MAKERERE UNIVERSITY

MAKERERE UNIVERSITY BUSINESS SCHOOL

TOPIC:AN ONLINE APPOINTMENT SCHEDULING SYSTEM FOR CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITY

BY

KUTEESA .N. KEVIN 11/U/18506/PS

SUPERVISOR Mr. KASSE JOHN PAUL

A PROJECTREPORT SUBMITTED TO MAKERERE UNIVERSITY BUSINESS SCHOOL AS AREQUIREMENT FOR THE PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE AWARD OF A BACHELORS DEGREEOF OFFICE AND INFORMATION MANAGMENT OF MAKERERE UNIVERSITY

APIRL 2014

DECLARATIONI, Kuteesa.N.Kevin, declare that this dissertation is my original work except where references have been made, and has never been submitted for a degree award to this university, or any other university or institution of higher learning that I am knowledgeable of.

Signed Date....

APPROVALI hereby state and verify by my signature that I have reviewed this report and therefore I declare that it was written by the above student in accordance with the rules and regulations established by Makerere University Business School.Academic Supervisor: Signed Date..................................................MR. KASSE JOHN PAUL

TABLE OF CONTENTSDECLARATIONiAPPROVALiiTable of contentsiiiList of tablesvList of figuresviAbbreviations and Acronymsvii

CHAPTER ONE1INTRODUCTION11.1Introduction11.2Background11.3Statement of the Problem31.4 General objective/purpose of the study31.4.1Specific objective31.5Study Scope31.5.1Subject Scope31.5.2Geographical Scope41.5.2Time Scope41.6Significance of the Study4

CHAPTER TWO5LITERATURE REVIEW52.1Internet Computing52.2Information Systems52.3Web-BasedInformationSystem62.4Concept of Scheduling72.5Types of Scheduling72.6Benefits of Online Scheduling Systems8

CHAPTER THREE11METHODOLOGY111.1Introduction111.2Research Methodology111.3Data Sources/Data Types111.4Primary Data111.5Secondary Data111.6Study population121.7Sample size and sample design121.8Data Collection Methods121.9Interview121.10Observation121.11Document Review13

CHAPTER FOUR16SYSTEM ANALYSIS174.1Introduction174.2System Analysis-Current System17

CHAPTER FIVE29SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT295.1Introduction295.2System Development295.3Results of System Testing295.4System implementation29

CHAPTER SIX30DISCUSSIONS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS316.1Introduction316.2Discussions316.7A Table Showing the Research Objectives, they level of accomplishment and how316.4Conclusion326.5Recommendations326.6Limitations of the study33Reference34

LIST OF TABLESTable1;24Table 225Table 326

LIST OF FIGURESFigure 2: Context Diagram Current System17Figure 3: Level 0 Data Flow Diagram: Current System17Figure 4: Context diagram: New System19figure 5: Level 0 DFD: New System20Figure 6: Entity relational Model27

ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMSCAA:Civil Aviation AuthorityDFD: Data Flow DiagramER: Entity RelationshipERD: Entity Relationship DiagramGB: GigabyteGHZ: GigahertzIS: Information System

34

CHAPTER ONEINTRODUCTION1.1IntroductionThis chapter covers the background, problem statement, purpose, objectives, scope and the significance of the study.1.2BackgroundInformation systems (IS) are increasingly playing a major role towards enhancing productivity, output and service delivery of different sectors in the society. The most fronted reasons for development and use of information systems are efficiency and quality increase through routine automation, facilitation of better business processes, superior service delivery and improved decision making. Laudon and Laudon (2006) defines an information system as a set of interrelated components that collect, process, store, and distribute information to support decision making, coordination and control in an organization. The researchers state that Information systems are a foundation for conducting business today to the extent that survival and the ability to achieve strategic business goals is difficult without extensive use of computer technologies.

Much as there is an increasing transformation of industrial economies and business enterprises as well as the emergence of digital firms which make information systems extremely essential in business today, some organizations have not moved to adopting the use of IS in running some of their business processes and a case in point is Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is a corporate body established by an Act of Parliament, with the objective to promote the safe, regular, secure and efficient use and development of civil aviation inside and outside Uganda. The mandate of the CAA is to coordinate and oversee Uganda's aviation industry including licensing, regulation,air search and rescue missions, air traffic control, ownership of airports and aerodromes, representing Uganda in an international capacity to the aviation community and to all other aviation matters. The authority operates on a highly competitive environment with rapidly changing clientsneeds. This makes the entire working environment interactive in that the clients always have to consult with the different offices about the changing needs and this means schedulingappointments to effect such consultations.Although CAA is technologically enabled, when it comes to scheduling appointments with the different offices or managers, a client is unable to go to the Web to schedule an appointment hence making the business process manual. For a client to schedule an appointment with any of the offices, the client needs to do the following: Physically walk to offices, register with the receptionist or the Personal Assistant (PA) of that office, the receptionist or the PA examines the existing timeslots and then fixes the clients name in a given timeslot of a particular day and then the client will walk back to the offices on the day of the appointment to speak to the manager or the person concerned.

This current paper based approach for scheduling and managing appointments (paper based & sending electronic documents) offers some limited help in managing the appointments but does not address other workday challenges of efficiently managing client flow. In managing phone calls, the receptionists are flooded with clients trying to make an appointment, cancel an existing appointment, rescheduling an appointment as well as sending reminders to the clients. Once the client arrives, the receptionist has no way of knowing moment by moment when Staffare available to take their next appointment. This kind of process expends considerable time and resources. It also results in a disjointed, error prone system.

For a corporate company that is trying to advance the use of technology as a means of improving and streamlining its business processes, CAA needs to transform the way appointments are managed such that the clients, assigned staff and management are on the same page. Clients need to know when to arrive, staff members need visibility of their booked and open time and management simply needs visibility into how the overall system is operating. It is therefore against the above background that the researcher proposes that an appointment scheduling system to efficiently manage the appointment made by clients.

1.3Statement of the ProblemThis paper based system used for scheduling and managing appointments at CAA was tedious, unreliable and time-consuming thus offering limited help in managing the appointments.The system was labor intensive in managing phone calls, the receptionists are flooded with clients trying to make an appointment, cancel an existing appointment, rescheduling an appointment as well as sending reminders to the clients making the entire process tedious. This kind of process expends considerable time and resources hence making the entire system disjointed and error prone.

1.4 General objective/purpose of the study The general objective of the study was to develop an Online Appointment Scheduling System in order to enable efficient and effective scheduling and management of client appointments.1.4.1Specific objective To study the current (manual) Appointment scheduling System that is used by CAA and identify loopholes or weaknesses in that system. To analyze the current Appointment Scheduling System so as to establish requirements for designing the proposed Online Appointment Scheduling System. To design and develop anOnline Appointment Scheduling system so as to resolve the loopholes or weaknesses in the manual Appointment Scheduling System. To test the functionality of the Online Appointment Scheduling system so as to ascertain whether it meets the requirements for which it was developed. 1.5Study ScopeSubject ScopeThis study focused on developing an Online Appointment Scheduling System so as to enable efficient and effective scheduling and management of client appointments for Civil Aviation Authority.

Geographical ScopeThis study was conducted at the Civil Aviation Authority which is located at Entebbe International Airport in Wakiso district. Time ScopeThis study was conducted within a period of up to 4 months from December 2013 till April 20141.6Significance of the Study The study leads to the development of an Online Appointment Scheduling System for CAA that enables efficient scheduling and management of appointments. The study contributes to the existing body of knowledge on information system design, implementation and management that is vital for other researchers to use. The study contributes to the partial fulfillment of the requirements for an award of a degree award in Office and Information Management of Makerere University.

CHAPTER TWOLITERATURE REVIEW2.1Internet ComputingThe Internet is increasingly used as a large interconnection network for deploying distributed applications to solve challenging problems in diverse areas. Application areas include Finance and E-business, Government Services, Scientific Computing and Grids, Bioinformatics, Physics, Remote Visualization, Remote Collaboration, Multimedia applications, and File Sharing.Walsh and Godfrey (2000), define the internet as a vast and burgeoning global web of computer networks with no central management or ownership. It is a massive network of networks, a network which any computer can communicate with any other computer as long as they are both connected to the internet. Similarly Gartner Group (2012) views the Internet phenomenon as a loose confederation of independent yet interconnected networks that share information using a standard set of protocols. Internet computing involves, basic programming languages are such as Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML), Extensible Hypertext Markup Language (XHTML), Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) and JavaScript. The internet is made up of many separate but interconnected networks belonging to commercial, educational and governmental organizations, and Internet Service Providers (ISPs). The services offered on the internet include electronic mail(e-mail), conferencing and chat services, as well as the ability to access remote computers, and send and receive files (Connolly and Begg, 2009).2.2Information SystemsToday it is widely recognized that information systems knowledge is essential for managers because most organizations need information systems to survive and prosper. Information systems can help companies extend their reach to faraway locations, offer new products and services, reshape jobs and work flows, and perhaps profoundly change the way they conduct business, (Laudon & Laudon, 2006).

An information system can be defined technically as a set of interrelated components that collect (or retrieve), process, store, and distribute information to support decision making, coordination and control in an organization. In addition to supporting decision making, coordination, and control, information systems may also help managers and workers analyze problems, visualize complex subjects, and create new products. Information systems contain information about significant people, places, and things within the organization or in the environment surrounding it. By information we mean data that have been shaped into a form that is meaningful and useful to human beings. Data, in contrast, are streams of raw facts representing events occurring in organizations or the physical environment before they have been organized and arranged into a form that people can understand and use, (Laudon, K. &Laudon, J., 2006).2.3Web-BasedInformationSystemWIS is an information system generating hypermedia presentations delivered by means of the Web to users. Many information systems today use the Web as a platform. Their remote clients interact with the system through Web browsers. Increasing demands of E-commerce require richer functionality of such Web-based Information Systems (WIS). This rich functionality goes together with richer means of user-interaction compared to just following links. For the sake of conciseness in the rest of the paper we call such WIS (though not completely correct) interactive WIS. WIS accepts a request from the user, collects necessary data from distributed data sources, integrates the data, and using a process of data transformations forms a hypermedia presentation in concrete end format (Trahanias and Chandrinos,2000)According to Purao (2002) a web-based system should be an easy-to-use system that provided Web-based access for all staffs, rules-based, entry of preferences and viewing of data, credential management, and ability to retrieve information. Peng and Steve (2005) confirmed that web-based system increased the convenience and accessibility of Management Information System services and information about prisoners in order to develop prisoners details with an Integrated Management Information System. Users were provided with accessible, relevant information and quality services that were more expedient than traditional manual system through integration of an automated system for the utilization of e-government services citizen trust, innovation and acceptance factors. Web-based System made work easier for an organization to produce presentations,dramaticallyspeedingtimetogettherequiredreports. 2.4Concept of SchedulingScheduling is a problem that is grounded in many different levels of computer science and computer hardware engineering. Various scheduling and sequencing problems have been addressed since the 1950's by researchers in computer science, operations research and discrete mathematics (Bailey,1952). In a business-computing context, scheduling implies the automatic execution of background tasks at pre-set points in time. Three types of scheduling distinguished are native, basic and advanced scheduling (Bailey,1954).The author studies the phenomenon of scheduled patients who are to be treated in a typical healthcare delivery process. This phenomenon of priorly scheduled arrivals that are treated by a service provider is often studied as a queuing system in which jobs arrive following a deterministic arrival process and receive a service which varies in duration. After this pioneering work on appointment scheduling the subjecthasbeenextensivelyresearchedinbothservicesandhealthcare.2.5Types of SchedulingDynamic versus static scheduling Cayirly and Veral (2003) give a good overview on the state of the art in appointment scheduling categorizing appointment scheduling into two categories with respect to: static and dynamic. In the static environment the appointment system is completely determined in advance, in other words offline scheduling. This is in contrast to the dynamic case in which changes in the schedule are permitted, so called online scheduling.Information System and Appointment SchedulingAccording to Manansang and Hein (1996) as IT solutions become more advanced, scholars have begun to discuss the needs, challenges and opportunities of online scheduling systems. In an early paper on online patient scheduling systems, Manansang and Hein suggest that while online scheduling systems show promise, the efficient utilization of such systems is a real concern. More recent works have also questioned the efficiency of online scheduling systems. In a 2006 study, Kopach et al. (2006) examined open access scheduling systems, which allow patients to schedule appointments 1-2 days in advance. The authors found that, under the right conditions, open access systems are actually quite effective in optimizing the scheduling process, while maintaining an appropriate continuity of care. Recent studies show promises that online appointment scheduling holds for improving clinic-patient relationships. For example, Kirshners 2003 study suggests that online scheduling tools are part of a suite of IT solutions that can improve doctor-patient relationships which therefore means that these can be extended in other servicesectors(Kirshner,2003).OnlineSchedulingSystemOnline scheduling system is a Web-based application that allows individuals to conveniently and securely book their appointments and reservations online through any Web-connected device, such as a computer, laptop, smart phone or tablet. They typically access the online scheduling system through a Book Now button found on a Web site or page, or from a URL provided to them. Once a date and time are selected, the system will automatically confirm the booking and instantly record it within the system, without any staff action needed. In addition to online scheduling, online scheduling systems also come equipped with other beneficial features like automated e-mail and text message reminders, which the system sends out to clients and booked individuals on a specific date prior to their scheduled appointment; recording and record-keeping capabilities that make it quick and simple to access data associated with a specific appointment; and repeat clients reminders, which the system sends out automatically when a specified amount of time has expired between appointments. 2.6Benefits of Online Scheduling Systems24-Hour ConvenienceScheduling appointments over the phone usually requires an individual to phone in during office hours, as few facilities offer round-the-clock phone booking. This is an inconvenience for most patients, as they too are working at this time. Additionally, many individuals prefer to schedule their appointments online rather than over the phone. An online scheduling system allows for 24-hour scheduling, not just during normal facility or office hours.

TimesavingsStaff spends less time on the phone booking and managing appointments, thereby freeing up their schedule for more important and pressing tasks. Booking individuals also save time, as they no longer have to commit a part of their busy schedule to calling their service provider (or remain on hold, which adds minutes to the scheduling process). Monetary savingsThe time savings experienced by a facility can translate into monetary savings, as both staff time and services translate into expenses and revenue, respectively. As staff resources can now be directed at other tasks, a scheduling system can eliminate the need for a staff member to work overtime or for management to hire new staff members to handle the work overload created by the appointment-scheduling process. Review of existing Online Appointment Scheduling systemsAn Online Patient Appointment Scheduling System Based On Web Services Architecture

The goal of the automated patient appointment scheduling is to integrate distributed clinical systemsinto a set of consistent and convenient services accessible via a web browser. With this system patients can book for appointments from doctors at any time and from anywhere. This system also enables the doctors to manage their appointment schedules from anywhere and at any time. This system is able to send reminder notifications to the patients through emails hence making the entire process patient-centered.

The researcher bench marked from the above system to develop an online appointment scheduling system for CAA. However with the appointments systems for CAA new functionalities are added to the system for example the system is so responsive in that it can be accessed on any screen size.

CHAPTER THREEMETHODOLOGY1.1IntroductionThis chapter focused on the various methods the researcher used to obtain the required information.

1.2Research MethodologyIn order to achieve the listed research objectives, this studyused a number of research methods .According toMingers (2001) using a cross-section of research methods is better than one because it helps in eliminating the risk of relying on only one method. Specifically, the study used both quantitative and qualitative research techniques involving exploratory field surveys, stakeholder consultations and benchmarking other organizations with similar systems besides carrying out a thorough literature review.

1.3Data Sources/Data TypesThe data on the study was gathered from both primary and secondary sources.Primary DataThis wasobtained from the staff and management of CAA especially those involved or in charge of making appointments at CAA (Receptionist) as well as the clients who interact with the different offices. It involved observing the way receptionist schedule appointments for the different clients and also interviewing some of the employees and clients of the organization on the processes they go through to schedule any appointment with a particular office.Secondary DataThis was obtained from secondary sources through reviewing literature about similar studies. Some of the secondary data was also obtained from the company journals, magazines as well as mission and vision statements of the organization. This helped a lot in understanding the processes involved in appointment scheduling at CAA.

1.4Study populationA total of 25 participants were involved in this study. These comprised of CAA employees as well as clients.1.5Sample size and sample designThe researcher used simple random sampling and purposive sampling techniques. Simple random was applied when selecting interview respondents for clients while Purposive sampling was used in selecting other categories of respondents. To enable diversity of views up to 2 respondent categories were involved including clients and employees. For example 12 employees and 13 clients were selected randomly to participate in the survey.

1.6Data Collection MethodsData was collected through observations, interviews and document reviews. This led to collecting reliable and comprehensive data that led to conclusions and recommendations made by this study.

InterviewAccording to (Brief 17, 2009) an interview is a method of askingquantitative or qualitative questions orally of key participants. In this study the researcher interviewed the employees and clients about how they make and manage their appointments and what they would need to efficiently improve on the appointment process and the researcher was able to capture these as part of the requirements. If you want to get more in-depth information about perceptions, insights, attitudes, experiences, or beliefs it issuggested that Interview is the best option for data collection (Brief 17, 2009).

ObservationThe researcher used Observation as another way of collecting data for the study. The researcher conducted regular visits to CAA to study the current Appointments scheduling system and identified the various weaknesses of the current system.

Document ReviewThe researcher also examined documents, forms, reports, and files associated with the current system. This was a good way to gain some understanding of the system, quickly gather information from the existing documents of the organization, books from the library, internet, journals and other relevant published literature to enhance development of an effective online Appointment Scheduling system.

1.7 REQUIREMENTS SPECFICATIONS The sections covers the user, functional, non-functional and system requirements for the Online Appointment Scheduling system to work and run efficiently and effectively.System RequirementsThese included the hardware and software that were required and included:Hardware Requirements A dual core processor with at least 2.8-gigahertz (GHz) 32-bit (x86) processor, 300 GB hard disk 4GB of and RAM for a fast system. A laser jet printer was required for printing the reports.

Software Requirements Wamp server 5.0This software help in creating a database that keeps the information about the different appointments made by the clients Laraval framework This framework was used for developing PhP or web based applications BootstrapThis software was used to enable the responsiveness of the system such that it can be accessed on any screen size be it of a laptop or a smart phoneUser Requirements The system should be updated frequently The system should facilitate the process of scheduling appointments with the Resources It should be user friendly and easy to operate.Functional Requirements The Online appointment scheduling system should be user friendly The system should be updated frequently The system should provide up-to-date information regarding clients time availability The system should facilitate the process of scheduling appointments with the Resources

Non-Functional Requirements The system is able to deny non authorized users from accessing information through provision of administrative restrictions like passwords. Manages data over the Internet and CAA private Networks It should be scalable

System Design The system was designed following the prototype approach of the system life cycle development. In this approach, the researcher came up with a model that was given to the users to try out and later errors were identified and rectified. This was an iterative process until the final product was delivered.Prototyping was used because it is relatively inexpensive and quick to build. The four step model of the prototyping process consists of the following; Identify users basic requirements, develop a working prototype, use the prototype, revise enhance the prototype

Identify basic user requirementAt this phase the researcher identified the basic requirements that the users (clients and resources) wanted from the system and these were the ones that were based on to develop a working model of the system. Among the basic requirements identified was making sure that the users can manage their appointments from anywhere at any time.

Develop a working prototypeBased on the requirements elicited from the user, the researcher (system developer) developed a working prototype. This was developed using the larval framework, bootstrap and work bench. This was later presented to the users.Use the PrototypeAfter developing the working model it was presented to the users who used. As the prototype was used the users were able to ascertain whether the prototype met the user expectations or notand on that basis a decision was made whether to operationalize or revise and hence the prototype.

Revise and enhance the prototypeAfter using the system the users were able to identify more improvements to be captured in the prototype and the system developer was able to capture all those improvements in the prototype.

Operationalize the prototypeThe last phase was to operationalize the prototype into a complete working system after the users accepted that the system met all their needs and requirement.Figure 1Process of Developing a PrototypeOperational prototypeIdentify basic requirementsRevise and enhance the prototype

Use the prototypeDevelop a working prototypeUserSatisfied?

Step 1

Step 2

Step3

YES Step 4Systems TestingThe researcher carried out different tests which included; unit tests, integration tests, systems test, quality assurance tests, validation tests. This helped to ascertain whether the system functionswere as intended.

CHAPTER FOURSYSTEM ANALYSIS4.1IntroductionThis chapter focused on the analysis of the Online Appointment Scheduling system that was designed for the Civil Aviation Authority.

4.2System Analysis-Current SystemThe current paper based system used for scheduling and managing appointments at CAA is so tedious, unreliable and time-consuming thus offering limited help in managing the appointments. The system is so labor intensive that in managing phone calls, the receptionists are flooded with clients trying to make an appointment, cancel an existing appointment, rescheduling an appointment as well as sending reminders to the clients making the entire process tedious. Once the client arrives, the receptionist has no way of knowingmoment by moment when Staff are available to take their next appointment. This kind of process expends considerable time and resources hence making the entire system disjointed and error prone.

Figure 2: Context Diagram Current SystemThe figure below shows the interaction between the system and external agents which act as data sources and data sinks. The context diagram shows the entire system as a single process, and gives no clues as to its internal organization.Paper based Appointment Scheduling SystemClientResource

Schedule AppointmentTime and Date Available

Time and Date of AppointmentClient Information

Figure 3: Level 0 Data Flow Diagram: Current System1.0Call secretaryClients2.0Sign Name in Appointment Book3.0Go to Office on schedule day 4.0Meet resource ResourceClients

Schedule Appointment call detailsCall details

Call details

Appointment details Sign in the bookAppointment details

Appointment details

Day & time of appointmentGo toofficeDay of appointment

Day & time of appointmentMeet resourceAdviceAdvice detailsFigure 4: Context diagram: New SystemClientResourceOnline Appointment SchedulingSystemSystem Administrator

Schedule appointment Advisor Information

Appointment day & time Reports on appointments

System MonitoringSystem User feedback

sfigure 5: Level 0 DFD: New System1.0Login to Appointment systemClients2.0View resource appointment day & time3.0view schedule 4.0Go to office on schedule day 5.0Meet with resource Resource

View Schedule Appointment schedule

client login Resource Login

AppointmentDetails schedule detailsAppointmentAppointment detailsdetails

Day of appointment

4.3 Scope The study concentrated on the development of an Online Appointment Scheduling system for CAA that was to be used to handle efficient and effective appointment scheduling for both the clients and employees of CAA.4.4 System Objectives

Performance objectivesThe online appointment scheduling system is able to improve on the appointment scheduling process between the company clients and the company in that it will be able to improve efficiency and client satisfaction.

Cost objectivesThe online appointments scheduling system enables the company to reduce on the costs of conducting business with its clients. The clients can be able to make appointments online without moving to the company premises.

4.5 Feasibility StudyThe researcher carried out a feasibility study to assess whether the online appointment scheduling system was viable by the CAA. The feasibility study included the following dimensions;Technical feasibilityThis described the technical aspect of the online appointment scheduling system. The researcher assessed that the technology that was to be used to implement the system and found out that it was in existence which included internet technologies.Operational feasibilityThe current organizational activities and the procedures were adequate to support the online appointments scheduling system at CAA because all the employees were educated therefore had the minimum requirements to operate and use the system when availed with the system.

Economic feasibilityIt was found that the online appointment scheduling system was economically viable to take on. After weighing the cost of taking on the system verses its benefits it was found that the online appointments scheduling system would increase productivity and client satisfaction hence the decision to take it up.

Legal FeasibilityThe online appointment scheduling system was found to be legally viable. Following a detailed review of the all the laws in relation to information technology, information usage and people, there was no trace of the system violating the rights of the individuals that would use the system. All the information that the system desires was carefully agreed on by CAA.

4.6 Requirement SpecificationSystem RequirementsThese included the hardware and software that were required and included:Hardware A dual core processor with at least 2.8-gigahertz (GHz) 32-bit (x86) processor, 300 GB hard disk 4GB of and RAM for a fast system. A laser jet printer was required for printing the reports.

Software Used Wampserver 5.0This software help in creating a database that keeps the information about the different appointments made by the clients Laraval framework This framework was used for developing PhP or web based applications BootstrapThis software was used to enable the responsiveness of the system such that it can be accessed on any screen size be it of a laptop or a smart phone Anti-virus; Norton antivirus was used to prevent attacks from viruses.

User Requirements The system should be updated frequently The system should provide up-to-date information regarding clients time availability The system should facilitate the process of scheduling appointments with the Resources It should be user friendly and easy to operate.

Functional Requirements The Online appointment scheduling system should be user friendly The system should be updated frequently The system should provide up-to-date information regarding clients time availability The system should facilitate the process of scheduling appointments with the Resources The system should be scalable The system should be easy to manage and update The system administrator should have full access and privileges to manage the system including editing resources time availability and adding new users

Non-Functional Requirements The system is able to deny non authorized users from accessing information through provision of administrative restrictions like passwords. Manages data over the Internet and CAA private Networks It should be scalable

4.7 System DesignConceptual Design of the SystemIt involved specifying the entities that were used, the corresponding attributes of the entities, as well as the appropriate data types of the attributesTable1;clientsData Type

clien id INT

cfnameVARCHAR(25)

clnameVARCHAR(25)

cgenderVARCHAR(6)

cemailVARCHAR(50)

cpassword

VARCHAR(100)

cphoneVARCHAR(15)

caddressTEXT

corgVARCHAR(100)

created_atTIMESTAMP

updated_atTIMESTAMP

Table 2ResourceData Type

id

TINYINT

rname

VARCHAR(50)

rtitle

VARCHAR(10)

rposition

VARCHAR(50)

rgender

VARCHAR(45)

remail

VARCHAR(45)

rpassword

VARCHAR(100)

rphone

VARCHAR(45)

created_atTIMESTAMP

updated_atTIMESTAMP

BookData Type

id

INT

client_id

INT

resource_id

TINYINT

bpref

VARCHAR(10)

bday

DATE

bfrom

TIME

bto

TIME

breason

VARCHAR(50)

binfo

TEXT

bstatus

VARCHAR(10)

bcomment

TEXT

created_at

TIMESTAMP

updated_at

TIMESTAMP

deleted_atTIMESTAMP

Table 3

4.8 Logical Design of the SystemThis involved clearly showing how the different entities relate with each other.it involved identifying the primary keys of each of the entities as well as the foreign keys so as to create the relationships as shown below.Figure 6: Entity relational Model

Systems TestingThe researcher carried out different tests which included; unit tests, integration tests, systems test, quality assurance tests, validation tests. This helped to ascertain whether the system functions were as intended.Unit TestThese were conducted on the Login module within the system. This tracked and monitored the Login attempts that were provided by the user when logging into the system. This module tracked the attempts and if a user continued providing a wrong password, the fourth time the system closed suggesting to the user to seek help from the system administrator.Systems TestThis testing was conducted on a complete, integrated system to evaluate the system's compliance with its specified requirements. The hardware and software were tested upon passing through the integration tests. This helped to detect defects both within the "inter-assemblages" and also within the system as a whole. The system response in relation to the commands and requests by the users were a success as the users were able to receive the information without a hitch.Volume TestThis testing was done to ensure that the system is capable of handling a large quantity of data since the system was expected to work for a long period of time and that a large amount of records had to be input for the long time of operation.User acceptance TestThis was conducted to check if the requirements of the systems were met. Users were able to make and cancel appointments.

CHAPTER FIVESYSTEM DEVELOPMENT

5.1IntroductionThis chapter describes how the entire implementation of the system was done and describes the testing of the entire project.

5.2System DevelopmentThe system development was done through the use of Bootstrap, and Wamp server 2.1, work bench as well as larval framework. With this new system the clients can make or manage their own appointments from wherever they might be without necessarily walking to the office premises of CAA because the system can be accessed from online. The employees can also manage their own schedules through approving, pending or rejecting appointments without necessarily using their secretaries .When the client logins into the system he or she makes an appointment with the resource. The resource in turn always keeps checking on the system to either reject, pend or approve the appointment.

5.3Results of System TestingThe system was tested to find out whether it matches with the objectives and the requirements. Data was input into the system and the following were observed; The system is able to keep the unauthorized users from accessing data through requirement of a username and password. The system is able to allow clients to make appointments online. The system enables a resource to manage his or her appointment schedule Therefore, the system is able to meet the objectives and the requirements as specified.

5.4System implementationSystem implementation was done by the use of Work bench which was used for creation of the database. This was used alongside larval framework which was used to develop the body of the system. Bootstrap was also integrated in the development of the system so as to make the system very responsive to any screen size be it of a laptop or the smallest smart phone. Wamp server was also used to support the database of the system

CHAPTER SIXDISCUSSIONS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS6.1IntroductionThis chapter focused on the discussions, conclusion, recommendations, limitations and the future work of the system. The following are discussed below;

6.2DiscussionsThe findings of the study that triggered the design of an Online Appointments Scheduling System indicate that CAA was using a manual system for scheduling and managing appointments. This was really so tedious, unreliable and time-consuming thus offering limited help in managing the appointments. The system was so labor intensive that in managing phone calls, the receptionists were flooded with clients trying to make an appointment, cancel an existing appointment, rescheduling an appointment as well as sending reminders to the clients making the entire process tedious. Once the clients arrived, the receptionist had no way of knowing moment bymomentwhenStaffwere available to take their next appointment. This kind of process expended considerable time and resources which made the entire system disjointed and error prone.The study therefore came up with an efficient and effective system (Online Appointment Scheduling) which offers a user friendlyinterface allowing clients and managers to manage the appointment scheduling process in a more efficient and effective way. With this new systems the Clients can go online anytime, review the managers available days andtimeslots, schedule an appointment, cancel and reschedule appointments. The system sends an automated email to remindclients of their appointment a day prior to the scheduled day. On the other hand, the system also allows managers togo online at any time to check their schedule, make changes to their available timeslots, or even cancelappointments. Overall, the system helps provide better service to clients and managers.

6.7A Table Showing the Research Objectives, they level of accomplishment and how they were achieved.ObjectivesLevel of completion

1To study the current (manual) Appointment scheduling System that is used by CAA so as to identify loopholes or weaknesses in that system. The objective was highly achieved since loopholes in the current system were identified.

2To analyze the current Appointment Scheduling System so as to establish requirements for designing the proposed Online Appointment Scheduling SystemRequirements were well established for the new system development

3To design and develop an Online Appointment Scheduling system so as to resolve the loopholes or weaknesses in the manual Appointment Scheduling System.A conceptual and technical design for the system were designed

4To test the functionality of the Online Appointment Scheduling system so as to ascertain whether it meets the requirements for which it was developed. An Online Appointment Scheduling system was designed and tested successfully

6.4ConclusionThe study shows that the development of an online appointments scheduling system can help to effectively improve client satisfaction through reducing waiting time. The new system eliminates the excessive use of paperwork at the same time streamlining appointment scheduling process at CAA. With the new system the labor intensive activities are significantly reduced and the time taken to make an appointment is also tremendously reduced. This goes a long way in improving efficiency and customer satisfaction.

6.5RecommendationsTrainingThe researcher recommends adequate and proper user training to both the staff and the clients of Civil Aviation Authority so that they can be well conversant with the usage of the system.

BackupA backup site or replica of the system should be put in place in case of any break down of the system so that work is not put to a standstill while working on the system.

System securitySystem security should be enhanced to avoid hackers and viruses from attacking and tampering with the system. Security measures should be put in place for example the use of firewalls, updated antivirus software, passwords.

System MaintenanceJust like any other system, system maintenance is very vital, if the system is to continue performing according to users needs, data administration is very crucial so as to maintain data integrity.

6.6Limitations of the study The researcher was constrained by inadequate fund as she was not in position to acquire all the requirements she hoped to use in the design and development of the online Appointment Scheduling system. The researcher was not able to integrate all the features in the information system because there was limited time and yet the project required a lot of dedication and patience. Training users, people hate change especially when it comes to changing from the system they are used to one where they need to be trained. People were hesitant to switch to the use of the new system.

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