Investigating the Business Situation (12.5%)

Question 1

Define workshops
5.1.1 Advantages and disadvantages of workshops
5.1.2 List techniques used for discovery workshops
5.1.3 List techniques used for visualisation workshops

Answer 1

Workshops provide an excellent collaborative forum in which issues can be discussed, conflicts resolved and requirements elicited. They are also a useful environment for carrying out other activities, such as compiling process models , understanding data requirements, eliciting CSFs and KPIs or analysing the quality of a requirements set before they are formally documented.

advantages gained from using workshops:
-Gain a broad view of the area under investigation
-Increase speed and productivity
-Obtain buy-in and acceptance for the project:
-Gain a consensus view or group agreement

disadvantage
-Extensive preparation time
-Undue influence of dominant personalities
-Authority limitations

Discovery Techniques are those that help a facilitator to elicit information and views from the participants.

Brainstorming
Round robin discussions
Brainwriting
Sticky (Post-it) note exercises
Stepwise refinement
‘Break-out’ or ‘syndicate’ group exercises

visualisation techniques are suitable for use in a workshop. They are quick to understand and to explain, and help workshop participants to understand the information being captured.

-process models,
-data models,
-use case diagrams,
-rich pictures
-mind maps.

Question 2

Define observation
5.2.1 Advantages and disadvantages of observation
5.2.2 Formal observation
5.2.3 Shadowing

Answer 2

Observing the workplace and the staff carrying out their work, particularly when done early in an investigation, is very useful to obtain information about the business environment and work practices.

Observation has the following advantages:
-A much better understanding of the problems and difficulties faced by the business users is obtained.
-Seeing a task performed helps to identify relevant questions for a follow-up interview with the person responsible for that task.
-The depth of understanding gained from observation helps in identifying workable solutions that are more likely to be acceptable to the business.

Question 3

Define interviews
5.3.1 Advantages and disadvantages of interviewing

Question 4

Define scenarios
5.4.1 Advantages and disadvantages of scenarios

Question 5

Define prototyping
5.5.1 Advantages and disadvantages of prototyping

Question 6

Define user role analysis
5.6.1 Advantages and disadvantages of user role analysis
5.6.2 Personas

Question 7

Define quantitative approaches
5.7.1 Surveys or questionnaires
5.7.2 Activity sampling
5.7.3 Document analysis

Question 8

Describe the following two diagrammatic techniques used to record a business situation
5.8.1 Rich pictures
5.8.2 Mind maps