Essentials of Business Analysis

A Lean Toolset For New and Experienced Business Analysts

A business analysts investigates business needs and proposes solutions to business problems. In order to succeed, business analysts require a unique combination of skills that combine an understanding of both business and technology.

This course is a revised version of our popular Essentials of Business Analysis. The revised course is still based on real-world experience and lessons learnt by practising business analysts but now incorporates some new advice for business analysts working in an agile environment.

Participants leave the course with a clear understanding of what is expected from a business analyst in a modern business environment and and the skills necessary to fulfil those expectations.

Course Features

• Draws material from the certification syllabi of International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA), Project Management Institute (PMI) and British Computer Socienty (BCS)

• Summarises the vast body of business analysis best practice into a straightforward Business Analysis Process Model which provides a clear strategy for succeeding at business analysis

• Includes a wealth of supplementary course material offering advice on workflow modelling, describing software features, refining use case diagrams,creating a glossary of terms and populating a product backlog. The material also includes a number of mind map templates and feasibility checklists.

• The revised course structure includes a clear mapping of topics to IIBA’s BABOK, a reworking of the BCS Business Analysis Process Model on which the course is based and new content describing the role of business analysis agile environments

• The course is suitable for graduates, developers and others moving into a BA role for the first time as well as experienced business analysts who need to update their skills, attend a “refresher” course or simply get some new ideas

Participant Benefits

• Develops the essentials knowledge and skills required to investigate business systems, identify business needs and specify the requirements of a software solution

• Improved panning and execution of business analysis tasks following a clear process model

• Gain a better understanding of the role of a business analyst in both traditional and agile environments and prepares business analysts staff for a possible transition to agile

• Explore strategies for better aligning IT with an organisation’s business needs

Who Should Attend

• Those who want further develop their careers as Business Analysts, Business Systems Analysts, Systems Analysts or Functional Analysts

• Those who want enhance their careers with the knowledge and skills necessary to perform Business Analysis such as Product Owners, Product Managers, Software Engineers and Software Developers

• Those who need to coach, plan or manage teams of Business Analysts such as Scrum Masters, Project Managers and Program Managers

• Those who need to participate in or guide Business Analysis activities such as Business Stakeholders, End-User Representatives and Project Sponsors

Course Duration

• 2 days full time

Course Agenda

Introduction to Business Analysis

• The Business Analyst’s Roles and Responsibilities
• The Holistic Approach to Business Analyst
• The Business Analyst’s Skill Set
• Business Analysis Projects
  • Business Analysis and Project Roles
  • Business Analysis Deliverables
  • The Project vs. Product Focus
• Requirements at Different Levels
  • Business Needs, Solution Features and Requirements
  • Requirements and the Traditional Software Development Life Cycle
  • Requirements and Agile Software Development
  • Agile Software Development and the Role of the Business Analyst

Business Analysis Process Model

• Business Analysis Standards and Certification
  • International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA) - BABOK
  • British Computer Society
  • Project Management Institute (PMI) - PMI-PBA
• The Business Analysis Process Model
  • Investigate the Situation
  • Consider Perspectives
  • Analyse Needs
  • Evaluate Options
  • Define Requirements
• Modelling and Business Analysis
  • Modelling Hard Systems
  • Modelling Soft Systems
  • Classifying Business Analysis Models
    • Logical vs. Physical
    • As-is vs. To-be
  • Modelling Workflows
  • Modeling Software Solutions
• Roles and the Business Analysis Process Model
  • Traditional Software Development Life Cycle
  • Agile Software Development

Investigating the Situation

• Defining Initial Scope
  • Traditional vs. Modern Business Structure
  • Defining the Business Areas
  • Software Applications vs. Solutions
  • Defining Initial Scope
    • Business Area
    • Software Solutions
• Identifying Business Requirements
  • Defining Business Needs
    • Strategic Business Needs
    • Operational Business Needs
  • Business Environment PESTLE Analysis
  • Buiness Area PROMPT Analysis
  • Buiness Area SWOT Analysis
  • Identifying Business Requirements

Considering Perspectives

• Consider Perspectives
• Stakeholder Analysis
  • Identifying Stakeholders Using MACROSCOPE
  • Analysing Stakeholdera
  • Developing Stakeholder Strategies
  • Considering Stakeholder Attitudes
  • Stakeholders and Scope
    • Fuzzy Boundaries
    • Different Stakeholder Perspectives
• Modelling Business Area Scope
  • Defining Activities
    • The Verb-Noun Template
    • Examples of Strong, Active Verbs
    • Investigating Activity Outcomes
  • Activities and Tools
  • Software as a Tool
  • Functional Decomposition
    • Defining the Business Area Mission
    • Identifying Tasks
    • Grouping Tasks Into Functions
    • Knowing When to Stop Decomposing
• Modelling Software Initial Solution Scope
  • Context Diagrams
  • Actors
  • Information Flows
• Business System Scope = Business Area + Software Solution Scope

Modelling Workflows

• Activity Diagrams
  • Activities
  • Sequential Activities
  • Parallel Activities
  • Decisions
  • Events
  • Functional Decomposition
• Workflow Models
  • Defining Business Processes
  • Classifying Workflow Models
    • Logical vs. Physical
    • As-is vs. To-be
  • Physical As-Is workflow Example
  • Logical Workflow Example
  • Physical To-Be Workflow Example

Modelling Software Solutions

• Classifying Software Solution Models
  • Logical vs. Physical
  • As-is vs. To-be
    • Solution Options
    • Selected Solution
• Modelling Software Solutions
• Solftware Solution
• Modelling Components
  • Components
  • Required Services
  • Provided Services
  • Component Diagram
• Modelling Features
  • Business Needs vs. Software Features
  • Activities and Software Features
  • What Area Software Features?
    • External User Capabilities
    • Internal System Capbility
    • Constraint
  • Describing Capabilities
  • Describing Capability Constraints
  • Describing System Wide Constraints
  • Defining a Glossary
  • Summary Of Naming Features
• Modelling Features Using Use Case Diagrams
• Grouping Features Into Functional Areas
  • What Is a Functional Area?
    • Logical View of Software
    • Groupings of features having a common purpose
    • Used to organise requirements
  • Why Group Requirements Into Functional Areas?
  • Comparing Components and Functional Areas
• Describing Solution Features With User Stories
  • User Story Cards
  • Capturing Requirements On the Back Of the Story Card
  • User Stories and the Three C’s
    • Card
    • Conversation
    • Confirmation

Analysing Needs

• Why Model the Current Business System?
• Identifying Operational Business Needs Using POEM Analysis
• Information Analysis
  • What are Information Requirements?
  • Information Analysis Steps
  • Identify Information Flows and Data Stores
    • Current Applications
    • Informal Applications
    • Gaps
  • Reorganising Data Elements Into Concepts
  • Grouping Concepts Into Subject Areas
  • Subject Areas vs. Functional Areas
• Business Rule Analysis
  • What Are Business Rules?
  • The Business Rules Mantra
  • Business Rule Analysis Steps
  • Identifying Business Rules
    • Current Applications
    • Informal Applications
    • Gaps
  • Creating a Glossary of Terms
  • Defining Facts
  • Buisness Rules
    • Constraints
    • Decisions
    • Permissions
    • Derivations
• Gap Analysis
  • Comparing As-Is and To-Be
  • Identifying Gaps

Evaluating Options

• Comparing Traditional and Agile Approaches
• Defining Solution Options
  • Holistic Solutions
  • Benefits
  • Assumptions
• Why Model the Proposed Business System?
• Solution Components
• Solution Features
• Evaluating Solution Options Using TESCO
• Developing a Traditional Stakeholder Requirements Document
• Populating Agile Product Backlog
  • Product Backlog Items
  • Prioritising the Backlog
  • Estimating the Backlog

Defining Requirements

• Comparing Traditional and Agile Approaches
• Formal Requirements
  • What Area Software Requirements?
  • Adding Subject and Obligation To Capabilities
  • Desribing Functional Requirements
  • Describing Funbctional Constraints
  • Describing System Wide Constraints
  • Obligations as Attributes
  • Other Requirements Attributes
  • Interface Requirements and Wire Frames
  • The Data Dictionary
  • Requirements vs. Business Rules
• Requirements Traceability
• Developing a Traditional Solution Requirements Document
• Working With the Sprint Backlog
  • Planning the Sprint Backlog
  • Product Backlog Refinement
  • Backlog Item Elaboration
• Identifying Transition Requirements