Chapter 2

Build the Foundation

In This Chapter:

Assemble the Planning Team

As the business analyst enters the requirements phase of the BSLC, the project manager is beginning to draft project plans. Although planning and conducting the requirements activities are the responsibility of the business analyst, they are ideally conducted in collaboration with a core team of experts and multiple groups of users and other stakeholders. The core requirements team typically consists of the business analyst, the project manager, one or more business representatives (one from each major business unit impacted by the project), and one or more technical leads (assuming the solution will have a significant IT component). Additional domain subject matter experts from the business or IT organizations are included as appropriate. The project manager typically takes the lead during the requirements planning sessions, relying extensively on the business analyst to heavily influence the emerging plans. Initial plans are drafted for conducting requirements elicitation, analysis, specification, and validation, and to begin to add detail to the solution concept.

Review of Preproject Business Analysis Information

Ideally, initial requirements definition has taken place in the early Enterprise Analysis phase of the project conception when the product description was created, and has been captured in initiating documents such as the business case, feasibility studies, and the project charter. All requirements should be traceable to these original sources. Figure 2-1 shows the ideal flow of information through the Enterprise Analysis Activities to requirements planning and elicitation. Refer to The Business Analyst as Strategist: Translating Business Strategies into Valuable Solutions for an in depth discussion of the Enterprise Analysis phase.

The first step in the planning process is to review all relevant documentation that exists about the project. For significant, strategic projects, it is almost always the case that a considerable amount of business analysis has taken place prior to the project’s approval and funding. It is during the Enterprise Analysis phase that the initial requirements and scope of the project were defined and assumptions and time and cost constraints were documented. During the preproject enterprise analysis, some or all of these activities were conducted:

Strategies and goals were analyzed.

Current state business architecture was reviewed or built.

Future state business architecture was built.

Business problem to be solved and/or opportunity to be seized to achieve strategies were analyzed.

Competitive analysis was conducted.

Solution options were identified.

Feasibility of each solution option was determined.

Figure 2-1—Enterprise Analysis Activities

Best solution option and feasibility study results were documented.

The case for the recommended business solution—objectives, scope, cost, benefit, risk—was prepared.

The investment decision package—a collection of enterprise analysis outputs and an executive briefing for presentation to management to decide whether to invest in the new opportunity—was prepared.

The new project to build or acquire a new business solution was approved and funded.

Documents that may be available for review prior to planning the requirements activities include the following.

Strategic plans, goals, measures

Memos, papers, and other documents describing the current issues with business processes or practices and/or new business opportunities

Current state business architecture artifacts

Future state business architecture artifacts

Feasibility study reports

Business case and executive briefing proposing the new project

In some cases, an inadequate business analysis effort preceded the approval and funding of the project, and as a result there is little or no preproject information. If this is the situation, the core planning team should develop a minimum set of project documentation to be reviewed and approved by the project sponsor prior to continuing with the planning activities. Minimum project documentation likely includes:

A project charter documenting:

The project objective

The project scope

Assumptions and constraints

The project sponsor

The project manager assigned

A business case documenting:

Strategic alignment of the project

A high-level description of the business problem to be resolved and/or business opportunity to be realized

High-level business requirements

A description of the recommended solution, other options considered, and the rationale for the selected solution option

The organizational entities impacted by the project

The proposed project approach (make/buy)

The estimates of time and cost to build and/or acquire, deploy, and operate the new business solution

The tangible and intangible benefits the organization expects to realize after the solution is deployed

Summary

Preproject selection information is crucial to understanding the project objectives, scope, assumptions, constraints, and strategic alignment.

Planning is a collaborative endeavor, involving a small, core team of experts.

Action Plan for the Business Analyst

Assemble and educate a core requirements team composed of key business and technical stakeholders.

Gain an understanding of the needs and environments of customers, users, and stakeholders.

Review, or create if nonexistent, the business case, project charter, or similar scope definition document.

Understand the business vision, drivers, goals, and objectives for the new/changed system.

Understand and further document the scope of the project.

Define the documents and models to be produced and begin to develop the requirements management plan.

Define/refine the checklist of requirements activities, deliverables, and schedule.

Plan for change throughout the life cycle.