18 years of proven training for business systems analysts in requirements and testing
IIBA Endorsed Education Provider

In this economy it’s hard to stay affloat and ahead of the game. This past year so many companies have gone out of business and the ones that are predicted to go under this coming year are astonishing. T Mobil, Reader’s digest, and Blockbuster are but a few of the listed companies that are in too much trouble to dig out of.

However, one of the best ways to make sure you have a superior company with better customer service is to constantly test and re-test your employees and your methods.

Employing a business analyst within your company is a great way to keep day to day tabs on what is being done well and what needs improvement. These individuals are sharp, focused, and diligent. The great ones are trained by Pierson Requirements Group.

Pierson aims to make you and your people run at their absolute best through targeting weak areas, retraining and even overhauling of old processes and methods.

Review the many ways in which they can offer your business the tools needed to stay in the black for years to come by making sure no one out there does what you do better or more efficiently.

Contact Pierson Requirements Group for more information on seminars and training classes today.

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Starting a business of any kind can be a very different experience depending on the amount of help you get and how muc experience that help has. With the current economy it is difficult to strike out on your own, but the consultants and methodology used by Pierson Requirements Group can really help you understand what you are getting into and the best steps to take toward success.

They use Joint Application Development or JAD. This is a technique used for gathering business software requirements. The purpose of JAD is to bring together the technical/creative team and the business community in a structured workshop setting to extract consensus based software requirements. This is accomplished by using a trained JAD facilitator and customized, planned agendas to assist the participants in arriving at complete, high quality requirements.

Another method employeed frequently by Pierson Requirements Group is Rapid Application Development or RAD which is a process that speeds the delivery of functionality to end-users by segmenting software into pieces for delivery rather than delivering all of the software functionality in one large implementation. It is an iterative process utilizing a spiral methodology and is also customer driven following an evolutionary process using continuous application engineering in a time-boxed fashion with a dedicated professional team. The goal of the iterative approach is to reduce the time between requests and delivery of Business Application Software.

Pierson Requirements group can take some of the sting and frustration generally associated with the start of a company out of the equation. Contact their offices for more information.

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A system analyst is someone within a company who researches problems, makes plans for a solution, and deals with the intricacies of developmental plans for meeting business or other requirements. A well trained analyst should be familiar with several different types of approaches to problems. Also they should be familiar with a variety of programming languages, operating systems, and different types of hardware and software to be used within a company.

” Because they often write user requests into technical specifications, the systems analysts are the liaisons between vendors and IT professionals. They may be responsible for developing cost analysis, design considerations, and implementation time-lines.” - Web Definition

The Pierson Requirements group aims to get your analyst to the top of his or her game by providing the best possible approach to all of these areas of expertise. They have training courses such as  a 2 day course entitled ‘Project Management Training’.

The Introduction to Project Management class offers training in the basic skills that a Project Manager would use to effectively manage an IT Project. The participants will learn how to scope and plan projects for IT initiatives. The seminar focus is on:

  • How to be an effective project manager and what skills are required
  • How to define the project vision and scope
  • How to create and manage an effective project plan
  • How to manage the project communication process
  • Each seminar participant receives a Seminar Handbook with sample templates, checklists, procedures guide and a solution set.
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Iterative Development is a process that speeds the delivery of functionality to end-users by segmenting a system into pieces for delivery, rather than delivering all of the system functionality in one large implementation. The iterative process utilizes a spiral methodology and is also customer driven following an evolutionary process using continuous application engineering in a timeboxed fashion with a dedicated professional team. The goal of the iterative approach is to reduce the time between requests and delivery of Business Application Systems. Some of the primary characteristics of iterative development projects are:

 

·         There is a strict deadline for basic functionality

·         Can be released in increments

·         Uses techniques such as time-boxing, dedicated teams and focus sessions

·         Business users are involved throughout the project and JAD is used

·         Total project time is usually 3 - 6 months

Roles

 

The execution of an Application Project can involve a number of different actors, each with a specific role and set of responsibilities. The following table defines all the different roles and responsibilities that can be found on an Application Development Project. These roles always exist although the size and characteristics of the project may cause the same person to carry out more than one role.

 

Add and remove roles as appropriate.  Make sure the responsibilities of each role are clearly understood.  It is as important to list client responsibilities to ensure client resources have the appropriate authority.

Role

Responsibilities

Roles

 

 

 

  Project Manager

Produce Project Definition Document.

Manage project schedule.

Manage project budget.

Manage change, issues risk and status.

  Technical Manager

Schedule and manage day-to-day development activities.

Resolve technical issues.

  Test/QA Manager

Define system test plan & test cases.

Execute system test plan.

Schedule testing resources.

Ensure application adheres to standards.

  Business Analyst

Analyze and document client requirements.

  Developer

Produce Prototype (optional).

Produce Design Document.

Code the application.

Unit test code.

Fix bugs in a timely manner.

  Tester

Test the application to ensure it complies with the Requirements & Design Documents.

 

 

<Client> Roles

 

  Sponsor/Champion

Sign-off on major deliverables and budget.

Participate in phase-end reviews.

Assign client resources to the project.

Eliminate roadblocks and motivate staff.

  Client Project Manager

Primary point of contact for Hallmark.

Sign-off on major deliverables.

Approve change requests & change budget.

Participate in phase-end reviews.

Coordinate client meetings, participation in workshops, training and status meetings.

  Other Client Representatives

Participate in analysis & design workshops.

Ensure the requirements specification meets the needs of the organization.

Participate in User Acceptance Testing.

 

 

TBD Roles

 

  Rollout manager

Plan and manage installation activities.

Plan/coordinate conversion activities.

  Support manager

Provide ongoing product support.

  Training manager

Develop training plan (with client lead).

Develop training material.

Train employees on the system.

  Documentation manager

Develop user documentation & help.

The purpose of an iterative development approach is to separate a development project into logical and manageable units for incremental delivery.  The completion of each iteration adds to the knowledge about the system being developed and reduces the risk when progressing to the next iteration.  It also provides a repeatable method for business system development.  It provides business user sign off and approval before continuing to commit resources to the project.

 

Reusability is also described throughout the system development process.  Reusing previously developed parts in a product is a significant way of decreasing the product’s life cycle cost.  Reuse in software engineering means deliverables that can be reused later.  This includes all the information and knowledge that has been developed, such as; system architectures, development methods, program code and completed algorithms.

Requirements Gathering & Writing Class

The Requirements Gathering and Writing class focuses on how to gather and write the different levels of requirements.  After attending Pierson’s training, customers have achieved a 30 – 40% time and cost saving in the requirements phase.  The class teaches how to implement UML and use case best practices for requirements gathering and writing for enhancements and new software development projects.  The workshop is one third lecture and two thirds hands on exercises for writing project scope definitions, business requirements and functional specifications requirements.

 

The seminar focus is on:

 

·         Understanding the different levels of requirements

 

·         The requirements management process

 

·         Characteristics and guidelines for writing effective requirements and use cases

 

·         Communication techniques for gathering requirements

 

·         Writing skills and instructions for writing successful scoping, requirements documents and detailed requirements

 

·         Practical exercises in scoping, business objectives, functional requirements, non-functional requirements, use cases and screen and reporting specifications

 

·         Writing and critiquing use cases and requirements using guidelines and checklists



Schedule

Date: June 2 – 4, 2010
Time: 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm EST
Duration: 3 half day sessions
Cost: $750.00
PDUs: 12
CDU’s towards CBAP recertification: 12

Register

Contact us to Register for the Requirements Gathering & Writing Virtual Class

Cost: $750.00

·         Live Instructor-Led Interactive sessions (4 hours per day over a 3 day period)

·         Training material presented via the web and live interactive instruction by phone or the web

·         Interactive exercises both in groups and individually

·         All participants receive printable .pdfs of materials

·         PDUs, CDUs and Certificates of successful completion are provided

Questions? Call or Email at 203- 322-1606 jmatthews@piersonrequirementsgroup.com

Click here to view the agenda

 

Instructor: Joy Matthews, Pierson Requirements Group, Inc.

Joy is the co-founder of Pierson Requirements Group which specializes in business systems requirements analysis and design best practices. Joy provides corporate training and consulting services to companies around the world and has assisted to implement requirements management best practices at hundreds of organizations in requirements gathering, requirements and system design methodologies.  Joy has over 20 years experience in Applications Development, Business Analysis, Requirements Management and Software Testing.

Use Case Template

Use Case #

#1

Author:

Author’s name

Iteration:

Filled (outlining the high level business requirements and identifying the alternate and exception scenarios)

Finished- completed in the Functional Specification to identify the detailed system requirements for the use case and how the  user interaction with the system should work

Name:

Use case name Verb noun

Category:

Category name – optional; use this field only if you’ve divided your use cases into functional groups (or categories).

Actor(s):

 End users performing this activity and/or systems that interface with this activity.

Description:

This use case describes…provide a brief summary of the use case.

Pre-Conditions

List any pre-conditions here in a bullet list.  What are the state of things prior to executing this use case?  What conditions must be true before this use case begins?  A pre-condition is a constraint that must be true before this use case can operate.  Often, other use cases are stated as pre-conditions.

E.g. database initialized, record already found, security established

Assumptions

Items that are outside the control of development (including the out of scope) AND must be in place before the use case can run.

Business Trigger

What is the business event that causes this use case to occur?

Flow of Events (Basic Path)

Step

Action 

This is the primary flow.  Supply the detailed flow descriptions here in a numbered style text.  You should have 3 -9 steps.  Document how the use case starts and ends.  Indicate what the customer wants the system to do.  Use the active voice.  The actor and the system perform the actions.  Use present tense.  Name the actor based upon the role that the actor represents in the problem domain.  The flow should contain the step #, Actor Action, System Action, Screen (if available) and Event.  The events are documented to better understand the major functions/processes the Actors are performing on the system. This information will later be used to create the event list template.

1

The use case begins when…

2

 

3

 

4

The use case ends when…

Post Conditions

List any post conditions here in a bullet list.  What are the state of things after you execute this use case?  What is the next step?  Indicate the successful post-conditions and the failed post-conditions.  E.g. Client added to the database, Resource ‘X’ assigned to project ‘Y’.

Alternate Scenarios

Step

Branching Action

1

Alternate flows are generally considered to be choices that are intentionally made by an actor.  Each alternate flow is labeled with an identifier in the form  A#1.  Each alternative flow is also named with a one-sentence description.  Each alternative flow has a set of steps numbered in sequential order.  It then statements are alternate scenarios.

Note:  the step number here refers to step in the basic path where the alternate scenario branches off of the basic path.

2

 

3

 

Exception

Scenarios

Exception flows are generally considered to be choices that are not intentionally made by the actor and normally result from significant error conditions.  What are the what ifs?  The errors that can happen.  Each exceptional flow is labeled with an identifier in the form E#1.  Each exceptional flow is also named with a one-sentence description.

Business Rules Validated

List any business rules associated with this use case, e.g. guests cannot order a quantity greater than 3 of any one item; to calculate tax in the state of Massachusetts, multiply the total by .05.

Special Requirements

In many situations you will uncover requirements that do not fall within the scope of the use case description, list those here, e.g. volumes, usability issues, time constraints, security issues.

Issues

List any questions and issues to be addressed by the end of the discovery stage.

Design Comments

This section is optional.  State any design comments and/or suggestions and clearly identify them as either comments/suggestions or as customer-stated, design constraints.  This can include suggestions or constraints on the GUI as well as other parts of the system.  These will be used as considerations by the design team when designing the classes that will implement the use case.  Also can use this section to document system rules.

 

Types of Questions:

 

Questions to open communication and creativity…

          What do you think about…?

          What options do you see…?

          What are the pros/cons…?

          How does the rest of the group feel?

Discovery questions -

          What are your goals in developing this system/enhancement?

          What critical problems, issues, or opportunities initiated this project?

          What is the most important business goal of the system/enhancement?

Confirmation questions -

          How will you recognize success?

          Are we in agreement with how I’ve described this?

Evaluation questions -

          Will the system/enhancement make the customer or you be more efficient? How?

          What will the new system/enhancement accomplish that is not currently accomplished manually or with other systems?

          Will the system/enhancement change the way you are doing things now? QA

 

Put yourself in the customers’ place:

 

Imagine yourself learning the user’s job

          What tasks would you need to perform?

          What questions would you have?

          Who all performs this task?

 

Questions could begin with:

          What else could…….

          What happens when….

          Would you ever need to…..

          Does anyone ever…..

 

Try to bring out the user’s assumptions

          What features or characteristics is the user expecting to be included without  having said so?

 

Walk through the processes that users follow to make decisions when performing tasks to extract the underlying logic.

          Use Flowcharts, Activity Diagrams, Process Mapping

          Decision Trees

          Mind Mapping

 

 

10 Key Principles, and how Agile Development fundamentally differs from a more traditional Waterfall approach to software development, are as follows:

1. Active user involvement is imperative
2. The team must be empowered to make decisions
3. Requirements evolve but the timescale is fixed
4. Capture requirements at a high level; lightweight & visual
5. Develop small, incremental releases and iterate
6. Focus on frequent delivery of products
7. Complete each feature before moving on to the next
8. Apply the 80/20 rule
9. Testing is integrated throughout the project lifecycle – test early and often
10. A collaborative & cooperative approach between all stakeholders is essential