In This Chapter:
Challenges
Business Modeling Workshops
Types of Analysis Meetings
Business Process Modeling Workshops
Prototype Review Meetings
Risk Management Workshops
Requirements are first stated in simple terms and are then analyzed and decomposed for clarity. Requirements analysis is the process of grouping requirements information into various categories, evaluating requirements for selected qualities, representing requirements in different forms, deriving detailed requirements from high-level requirements, and negotiating priorities. Requirements analysis also includes activities to determine required function and performance characteristics, the context of implementation, stakeholder constraints and measures of effectiveness, and validation criteria. Through the analysis process, requirements are decomposed and captured in a combination of text and graphical formats.
The purpose of analysis activities is to restate requirements in different forms to clarify and further define the nature and scope of the requirement. In addition, the feasibility of the requirements is analyzed and the risks are assessed.
Requirements analysis activities remove requirements gaps and ambiguities. Through analysis, requirements information is progressively elaborated to ensure completeness and accuracy.
Over the past few decades, a bewildering array of business analysis techniques have been developed to describe business processes, policies, and systems. It is difficult for the business analyst to determine which techniques to use. In practice, just a few models and diagrams are used to provide a complete picture of the business need. Please refer to Getting it Right: Business Requirement Analysis Tools and Techniques for a discussion of the recommended business analysis models. Most analysis workshops involve modeling the business.
Business modeling sessions restate requirements in the form of diagrams and structured text. Models include both text and drawings. A requirements model is a blueprint for a process, information flows, or solution components that can take the form of a diagram, list, or table, supplemented with descriptive text that depicts a business need from a particular point of view.
Requirements models facilitate communication and understanding among business and technical stakeholders. Through the process of creating the models, missing and incomplete requirements are often discovered.
The biggest obstacle in business requirements modeling is knowing which models to create. When selecting the appropriate models, the business analyst must understand their basic purposes and what they are intended to communicate. Again, refer to Getting it Right: Business Requirements Analysis Tools and Techniques for a discussion of the recommended business analysis models.
The business analyst plans and facilitates requirements analysis meetings. These meetings are usually small working sessions with key subject matter experts in the room, assisted by a scribe who is proficient in capturing models and diagrams in real time.
The business analyst plans and facilitates the analysis meeting to complete the following activities:
Modeling requirements to restate and clarify them. Modeling is accomplished at the appropriate usage, process, or detailed structural level.
Studying requirements feasibility to determine whether the requirement is viable technically, operationally, and economically; trading off requirements to determine the most feasible requirement alternatives.
Assessing requirement risks and constraints and modifying requirements to mitigate identified risks. The goal is to reduce requirement risks through early validation prototyping techniques.
Deriving additional requirements as more is learned about the business need.
Business case
Project charter
Interview notes
Draft business requirements document, requirements management plan, and other diagrams prepared from information gleaned during the interviews and workshops
Stakeholder analysis
Documented issues, risks, constraints, and action items
Schedule of remaining requirements activities
Examples of requirement models include:
Updates to business requirements document and requirements management plan
New and/or updated requirements understanding diagrams and models
In/out of scope lists
Event lists
Business process flows
Use cases
Data models
Class models
Actor maps
Prototypes
Interface diagrams
Application flows
The requirements analysis meetings discussed in detail in this chapter include:
Business process modeling workshop
Prototype review meeting
Risk workshop
The business process modeling workshop, shown in Figure 6-1, is a facilitated set of activities designed to guide stakeholders to define or make necessary changes to increase the efficiencies or effectiveness of a business process.
Supports a clear process definition using industry best practices
Bridges business areas, information technology, and external and internal stakeholders
Improves efficiencies in business performance
Provides a framework for discovery of areas that need improvement
Supports resource planning and allocations
Enhances effective communications
Supports a consistent approach to work
Securing sufficient time and budget for advanced preparation and planning and workshop sessions
Ensuring skilled facilitation
Ensuring that the right stakeholders participate
Building consensus on the process
Project team
Key project stakeholders
Project sponsor
Business users and subject matter experts
Define the purpose and objectives of the workshop.
Meet with the key stakeholders to build a preliminary model.
Send an “as is” process model to workshop participants in advance to prepare for workshop activities.
Project sponsor: authorizes and funds the workshop
Facilitator: designs, plans, and leads the workshop process using effective facilitation skills, tools, and techniques
Project team: works with stakeholders to define and model the process
Business users and subject matter experts: contribute to the business model being defined and modeled
Scribe: captures and documents the work and results of the workshop
Current “as is” process
Process vision and objectives
Current process documentation
Process modeling methods, standards, and tools
List of affected stakeholders
New or improved business process
Root cause analysis
Updated stakeholder list
Prioritized list of improvements to the process
A sample facilitator agenda for a business modeling workshop is shown in Figure 6-1.
Figure 6-1—Business Modeling Workshop Facilitator Agenda
The prototype review meeting, shown in Figure 6-2, is a facilitated set of activities designed to guide key stakeholders as they review prototypes, identify prototype issues, and detail additional requirements needed to complete the product or solution.
Confirm requirements by reviewing a prototype (a mock-up of a solution or a solution component)
Reaches an agreement and/or consensus regarding the final solution
Allows a shared work product between the business and technology teams
Assesses the feasibility of quality requirements
Reduces overall project risk
Detects early unnecessary functionality
Validates the scope of work
Ensuring that the right participants are present and actively participate
Sufficient preparation and planning time for each prototype review
Ensuring participation of stakeholders throughout prototype reviews
Effectively managing timelines for each review period
Project sponsor
Prototype team
Key sources for requirements, such as internal and external business users and subject matter experts
Project team members
Suggestions for meeting strategy include:
Set expectations and establish a collaborative atmosphere.
Provide a thorough overview of the business need.
Set and accept scope boundaries.
Summarize and document results.
Plan for the next prototype review.
Project sponsor. Authorizes and funds the reviews.
Facilitator. Designs, plans, and leads the review process using effective facilitation skills, tools, and techniques.
Business analyst. Often acts as the facilitator. The business analyst is a core project team member who leads stakeholder representatives to elicit, analyze, specify, validate, and manage project requirements throughout the life cycle.
Project team. Contribute to the discovery of requirements and begin building relationships with key stakeholders.
Requirements team. Support the discovery, analysis, and documentation of requirements. These persons work closely with business users to evolve the prototype product.
Business users and subject matter experts. Contribute to the discovery of requirements needed to solve the problem.
Scribe. Captures and documents the work and results of the review.
Documented results of previous prototype reviews
Business case and/or project charter
Copies of requirement hard sources for use during review activities
Current version of requirements document
Prototype assessment guidelines
Prototype to be reviewed
Updated business requirements document
Updated stakeholder analysis document
Documented issues, risks, constraints, and action items
Evolution of design and development components
Testing results
A sample facilitator agenda for a prototype review meeting is shown in Figure 6-2.
Figure 6-2—Prototype Review Meeting Facilitator Agenda
A risk management workshop is a facilitated set of activities designed to guide stakeholders as they work toward the identification and assessment of project risks. The purpose is to monitor and control risk events throughout the project life cycle. As Requirements begin to mature, it is wise for the project manager and business analyst to conduct a risk management workshop focusing on requirement risks and risks to the business.
Collaboratively work as a team to identify and assess possible project risks
Learn the risk management process and supporting tools and techniques
Build stakeholder awareness of potential risks and risk response strategies
Foster a proactive approach to risk management
Ensuring that the right participants are present and actively participate
Securing sufficient preparation and planning time for the workshop
Enlisting a skilled facilitator using appropriate facilitation tools and techniques
Selling the benefits of proactive risk management to project stakeholders
Project team
Key project stakeholders
Project sponsor
Business users and subject matter experts
Hands-on workshop to complete risk management activities
Break-out sessions in small teams
Completion of a risk register for high-priority risks
Project sponsor. Authorizes and funds the workshop.
Facilitator. Designs, plans, and leads the workshop process using effective facilitation skills, tools, and techniques.
Project team. Contribute to the identification and assessment of potential project risks.
Business users and subject matter experts. Contribute to the discovery of risks in each area of expertise.
Scribe. Captures and documents the work and results of the workshop.
Project Manager. Leads and/or facilitates the risk management workshop.
Risk management process, tools, and techniques
Risk management plan
Workshop ground rules for team participation, decision-making, and brainstorming
Sources for risk identification
Completed risk breakdown structure with identified risk sources and categories
Updated risk register with assigned owner, priority, and risk statement
Risk worksheet for each identified risk
A sample facilitator agenda for a risk management workshop is shown in Figure 6-3.
Figure 6-3—Risk Management Workshop Facilitator Agenda