One of the most important skills a business analyst should have is the ability to perform requirements elicitation/analysis. The requirements gathering and elicitation process should lead to the preparation of a detailed requirements document. Some of the commonly used elicitation techniques are outlined below: Brainstorming Business analysts can use brainstorming, a group creativity technique, to generate ideas, identify the root causes of problems, as well as solve complex business problems. During requirements gathering, brainstorming can be used to get a variety of ideas from a group of p ..read more

Dashboard reporting is popular because of its short, sweet, and to-the-point graphical interface that usually fits into one page; but it has its pros and cons depending on the use you have for it on your project. Dashboards have surfaced and evolved in recent years, with several organizations finding them invaluable for a quick overview of projects or even portfolios of projects under the purview of a PMO (Project Management Office). Still, some people want more and what they are basically requesting is a good old status report. When having the options, which would your stakeholders choose? It ..read more

Interested in finding out about basic business analyst skills and concepts? In Part 2 of this six-part series of articles, we will continue to explore the basic skills and concepts. In this section, we will review and analyze the business analysis process of gathering data and setting proper project goals. Read on to find out more about the basic business analyst skills and concepts and information gathering and goal development techniques. As we stated in Part 1, there are a variety of techniques and tools suggested by PMI that should be in your business analysis toolkit. In this article, we ..read more

In the following six-part series of articles, we will explore the basic skills and concepts of a Business Analyst (BA). At the onset, this subject may appear to be redundant as many of us assume we have the skills needed and that we understand the concepts needed to be a business analyst. However, as we delve deeper into the actual tactical of being an effective business analyst, it will become clear that customer satisfaction is equally reliant on soft skills as much as the hard process skills. In the series, we will discuss six domain concepts of business analysis. Each article in the six-pa ..read more

Making the connection between your business strategy and project management isn’t easy, but it is necessary if projects are going to serve a purpose and meet inherent business needs. Here are some things you can do to make the connection. To align business goals with project management (PM), leaders from the enterprise project management office (EMPO) or project management office (PMO) need to be involved in strategic planning sessions alongside senior-level management. The foundation for overall business success and project initiatives starts here, making it imperative for executive sponsors ..read more

Why should project managers consider the source of their information? Where you get your project information or business intelligence from has an impact on its weighting and your decisions. Make sure both the source and the data are factual and reliable. Always consider the source. From personal experience, I will listen to a podcast or an interview and immediately take that information as gospel. Joe Rogan is a classic personal example. He will talk about nutrition, diet, or jiu-jitsu and I will start to impart my knowledge in general conversation. When asked where I heard that information, T ..read more

Worldwide revenues for big data and business analytics are expected to grow to more than $187 billion by 2019, and the project management industry is projected to hit $5.81 trillion by 2020. Here is how some organizations are using data analytics to improve their project performance.   Ted Friedman, vice president, and analyst at Gartner predict the following four trends will drive fundamental changes in the use of data and analytics: Instead of just reflecting business performance, data analytics will become the driver of operations. Data and analytics will become infused in an organ ..read more

Business analysis planning determines how a business analyst will gather, analyze, and communicate requirements, as well as the deliverables to be developed. A business analysis plan is an output of the process and consists of information such as how to plan the business analysis approach, plan for requirements management, define other’s roles and responsibilities, understand the project context, conduct stakeholder analysis, plan for business analysis activities, plan for business analysis communication and collaborate with the project manager as outlined below. Determine the business analys ..read more

Performance metrics are incredibly useful to managers and business stakeholders by indicating progress, forecasting completion, identifying risks, and determining the effectiveness of a strategy. Truly intuitive metrics are a powerful tool in the project manager’s arsenal and can ensure that not only the PM but also the business have a clear understanding of the progress, risks, expenditures, and timeliness of an effort. When designed properly, performance metrics identify the realization of risks before they can kill an effort, and can identify opportunities that can leverage reusability, eco ..read more