INTRODUCTION

• Define business analysis
• Discuss what requirements are and how they are utilized in analysis
• Describe requirements elicitation and techniques available

PUTTING REQUIREMENTS ELICITATION INTO PRACTICE

• Describe how to use 11 different elicitation techniques to understand stakeholder requirements: Document Analysis, Observation, Interviews, Surveys and Questionnaires, Requirements Workshops, Brainstorming, Focus Groups, Interface Analysis, Data Mining, Mind Mapping, Benchmarking and Market Analysis
• Improve your elicitation skills by:
  • Practicing several elicitation techniques
  • Utilizing active listening techniques
  • Enhancing critical thinking skills
  • Using various techniques for increased brainstorming results
• Choose the appropriate technique(s) for your project

GETTING THE MOST OUT OF ELICITATION

• Describe the considerations for planning elicitation
• Choose the most appropriate elicitation technique(s)
• Ensure the right people are involved in elicitation activities
• Validate your elicitation results
• Manage Conflict
• Confirm stakeholders have a shared understanding of requirements

INTRODUCTION TO SCOPING

• Define solution scope and explain its applicability and purpose
• Differentiate between solution scope and project scope
• Identify the components of scope and explain the purpose of a business requirements document
• Describe the value of scoping your area of analysis

DEFINE PROJECT CONTEXT AND PURPOSE

• Survey the Project
• Explain how to assess a project within the larger context of the enterprise
• Identify the documents and information valuable to establishing project context
• Describe Project Purpose
  • Differentiate business drivers from problem solutions
  • Study problems and opportunities in the organization
  • Clearly state business objectives
  • Define project approach
  • Compose a well-defined problem statement
  • Construct a project glossary and illustrate its value

DEPICT OTHER KEY SCOPE PARAMETERS

• Distinguish and express key scope parameters and explain their importance
  • Risks
  • Assumptions
  • Constraints
  • Dependencies
• Plan for detailed scope elicitation

SCOPE YOUR AREA OF ANALYSIS

• Express scope with graphical representation
  • Illustrate components of graphical scope & order of definition
    • Identify external agents
    • Analyze and Identify data flows
    • Distinguish project boundary
    • Formulate purpose-driven name
  • Complete scope with text documentation
    • Detect stakeholders from scope context
    • Analyze scope parameters for impacts on analysis planning

FINALIZING SCOPE

• Evaluate and prepare scoping results
  • Indicate newly identified project information
  • Identify important actions performing a final quality check
  • Produce formal context DFD (scope diagram)
• Validate Scope with Stakeholders
  • Explain process of validating your area of analysis
  • Describe considerations when planning communications about scope and impacts
  • Explain the importance and describe an approach to gaining stakeholder agreement on scope
• Baseline the scope
  • Define a baseline
  • Describe the value and purpose of baselining the results of the scoping effort
• Describe next steps for business analysis after scoping
  • Identify the transition to requirements management
  • Identify options for requirements analysis and elicitation
  • Explain how scope is used throughout the project

INTRODUCTION TO REQUIREMENETS ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES

• Describe requirements and the importance of requirements analysis
• Provide guidance on how requirements analysis techniques are applicable within any methodology
• Compare and contrast the requirements analysis perspectives: what vs how and AS IS vs TO BE

BREAKING DOWN REQUIREMENTS INTO CORE COMPONENTS

• Define the four core components that make up all requirements
  • Data
  • Process
  • External Agent/Actor
  • Business Rules
• Describe what the core components represent
• Identify the importance of core components to your audience

USING ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES TO YOUR ADVANTAGES

• Describe how particular analysis techniques:
  • Drive quality analysis
  • Communicate requirements perspectives effectively
• Go beyond documenting requirements solely with text – describe how diagrams and models can also be used for analysis
• Compare and contrast the different requirements analysis techniques when preparing to communicate with your audience
  • Context Data Flow Diagram
  • Decomposition Diagram
  • Entity Relationship Diagram
  • Glossary
  • Decision Tables and Decision Models
  • Flowcharts
  • Use Case Modeling
  • User Stories
  • Prototyping
• Create the right analysis approach based on your stakeholder’s learning style
• Confirm the analyzed requirements with stakeholders

DEVELOPING AN ANALYSIS APPROACH

• Review elicitation and analysis techniques
  • Workshop – What is your Analysis Approach?
  • Work in groups to select techniques and determine your approach to a given case study (Students may use their projects)
  • Rate your outcome with the Analysis Checklist provided
• Revise your approach as needed and present
• Discuss success criteria for an analysis approach to getting started and/or moving your project forward
• Discuss why you chose each particular elicitation and analysis technique in your approach
• Define Excellent Requirements characteristics
• Requirements Management: Organize and capture requirements
  • Describe why being more organized increases team agility
  • Distinguish the different levels of requirements categories and explain their area of focus
  • Describe the different kinds of requirements information that needs to be included in your requirements repository
  • Compare and contrast approaches for effectively organizing, filtering and reporting your requirements-related content

SWIMMING WITH THE SHARKS

• Workshop – Swimming with the Sharks
  • Work in groups to create an approach for overcoming real world obstacles that effect projects
  • Describe key strategies for having difficult conversations with SMEs and maneuvering through office politics
  • Describe options for increased stakeholder engagement with a Quick Tip job aid
  • Discuss approaches to resolve conflicting needs, including prioritization options
  • Define methods for performing traceability and impact analysis

COURSE SUMMARY

• Bringing it all together
• Develop an Action Plan with next steps on the student’s current project