Quick Answer
The correct answer is to assess the technical, operational, and economic viability of the proposed system. This is the primary purpose because a feasibility study functions as a structured gatekeeper in the system acquisition lifecycle, ensuring that an organization does not commit resources to a project that cannot be built, integrated into existing workflows, or financially sustained. On the Certified Information Systems Auditor CISA exam, this concept tests your understanding of risk management during the business case phase, often appearing in questions that contrast feasibility with a full cost-benefit analysis or a requirements gathering session. A common trap is confusing feasibility with a detailed design review; remember that feasibility happens before any design work begins. To lock in the answer, use the mnemonic "T.O.E."—Technical, Operational, and Economic—as the three pillars that must all be viable before moving forward.
This CISA practice question tests your understanding of information systems acquisition, development and implementation. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
What is the PRIMARY purpose of conducting a feasibility study before acquiring a new information system?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "primary"
Why it matters: Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
To define detailed system requirements
Why wrong: Requirements are defined after feasibility.
To select a vendor through a bidding process
Why wrong: Vendor selection occurs later.
To assess the technical, operational, and economic viability
The primary purpose is to evaluate viability.
To determine the total cost of ownership
Why wrong: Cost is a component of feasibility, not the primary purpose.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
To assess the technical, operational, and economic viability
The primary purpose of a feasibility study is to evaluate whether a proposed information system is technically achievable, operationally compatible with existing processes, and economically justified before committing resources. This upfront assessment prevents investment in systems that cannot be successfully implemented or sustained, directly addressing risk management in the acquisition lifecycle.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
To define detailed system requirements
Why it's wrong here
Requirements are defined after feasibility.
To select a vendor through a bidding process
Why it's wrong here
Vendor selection occurs later.
To assess the technical, operational, and economic viability
Why this is correct
The primary purpose is to evaluate viability.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "primary" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
To determine the total cost of ownership
Why it's wrong here
Cost is a component of feasibility, not the primary purpose.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates confuse the feasibility study with later phases like requirements gathering or vendor selection, leading them to pick A or B, when the core CISA focus is on the study's role as a go/no-go decision gate based on viability assessment.
Detailed technical explanation
A feasibility study typically employs a structured framework such as the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) feasibility phase, where technical feasibility examines existing infrastructure compatibility (e.g., network bandwidth, hardware specs, API integration points), operational feasibility assesses user acceptance and workflow alignment, and economic feasibility uses cost-benefit analysis (including NPV, ROI, and payback period). In practice, an organization might discover during the study that a cloud-based ERP system requires 99.99% uptime SLA but the current WAN link only supports 99.9%, making the project technically infeasible without major network upgrades.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A small business has 20 workstations on the 192.168.1.0/24 network and one public IP from its ISP. The router uses PAT (NAT overload) so all 20 devices share one public address using different source ports. NAT questions test whether you understand the four address terms and which direction each translation applies.
What to study next
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FAQ
Information Systems Acquisition, Development and Implementation — This question tests Information Systems Acquisition, Development and Implementation — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: To assess the technical, operational, and economic viability — The primary purpose of a feasibility study is to evaluate whether a proposed information system is technically achievable, operationally compatible with existing processes, and economically justified before committing resources. This upfront assessment prevents investment in systems that cannot be successfully implemented or sustained, directly addressing risk management in the acquisition lifecycle.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Yes — watch for: "primary". Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 25, 2026
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