Representing business policies in the Jackson system development method

Abstract

This paper is based on the tenet that a specific class of system, business information systems, contains a large element of information processing which is dictated by business needs and that these needs will inevitably change. Many researchers and industrialists have recognised these and have called for systems to be designed for evolution. The level of provision for system evolution in systems developed using the Jackson's method is limited to changes in functional requirements; business policy changes are still not addressed and this has contributed to some degree of inflexibility in such area of change. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to discuss the issues pertaining to the evolution and maintenance of business policies in a system specification using the Jackson System Development method.