IIBA ECBA – Business Analysis Elicitation and Collaboration (IIBA -ECBA)

1. Section Overview

In this course, we are going to examine the ongoing process of elicitation and collaboration and find out how business analysts identify and reach agreements with stakeholders on requirements. The task in this knowledge area describe how you, as a business analyst reach a mutual understanding of various types of business. Analyzes information with stakeholders. The activities associated with this task include workshops, surveys and ad hoc collaboration, but also conversations. The first part of the course, called Elicitation and Collaboration covers the following topics an overview of elicitation and collaboration, core concepts and the business analyst role, and an exercise on understanding elicitation and collaboration.

The second part of the course called prepare for elicitation has the following structure prepare for elicitation inputs and elements prepare for elicitation guidelines and techniques prepare for elicitation stakeholders and outputs and an exercise on preparing for elicitation the third part of the course called conduct elicitation covers the following topics conduct elicitation this is a pretty standard structure inputs and elements conduct elicitation guidelines and techniques conduct solicitation stakeholders and outputs and again, an exercise on conducting elicitation the fourth part of the course called Confirm Elicitation Results deals with these concepts confirm Elicitation Results inputs and elements confirm Elicitation Results guidelines and techniques confirm.

 Elicitation Results stakeholders and outputs and again, an exercise on confirming elicitation results the fifth part of the course, called Communicate Business Analyzes Information has the following structure communicating Business Analyzes Information inputs and elements by now, you already know the structure communicating Business Analyzes Information guidelines and techniques communicating Business Analyzes Information stakeholders and outputs and you are right. An exercise on Communicating Business Analyzes Information the 6th and the last part of the course, called Manage Stakeholders Collaboration has quite a similar structure stakeholder Collaboration Inputs and Elements stakeholder Collaboration guidelines and Techniques stakeholder Collaboration Stakeholders and Outputs and again an exercise on managing Stakeholder Collaboration next, an overview of the Business Analysis Certification course. This is part three of 14.

2. Overview of Elicitation and Collaboration

Overview of Elicitation and Collaboration After completing this topic, you should be able to identify tasks involving elicitation and collaboration. The task in Elicitation are used to obtain information from stakeholders and confirm results, as well as facilitate communication with stakeholders. Once information is gathered, how you obtain information from stakeholders is outlined in the Business Analyzes plan. The business analyst elicits information about the current state and desired future state and strategy analysis. Elicitation results are used to analyze and design requirements. Observation and other elicitation techniques are used to evaluate the current solution.

Elicitation is used through the requirements lifecycle to understand needs and to evaluate requirements changes. Elicitation is defined as to draw out or bring forth. This involves talking with stakeholders and using various techniques. This enables collaboration with stakeholders. The primary objective of Elicitation is to identify requirements and discover design information. Preparing for Elicitation is about determining the scope of the elicitation activity and choosing the right technique. The business analyst will prepare for Elicitation by first determining the information needed and the desired outcomes of the session. This includes determining the best elicitation techniques based on the topic and the audience context within knowledge Area Model A relationship model depicts how Elicitation and collaboration relates to other knowledge areas.

The three main interrelated knowledge areas are elicitation and collaboration, business analysis, planning and monitoring and requirements lifecycle Management These knowledge areas link to a cycle of secondary interrelated knowledge areas made up of strategy analyzes, requirements analysis and design definition and also solution evaluation information. Elicitation and Stakeholder Collaboration Elicitation is drawing or receiving information, talking with stakeholders, collaborating with stakeholders and meeting objectives by identifying requirements and discovering design information. Preparing for Elicitation Preparing for Elicitation means determining the scope and choosing the technique that’s it next, the business analyst will define the roles and responsibilities of the stakeholders participating in the session.

For example, a subject matter expert with deep knowledge of warehousing processes would be responsible to confirm current state processes and explain the challenges experienced in order to communicate his or her needs. Resources include a room or online meeting tool, flip charts, whiteboards sticky notes and other artifacts needed to engage stakeholders in the discussion. The business analyst sends a meeting agenda explaining the desired outcomes of the session and forwards other information which could include existing processes and, among other items, requirements stated in earlier sessions that need to be validated. For the most part, the business analyst will interact with stakeholders during Elicitation sessions.

Key objectives include understanding stakeholders, understanding their needs, brainstorming to determine possible solutions, and discovering information relevant to the need, such as business rules and constraints. The business analyst could use a questionnaire in an interview or conduct a workshop with cross functional teams, which is ideal for combining a variety of techniques such as brainstorming, root cause analysis, process modeling collaboration techniques include workshops, collaborative games, have rules and are designed to help the participant share knowledge, ideas and solving problems. Preparing for Elicitation other ways to prepare for elicitation include understanding responsibilities and sharing expectations, identifying and securing required resources, and ensuring that stakeholders have the right information.

Conducting elicitation conducting elicitation requires interacting with stakeholders. The objective of Conducting Elicitation are understanding Stakeholder needs, identifying possible solutions, and discovering information relevant to change. Conducting elicitation requires drawing on a combination of Elicitation methods. Types of Elicitation collaborative techniques can be used for information discovery. The Business analyst uses Document analyzes to research the current state while working on a new process for onboarding customers. I reviewed process documents and training materials and validated the current state with a group of diverse and impacted stakeholders. There were many disagreements, but ultimately what was documented reflected the essence of the process and why certain steps and their order satisfied the customer need.

Experiments are controlled events that help discover unknown information. This is also useful through proofs of concepts, observational studies, simulations and prototypes. There are various types of experiments which may include a proof of concept where the elicitation activity is gained at gathering enough information to create potential solution. This may include paper based prototypes and or electronic prototypes. Observational studies are controlled and planned and may be based on the simulation of the business environment. The objective may be to identify opportunities for improvement. Another type of elicitation is research. Research can be used for information discovery. Also, we have the experiments. Experiments can be used for information discovery as well. Confirming Elicitation results is about garnering a shared understanding of the desired outcomes.

The next step is essential to ensuring information collected is understood by all stakeholders and reflects the intent of the Stakeholder during the elicitation session, this helps the Business analyst to uncover missing information further, explore conflicting information, clarify needs that are vague, and correct information errors. After the elicitation session, categorize the information, remove redundancies and note where information is vague or incomplete. Send the organized notes to the stakeholders, providing them with a clear direction. For example, review the following information for a currency does the information reflect your needs? Is there any information missing? Include specific questions that the stakeholder must answer to fill in the gaps, and what needs to change? Or do you want to add anything?

Keep the stakeholders on track by following up with them and confirming your understanding of the response. Business Analysis information is continually communicated during an initiative. This assists in decision making when information is accurate, written in terms that are familiar to the stakeholders, and provided soon after an elicitation activity, communication is achieved.

Confirming Elicitation Results confirming Elicitation results involves a shared understanding of outcomes. There is confirmation that the required information is received and properly recorded. It also uncover missing information, conflicting information, vagueness and information errors. Communicating Business Analyzes Information Communicated Information is pertinent to decision making, easy to use with proper forms, terms and concept and is accurate and timely.

3. Core Concepts and the Business Analyst’s Role

Core concepts and the business analyst role. After completing this topic, you should be able to identify roles of the business analyst during the elicitation and collaboration process. The primary focus of elicitation and collaboration is to discover the stakeholders ‘needs as it relates to understanding current state, future state, and solutions. Cop obtaining information that supports the business analyzes activities. For example, understanding the business rules that can drive the outcome of an insurance claim is one of the activities. Questions are the multiutility tool used by the business analyst to understand the stakeholders needs.

Why? Questions have to draw out reasons for the needs. Open and closed probing questions encourage sharing of requirements, details, constraints and assumptions. Change is the result of a need. Therefore, during elicitation, the business analyst uses various techniques to describe the desired change process models, functional decomposition and reviews ensure that the business analyst is on the right track. Business rule analyzes are elicited to define the policies that constrain the solution. Prototyping is used to confirm and further elicit system functions. Focus groups, interviews and workshops help to drive out stakeholder concerns and determine stakeholders attitude towards the change. For example, during an interview with a sales manager, he expressed his concerns that the new customer relationship system will require extensive training keeping his salespeople from selling needs. It requires gathering information on needs, drawing on the information that supports business analyzes, and improving the understanding of needs.

Changes require using various techniques to describe the change, identifying features of the change, and determining attitudes of concerns toward the change. A solution satisfies a need. Through elicitation activities, the business analyst works with the stakeholders to find what the solution should do to meet their goals and objectives. For example, a client of mine wanted the learning management system to send learners a notification to remind them of their outstanding courses.

This function increased staff completion of safety courses necessary for the organization to stay compliant with government regulations. Focus group surveys and prototypes are excellent techniques to engage stakeholders in the assessment of the proposed solution. A client choose to have the end users assess three proposed solutions to the use of a script. The staff actually use the proposed system by completing a series of steps and then providing the written feedback and rating. Reviews provide an opportunity for the business analyst to communicate solutions, features and functions. These sessions give the stakeholder a chance to review a complete picture of the requirements and provide feedback or request changes before the implementation begins the Solutions this involves determining the ideal features of a suggested solution, assessing the suggested solution, and communicating features to stakeholders.

Context provides an understanding of the change. The active elicitation will uncover things that are relevant to the change. When stakeholders talk about political environment, attitudes about the change, and external forces, the business analyst should record these elements, which will be used when analyzing requirements. Discovering the factors that influence the change provides a complete picture and requirements that would otherwise not be included. Public opinion of a tax information system, for instance, reading is of use provided valuable information for a newly planned public health application. Visiting the potential value of a feature or function of a solution helps determining its importance and will facilitate the prioritization of requirements. Each stakeholder will have a different perspective of the value of a change and during Elicitation, the business analyst is looking for commonality of opinions on the change and why the change adds value.

Questions regarding how the feature or function will help achieve the business objectives, such as how does this feature help to reduce costs or increase productivity? Or will this function increase customer satisfaction? Certainly help context Determine the context using various techniques and understand what the changes influencing or what factors are influencing the change value requires an understanding of the value of information, confirming information leading to value, and sharing information with appropriate stakeholders. Elicitation activities provide a perfect environment to foster collaboration between stakeholders. Requirements. Workshops engage stakeholders to work toward a common goal, solve problems and make recommendations. When stakeholders work together, the opportunity to understand the needs and opinions of others is provided. During a workshop to define process standards for an It department.

Each of the participants came with a different perspective of what was needed to ensure quality outputs from the process. As each person expressed their needs, I created a process map which focuses on the impact of the information supplied through the process and the output. This prompted improvements to preceding processes, reducing the risk of errors in outputs to the subsequent process. Relationships between stakeholders and the business analysts are cemented through better understanding of their needs and challenges. Stakeholders it is required to foster collaboration between stakeholders, facilitate good communication and understanding, and maintain strong stakeholder relationships.

4. Exercise: Understand Elicitation and Collaboration

Exercise understanding Elicitation and Collaboration After completing this topic, you should be able to demonstrate your understanding of the tasks and drawers involved in business analysis, elicitation and collaboration. Therefore, in this exercise you are required to demonstrate your understanding of the tasking. Roles involved in Business Analyzes, Elicitation and collaboration, and there are several tasks involved in Business Analyzes, Elicitation and Collaboration identifying tasks involved in elicitation and Collaboration identifying the roles of the Business Analyst during the elicitation and collaboration process. As a business Analyst, you will use the results of Elicited, information about the organization’s, current state, desired future state, and Strategy Analyzes to Analyze and desire requirements. Which two statements describe how the Elicitation and collaboration knowledge area relates to other knowledge areas? Here you have the options and please take your time to answer before comparing with the answer that I will provide.

So Option One task in this knowledge area are used to obtain information from stakeholders and confirm results. Option Two tasks in this knowledge area are facilitate communication with stakeholders. Once information is gathered. Option Three tasks in this knowledge area are used to observe other elicitation techniques to evaluate the desired future state. And lastly tasking this knowledge are involved talking with other business analysts and using a standardized technique. And here we have your answer to compare. Option One that’s correct task analysis and collaboration are used to obtain information from stakeholders and to confirm results. The Business Analysis plan outlines how you obtain information about the current state, desired future state, and strategy analyzes from stakeholders.

The elicitation results are then used to analyze the design of a solution. Option Two that’s also correct you can facilitate communication with stakeholders once information is gathered. Solicitation is used through the requirements lifecycle and involves talking with stakeholders and using various techniques that enable collaboration with stakeholders. Option Three that’s incorrect observation and other recitation techniques are used to evaluate the current state. Option Four and the last one that’s also incorrect elicitation involves talking with stakeholders and using various techniques to enable collaboration with other stakeholders.

Elicitation and collaboration is used to discover the Stakeholder needs as it relates to understanding current state, future state and solutions. Cop which options describe tasks involved in elicitation and collaboration? Here you have the options preparing for elicitation, conducting elicitation and confirming elicitation results managing Stakeholder collaboration communicating business Analyzes information, sharing only certain information about the project to influence the desired outcome of the session, and determining the best solicitation technique based on the Business Analyst communication style. Option One that’s correct preparing for elicitation, conducting elicitation and confirming elicitation results are tasks involved in the elicitation and collaboration process.

The task and elicitation are used to obtain information from stakeholders and confirm results, as well as facilitated communication with stakeholders once information is gathered. Option Two that’s correct managing Stakeholder collaboration is a task involved in the elicitation and collaboration process. Elicitation involves talking with stakeholders and using various techniques that enable collaboration with stakeholders.

Option Three that’s also correct Communicating business analyzing information is a task involved in the elicitation and collaboration process. Business analyzes information is continually communicating during the initiative, and the business analyst keeps the stakeholders on track by following up with them on confirming your understanding of the response. Option Four that’s Incorrect all relevant information should be shared to optimize the elicitation and collaboration process. Option Five that’s also Incorrect The elicitation technique should be based on the topic and the audience and not on the business analyst preferred communication style. Relationships between stakeholders and the business analyst are cemented through better understanding of the stakeholder needs, the changes as the result of those needs, and the context that provides an understanding of the changes.

Which statements describe the business analyst responsibilities related to needs, changes and context? Here you have the options use open and closed questions to understand what the stakeholders require. Use process models, functional decomposition and reviews to describe the desired adjustment. Record political environment, attitudes about the change, and external forces to analyze requirements. Use elicitation techniques to discover how the result will meet stakeholder goals and objectives. And finally, look for shared opinions on the change and why the change is important to the business. And here you have the answer for you to compare. Option One that’s Correct the business analyst responsibilities related to needs involve using open and closed probing questions to help draw out reasons for the needs.

This encourages the sharing of requirements, details, constraints and assumptions. Option Two that’s Correct the business analyst responsibilities related to change involve using process models, functionally composition and reviews to ensure that he or she is on the right track. Option Three that’s Correct the business analyst responsibilities related to context involve discovering factors like political environment, attitudes and external forces that influence change, as it provides a complete picture and involves requirements that will otherwise not be included. Option Four that Incorrect this would be an example of a business analyst responsibility related to solutions. Option Five that Incorrect this should be an example of the business analyst responsibility related to value.

Elicitation activities that elicit the potential value of a feature or function of a solution provide a perfect environment to foster collaboration between stakeholders. Which statements describe the business analyst responsibilities related to solutions, stakeholders and value? Here we have the options work with stakeholders to find what the result of the activities should do to meet their goals and objectives, hold workshops to engage stakeholders to work toward a common goal, solve problems and make recommendations. Look for commonality of stakeholder’s opinions on the importance of the change. Record political environment, attitudes about the change and external forces. And finally, use process models, functional decomposition and reviews to ensure that you are on the right track. And here you have the answer.

Option, one that’s correct the business analyst responsibilities related to solutions. Involve working with stakeholders to find what the result of the activity should do to meet their goals and objectives, and using elicitation activities like focus group surveys and prototypes to engage stakeholders in the assessment of what the proposed solution should do to meet those goals and objectives. Option two that’s correct the business analyst responsibilities related to stakeholders involve holding requirements workshops to engage stakeholders to work together towards a common goal, solve problems, and make commendations.

These workshops also provide the opportunity to understand the needs and opinions of others. Option three that’s also correct the business analyst responsibilities related to value involve looking for commonality of stakeholders opinions on the importance of the change and respecting that each stakeholders will have a different perspective of the value of a change.

Option Four that incorrect recording political environment, attitudes about the change, and external forces, relates to the context and does not describe the business analyst responsibilities related to solutions, stakeholders and value. Option five, and the last one that’s also incorrect models functional decomposition and reviews does not describe the business analyst responsibility, abilities related to solutions, stakeholders and value. They are techniques used to describe the desired change.

5. Prepare for Elicitation: Inputs and Elements

Prepare for elicitation inputs and elements. After completing this topic, you should be able to recognize considerations important when preparing for elicitation. The purpose of the task Prepare for Elicitation is to plan for elicitation activities by understanding the scope of the activity and selecting the best technique based on Stakeholder Analyzes and what is to be achieved in the elicitation sessions. The inputs include business needs and the Stakeholder Engagement Approach, which was prepared during business analyzes planning. The task itself is to prepare for elicitation and the output is on a elicitation activity plan. Elicitation is iterative, but you have to start somewhere. Conduct elicitation sessions to understand the business problems, goals and objectives.

The needs elicited that support the goals and objectives will serve as the scope of the domain under analysis and the foundation for other elicitation activities. The Stakeholder Engagement Approach from the Business Analysis Plan provides guidance on the communication and collaboration needs of your stakeholders. Understanding the scope of the elicitation activity allows business analysts to respond if the session strays from the intended scope. It also allows them to determine the type of business analyzes information to be discovered. For example, reviewing a process will uncover potential productivity problems and keep the session on track, which might be to discover how to increase cycle time. Review the business domain True Document Analyzes.

This may validate current state and explore issues with the process. Prepare for Elicitation and overview. The task prepared for Elicitation has two inputs needs and stakeholder engagement approach. The output is the Elicitation activity plan. Inputs needs are required as a starting point and provide scope and purpose. The Stakeholder Engagement Approach gives an understanding of communication and collaboration needs and helps with planning and preparing effective elicitation events. Understanding Scope of Elicitation Understanding the scope of elicitation determines the required information to elicit and provides a boundary for activities. Ensure you understand the needed resources in the overall culture and environment of the organization.

Review your Stakeholder Analyzes to understand stakeholders, their locations and their group dynamics. Determine the expected outputs from the elicitation activities and plan elicitation activities to complement each other. Also review the strategy or solution approach and the scope of the future solution. Also provide possible sources of the business, analyzing information that might feed into the specific elicitation activity. There are many techniques to choose from, so consider how appropriate attending is. If your stakeholders are scattered around the world, then an in person workshop will not serve your purposes.

Determine if the stakeholders are available. If there’s sales blitz and the end of every month, it’s highly unlikely that you will get these stakeholders to attend. As mentioned earlier, the location of stakeholders can enable or constrain the technique chosen. The location may even prompt the business analyst to visit the location to observe where and how the stakeholders work. In one of my engagements, for example, which involved a large utility company, many of the end users worked in remote areas now.

An interview over the phone would provide information, but observing them during their day to day activities really provided deep insight into the challenges that they face day to day understanding Scope of Elicitation Understanding the scope of elicitation also helps to identify if required resources are available. When needed, select Elicitation Techniques elicitation technique considerations include appropriateness availability of resources and location of resources. Now define the outcome of the license activity. This includes the desired outcome in any invitations. For example, say something like the outcome of the session is to define the information needed to communicate sales results. Business analysts rely on interviews, document analyzes, workshop and observation as their primary source of requirements. Typically, interviews will be used when eliciting from executive due to their busy schedules.

Half hour session with the right questions will yield a lot of information. Workshops take more time to conduct and plan to consider how the stakeholders will work together to reach the desired outcome. Workshops are an excellent approach when supporting techniques are incorporated, such as root coats analysis, process modeling and mind mapping. Mind mapping is an effective way of capturing ideas and information and linking those thoughts together. When setting up your logistics, consider what you are trying to achieve through the elicitation activity. If you are trying to prioritize requirements, work with the stakeholders to define the benefits of including the feature or penalties. If the features not included, sticky notes or voting notes would be included in the slides needed. For stakeholders to express their preferences, select Elicitation techniques.

Elicitation technique considerations also include expected outcomes and commonly used techniques. Setting up your Logistics Set up logistics by identifying elicitation activity objectives, roles and responsibilities, communication methods and locations and visitation methods include the roles and responsibilities of each stakeholder. Responsibilities include coming prepared and how should they generally be prepared. If you have a scribe, work with him or her to outline how to contribute to the session ascribe is your partner someone who will capture key information, provide feedback to the facilitated or stakeholder behavior, and make suggestions on next steps. The elicitation method will dictate the size of the room or if you need an online communication.

For example, a presentation in an online session will help to drive conversations. Surveys can also be used to facilitate opinions and voting for remotely located stakeholders. Supporting materials include outlining current status such as process models, business rules, and even the existing software solution to be used. Documented requirements should be provided to stakeholders at least one week prior to a requirements review session. When conducting an experiment, he used the electronic prototypes which makes pose missing or hard to use functions. Secure supporting Material identify the sources of information which may be verbal, electronic or written. If you are unsure of which supporting materials are needed, contact the stakeholders and discuss to discover their needs. Models synthetize complex pieces of information into an easy to digest picture.

When possible, include models and supporting materials to resolve any miscommunication. Educate your stakeholders on how to read models. The symbols and semantics are like many other languages. Once a stakeholder understands their meaning, communication is increased. Provide stakeholders information prior to requirement session. Depending on the scope of the session, you could provide process models, business rules, policies and procedures, and any other materials that may be helpful to the user.

Make sure that the documents and information aligns to the stakeholder role in the session. If review requirements, send the documents to the stakeholders, giving them plenty of time to prepare. Ask questions to ensure that the stakeholders are in line with the solution and understand the impacts to their respective departments. Secure supporting material support material can involve various aspects of the organization depending on the project. Prepare stakeholders to prepare stakeholders, educate them on how elicitation methods work, describe required information and ensure stakeholder buying.