Business analysis methodologiesGÖRKEM TÜYLÜ

Business analysis methodologiesThe term business analysis refers to the discipline of identifying needs within a business, and determining the appropriate solution.

If to summarize the expectation from a Business Analysis exercise, is that a business analysis is a process of suggesting a practical solution derived from the business vision and strategy.The methodical investigation, analysis, review and documentation of all or part of a business in terms of business functions and processes, the information used and the data on which the information is based. The definition of requirements for improving any aspect of the processes and systems and the quantification of potential business benefits. The creation of viable specifications and acceptence criteria in preparation for the construction of information and communication systems

Business analysis methodologiesIf there are several different world views evident from the organization's key stakeholders it will probably be necessary to build several Business Analysis Methodologies to explore each business perspective. Precisely which techniques are used will depend on the nature of the problem, and the scope of the solution.

Business analysts are generally charged with the investigation of ideas and problems. Their role is to formulate options for a way forward and produce business cases setting out conclusions and recommendations. The development of business analysis as a professional discipline has extended the role of the business analyst who now needs the widest possible array of tools

Investigate SituationThis stage of the business analyst's work is concerned with uncovering problems and issues.It involves using a range of investigative techniques, and choosing those that are most appropriate to the situation being examined. It also involves documenting what has been found.

Three aspects of this stage

• Qualitative investigation• Quantitative investigation• Documenting the results

Qualitative investigationThe techniques here are used to discover the widest possible range of facts and opinions about the issues. Facts are clearly important but so are opinions.They help the BA to understand the people involved in the matter and to begin to assess how receptive they are to change, to identify their hopes and fears about the situation and to discover who may be allies or opponents in implementing change.This information is invaluable in the analysis and management of stakeholders.The qualitative techniques

• Interviewing• Workshops and Brainstorming• Observation

InterviewingInterviewing is one of the main fact-finding, investigation or elicitation techniques used by BAs and consists usually of one-to-one discussions with stakeholders in the business analysis assignment. Occasionally the BA may interview more than one person and sometimes,too, more than one BA may be involved in a discussion, but one-to-one is the more usual situation.

Planning and preparation means answering two questions: Whom do I want to interview, and what do I want to ask them? Interviewess could be selected for a number of reasons, including these;

• They are senior managers who have commissioned the business analysis work and could have a significant influence on it

• They are end users, the people whose jobs will be affected by the BA work and who can provide

• the analyst with deatiled information• It is good politics to involve them to keep them on-side with project

Workshops and BrainstormingFor complex projects involving multiple stakeholders, a workshop is one of the quickest and most cost-effective ways of eliciting requirements. It’s however, not the easiest of techniques because of the diversity of stakeholders involved and their often-conflicting interests. A requirements workshop should be carefully planned and managed to derive the expected benefits. One of the unique benefits of a requirements workshop is that it allows the Business Analyst resolve conflicting business requirements, conduct stakeholder analysis and achieve instant requirements validation all in one go.A workshop is particularly essential to:• Discovering requirements• Refining requirements• Prioritizing requirements and• Scoping requirementsBrainstorming;Business analysts often encounter difficult problems where no clear solution exists. Brainstorming, suggests that we think of as many ideas as possible, regardless of how ridiculous they may seem at first. Creative thinking requires a technique like brainstorming to come up with useful ideas. It has the capability to stimulate lateral thinking (discarding obvious approaches and thinking outside the box) and free association.

ObservationThis method involves examining procedures as they are carried out. The analyst observes how work and procedures are carried out with the existing system, and this enables the analyst to witness first hand how the work is actually done and what it involves.Observation should be clearly planned to ensure that all the required data elements are pre-determined beforehand. This will reduce uncertainty during the observation session and ensure that the analyst can focus on the task of observing without wondering which event should be recorded and which should not. Observation technique is best applied where:• A current process is to be monitored• The objective is to improve a process• Stakeholders find it hard to explain what they do or what their requirements are

• Processes are highly repeatable e.g. manufacturing• The validity of data collected through other means is in question

Quantitative investigationIn addition to qualitative information, it is also useful to get quantitative data to provide further insights into business problems and issues. For example, how many invoices are produced per day? Per month? Per annum? Is there a peak at a particular time of month? How much time is spent dealing with complaints, as opposed to taking new orders?What information is recorded on forms and reports at the moment and who uses this? The qualitive techniques that are presented in here are;

• Questionnaires• Activity Sampling• Special purpose records• Document analysis

QuestionnairesQuestionnaires are among the range of techniques that a BA can use to elicit requirements or gather other information or to validate with a wider group of people the information already gained from smaller groups by using for example, interviews or workshopsQuestionnaires are probably best thought of as a second-line investigation technique designed to supplement, test or amplify information gained first through other means. For example, the BA might alreday have convened a workshop with a few representatives of a particular job role and may now wish to find out if what these people have said is typical of the wider population. Questionnaires essentials are; • Means of eliciting information from many people, sometimes anonymously, in a relatively short period of time.

• Heading section• Classification section• Data section• Analysing results• Clear and unambiguous• Closed, Open-ended questions

Activity SamplingActivity sampling is a technique whereby a number of successive observations are made over a period of time of one or a group of workers, machines or proccesses. The activity sampling technique was devised for the purpose of getting information on the time spent by groups of workers or machines on various activities or delays. Among the many applications of activity sampling are numbered the investigating work necessary in:

1. Improving the arrangement of duties and general organisation of work.2. Indicating the directions in which improvements in methods and equipment should be sought, and assessing the vaue of the proposed changes.3. Assessing the value of introducing group incentive schemes.4. Assessing labour requirements to machine utilisation.5. Examining the causes of unsatisfactory performance/efficiency figures or machine utilisation figures.

Special purpose recordsThe most obvious downside of special-purpose record is that they may not be completed accurately. One reason for this is that people forget to do it until the end of the dat and then just make something up to keep the pesky BA happy! Another possibility is that people deliberately inflate the results and this is very likely when they are worried about reaining their jobs or are angling for an increase in staffing levels or improved compensation.There is no sure-fire way of avoiding this, but the BA can often improve accuracy by building a good relation with the subjects beforehand and explaining why accurate information is important for all parties.• Business user in keeping a record about a specific issue or task

• More effective time• Avoids the problems associated with observation

Document analysisDocument analysis is the systematic examination of data sources usually forms but also screen layouts and reports if there is an existing system to analyse the data requirements of a proposed computerised information system.The starting point for document analysis is to disccover worthwhile data sources to examine.In the early days of IT such sources would always be physical things usually forms, ledgers and so forth. Today where one is more likely to be moving from an existing IT system to a newer one the range of sources can also include screens and reports from the current system• Uncover information about an organisation, process or system

• How, who, when, how many…• Not starting from a blank page• Limited to “as-is” perspective.

Business Analysis Techniques•PESTLE•SWOT•MOST•CATWOE•MoSCoW and VPEC-T

PESTLEPESTLE analysis is a method of evaluating the external environment in which the business operates. This form of analysis helps a business primarily in positioning itself in the region. It also offers business solutions to meet the market needs in terms of pricing products, upgrading technological infrastructure, and positively giving back to society.The six attributes of PESTLE;• Political (current and potential influences from

political pressures)• Economic (the local, national and world economy

impact)• Sociological (the ways in which a society can

affect an organization)• Technological (the effect of new and emerging

technology)• Legal (the effect of national and world

legislation)• Environmental (the local, national and world

environmental issues)

SWOTSWOT analysis is the most popular of all methods of business analysis. This is used to help focus activities into areas of strength and where the greatest opportunities lie. This is used to identify the dangers that take the form of weaknesses and both internal and external threats.The four attributes of SWOT;• Strengths - What are the advantages? What is currently done well? (e.g. key area of best-performing activities of your company)

• Weaknesses - What could be improved? What is done badly? (e.g. key area where you are performing poorly)

• Opportunities - What good opportunities face the organization? (e.g. key area where your competitors are performing poorly)

• Threats - What obstacles does the organization face? (e.g. key area where your competitor will perform well)

MOSTThe MOST technique is an internal analysis. This is used to perform an internal environmental analysis by defining the attributes of MOST to ensure that the project you are working on is aligned to each of the four attributes.The four attributes of MOST;• Mission (where the business intends to go)• Objectives (the key goals which will help achieve the mission)

• Strategies (options for moving forward)• Tactics (how strategies are put into action)

CATWOEThis is used to prompt thinking about what the business is trying to achieve. Business perspectives help the business analyst to consider the impact of any proposed solution on the people involved.There are six elements of CATWOE;• Customers - Who are the beneficiaries of the highest level business process and how does the issue affect them?

• Actors - Who is involved in the situation, who will be involved in implementing solutions and what will impact their success?

• Transformation Process - What processes or systems are affected by the issue?

• World View - What is the big picture and what are the wider impacts of the issue?

• Owner - Who owns the process or situation being investigated and what role will they play in the solution?

• Environmental Constraints - What are the constraints and limitations that will impact the solution and its success?

MoSCoW and VPEC-TMoSCoW is used to prioritize requirements by allocating an appropriate priority, gauging it against the validity of the requirement itself and its priority against other requirements. MoSCoW comprises:• Must have - or else delivery will be a failure• Should have - otherwise will have to adopt a workaround• Could have - to increase delivery satisfaction• Would like to have in the future - but won't have nowVPEC-T is used when analyzing the expectations of multiple parties having different views of a system in which they all have an interest in common, but have different priorities and different responsibilities.• Values - constitute the objectives, beliefs and concerns of all parties participating

• Policies - constraints that govern what may be done and the manner in which it may be done

• Events - real-world proceedings that stimulate activity• Content - the meaningful portion of the documents, conversations, messages, etc. that are produced and used by all aspects of business activity

• Trust - between users of the system and their right to access and change information within it

Summary Any business analysis project will inevitably include the investigation of business situations and requirements.

Business analyst needs a toolkit consisting of a range of investigative and diagrammatic techniquesAbility to appreciate when particular techniques will be appropriate and the skill to apply them effectively.

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