Bite sized training sessions:

Fundamentals of Business Analysis

Objectives
Analyse the reasons why the fundamental components of all Business Analysis tools and methods must be the same
Examine fundamental components of Business Analysis

Setting the scene: scope of the Business Analyst role

There is a chain of reasoning that leads from the statement of a problem to the implementation of solutions

involving up to
Owners
defines measures of success and $targets Business Analysts confirm & document
$Money!

10 groups of people

Strategists Sponsors
establish a Programme that delivers the strategy Business Analysts document Programme TOR and help build the Business Case determine the strategy to hit the targets Business Analysts help do market research, create strategy, challenge & document

Programme Managers
Institute Projects that implement the programme Business Analysts document the Project TOR

Project Stakeholders
Business Analysts specify requirements for Projects (in the Business Model)

Design Analysts
design solution that satisfies the requirements Business Analysts write functional specifications, protect requirements & document compromises

Solution Builders
build solution Business Analysts protect requirements & document compromises

Solution Builders & Business

test solution Business Analysts ensure tested against requirements

Project managers
Implement solution Business Analysts help with -Process and data migration -Cutover planning -Rollout

Users
Accept solution Business Analysts help with

-$MEASURING $BENEFITS $REALISATION

POST-IMPLEMENTATION Business Analysts feed back to the Owner how well their measure of success has been achieved

Chain Of Reasoning:

Stakeholders

Stakeholders

Drivers

Drivers

Drivers

Drivers

Objectives

Objectives Objectives Objectives Objectives

Change Requirements

Change Requirements

Change Requirements

Change Requirements

Change Requirements

Change Requirements must be assumed to be wrong until they are proved to be right

Scope of analysis of change requirements

Change requirements can be for (amongst others)
Processes Organisation units Locations Channel Data Applications Technologies Non-functionals oh and the valid intersections!!!

Change Requirements Scope Example

We need to change how we take orders (process) by the tele-orders team (organisation unit) at our Leeds contact centre (location) by phone or email (channel) to capture alternate delivery addresses (data) on the Chordiant system (application) running on the intranet (technology) and make it available 24/7/365 (non-functional).

Fundamental Components of Business Analysis

All the Links in the Chain Of Reasoning

Description
The problems / opportunities that the business face

Driver
Addressed as measured by

The measures and targets that will enable us to declare the change project has been successful

Project Objective
Delivered by

Definitions of what changes are required that will affect the measures of success (objectives) sufficiently for the project to be declared successful

Change Requirement
Enforces

What rules must be implemented by the changes specified in the Business requirements

Rule

How to forge links in the Chain Of Reasoning

Analysis products
Problem / opportunity analysis

Driver
Addressed as measured by

SMART objectives

Project Objective
Delivered by

Specific there is a precise definition of the objective Measurable there are units that the objective will be measured in Achievable the measures can be achieved in the real world Relevant this project will actually affect this objective To-die-for the project has failed if it does not achieve the objective

Business Functional Non-functional

Change Requirement
Enforces

high level mid level

Process model Process specification Non-functional specifications Data model Attribute specification

Business Rule

low level

All methods and all approaches HAVE to cover all links in the Chain Of Reasoning

AKA
Driver
Addressed as measured by

Problems Opportunities Threats Constraints

Vision Benefit Target

Project Objective
Delivered by

Agile product backlog Change 7 types of ISEB requirements Requirement 6 types if IIBA requirements
Enforces

Agile product backlog More process and data modelling Business Rule than you can shake a stick at

EXAMPLE way of documenting

Problem / opportunity analysis

Driver

EXAMPLE way of documenting

Problem / opportunity analysis

Driver
Addressed as measured by

SMART objectives

Project Objective

EXAMPLE way of documenting

Problem / opportunity analysis

Driver
Addressed as measured by

SMART objectives

Project Objective
Delivered by

Business Functional Non-functional

Change Requirement

high level mid level

EXAMPLE way of documenting

Problem / opportunity analysis

Driver
Addressed as measured by

SMART objectives

Project Objective
Delivered by

Business Functional Non-functional

Change Requirement
Enforces

high level mid level

Process model Process specification Non-functional specifications Data model Attribute specification

Business Rule

low level

EXAMPLE PROCESS RULES

A BA can request one of 4 types of support: 1. Phone or email based query about a specific point 2. Informal review of a project deliverable 3. Formal review of full set of project deliverables 4. Facilitated workshop of how to apply analysis to a specific project

Process execution rules

1. In the case of phone or email query about a specific point the BA poses the question and the training provider will provide guidance for how the technicalities of Business Analysis apply to the problem Informal reviews of project deliverables will be done by email and will only discuss the technicalities of Business Analysis in relation to the document Formal reviews will involve the BA sending the full set of Analysis deliverables to the training provider who will critique them from a technical perspective and then deliver the feedback in a one-to-one structured feedback session on the client site Facilitated workshops will be initiated by the BA - the training provider will supply workshop agenda and prerequisites which the BA will use to organise the workshop. The training provider will then facilitate the workshop for the project. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Who is interacts with process Where they are Availability of process Volumetrics Performance of process Security & Authorisation levels

Time to start Training course Conduct Training

BA requests support Provide BA support

Analysis Phase Of Project concludes

Non-functional Rules
Monitor Analysis quality

Process dependency rules

EXAMPLE DATA RULES Non-Functional Rules

1. 2. 3. Who is allowed access to the data? How long must this data be kept? How many instances of it must be supported?

Data content rules

Course.Start Date Definition: the date/time the course is scheduled to start Data type: Numeric Size: 12 Domain: Datetime Data rules: Format is DD/MM/YYYY HH:MM When created must be in the future Cannot be a Saturday or Sunday or Bank Holiday

Course

Attributes 1. Name 2. Start Date 3. Course duration Attributes 1. Name 2. Description

Attends

Attributes 1. Name 2. Contact details

Delegate

receives

Support Type

Supplies

Analysis Deliverable

Attributes Data 1. Name 2. Content 3. Review feedback

relationship rules

 There is a chain of reasoning that leads from the statement of a problem to implemented solutions It doesnt matter how you get from problem to solution what method or approach but you will HAVE to Define the problem being fixed (drivers) Define how you will know they have been fixed (objectives) Define what has to change to achieve objectives (high level requirements) Define how big the changes have to be to achieve objectives (scope)

Conclusions

Define what process changes are required (process requirements)

Define what data changes are required (data requirements)

BA Q&A (I) - TOR

what factors caused this project to come in to being? how will you know the project has been successful? how big is the solution? what applications and technologies will the solution impact what data will be migrated? where will it be able to do it? where will the solution impact? who is impacted by the solution? What changes will the project make that will deliver the objectives? what processes does the solution cover? what will the solution be able to do? Driver analysis smart Objectives scope scope scope scope scope scope high level functional requirements

scope & high level functional requirements

high level functional requirements

BA Q&A (II) Process & Data Models

what is the process sequence of the solution? who is involved with each process process models process models & process nonfunctional

what are the rules that each process executes?

what data does each process need to be able to execute? how fast will each process be? how many transactions must each be able to perform? where will each process be used?

process logic
process logic process non-functional process non-functional process non-functional

who is allowed to use each process?

how are all the different sets of data related to each other? what needs to be known about each set of data? how long will data be kept? how much data will be kept?

process non-functional
data model data attributes data non-functional data non-functional

who can access what data?

data non-functional

Questions?