Discovering and documenting business requirements for projects always has been the weakest link in systems development.  Up to 67 percent of maintenance and 40 percent of development is wasted rework and creep attributable to inadequately defined business requirements.  Too often projects proceed based on something other than what the business people really need; and traditional methodologies commonly focus mainly on the format for writing requirements. This interactive workshop also emphasizes how to discover content, why to build it and what it must do to produce value for the customer/user. Using a real case, participants practice discovering, understanding, and writing clear and complete business/user requirements that can cut creep, speed project delivery, reduce maintenance, and delight customers.

Participants will learn:

• Avoiding creep--role and importance of defining business requirements accurately and completely.

• Distinctions between the user's (business) requirements and the system's (design) requirements.

• How to gather data, spot the important things, and interpret them meaningfully.

• Using the Problem Pyramid™ tool to define clearly problems, causes, and real requirements.

• Formats for analyzing, documenting, and communicating business requirements.

• Techniques and automated tools to manage requirements changes and traceability.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND: This course has been designed for systems and business managers, project leaders, analysts, programmer analysts, quality/testing professionals, auditors, and others responsible for assuring business requirements are defined adequately.

REQUIREMENTS ROLE AND IMPORTANCE

Sources and economics of system errors

How requirements produce value

Business vs. system requirements

Survey on improving requirements quality

Software packages and outsourcing

How we do it now vs. what we should do

DISCOVERING "REAL" REQUIREMENTS

Do users really not know what they want?

How the "real" requirements may differ

Aligning strategy, management, operations

Technology requirements vs. design

Problem Pyramid™ tool to get on track

Understanding the business needs/purposes

Horizontal processes and vertical silos

Customer-focused business processes

Who should do it:  business or systems?

Joint Application Development (JAD) limits

Management/supervisor vs. worker views

DATA GATHERING AND ANALYSIS

Surveys and questionnaires

Research and existing documentation

Observing/participating in operations

Prototyping and proofs of concept

Planning an effective interview

Controlling with suitable questions

DOCUMENTATION FORMATS

Formats to aid understanding of the data

Business rules, structured English

E-R, data flow, flow, organization diagrams

Data models, process maps

Performance, volume, frequency statistics

Sample forms, reports, screens, menus

Formats for communicating requirements

IEEE standard for software requirements

Use cases, strengths and warnings

7 guidelines for documenting requirements

Requirements vs. implementation scope

Iterating to avoid analysis paralysis

Conceptual system design solutions

Detailing for clarity, clarifying quality

GETTING MORE CLEAR AND COMPLETE

Stakeholders and Quality Dimensions

Addressing relevant quality factor levels

Standards, guidelines, and conventions

Detailing Engineered Deliverable Quality

Simulation and prototyping

Defining acceptance criteria

MANAGING THE REQUIREMENTS

Supporting, controlling, tracing changes

Automated requirements management tools

Measuring the "proof of the pudding"

Speaker’s Bio:

Robin F. Goldsmith, JD is an internationally recognized authority on software development and acquisition methodology and management.  He has more than 30 years of experience in requirements definition, quality and testing, development, project management, and process improvement.  A frequent featured speaker at leading professional conferences and author of the recent Artech House book, Discovering REAL Business Requirements for Software Project Success, he regularly works with and trains business and systems professionals.

Decision (Run/Cancel) Date for  this Courses is Friday, March 7, 2008

Course Fee Schedule:

On-line Registration and Payment

On-line registration for this course is closed, but you may register at the Holiday Inn Select, 15 Middlesex Canal Park Road, Woburn MA between 8:15AM – 8:30AM on Monday, March 17th or by call the IEEE Office at 781-245-5405.

Copyright © 2008 IEEE Boston Section. All rights reserved.
Maintained by R M Stelting

Updated Thursday March 13, 2008