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    Streamlining Business Requirements: The XCellR8 Approach
    Streamlining Business Requirements: The XCellR8 Approach
    Streamlining Business Requirements: The XCellR8 Approach
    Ebook293 pages2 hours

    Streamlining Business Requirements: The XCellR8 Approach

    By Gerrie Caudle

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    About this ebook

    Effectively Define and Gather Your Business Requirements Today!
    Many programming systems today are designed and constructed before business requirements are completed and finalized. Without a proper foundation, these systems will eventually crumble. Streamlining Business Requirements: The XCellR8™ Approach provides project managers and business analysts with the foundation, principles, and steps needed to document business requirements in an accurate and efficient manner. Author Gerrie Caudle introduces the XCellR8™ approach, an analysis method used to gather business requirements in a structured, well-defined set of steps.
    This book offers comprehensive framework needed to:
    • Effectively analyze business requirements
    • Properly identify business events
    • Prepare for a requirements session
    • Better understand the “big picture”
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBerrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.
    Release dateJul 1, 2009
    ISBN9781567262780
    Streamlining Business Requirements: The XCellR8 Approach
    Author

    Gerrie Caudle

    Gerrie Caudle is the President of Toshmar Systems Consulting Inc., an international consulting and training firm that specializes in business requirements gathering and process re-engineering. Gerrie specializes in cross-industry projects, having carried out assignments within government, financial services, transportation, resource, hospitality, manufacturing, retail, and distribution. She was a contributing member of the International Institute for Business Analysis (IIBA) and was instrumental in drafting the first body of knowledge on gathering business requirements.

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      Book preview

      Streamlining Business Requirements - Gerrie Caudle

      STREAMLINING BUSINESS REQUIREMENTS

      THE XCellR8™ APPROACH

      Gerrie Caudle

      8230 Leesburg Pike, Suite 800

      Vienna, VA 22182

      (703) 790-9595

      Fax: (703) 790-1371

      www.managementconcepts.com

      Copyright © 2009 by Management Concepts, Inc.

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher, except for brief quotations in review articles.

      Printed in the United States of America

      10  9  8  7  6  5  4  3  2  1

      Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

      Caudle, Gerrie.

        Streamlining business requirements: the XCellR8 approach / Gerrie Caudle.

            p. cm.

        ISBN 978-1-56726-240-7

        1. Project management. 2. Work breakdown structure. I. Title. HD69.P75C38 2009

      658.4′04—dc22

      2009014119

      10  9  8  7  6  5  4  3  2  1

      About the Author

      Gerrie Caudle is the president of Toshmar Systems Consulting Inc., an international consulting and training firm that specializes in business requirements gathering and process reengineering. She began her career as a programmer for a major retailer in the early 1970s and has worked in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Asia. Gerrie has cross-industry expertise, having worked within government, financial services, transportation, resource management, hospitality, manufacturing, retail, and distribution industries. Her areas of specialization are business requirements definition and analysis, client training and mentoring, package and custom software evaluation, functional analysis and design, and IT planning and assessment.

      Gerrie has been a guest speaker with many professional associations. From 1985 to 1989, she was the executive director of the Canadian Association of Women Business Owners, an organization that helps association members expand their businesses. She is also a contributing member of the International Institute for Business Analysis (IIBA) and was instrumental in drafting the first body of knowledge on gathering business requirements. Her training course is endorsed by the IIBA. Gerrie may be reached by email at gcaudle@GerrieCaudleAssociates.com or at GerCaudle@aol.com.

      To my parents, whose only reason for living is to see their children off to a world they themselves never imagined could happen, and whose sacrifices are unlimited.

      To my husband, whose love and support never wanes.

      To my sons, whose love and respect I will always cherish.

      To my siblings, who are always there for me when the going gets tough.

      Contents

      Preface

      Acknowledgments

      Introduction

      What Are Business Requirements?

      What Makes a Business Requirement Good?

      The Requirements Phase

      The Requirements-Gathering Process

      Chapter 1: What Is the XCellR8™ Approach?

      What Is XCellR8™?

      Why Does XCellR8™ Work?

      Chapter 2: The XCellR8™ Approach: Identifying Business Events

      Using Business Rules to Find Events

      Case Study: Business Events for a Portfolio Management Project

      Chapter 3: The XCellR8™ Approach: The Event Process Model

      Parts of the Event Process Model

      Business Event Triggers

      Exercise: Creating Event Process Models for an Internal Technical Support System

      Event Process Models in Everyday Situations

      Creating Event Process Models for a Simple Purchase Order System

      Chapter 4: The XCellR8™ Approach:

      The Event Entity Relationship Diagram and Data Attribution

      The Event Entity Relationship Diagram

      Object Relationships

      Creating an Event Entity Relationship Diagram

      What Is Data Attribution?

      Chapter 5: Putting It All Together

      What Is a Requirements Session?

      Preparing for a Requirements Session

      Scoping a Project

      Conducting the Requirements Session

      Eliciting the Requirements

      The Business Requirements Document

      Chapter 6: The Life Cycle of an Object

      Using an Object Life Cycle Matrix

      Chapter 7: The XCellR8™ Approach: Completeness Tests

      Completeness of a Business Event

      Is Your Event Process Description Complete?

      Completeness of Business Requirements

      Chapter 8: The XCellR8™ Approach: The Big Picture

      End-to-End Business Scenarios

      Using a Swim Lane Diagram

      Using a Context Diagram

      Logical Data Modeling

      Nonfunctional Requirements

      Chapter 9: Using Use Cases

      What Is a Use Case?

      How Business Events and Use Cases Relate to One Another

      Requirements Elicitation in a Use Case Structure

      Process Flow Charts

      Chapter 10: Test Scenarios

      Writing Test Scenarios

      Test Cases

      The Test Specification Document

      Chapter 11: Business Requirements Traceability

      Traceability to an Original Business Requirement

      Types of Traceability

      Practical Traceability Tips

      Chapter 12: Applying the XCellR8™ Approach

      New Development

      Reverse Engineering

      Process Reengineering

      Business Process Mapping

      Enhancement

      Appendix: Example Business Requirements Document

      Glossary

      Preface

      We all know that correct and complete business requirements form the foundation of a good system. We admit that without these, we would develop systems based on pure conjecture or unverified assumptions. Yet so many systems are designed and constructed even before the business requirements are completed. This I call utter insanity! Doing this is almost akin to building a house without a blueprint or without a solid foundation. The house may look good, with bells and whistles and beautiful features, but a house without a proper foundation will eventually crumble.

      From my humble start as a programmer and a programming trainer in the early 1970s (using Assembler, Fortran, and COBOL), then progressing to actually writing code (which I absolutely enjoyed), designing systems, liaising between business areas and technology groups, and managing projects, I have always believed that there must be a better way to define business requirements. When I was a young programmer and a user told me what he needed a system to do, I used to say, Hey, I can code that right now! without regard for how working without formal requirements might affect the rest of the system or the rest of the organization. Now I recognize the necessity of asking challenging questions like these before simply diving in:

      What is missing?

      Why haven’t we established a firm foundation for this system? Is it because:

      • We are asking the wrong questions?

      • We don’t know where to start?

      • We are overwhelmed by the enormity of the task of finding out what the business needs?

      • We’ve been swayed by what the operational system currently does, assuming that it fulfills the business’s real needs—without considering that the current system is being replaced because it does not do what the business wants it to do?

      • We all want the short-term gratification of seeing something work immediately, while ignoring what really needs to work?

      This quest for an approach that works led to XCellR8™. The training sessions I have delivered to different organizations over many years led me to believe that many analysts have no idea where to begin gathering business requirements. If you are among them, this book will guide you in the right direction.

      XCellR8™ is a logical, methodical analysis approach that everyone can learn. This innovative and engaging method of gathering business requirements is for those who have wondered why business requirements are needed at all. Defining business requirements does not have to be a painful experience.

      This book discusses the concepts of the XCellR8™ approach and their practical applications to help you in your work. I have incorporated some anecdotes—both positive and negative—from previous projects to emphasize critical points.

      This book offers business analysts the foundation, principles, and steps they need to become excellent facilitators in a world where gathering information is as important as the design and development of a system itself.

      The XCellR8™ approach is not a magic bullet that will solve all of your organization’s systems problems, nor will it develop your systems in the blink of an eye. But it will ensure you have everything needed to gather and document your business requirements in an accurate and efficient manner.

      The tools described in this book may be familiar to you, but I think you will find that the approach is quite innovative. We know that some readers want instant answers, short-term gratification, and fail-safe tools. But when performing business requirements analysis, the most important factors are your ability to ask the right questions of your users, to document their responses properly, and to ask follow-up questions. This book will show you how.

      Often, communication between the business and development groups is nonexistent, or at least ineffective. My intent in presenting the XCellR8™ approach is to help bridge the chasm between these two groups, whether perceived or real.

      The Importance of Business Requirements

      Why should we even bother to gather business requirements? Why don’t we just push forward and start development immediately? The importance of requirements should not be underestimated or ignored. Studies have shown¹ that incomplete requirements or a lack of requirements, unrealistic expectations, and changes in requirements or specifications all contribute to projects’ failure. Other studies² have shown that software errors are more expensive to repair the later they are detected in the development life cycle. User involvement in defining business requirements, a clear statement of goals, and realistic expectations all contribute to project success.

      Gathering Business Requirements

      Anyone who has attempted to elicit and document business requirements will tell you that it can be a frustrating and aggravating task for a variety of reasons. For example, users may be unavailable or uncertain about their needs. This book clearly explains the process of gathering requirements, helping you do so quickly, accurately, and thoroughly. It offers a repeatable, structured approach that will work in every industry, allowing you to elicit the business requirements for any kind of project, be it a data warehousing, process engineering, process mapping, or technical project. You don’t have to be an expert on the subject matter itself. You may be thinking: What? I don’t need to know anything about the business, yet I will be able to elicit business requirements effectively? Absolutely!

      The XCellR8™ approach will help you track your progress and ensure that your analysis is comprehensive. The methods and techniques described in this book are based on best industry practices and conventions. XCellR8™ is a logical, systematic approach to gathering business requirements that practically guarantees completeness of the requirements.

      This book will help you:

      Develop questions. Initially, rather than getting bogged down in eliciting design requirements, focus on what the business must do, and apply the design requirements to the business needs later.

      To elicit business needs efficiently and effectively, know what questions you must ask to draw out the information you need. More important, determine your follow-up questions so that nothing falls through the cracks.

      Business analysts often say that they do not know what questions to ask the business group. Meanwhile, business groups often don’t know what information to give to business analysts.

      To produce a business requirements document that makes sense to everybody, business analysts must ask relevant questions—questions that draw out answers everyone can easily understand. Before creating the requirements document, ask these questions:

      What information must be included in the document?

      Where will you get this information?

      Who is the audience for the requirements document?

      What templates should you use to create it?

      Facilitate a requirements session. Requirements session facilitators or analysts are not just meeting facilitators. They must think on their feet to analyze responses and recognize when follow-up questions need to be asked. They are expected to keep control of the people in the room and stay within the framework of the session. Requirements facilitators can easily morph into meeting facilitators, but meeting facilitators may not necessarily be effective requirements facilitators.

      Validate business requirements. How do you know when the business requirements document is complete? How do you identify scope creep? How do you identify the functionalities that are ignored, missed, or completely forgotten? One way

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