'A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge [5] ' discuss on different interpretations and importance of stakeholders expectations. Stakeholders are defined as any person or group affected by, or which has a legitimate claim on, an organization. Each stakeholder will have different and sometimes competing expectations and objectives, and organization needs. Dr. Trish has shown me how to identify the level of importance and influence for the 4 categories of stakeholders as in Figure 6.3. It helps me to identify and manage the stakeholders by engaging them at different time and process during the project implementation. Effectively, it helps me to identify and align the objectives of the business and the project to successfully complete my project on schedule.
Figure 6.3 Stakeholder Management
Data Modeling and Database Design
Narayan [6] had described that conceptual design activity is technology-independent. It means that during the conceptual design of a database, we should focus on capturing the user-specified business rules and requirements as comprehensively without been constrained by the specific database management system (DBMS) product (MySQL) that will be used for implementation. This has facilitated in the conceptual data modeling for the LMS without been restricted by the MySQL DBMS which I will be implementing for the system. This has greatly enhanced the integrity of my final conceptual schema for the LMS.
I have found many Database books which cannot explicitly explain constraints on the metadata from logical/physical data modeling. A book by Andy [7] has done a wonderful job in explaining the various constraints encountered in this phases of data modeling. It uses clear and relevant explanation on the different constraints in designing the data. His concise explanation of the concepts has helped me to understand more on the constraints on primary key, foreign key (referential) and integrity, which greatly contributed to the success of my database testing.
Web Development
After I decided to use Apache web server, PHP server scripting language and MySQL database in a Windows platform to develop and host my web application, I searched the web for the required software and tools for my LMS development. With my inexperience in web development, I found an easy-to-install package called WampServer [8] from the web to help in my system development. I chosen it because it can significant shorten the development process by integrating all the relevant software and tools which I will require for the development. It is free (open source) and also does away with the installation of separate software from different websites from Apache, PHP and MySQL.
With Adobe Dreamweaver CS4 as my web design software, I searched through all the books on Dreamweaver CS4 to find one which can teach me as a beginner on how to create a dynamic web site with database. Regrettably, most of the Dreamweaver CS4 books do not cover much on dynamic web page development. After much searching, I found a book by Zak [9] who has the most comprehensive and independent resource for all levels of web developers. It has tremendously helped me as a beginner in developing the LMS web application. Through intuitive and user-friendly GUI with features like Live View and Code Navigator make a breeze in web design. The Live View makes it possible for you to display my LMS web pages and applications directly from within Dreamweaver without ever having to leave the development environment. With Code Navigator, a pop-up window showing code sources on selected element allows for direct editing of the source code. Furthermore, Zak has touched on building dynamic pages and sites that integrate everything from search functionality to user authentication.
Project Management
The book 'Project Benefits Management - Linking projects to the Business' gives me an insight on the importance of project benefits management which increase the certainty of project success. Most of project management's purposes have been recognized to work 'off line' from 'business as usual' to make some organizational change. The process of project benefits management which encompasses benefits in terms of definition/direction, specification and realization, has been seen as the overall business process which 'fits' the project within the business. Therefore, benefits management is clearly an integral part of the project management and project lifecycle. [10] This has resulted in focusing more on benefits of the organization (business objectives of Vilbert Network Resource) during my LMS project implementation in term of system scalability as the business expands.
