the agile ba (business analyst)

‣ Bill Gaiennie, Davisbase Consulting

‣ 17 years in software development.

‣ 7 years working with software development teams, training, leading, and coaching Agile teams.

‣ Trained and coached over 500 teams ranging from start-ups to Fortune 50 corporations.

‣ Agenda‣ A Brief Overview of Agile

‣ The Role of a Business Analyst on a Project

‣ The Role of a Business Analyst on an Agile Project

‣ Why Business Analysts Are Vital to Successful Projects

‣ Wrap-up and Q&A

Introduction & Agenda

How the customer describedwhat they wanted...

Building a Tire Swing

How the project managerunderstood it...

How the architectdesigned it...

How the programmerwrote it...

How the business consultantdescribed it...

How the the projectwas documented...

What operationsinstalled...

How the customerwas billed...

How it wassupported...

What the customerreally needed...

DEVELOPING SOFTWARE IS TOUGH!

• We are building something that doesn’t exist.

• Our customer is attempting to describe what they imagine this non-existent product should be.

• We then try to imagine what they are describing.

• We then try to build the product we believe we heard them describe.

• And finally, the first opportunity we have to really see if we built a product that they need and want is after we are done with development.

Pop Quiz:Waterfall Requirements Analysis

What percentage of overall project time is spent gathering, elaborating, and communicating product requirements?

What percentage of requirements, as originally defined, change during the course of the project?

35%What percentage of requirements, as originally defined, change during the course of the project?

What percentage of features, as ultimately delivered, are rarely or never used by the product’s end-users?

What percentage of requirements, as originally defined, change during the course of the project?

What percentage of features, as ultimately delivered, are rarely or never used by the product’s end-users?

Software Project Reality?

31% IT projects will be cancelledbefore completion

52% Completed projects cost on average189% over their original estimates

17% Projects are completed on timeand on budget

Source: Standish Group Chaos Report 1995 - 2008

what isSo

SoftwareIs

TOUGH!

Make No Mistake About It...

Developing

Source: Dr. Dobb’s Agile Survey, 2008

‣ Agile adoption has increased in the last several years across the globe.

‣ Recent data suggests 69% of companies have adopted an Agile approach in some form.

‣ Respondents to a recent survey identified improvements in the following areas after adopting an Agile development approach:

82% Increase productivity

77% Increase product quality

78% Increase stakeholder satisfaction

37% Reduced costs

Companies Are Adopting Agile

• A philosophy about software development.

• A collection of processes and practices that uphold this philosophy.

• A grassroots movement to fundamentally change the approach to software development.

“Agility is more attitude than process, more environment than methodology.”

So, What Is Agile All About?

Individuals and interactions over processes and toolsWorking software over comprehensive documentation

Customer collaboration over contract negotiationResponding to change over following a plan

http://agilemanifesto.org/

That is, while there is value in the items onthe right, we value the items on the left more.

We are uncovering better ways of developing software by doing it and helping others do it. Through this work we have come to value:

The Agile Manifesto

Complicated Vs. Complex

Watch Making

‣ Thousands of parts, hundreds of steps to assemble

‣ Intricate, delicate work, difficult to complete‣ Must work in specific order‣ In order for watch to work, the final build should

reflect the original plan.‣ Deviation from plan is considered a defect.

Complicated, but not complex

Weather

‣ Difficulty to predict details about behavior or outcomes

‣ Outcomes are results of many variables‣ Variables that affect outcomes are difficult to

impossible to predict reliably‣ Plans expect variability and deviation, then

account for this in the plan

Complex

Developing SoftwareIs a Complex

Endeavor

• We develop software for our customers’ benefit.

• Change can be good. Change is usually the result of new information and learning.

• The software we develop does not create value for our customer at ‘point of plan’.

• An Agile approach may require us to be comfortable with the traditionally uncomfortable.

Why We Develop Software

• Enterprise Analysis

• Requirements Planning and Management

• Requirements Elicitation

• Requirements Analysis and Documentation

• Requirements Communication

• Solution Assessment and Validation

BABOK identifies the following:

The BA’s Role on a Software Project

• Enterprise Analysis

• Requirements Planning and Management

• Requirements Elicitation

• Requirements Analysis and Documentation

• Requirements Communication

• Solution Assessment and Validation

The BA’s Role on an Agile Project

• Work with the customer to develop strategic goals and a product vision.

• Identifying the “value stream” for the proposed product.

• Brokering effective information exchange between the customer and the IT team.

• The correct scope for Agile projects isn’t defined requirements, but the well articulated product vision.

Agile: Enterprise Analysis

Agile BA RuleTrue product quality is more than

just a measure of defects.The customer defines quality.

“Quality in a product or service is not what the supplier puts in. It is what the customer gets out and is willing to pay for. A product is not quality because it is hard to make and costs a lot of money, as manufacturers typically believe. This is incompetence. Customers pay only for what is of use to them and gives them value. Nothing else constitutes quality.” - Peter Drucker

Simply stated,the customer defines

quality.

Not Always

The Same

Destination

• Requirements evolve with greater product exposure.

• A lean principle: just enough, just in time.

• Requirements are planned for delivery in time-boxed iterations.

• The development team creates and commits to a definition of “done”.

• BA’s help to negotiate standards and the specifics of product requirements.

Agile: Requirements Planning

• Understanding the customer’s needs is essential.

• Who are your customers?

• How will your customer use your product?

• What are your customers priorities?

• User Stories capture requirements using the following form:

As a <user>, I want <product requirement>,

so that <desired benefit>.

Agile: Analysis & Documentation

• Understanding “the why” can be as important as “the what”.

As an speaker, I want to make my presentation available to attendees online, so that I do not

need to send it.

As an attendee, I want to download the

presentation, so thatI share what I have

learned.

• Information gems exist in knowing why our customers want what they ask for.

Agile: Analysis & Documentation

• The best method of conveying project progress.

• Building a better customer/IT relationship.

• Emergent requirements.

• The product backlog.

• Burndown charts can help drive better project decisions.

• Taskboards can visually radiate project progress.

• Project documentation.

Agile: Requirements Communication

• Delivering the solution in small bites.

• Reviewing requirements during planning.

• Reviewing requirements during demo.

• Requirements describe solution to business needs.

• Determining requirements as late as possible.

• Validating requirements through prioritizing delivery.

Agile: Assessment and Validation

• Great products and happy customers

begin and end with pliable requirements.

• Change happens, how do we embrace it?

• Expanding our toolkit, redefining nails as

opportunities.

• Continuous planning recognizes that

change can be good.

Business Analysts Are Crucialto Agile Project Success

• Great BA’s assist the customer is defining the best possible product, a standard consistently examined during the entire project.

• Great products emerge from designs that evolve as a result of information made available to the customer and project team.

• Great project teams promote open and honest communication, and utilize this information to tune their behavior.

Wrap Up

‣ Find experts that can point you in the right direction.

‣ Recognize that training is the proper foundation on which team’s build.

‣ It takes time to get good at anything, Agile is no exception, but the rewards are well worth it.

‣ Getting started is easier than you might think.

Your Call To Action

“Simplicity does not precede

complexity, it follows it.” - Alan Perlis

“Whether your next project is a SUCCESS or a failure is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice.” - A wise Agile coach and trainer

Your Questions, My Answers

Note: For those questions we do not have time to answer during the webinar, I will be providing a written response.

• Thank you.

• Bill Gaiennie, Davisbase Consulting

• bill@davisbase.org

• http://www.davisbase.org

• (949) 303-9109

WRAP-UP

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