🗊Презентация The business analysis, planning and monitoring. (Сhapter 2)

Chapter 2: Business Analysis Planning & Monitoring

Business Analysis Planning & Monitoring The Business Analysis Planning and Monitoring Knowledge Area defines the tasks associated with the planning and monitoring of business analysis activities, including:

Business Analysis Planning & Monitoring

Business Analysis Planning & Monitoring Plan business analysis approach Conduct stakeholder analysis Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis communication Plan requirements management process Manage business analysis performance

2.1 Plan business analysis approach This task describes how to select an approach to performing business analysis, which stakeholders need to be involved in the decision, who will be consulted regarding and informed of the approach, and the rationale for using it.

Plan business analysis approach

Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Inputs Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Inputs Business need. The business analysis approach will be shaped by the problem or opportunity faced by the organization. It is generally necessary to consider the risks associated with it, the timeframe in which the need must be addressed, and how well the need is understood. Expert judgment. Used to determine the optimal business analysis approach. Expertise may be provided from a wide range of sources including stakeholders in the initiative, organizational Centers of Competency, consultants, or associations and industry groups. Organizational process assets include methodologies for process change or software development, tools or techniques that are in use or understood by stakeholders, corporate governance standards, and templates for deliverables.

Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Elements & techniques Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Elements & techniques Timing of business analysis work determines when the business analysis efforts should occur, when tasks need to be performed. Formality and level of detail of business analysis deliverables Determine whether requirements will be delivered as formal documentation or through informal communication with stakeholders, and the appropriate level of detail that should be contained in those documents. Requirements prioritization Determine how requirements will be prioritized and how those priorities will be used to define the solution scope. Methods of prioritizing requirements are discussed in Prioritize Requirements (6.1). Also see Chapter 5: Enterprise Analysis for information on defining the solution scope and Chapter 4: Requirements Management and Communication for information on managing the solution scope.

Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Elements & techniques Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Elements & techniques Change management Changes to requirements may occur at any time. Consider the expected likelihood and frequency of change and ensure that the change management process is effective for those levels of change. Business analysis planning process The business analyst must determine the process that will be followed to plan the execution of businesses analysis activities. In most cases, this process will be integrated into a larger project plan. Communication with stakeholders Communications may be written or verbal, formal or informal. Decisions must be made at the outset of the project as to the applicability of such communications technologies such as email with regards to project decision-making and approval of deliverables.

Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Elements & techniques Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Elements & techniques Requirements analysis and management tools The business analyst must identify any requirements analysis or management tools that will be used. These tools may shape the selection of business analysis techniques, notations to be used, and the way that requirements will be packaged. Project complexity The complexity of the project, the nature of the deliverables, and the overall risk to the business needs to be taken into consideration. The factors listed below, among others, increase the complexity of business analysis efforts as they increase: number of stakeholders; number of business areas affected; number of business systems affected; amount and nature of risk; uniqueness of requirements; number of technical resources required

Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Elements & techniques Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Elements & techniques Decision Analysis: May be used to rate available methodologies against the organizational needs and objectives Process modeling: Process Models can be used to define and document the business analysis approach Structured walkthrough: This can be used as a means of validating a created, selected, or tailored business analysis approach

Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Stakeholders Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Stakeholders Customer, Domain SME, End User or Supplier: The approach taken may depend on their availability and involvement with the initiative Implementation SME: The business analysis approach taken should be compatible with the implementation lifecycle used by the implementation team Project Manager: The project manager must ensure that the business analysis approach is compatible with other project activities Tester: The business analysis approach must facilitate appropriate testing activities Regulator: Aspects of the approach or decisions made in the tailoring process may require approval Sponsor: The approach taken may depend on their availability and involvement with the initiative. The sponsor may also have needs and objectives that apply to the approach itself

Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Outputs Plan business analysis approach Plan business analysis approach: Outputs Business analysis approach A business analysis approach may specify team roles, deliverables, analysis techniques, the timing and frequency of stakeholder interactions, and other elements of the business analysis process

Business Analysis Planning & Monitoring Plan business analysis approach Conduct stakeholder analysis Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis communication Plan requirements management process Manage business analysis performance

2.2 Conduct stakeholder analysis This task covers the identification of stakeholders who may be affected by a proposed initiative or who share a common business need, identifying appropriate stakeholders for the project or project phase, and determining stakeholder influence and/or authority regarding the approval of project deliverables.

Conduct stakeholder analysis

Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: inputs Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: inputs Business need. Identify and analyze the position of the stakeholders affected by the business need. As the understanding of that need evolves through definition of business requirements, solution scope, stakeholder requirements, and solution requirements, that additional information will be used to assist in identifying additional stakeholders or understanding how existing stakeholders may have changed their position. Enterprise Architecture. Describes the organizational units that exist, their interactions with other organizational units, customers, and suppliers, their responsibilities within the organization, and the roles and relationships within each organizational unit. Organizational Process Assets. These include organizational policies and procedures, forms that must be completed, suggested or prescribed methodologies, templates, and project authorization guidelines.

Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques Identification. Understanding who the stakeholders are and the impact of proposed changes on them is vital to understanding what needs, wants, and expectations must be satisfied by a solution. Complexity of Stakeholder Group. The complexity of interactions with a stakeholder group may be affected by factors such as: Number and variety of direct end users in their constituency Number of interfacing business processes and automated systems Attitude. Assess stakeholder attitudes toward and influence over the initiative. Factors to consider include: Attitude towards the business goals, objectives, and solution approach Attitude towards business analysis Attitude towards collaboration Attitude towards the sponsor Attitude towards team members

Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques Influence. Understanding the nature of influence and the influence structures and channels within an organization can prove invaluable when seeking to build relationships and work towards building trust. Some factors relating to influence to consider are: Influence on the project Influence in the organization Influence needed for the good of the project Influence with other stakeholders Authority Levels For Business Analysis Work. Identify which stakeholders will have authority over business analysis activities, in relation to both business analysis work and product deliverables. Stakeholders may have authority to: Approve the deliverables; Inspect and approve the requirements; Request and approve changes; Approve the requirements process that will be used; Review and approve the traceability structure; Veto proposed requirements or solutions (individually or in a group)

Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques General Techniques. Acceptance and Evaluation Criteria Definition: The business analyst should, as part of the stakeholder analysis, identify which stakeholders have sufficient authority to accept or reject the solution. Brainstorming: May assist in identifying needs and requirements that lead to possible stakeholders, or in creating a listing of possible stakeholder roles. Interviews: Interviewees may be able to identify other stakeholders. Organization Modeling: Assess to determine if the organizational units or people listed have any unique needs and interests that should be considered. Process Modeling: Any person involved in the execution of business processes affected by the solution will be a stakeholder.

Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques General Techniques. Requirements Workshops: During requirements workshops, the business analyst may ask participants if they can suggest other stakeholders Risk Analysis: Risks to the initiative may result from stakeholder attitudes or the ability of key stakeholders to participate in the initiative. Scenarios and Use Cases and User Stories: Identified stakeholder roles may serve as a useful starting point for identifying actors and roles. Scope Modeling: Scope models should show stakeholders that fall outside the scope of the solution but still interact with it in some way. Survey/Questionnaire: Useful for identifying shared characteristics of a stakeholder group.

Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques RACI Matrix. The RACI matrix describes the roles of those involved in business analysis activities. It describes stakeholders as having one or more of the following responsibilities for a given task or deliverable: [R]esponsible does the work, [A]ccountable is the decision maker (only one) [C]onsulted must be consulted prior to the work and gives input [I]nformed means that they must be notified of the outcome Stakeholder Map. Stakeholder maps are visual diagrams that depict the relationship of stakeholders to the solution and to one another. There are many forms of stakeholder map, but two common ones include: A matrix mapping the level of stakeholder influence against the level of stakeholder interest An onion diagram indicating how involved the stakeholder is with the solution

Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Elements & techniques Stakeholder Onion Diagram

Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Stakeholders Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Stakeholders Domain SME. May be able to recommend other business experts to assist in defining requirements. Implementation SME. May be able to identify and recommend stakeholders. Project Manager. May be able to identify and recommend stakeholders. In the context of a project with a designated project manager, responsibility for stakeholder identification and management must be shared with the project manager. The business analyst and project manager should collaborate on performing this task. Tester. May be able to identify and recommend stakeholders. Regulator. May require that specific stakeholder representatives or groups be involved in the process. Sponsor. May be able to identify domain subject matter experts to help with requirements definition.

Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Outputs Conduct stakeholder analysis Conduct stakeholder analysis: Outputs Stakeholder List, Roles, and Responsibilities This may include information such as: List of required roles Names and titles of stakeholders Category of stakeholder Location of stakeholders Special needs Number of individuals in this stakeholder role Description of stakeholder influence and interest Documentation of stakeholder authority levels

Business Analysis Planning & Monitoring Plan business analysis approach Conduct stakeholder analysis Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis communication Plan requirements management process Manage business analysis performance

2.3 Plan business analysis activities Determine the activities that must be performed and the deliverables that must be produced, estimate the effort required to perform that work, and identify the management tools required to measure the progress of those activities and deliverables.

Plan business analysis activities

Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Inputs Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Inputs Business Analysis Approach. Defines the lifecycle, deliverables, templates, and tasks that should be included. Plan-driven approaches seek to define requirements as early as possible to reduce uncertainty, while change-driven approaches encourage requirements to be defined as close to implementation as possible. Business Analysis Performance Assessment. The business analyst must use prior experiences on this initiative or on others to determine the effort involved in performing business analysis work. Organizational Process Assets. The organizational standards and process assets in place may mandate certain deliverables. Lessons learned from previous initiatives, as well as from currently ongoing business analysis activities, may be used in the development of business analysis plans.

Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Inputs Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Inputs Stakeholder List, Roles, and Responsibilities. Stakeholders will exhibit individual behaviors and preferences that may need to be met. Understanding their roles and responsibilities on the project will help to determine how much those preferences will shape the plan. The role of each stakeholder must be understood so that the appropriate activities can be scheduled and the necessary time allotted.

Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Elements & techniques Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Elements & techniques Geographic Distribution of Stakeholders. The business analyst must consider the physical location of key stakeholders on the project. Some projects will have the stakeholders located in a single location while others will have some of their key stakeholders dispersed over a wide area. Stakeholders may be collocated or dispersed. Type of Project or Initiative. The type of project or initiative to which the business analyst is assigned may have a significant impact on the activities that need to be performed. Different kinds of business analysis initiatives include, but are not limited to: Feasibility studies Process improvement Organizational change New software development (in-house) Outsourced new software development Software maintenance or enhancement Software package selection

Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Elements & techniques Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Elements & techniques Business Analysis Deliverables. A list of deliverables is useful as a basis for activity identification. Methods for identifying deliverables include, but are not limited to: Interviews or facilitated sessions with key stakeholders Review project documentation Review organizational process assets, such as methodologies and templates, which may dictate which deliverables are required. Determine Business Analysis Activities. An important tool in defining the scope of work and in developing estimates is the work breakdown structure (WBS). The Activity List can be created in different ways, such as by: Taking each deliverable, assigning the activities required to complete the deliverable, and breaking each activity into tasks

Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Elements & techniques Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Elements & techniques Dividing the project into phases, iterations, increments, or releases, identifying the deliverables for each, and adding activities and tasks accordingly Using a previous similar project as an outline and expanding it with detailed tasks unique for the business analysis phase of the current project Estimation. A variety of estimation techniques can be used to produce an overall assessment of the amount of business analysis work required. In some cases, multiple techniques may be used to validate one another. Functional Decomposition. Decomposition of the tasks in a project or product can be used to facilitate an understanding of the work at a sufficient level of detail to enable estimation of tasks. Risk Analysis. Identify risks that might impact the business analysis plan(s).

Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Stakeholders Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Stakeholders All stakeholders listed here may potentially participate in the verification and validation of business analysis deliverables. Customer, Domain SME, End User, and Supplier Domain SMEs will likely be a major source of requirements and their availability is critical when planning activities. Their understanding of business analysis techniques may shape the selection of techniques or require that the business analyst devote some time to assist them in understanding how the requirements are defined. Implementation SME The Implementation SMEs may participate in business analysis activities in order to facilitate understanding of stakeholder needs. Operational Support May use business analysis deliverables as a basis for planning operational support activities or developing appropriate documentation.

Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Stakeholders Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Stakeholders Project Manager The project manager should participate in business analysis planning and is responsible for ensuring that those plans are integrated with the work performed by other project personnel. The project manager will also play a key role in identifying resources to perform tasks, scheduling the activities, and developing cost estimates. Tester Will need to know in what form and when deliverables will be produced as inputs into their own activity planning. Sponsor Must participate in the approval of business analysis deliverables.

Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Outputs Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis activities: Outputs Business Analysis Plan(s) The business analysis plan(s) may include information such as a description of the scope of work, the deliverable WBS, an Activity List, and estimates for each activity and task. It should also describe when and how the plan should be changed in response to changing conditions. The level of detail associated with the plan(s) is determined by the business analysis approach and the overall methodology. Note All tasks in all other knowledge areas have business analysis plans as an implicit input. The plan(s) determine when and how any task is performed.

Business Analysis Planning & Monitoring Plan business analysis approach Conduct stakeholder analysis Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis communication Plan requirements management process Manage business analysis performance

2.4 Plan business analysis communication A business analysis communications plan describes the proposed structure and schedule for communications regarding business analysis activities. Record and organize the activities to provide a basis for setting expectations for business analysis work, meetings, walkthroughs, and other communications.

Plan business analysis communication

Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Inputs Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Inputs Business Analysis Approach May include standards and templates used for communication, and expectations regarding when and how communication should occur. Business Analysis Plan(s) Determines when work will be performed and the deliverables that will be produced, and which need to be communicated. Organizational Process Assets May include a defined set of templates for use in business analysis communication, including presentation formats, requirements documentation templates, and others. Stakeholder List, Roles, and Responsibilities Used to identify the stakeholders who will require information regarding business analysis work, determine when information needs to be provided, and how a stakeholder is expected to use that information.

Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Elements & techniques Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Elements & techniques Geography. The communications needed for a team that is collocated will be different from communications required for a project with geographically dispersed stakeholders. For example, it is more difficult to have short, daily team meetings when the participants live in vastly different time zones, when technology is not readily accessible, and where multiple, complex deliverables with complex interfaces are being developed simultaneously in different locations. Culture. Cultural diversity should also be taken into account when planning communications. In addition to the obvious language barriers, there may be more subtle differences that should be considered in the plan, including: Relationship to time Relationship to task completion Relationship to contracts Relationship to formal and informal authority

Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Elements & techniques Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Elements & techniques Project Type Different projects will necessitate different deliverables, and the extent of documentation that is needed in a requirements package will vary depending on the project. Communication Frequency Investigates the frequency required by various stakeholders for each type of communication. Note the frequency of reporting can vary from stakeholder to stakeholder. For example, the frequency of reporting business analysis status can be biweekly for the sponsor, weekly for the Domain Subject Matter Experts and biweekly for the technical partners.

Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Elements & techniques Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Elements & techniques Communications Formality Planning communications requires taking into consideration the level of formality that is needed. This could vary from stakeholder to stakeholder, project phase to project phase, work within a project phase, and requirements presentation. Structured Walkthrough One of the most common approaches to requirements communication. Time to conduct each walkthrough and address the issues raised during the walkthrough must be included in the plan.

Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Stakeholders Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Stakeholders Customer and Supplier Major customers of an organization or suppliers to that organization may need to be informed of planned changes well in advance of implementation. Domain SME May be involved in review and approval. Domain SMEs often have influence over the approvers, even if their approval is not formally required. End User May be involved in review and approval. May also have considerable influence over approvers even if their approval is not formally required. Implementation SME May be involved in review and approval.

Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Stakeholders Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Stakeholders Operational Support May be involved in review and approval. Will primarily focus on the requirements to support the solution. Project Manager In a project, the business analysis communication plan will generally be integrated into the overall project communications plan. On small projects the plan may be very brief and may not be formally documented. On large and complex projects and projects with many stakeholders, it may be included as part of the project initiation documentation and is essential as part of the overall project communications plan. Tester Will primarily be involved in verification and validation of the requirements.

Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Stakeholders Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Stakeholders Regulator Regulators may require that requirements, decisions, and other information regarding the execution of business analysis processes or the definition of the solution be retained and made available to them for review. Sponsor Communication needs for the sponsor are likely to focus on business requirements and high-level stakeholder and solution requirements.

Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Outputs Plan business analysis communication Plan business analysis communication: Outputs Business Analysis Communication Plan Describes how, when and why the business analyst will work directly with stakeholders. Components can include: The stakeholder communications requirements for business analysis activities Format, content, medium, level of detail Responsibility for collecting, distributing, accessing, and updating information.

Business Analysis Planning & Monitoring Plan business analysis approach Conduct stakeholder analysis Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis communication Plan requirements management process Manage business analysis performance

2.5 Plan requirements management process Define the process that will be used to approve requirements for implementation and manage changes to the solution or requirements scope.

Plan requirements management process

Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Inputs Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Inputs Business Analysis Approach The selected approach may include a definition of appropriate requirements management processes. Business Analysis Plan(s) The business analysis plan(s) define which deliverables are to be produced and when. Deliverables cannot be managed until they are created. Organizational Process Assets Standard templates or processes for requirements management within the organization may exist.

Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Elements & techniques Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Elements & techniques Repository A requirements repository is a method of storing requirements, including those under development, those under review, and approved requirements. Repositories may include whiteboards, word processing documents, diagrams and models, requirements management tools and applications, or any other method of recording information that allows requirements to be single-sourced and available to all relevant stakeholders for as long as they are needed. Traceability Determine whether and how to trace requirements based on the complexity of the domain, the number of views of requirements that will be produced, potential impacts from risk, and an understanding of the costs and benefits involved.

Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Elements & techniques Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Elements & techniques Select Requirements Attributes Requirements attributes provide information about requirements, such as the source of the requirement, the importance of the requirement, and other metadata. Attributes aid in the ongoing management of the requirements throughout the project lifecycle. Requirements Prioritization Process Requirements prioritization focuses effort on determining which requirements should be investigated first, based on the risk associated with them, the cost to deliver them, the benefits they will produce, or other factors. Timelines, dependencies, resource constraints, and other factors influence how requirements are prioritized. Planning the requirement prioritization process helps ensure that stakeholders determine and understand how requirements will be prioritized throughout and at the end of the business analysis effort.

Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Elements & techniques Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Elements & techniques Change Management Change-driven methodologies do not typically have a change control process that is separate from the requirements prioritization process. All requirements, including “new” and “changed” requirements, are recorded in the product backlog and prioritized. Tailoring the Requirements Management Process An organization’s requirements management process may need to be tailored to meet the needs of a specific initiative or project. Factors in the tailoring process include: Organizational culture Stakeholder preferences Complexity of project, project phase, or product being delivered Organizational maturity Availability of resources

Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Elements & techniques Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Elements & techniques Decision Analysis Can be used to assess the possible value delivered by a change and assess areas of uncertainty. Problem Tracking Used to track possible changes and ensure that a decision is reached. Risk Analysis Used to identify possible risks associated with the change management process and possible risks associated with making or choosing not to make the change.

Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Stakeholders Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Stakeholders Domain SME Consulted in order to determine the importance of requirements and to assess the value of change requests. End User Consulted in order to determine the importance of requirements and to assess the value of change requests. Implementation SME Consulted in order to determine the difficulty of implementing a requirement or proposed change. Operational Support Informed of changes to requirements to ensure that the solution can operate effectively.

Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Stakeholders Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Stakeholders Project Manager Responsible for managing changes to the project scope and accountable for delivery of the project scope. Changes to the solution and requirements scope are almost certain to impact the project scope. Similarly, changes to the project scope may impact the solution and requirements scope. Tester Informed of changes to requirements to ensure that test plans are effective. Sponsor Accountable for the solution scope and must approve prioritization of requirements and changes to requirements.

Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Outputs Plan requirements management process Plan requirements management process: Outputs Requirements Management Plan A requirements management plan describes the: Approach to be taken to structure traceability Definition of requirements attributes to be used Requirements prioritization process Requirements change process, including how changes will be requested, analyzed, approved, and implemented.

Business Analysis Planning & Monitoring Plan business analysis approach Conduct stakeholder analysis Plan business analysis activities Plan business analysis communication Plan requirements management process Manage business analysis performance

2.6 Manage business analysis performance To manage the performance of business analysis activities to ensure that they are executed as effectively as possible.

Manage business analysis performance

Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance: Inputs Business Analysis Performance Metrics. Actual performance measures are captured, analyzed, and become the basis for taking corrective or preventive action. Capturing actual performance metrics is a process that occurs through the business analysis effort and is implicitly a potential output from every business analysis task. Business Analysis Plan(s). These plans describe deliverables, activities, tasks, and estimates for all business analysis work. Conformance to these plans may be the primary metric used to judge performance. Organizational Performance Standards. May include mandated performance metrics or expectations for business analysis work. Requirements Management Plan. The requirements management plan may also set expectations for the frequency of changes to requirements and the work involved in managing that change.

Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance: Elements & techniques Performance Measures Performance measures may be based on deliverable due dates as specified in the business analysis plan, metrics such as the frequency of changes to requirements or the number of review cycles required, or qualitative feedback from stakeholders and peers of the business analyst. Appropriate performance measures should enable the business analyst to determine when problems are occurring that may affect the performance of business analysis or other activities, or identify opportunities for improvement. Performance Reporting Reports can be in written format to provide for archival and tracking, or they can be informal and verbal, based on the needs of the project. Some reports may be made formally and orally as presentations to various levels of stakeholders and management.

Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance: Elements & techniques Preventive And Corrective Action. The business analyst should assess the performance measures to determine where problems in executing business analysis activities are occurring or opportunities for improving the business analysis process exist. Once this assessment is complete the business analyst should engage the necessary stakeholders to identify the correct preventative or corrective actions. General Techniques: Interviews Lessons Learned Process Metrics and Key Performance Indicators Problem Tracking Process Modeling Root Cause Analysis Survey/Questionnaire

Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance: Elements & techniques Variance Analysis The purpose of this technique is to analyze discrepancies between planned and actual performance, determine the magnitude of those discrepancies, and recommend corrective and preventive action as required. When variances between the actual work and the plan are found, variance analysis measures the magnitude of the variation. Variance analysis also includes studying the causes of the variance to determine if corrective or preventive actions are required to bring the business analysis work in line with the business analysis plans.

Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance: Stakeholders Domain SME and End User. Should be informed of the performance of business analysis activities in order to set expectations for their involvement. Implementation SME, Operational Support, and Tester. Dependent on the effective performance of business analysis activities to perform their role. Should be consulted when assessing those activities. Project Manager. The project manager is accountable for the success of a project and must be kept informed of the current status of business analysis work. If potential problems or opportunities for improvement are identified, the project manager must be consulted before changes are implemented to assess whether those changes will have an impact on the project. Sponsor. May require reports on business analysis performance to address problems as they are identified. A manager of business analysts may also sponsor initiatives to improve the performance of business analysis activities.

Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance Manage business analysis performance: Outputs Business Analysis Performance Assessment This includes a comparison of planned versus actual performance, understanding the root cause of variances from the plan, and other information to help understand the level of effort required to complete business analysis work. Business Analysis Process Assets When the analysis of the performance of the business analysis work yields less than satisfactory results, it is helpful to review not only the results themselves, but also the process that produced those results. This process analysis often results in recommendations for improvement to the business analysis process. The revised process and templates for business analysis deliverables should be analyzed and documented and lessons learned should be recorded. These may be incorporated into Organizational Process Assets.

Subject of the following chapter Elicitation

Stakeholder (definition) The concept ‘stakeholder’ is a variant of ‘stockholder’, which relates to ‘investors in’ or ‘owners in’ a firm or business. Stakeholders can be defined as ‘individuals and groups who are affected by the activities of an organisation. The most important stakeholders can be seen as those with most to lose from the organisation’s actions, but this does not always reflect their relative power.’ (Hannagan, T (2002), ‘Management: Concepts and Practices’ P142.) In the main they can be categorised into three major groups: Internal, Connected and External Stakeholders. Internal stakeholders include managers and employees and are those that are situated within the company and affect the ‘day-to-day’ running of the organisation. Connected stakeholders cover groups such as shareholders, suppliers and customers, and are parties which invest or have dealings with the firm. The third group, External stakeholders, are those not directly linked to the organisation but who can be influenced or influence activities of the firm through various means. External stakeholders include the Government, neighbours, pressure groups, local councils and the surrounding community. Go to previous slide