Download - B2T Training Course Catalog (2009)

F O C U S Q U A L I T Y E X P E R I E N C E

www.b2ttraining.com

MasteringBusiness Analysis

C A T A L O G

2 B2T Training • 866.675.2125 • www.b2ttraining.com

Developing an Excellent Business Analyst

The emergence of the business analysis profession is oneof the best things that has happened to businessorganizations in this decade! Organizations that have

nurtured and developed business analysts (BAs) are experiencinghuge paybacks for their investments. People with titles as variedas project manager, quality assurance analyst, and consultant

possess business analysis skills. Regardless of the title, individualswho truly understand how to turn high-level corporate objectivesinto detailed business solutions are extremely valuable resources.

Excellent BAs are unique individuals who have the ability towork on details while also understanding how small these detailscan impact the larger corporate picture. An excellent BA looksupon a “simple” maintenance change to determine if it has a

broader impact to the organization. BAs bring requirementsskills to many different types of projects, such as:

• selection and implementation of packaged solutions (COTS)• new software development• business process improvement

The excellent BA is aware of his or her organization’s strategicplans and understands how toimplement them at the individualbusiness unit level.

Many corporate executives areuncertain where to find thesepeople and how to develop them.Traditional management training isnot appropriate for this role.Specific technology or methodologytraining isn’t the entire solution.And, focusing on a particulartechnical solution or approach istoo narrow to build an effective BA.

The skills most highly valued byan organization are true problemsolving skills that are broad enoughto allow an individual to see manypossible solutions and to thinkoutside or beyond a predeterminedsolution that may have beenpresented. An excellent BA looks ateach problem as a missing puzzlepiece that needs to interlock andwork with the other pieces of theorganization. He or she has theability to examine the problem frommultiple perspectives and considerpossible solutions with a realisticview of the organization’s cost vs.benefit. Ideas are easy to generatebut a BA challenges, dissects,evaluates, and truly “tests” each ideato determine if it fits within thecorporate direction while alsoaddressing the specific business

problem at hand. Additionally, an excellent BA assesses theimpact of a recommended change on the organization.

Is the Excellent BA Born or Developed?

Is a BA born or made? We believe both. Individuals selected forthis role must have a critical mind and an acute sense of curiosity.They are people who are not satisfied settling for a good solution

The more analysis tools a BA masters, themore valuable he will be to the organization.

Business Analysis Skills

Communication Skills

Facilitation Techniques

Use Case Analysis

Requirements Planning

Prototyping

Asking the Right Questions

Structured Approaches

Documentation Standards

Workflow Analysis

Traceability

Requirements Review

Requirements Management

Note Taking

SDLC Knowledge

Cost/Benefit Analysis

UAT Planning

Effective Meetings

Presentation Skills

Interviewing Techniques

Risk Assessment

Dataflow Diagramming

Excellent Requirements

Process Modeling

Elicitation Techniques

Software Design Knowledge

Change Control

Project Management

Data Modeling

Active Listening

Organizational Skills

Usability Principles

Business Rule Analysis

Gap Analysis

B2T Training • 866.675.2125 • www.b2ttraining.com 3

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

Training Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

B2T Training Curriculum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Certification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

IIBATM BABOKTM Alignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Certified Core Courses

Essential Skills for the Business Analyst . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Detailing Business Data Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Detailing Process andBusiness Rule Requirements . . . . . . . . . . .12

Advanced Courses

Developing a Business Analysis

Work Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Facilitating Requirementsfor Business Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Requirements Validation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Management/Technical Seminars

Overview of Business Analysis . . . . . . . . .20

Developer’s Introduction to Business Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

CBAPTM Exam Prep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Self Study Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

Mentoring and Coaching . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

but are determined to find an excellent one. They intuitively understandcontinuous process improvement. Once you find a person like this, he or she iseager to learn techniques that make him more capable and effective. Analysis skillsthat can be acquired through education and practice include critical thinkingskills, root cause analysis, process analysis (breaking large things into manageablepieces), and data analysis (organizing, categorizing, and utilizing large volumes ofdata in a useful way to assist in decision making). BAs learn to improve theircommunication skills by widening the breadth of their questioning and by finetuning their ability to listen for true causes of problems, not just symptoms.

B2T Training focuses on developing individuals to master business analysis.Our courses and products equip BAs with a full range of complex businessanalysis skills, techniques, and approaches. The more analysis tools a BAmasters, the more valuable he will be to the organization. In many organizationstoday, projects and problems do not follow a simple 1-2-3 pattern. Mostproblems are usually more complex than they initially appear, involving anumber of interrelated factors. Solutions are not always obvious or easy to build.An excellent BA knows how to get started on a problem/project that may not beclearly defined or understood.

An excellent BA is flexible and able to adapt to each unique situation. Theypossess an inventory of problem solving skills with which they feel comfortableto deploy as needed. They are able to work with many different types of peopleon many different types of projects. They must be agile. Agility is obtained byhaving a complete set of skills; and knowing when and how to wield themquickly and efficiently. Regardless of what type of project the BA is working on,having a solid skill set will ensure the BA’s critical value to an organization.

Onsite TrainingAll of our courses may be taughtonsite at your facilities. Werecommend onsite training fororganizations with groups of eightor more students. Onsite trainingensures that business analysts learnhow to implement industry bestpractices in their organizationalenvironment. We offer discountpricing for onsite groups. Pleasecontact us to discuss your specificcourse requirements, group size,and available training dates.

Public TrainingB2T Training offers public classes ina number of convenient locationsaround the United States. Publicclasses are ideal for students fromorganizations that do not offeronsite training. Public classes allowstudents to meet and learn withbusiness analysts from othercompanies and industries, offeringa broader understanding of thebusiness analysis profession.Classes are limited to a maximumof 14 students to ensure optimallearning environment.

Self-study For experienced business analystswe offer study guides for our threecore courses. Additionally, forbusiness analysts who are wishingto sit for the CBAP certificationexam we offer a CBAP Prep StudyGuide. These study guides are idealfor business analysts who areunable to attend classes but wouldlike to receive either the B2TTraining or CBAP certification.

CustomizationAll onsite classes will be tailored to address your unique organizational environment and the experience leveland interest of the students. The level of customization required is dependent upon a review of your needs andthe outline of our course curriculum. This review will reveal areas that may need more or less focus duringtraining. We will prepare a customized training program, if needed, that includes topics from existing materialthat address specific areas of concern.

Customization requiring additional or new course development will incur a fee.


T R A I N I N G O P T I O N S

IndigoCube is B2T Training’s exclusive South African partner and licensee. For training in SouthAfrica, contact Robin Grace,Principal Consultant, [email protected].

Visit www.indigocube.ca.za formore information.

PMWorks is B2T Training’s exclusive Australian partner andlicensee. For training in Australia,contact Phillip Latka, PrincipalConsultant, at [email protected].

Visit www.indigocube.ca.za formore information.

AchieveBlue is B2T Training’s exclusive Canadian partner andlicensee. For training in Canada,contact Mona Mitchell, President, at [email protected] orcall 416.915.3112.

Visit www.achieveblue.com formore information.

B2T Training International Partners

B2T Training Curriculum

Our comprehensive business analysis curriculum is developed and delivered by praticing business analysts. Our

mature program has been proven through the success of our customers resulting in improved requirements. The

curriculum is supported by full requirements document templates, a reference manual for post-training guidance,

mentoring, and online resources. The skills, techniques, and approaches that we teach are not tied to or

limited to any particular methodology.

Three Core Courses

Our three consecutive core courses cover essentialbusiness analysis skills within the industry that mostbusiness analysts are expected to perform. Thesecourses teach students how to elicit requirements anddetail them in a business requirements documentincluding detailed data, process, and business rulerequirements. Our certification program, outlined in the next section, is built upon our three core courses.

Three Core Courses:

� Essential Skills for the Business Analyst—4 days

� Detailing Business Data Requirements—3 days

� Detailing Process and Business Rule Requirements

—4 days

Advanced Courses

In addition to the three core courses, B2T Training offerscourses that cover more advanced and specializedbusiness analysis topics. These courses are designed forexperienced business analysts or to be taken aftercompleting the three core courses.

Advanced Courses:

� Developing a Business Analysis Work Plan —3 days

� Facilitating Requirements for Business Analysis

—3 days

� Requirements Validation—2 days

We also offer management and technical seminarsdesigned to help those who work with business analystsgain a better understanding of the business analysis role.

Management and Technical Seminars:

� Overview of Business Analysis—1/2 day

� Developer’s Introduction to Business Analysis—1 day


T R A I N I N G C U R R I C U L U M

Certification


C E R T I F I C A T I O N

B2T Training believes that a certified business analyst

should exhibit real-world knowledge and experience.

Our certification program tests a business analyst’s ability

to apply knowledge and skills in real-world circumstances

and offers two levels of recognition. Our business analyst

certification program recognizes individuals who have

proven skills, knowledge, and experience in eliciting,

organizing, analyzing, documenting, communicating,

and verifying requirements to facilitate the development

or purchase of software applications and/or business

process improvement efforts. Our certification program

is based on the essential business analysis skills covered

in our three core courses.

BA AssociateTM

The BA Associate is acertificate that recognizesbusiness analysts whopossess foundationalknowledge of businessanalysis topics and skillstaught in our three corecourses. It is designed fornew and experienced

business analysts. Obtaining the BA Associate certificaterequires candidates to pass all three online proficiencyarea exams of our three core courses. Candidateswishing to test-out of the three core courses maypurchase our study guides for each of these courses tohelp prepare for passing the proficiency exams.

BA CertifiedTM

After obtaining the BAAssociate certificate,candidates are qualifiedto work toward BACertified. BA Certified isan elite certification thatrecognizes individualswho possess provenskills, knowledge, and

experience in eliciting, organizing, analyzing,documenting, communicating, and verifyingrequirements. Becoming BA Certified consists of:

� earning the BA Associate certificate

� possessing two years of business analysis experience

� providing two professional references

� passing a final exam

The case-study-based final exam consists of developingsections of a requirements package and answeringquestions about the requirements.

BA Certified business analysts are able to confidentlyprovide their employers or perspective employers withevidence that they possess not only business analysisknowledge, but the ability to apply that knowledge inday-to-day real-world business analysis environments.

*Test out option available

Essential Skills

for the

Business Analyst

4 day class

Pass Proficiency Exam*

Detailing Business

Data Requirements

3 day class

Pass ProficiencyExam*

Detailing Process

and Business Rule

Requirements

4 day class

Pass ProficiencyExam*

ReceiveCertificate

ReceiveCertification

2 Years Business

Analysis Work

Experience

2 Professional

References

CompleteMultiple-Choice

Questions

Case-Study-Based Final Exam

DevelopRequirements

Package

B2T Training’s program is a comprehensive program that aligns with all areas of the BABOK. The BABOK is a collectionof business analysis tasks categorized into like groupings called knowledge areas. The BABOK is not a methodologyand does not infer any particular order of performing the activities. B2T Training’s program is taught in a series ofcourses that reflect the order of work and iterative nature of business analysis. This chart illustrates the alignmentbetween the current version of the BABOK and B2T Training courses.

IIBA Business Analysis Body of Knowledge® and B2T Training Courses

B A B O K A L I G N M E N T

CORE COURSES ADVANCED COURSESBABOK® Version 2.0 Draft Developing a MentoringFramework Tasks BA Work Requirements and

Ess Skills Data Process Plan Validation Facilitating CoachingBA Planning and MonitoringConduct stakeholder analysis � �

Plan business analysis activities � �

Plan business analysis communication � �

Plan requirements management process � � � � �

Plan, monitor, and report on business � � �analysis performance

Enterprise AnalysisIdentify business need � �

Determine solution approach � �

Define solution scope � �

Develop the business case � �

ElicitationPrepare for elicitation � � � �

Conduct elicitation � � � �

Document elicitation results � � � �

Confirm elicitation results � � � �

Requirements AnalysisOrganize requirements � � �

Prioritize requirements � � � �

Specify and model requirements � � � �

Determine assumptions and constraints �

Verify requirements � �

Validate requirements � �

Solution Assessment and ValidationAssess requirements coverage � � � �

Allocate requirements � �

Determine organizational readiness �

Validate solution �

Evaluate solution �

Requirements Management and CommunicationManage solution and requirements scope � �

Manage requirement traceability � �

Maintain requirements for re-use �

Prepare requirements package � � �

Communicate requirements � � � � � � �

FundamentalsSoftware development methodologies � � �

Negotiation � �

Consensus building � �

Leadership �

Quality Assurance � �

Presentation skills � �

Project Management � � �

Networking/relationship building � �

Consulting skills �

Business knowledgeTechnical knowledge

Essential Skills for the Business Analyst

Public Pricing$2,195 per student

Visit www.b2ttraining.com for public class schedules and to register!

Intended AudienceThis course is designed forbusiness analysts, systemsanalysts, or any other projectteam member involved withrequirements. New businessanalysts will learn the tasks theyare expected to perform and why each task is important.Experienced business analystswill learn new techniques andmore structured approaches toimprove their requirementsgathering activities. This coursemay also be appropriate forindividuals who managebusiness analysts or those who work with the businessrequirements document andneed a more in-depthunderstanding of the process and documentation.

PrerequisitesNone

Earn 28 IIBA CDUs and PMI PDUs

OverviewThe business analyst role requires an extensive inventory of tools and techniquesto identify the best solution for the real business need. This skill set includes real-world problem solving skills, requirements analysis, interviewing techniques, andcritical thinking skills. As we continue with iterative projects and move towardmore agile approaches, these skills become even more critical. Througheducation and practice, business analysts will develop and enhance theiranalytical skills and provide significant value to projects and the businessenterprise.

In this course students will learn to:• Scope the business area of analysis by utilizing the project charter to further

identify the level and complexity of the business analysis effort.• Support requirements and change management by identifying areas of impact.• Elicit critical requirements using various tools and techniques. • Analyze and structure requirements. • Ask the right questions through the use of interviewing templates developed

specifically for business analysis. • Identify five core components necessary to complete a requirements package. • Recognize and document “excellent” requirements. • Plan an approach for documenting, categorizing, and packaging requirements. • Identify which techniques and documentation options are appropriate for each

methodology and project type (COTS, maintenance, business processimprovement, new development, etc).

• Verify that requirements are testable and generate testing objectives. • Conduct an effective requirements review to improve the quality of the

requirements package. • Use elicitation techniques to facilitate requirements gathering and work

toward consensus.


C E R T I F I E D C O R E C O U R S E

4 DAYS

Course OutlineIntroduction – 1 hr.• What is the role of a business analyst? • Review the major tasks performed by the

business analyst. • Define the essential skills needed to perform

their tasks.

Project Participants and their Roles – 1 hr.• Identify project participants and their roles. • Discuss how the business analyst interacts

with these participants.

Scoping the Project from the Business Analyst’sPerspective – 5 hrs.• Understand why the project is being done.

Without this understanding it will be difficultfor business analysts to elicit and documentthe right requirements and focus their businessanalysis work in the appropriate areas.

• Understand the organizational environment.Identify the business stakeholders who will beinvolved in the project and how they willimpact the business area analysis.

• Learn techniques, including the context leveldataflow diagram, to identify and document"what is" and, more importantly, "what is not" tobe analyzed. This diagram includesinteractions with people, other organizations,existing systems, and other softwareapplications.

• Develop a change control process to ensurethat once the scope of the project has beenapproved, all project participants will operatewithin the scope or formally approve anyscope changes.

• Discuss how a business analyst should collect,organize, and maintain project information.

• Workshop - Scope the class case studyproject.

• Workshop - Scope your own project.

Defining and Detailing Requirements – 4 hrs.• What is a requirement? Why is it important to

gather and document requirements? What arethe criteria used to judge the quality of"excellent” requirements?

• Learn how software developers userequirements

• Understand the difference between analysisand design or "business" vs. "technological"requirements. Why is it necessary tounderstand the business problem beforedeciding on a solution?

• Learn the 5 core requirement components,what they describe, and why they areimportant. •• Entity •• Attribute •• Process (use case) •• External Agent (actor) •• Business Rule

Documenting Requirements – 5 hrs.• Learn the recommended approach to

categorizing requirements. Why shouldrequirements be categorized? Who uses eachcategory? Why is it difficult to create distinctcategories? •• Business Requirements •• Functional Requirements •• Technical Requirements

• Learn the concept of traceability ofrequirements.

• Review several documentation formats andanalysis techniques. Business analysts shouldbe aware of the documentation options and betrained in the particular techniques preferredby their organization. •• Textual templates •• Entity relationship diagram •• Decomposition diagram •• Use case diagram and descriptions •• Workflow diagram •• Prototyping

• Workshop - Documenting and presentingrequirements

• Consider options for packaging requirementsand choosing the appropriate documentationtechniques for each project.

• Review currently available software tools thatcan be used to document requirements.

Conducting a Requirements Review – 2 hrs.• Learn how to conduct a requirements review:

Who should participate? What are the requiredsteps? How is a session conducted? What arethe common challenges?

• Workshop - Review a sample requirementspackage. •• Identify missing or incomplete requirements. •• Identify potential test cases. •• Document issues and develop an approach

for going forward.

Validate the Requirements – 2 hrs.• Introduction to software testing: Why is testing

important? What is the business analyst's role intesting? What is the primary objective of testing?What are the phases and types of testing?

• Learn the two main testing documents: testplans and test cases.

• Learn to verify that the business requirementsare complete by identifying test cases.

Analysis Communication Skills – 4 hrs.• Focus on specific communication skills

necessary for eliciting requirements: •• Asking the right questions •• Conflict management •• Active listening skills •• Paraphrasing, mirroring, acknowledging

• Learn to use and determine the appropriateelicitation technique: •• One-on-one interviews

•• Facilitated sessions •• Surveys •• Brainstorming •• Document analysis •• Focus group •• Job shadowing/observation •• Competitive analysis

• Effective communication skills: How shouldbusiness analysts communicate with users?How should business analysts communicatewith the technical team?

• Improve listening skills by recognizing commonbarriers to listening, understanding verbal andnonverbal messages, acknowledging themessage, and responding with appropriatefeedback.

• Improve your ability to develop in-depth,detailed questions for business area experts byidentifying the appropriate source ofinformation, deciding on an approach, andusing clear, consistent language.

• Workshop - Conduct an interview.

Gathering Requirements in a Group Setting – 3 hrs.• Conduct highly effective and successful

meetings. • Conduct facilitated information gathering

sessions: understand the importance ofsession roles, session agenda, resulting workproduct, and session rules. Learn thedifference between a facilitated session and atraditional meeting.

• Review an approach to group decision-makingand understand why consensus is preferableto compromise or a majority discussion.

• Manage group discussions, manage groupparticipation, work towards consensus, andmanage group conflict.

Course Summary – 1 hr.• Review Business Analysts tasks and skills. • Discussion of next steps for the Business

Analyst. • Student questions/discussion topics.

Appendix - Overview of ApplicationDevelopment Methodologies• Discuss various methodologies for application

development. • Learn which models are used in each

methodology: •• Waterfall •• Information Engineering •• IDEF •• RAD •• Iterative/Agile •• BPMN •• Object Oriented - UML •• Spiral/RUP



3 DAYS

Detailing Business Data Requirements



Intended AudienceThis course is designed forbusiness analysts, systemsanalysts, data administrators,database administrators, or anyother project team memberinvolved with business analysis.This course may also beappropriate for individuals whomanage business analysts orthose who work with thebusiness requirements documentand need a more in-depthunderstanding of the process and documentation.

PrerequisitesWe recommend that studentsfirst attend our Essential Skillsfor the Business Analyst class or have experience in projectscope definition, gatheringrequirements from subjectmatter experts, and understandhow business requirements fitinto the entire systemsdevelopment effort.


OverviewUnderstanding and documenting business data requirements is a criticalcomponent in defining complete requirements. Every process uses data andalmost all business rules are enforced by data. Missing a critical piece of data orincorrectly defining a data element contributes to the majority of maintenanceproblems and results in systems that do not reflect the business needs. Thiscourse teaches students an in-depth approach to identify and define all necessarydata components using both textual templates and an entity relationshipdiagram.

Students will be given data templates with a suggested documentation structurefor defining business data requirements. In addition students will be shown how todocument data using an entity relationship diagram to produce a logical datamodel in combination with the supporting detailed templates.

Even if your organization has a data administrator or data warehouse team whois responsible for documenting and managing the organization’s informationneeds, every project uses a subset of that enterprise information in its ownunique way. Business analysts must understand the importance of data in all oftheir projects and include data requirements in their business requirementsdocumentation. Failing to document which data elements need to be used in acalculation, or displayed on a report, leaves the developer the responsibility ofchoosing the correct pieces of business data from hundreds if not thousands ofavailable fields. These missing requirements often lead to expensive and lengthyproject delays during the testing phase.

In this course students will learn to:• Identify core data requirements beginning with project initiation.• Identify excellent data requirements at the appropriate level of detail.• Detail the data requirements (using a suggested documentation structure and

templates in Microsoft Word format or using an entity relationship diagram).• Identify and detail attributive, associative, and subtype and supertype entities.• Detail complex data-related business rules.• Discriminate between business data (logical data) and database design

(physical data).• Assist with the transition of business data to database design.• Utilize easy normalization techniques (without all the mathematical theory).• Validate data requirements with activity (process or use case) requirements.


Course OutlineIntroduction – 1 hr.• What is a business data requirement? Why are

these requirments important?• Review the requirements package.• What is the difference between business data

and database design?• Review the 7 characteristics of “excellent”

requirements.• Review the 5 core requirements components.

Entities and Attributes – 5 hrs.• Review the components included in the project

initiation section of the requirements package.• Learn to use the context level dataflow

diagram as a starting point for identifying datarequirements.

• Entity types are the basic building blocks of thebusiness data. This section defines entities,gives suggested naming guidelines, teachesthe importance of entity definitions, givescriteria to evaluate potential entities, describesentity unique identifiers, and asks students toidentify and document entities from the casestudy.

• Attribute types are characteristics of entitytypes. This section defines attributes, givessuggested naming guidelines and class words,teaches attribute cardinalities, gives criteria toevaluate attributes, and ask students to identifyand document attributes from the case study.

• Understand the difference between logicalunique identifiers and primary keys.

Entity Relationships and DiagrammingConventions – 4 hrs.• Learn how business data requirements are

displayed in an entity relationship diagram.• Relationships are data associations that define

the business rules of the project as they relateto data. This section defines relationships andbusiness rules, gives suggested namingguidelines, teaches relationship cardinalities,and has students identify and documentrelationships from the case study.

• Review common diagram notations for datarelated business rules.

Detailing the Data Requirements – 5 hrs.• Detailing repeating data elements. Repeating

attributes must be broken down into theircomponents, properly named, and clearlydocumented with example data values.Students will refine their requirementsdocument based on additional businessrequirements.

• Detailing complex business rules. Complexbusiness rules (many to many relationships)should be properly named and clearlydocumented with example data values.Students will refine their requirementsdocument based on additional businessrequirements.

• Detailing sub-category entities. Some businessdata naturally falls into sub-categories andshould be documented as such. These entitiesmust be properly named, and be related to thesupertype entity. The sub-category is definedas either exclusive or inclusive and adiscriminating attribute is created.

Transition from Business Data to a PhysicalDesign – 2 hrs.• Learn how to link the data and process

elements to identify missing or incompleterequirements. Each essential process must usedata, and each data element must be used byat least one essential process.

• How does business data become a databasedesign? Review the data requirements forcompleteness, understand how logicalcomponents are translated to physicalcomponents, and develop a strategy formaintaining the business requirements.

• Introduction to database design.• Scope the design area using subject areas.• What is de-normalization? Why de-normalize a

database design?

Workshop - e-commerce case study – 4 hrs.• Identify and document entities.• Identify and document attributes.• Identify and document data related business

rules.

Appendix - Data Normalization• What is data normalization and why is it

important?• What are the rules of normalization?


4 DAYS

Detailing Process and

Business Rule Requirements



Intended AudienceThis course is designed forbusiness analysts, systemsanalysts, or any other projectteam members responsible forgathering and documentingbusiness requirements anddesigning functionalrequirements. Students areencouraged to bring examples of their requirements documentsto the class for review andfeedback. This course may alsobe appropriate for individualswho manage business analystsor those who work with thebusiness requirements documentand need a more in-depthunderstanding of the process and documentation.

PrerequisitesWe recommend that studentsfirst attend our Essential Skills for the Business Analyst class or have experience in projectscope definition, gatheringrequirements from subject matterexperts, and understand howbusiness requirements fit into the entire systems developmenteffort. We also recommend thatstudents attend DetailingBusiness Data Requirementsbefore attending this class.


OverviewBusiness process requirements provide the foundational element of any project.This course continues the development of the requirements package by definingthe essential processes and business rules. The most effective approach toensure success is to understand the business environment and use thisunderstanding to elicit and document business and functional requirements.

Students are taught proven techniques to identify and define the essentialbusiness processes within the scope of the project and then detail them intofunctional requirements. These techniques include AS IS and TO BE modeling,workflow modeling, process decomposition diagrams, use cases, and prototypes.Students will learn how and when to effectively use these techniques at theappropriate level of detail for varying audiences.

Business analysts are uniquely qualified to elicit and document process andbusiness rule requirements because of their understanding of the business needsand the user’s work environment. Business analysts are expected to analyze andunderstand business problems and present solution recommendations to thebusiness stakeholders. Business process modeling adds value to projects byensuring the technology solution will meet the business needs.

In this course students will learn to:• Understand and document the business environment using industry best practices. • Use provided templates to elicit and document processes and business rules. • Look beyond the current technology or procedures to discover the true nature

of the business activity. • Ask the right questions to identify the core business processes and the

business rules that control or guide them.• Document functional requirements that specify how users will interact with the

software and how the software will respond. • Deliver consistent, detailed use case descriptions. • Use several diagrams including the decomposition diagram, use case diagram,

and workflow diagrams. • Look at the business area objectively after business requirements are

documented and organized to present alternative design solutions that meetthe customer needs.

• Validate business processes against data requirements. • Consider usability when developing prototypes.



Course OutlineIntroduction – 1 hr.• What are business requirements? Why are

they important? • Review the requirements package. • What are the differences between business

and functional requirements? • Review the 7 characteristics of “excellent”

requirements.• Review the 5 core requirements components.

Identifying and Defining Essential BusinessProcesses – 3 hrs.• Learn to identify essential business processes.

An essential business process is a corerequirement of the business area necessary toprovide the right solution deliverable. Eachbusiness process must be clearly defined,consistently named, and completelydecomposed.

• Students are given a template to document thisdetailed information and learn to identifyessential processes from a case study.

• Learn to extract essential processes from real-world, detailed user description interviewnotes.

• Learn to use the process template as both aninterviewing and documentation tool.

• Learn to look for redundant or reusableprocesses.

Processes Analysis – 3 hrs.• Learn to organize essential business processes

in a process outline and decompositiondiagram.

• Learn 3 major business process identificationapproaches and the situations in which eachwould work most effectively.

• Students will use each approach to identifydetailed processes from a case study. •• Top down •• Bottom up •• Event partitioning

Documenting Business Rules – 2.5 hrs.• Learn the major types of business rules and

why each one should be documented. • Review data-related business rules as they are

documented in an entity relationship diagram. • Learn to detail business rules that involve both

data and process components. • Learn several techniques for documenting

business rules.• Learn to extract business rules from different

sources.

Finalizing the Business Requirements – 2 hrs.• Learn to link the data and process elements to

identify missing or incomplete requirements.Each essential process must use data, andeach data element must be used by at leastone essential process.

• Learn how test cases can help solidifyrequirements.

• Review a requirements completenesschecklist.

• Obtain approval signoffs from appropriatestakeholders.

Translating Business Requirements toFunctional Requirements – 3.5 hrs.• Define the design area scope. Once the

analysis is complete and the businessrequirements have been documented, theproject team must decide which businessprocesses will be automated.

• Learn a six-step approach to defining thedesign area scope: •• Document the functional design of each

process. •• Document business priority. •• Document technical priority and estimated

cost. •• Break project into phases. •• Document design area using a use case

diagram: - Define actors involved with the application - Identify actor interactions - Learn multiple techniques to derive use

cases from essential business processes •• Obtain signoff.

Utilizing Workflow Analysis – 3 hrs.• Learn to create detailed workflow diagrams

using a number of techniques: •• ANSI standard flowchart •• Swimlane diagram •• Geographic diagram •• UML activity diagram

• Understand the benefits of each diagram totarget each technique to a specific audienceand need.

• Documenting AS IS vs. TO BE scenarios.

Documenting System Functionality – 3 hrs.• Learn to identify use cases.• Outline each use case for a high-level

understanding of broad behavior.• Identify primary path, alternate path, and

exception paths. • Decompose large use cases into smaller sub-

sets, identifying reusable use cases wherepossible.

• Learn how and where to document systemuser messages.

• Learn 8 steps for excellent use casegeneration.

• Learn to create detailed use case descriptions.• Students are given a template to document the

detailed use case descriptions.

Designing User Interfaces – 2 hrs.• Learn to use completed documentation to

identify where prototypes are necessary. • Learn to document report requirements,

including ad-hoc and predefined. • Create and document prototypes. • Learn to use provided templates to document

field edits and screen functionality. • Review usability considerations.

Documenting Additional FunctionalRequirements – 1 hr.• Identify requirements not previously addressed

by business, functional, or technicalrequirement categories: •• Performance requirements •• Security requirements •• Quality requirements•• Scalability

• Discuss the business analyst role in thedocumentation of these requirements.

Workshop - Maintenance Case Study – 3 hrs.• Identify essential processes and build a

decomposition diagram. • Determine the design area scope.• Write a use case description.• Document functional requirements for an

online screen, report, and manual procedure.

Course Summary – 1 hr.• Review techniques appropriate for each

project using real-world scenarios.• Pull it all together; review the complete steps

to business analysis.


A D V A N C E D C O U R S E

3 DAYS

Developing a Business Analysis

Work Plan



Intended AudienceThis course is intended foranyone who is interested inlearning a practical approach toplanning the necessary businessanalysis tasks for their project.

PrerequisitesBusiness analysts registering forthis course must have attendedEssential Skills for the BusinessAnalyst, or have at least 2 yearsexperience in requirementselicitation, analysis anddocumentation using structuredtechniques. Contact B2T Trainingif you would like to pass out ofthese prerequisites.


OverviewHaving trouble getting started with your business analysis work? Unsure abouthow much time to request from your project manager?

Developing a business analysis work plan will prevent major problems byensuring that all of the appropriate stakeholders are involved and therequirements will be analyzed and presented using the most effectivecommunication approaches. This class teaches students to consider all of the project and stakeholder characteristics before deciding on appropriatedeliverables and producing a time estimate. The work plan also helps thebusiness analyst develop realistic time estimates based on the chosendeliverables. These estimates provide detailed justification for negotiation withproject managers and project sponsors. During class students are presented theBusiness Analysis Planning Framework™ and are given worksheets to guide their planning efforts.

Students are encouraged to bring their own project initiation documentation for a current or past project to the class. During the workshops, students will developtheir business analysis work plan. If students do not have a project, a class casestudy is available and should be reviewed prior to the first day of class.

Regardless of when the BA joins a project or the project type, this class will guide planners to deliver an intelligent business analysis work plan to the projectmanager and have a detailed roadmap upon which they can immediately beginto execute. The business analysis work plan may be a single sheet of brief noteson a small project or a more formal document on larger projects. Regardless ofthe output produced, an excellent business analyst thinks through the plan beforestarting work.


Course OutlineIntroduction – 1 hr.• Business analysis planning

•• Overview of business analysis planning activities

•• Discuss the relationship of the project manager and the business analyst in planning

• Use of the BA Planning Framework™ approachto planning•• Project - Understanding the project

characteristics•• People - Identifying stakeholders and

planning for communications•• Process - Planning the analysis activities

• The business analysis work plan

Planning for Different Types of Projects – 4 hrs.• Planning for a large development project• Planning for enhancement or maintenance

projects • Planning for a COTS (commercial-off-the-shelf

software) project• Planning for an outsourced or off-shore

development project• Planning for a project using a RUP

style/iterative style development methodology• Planning for an agile style development

process• Planning for a reporting or data warehouse

project• Planning for a process improvement effort• Planning for an infrastructure upgrade (getting

a new e-mail system or operating system likeVISTA)

• Group workshop: Discuss planningconsiderations for case study projects

Project - Understanding the ProjectCharacteristics – 4 hrs.• Let's get started - A checklist to assess the

current state of the project and to help getstarted

• The Project Overview Worksheet - Is theproject clearly defined? •• Business objectives •• Problems/opportunities •• Requirements scope •• High-level business processes

• The Business Impact Worksheet - What is therelative importance of the project to theorganization? •• Size (number of stakeholders, number of

business processes involved, number of business rules)

•• Importance (estimated cost, potential benefits, criticality of business area, level of key stakeholders)

•• Risk (project, business, technology) • Enterprise analysis - Understanding how this

project fits into the organization's overallstrategy

• Group workshop - Assess the project andscore the business impact of a sample project

People - Stakeholder Analysis and theCommunication Plan – 4 hrs.• Why plan for stakeholder interactions? • Assess the project sponsor• Identify both primary and secondary

stakeholders: •• Searching for all stakeholders, not just the

obvious ones •• Understanding each stakeholder's area of

concern •• Documenting stakeholder's needs •• Consider the characteristics of each

stakeholder group • Determine effective communication practices

for each stakeholder group: •• Is this group providing requirements, using

requirements or supporting the project work? •• Which elicitation technique(s) will be most

effective? •• What requirement presentation format will be

most comfortable for this group? • The Stakeholder Analysis Worksheet

•• When and where will communications with each stakeholder be most effective?

•• What are the best communication techniquesfor each stakeholder?

• Group workshop - Identify and analyze thestakeholder groups for an example project andidentify the appropriate communicationtechniques

Process - Planning the Analysis Activities– 3.5 hrs.• Plan the analysis activities

•• Step one - Assess which requirements components are needed?

•• Step two - Determine which deliverables are needed using the Deliverable List Worksheet

•• Step three - Develop an approach for creating each deliverable using The

Deliverable Worksheet • Consult with organizational

standards/methodologies for requireddeliverables

Creating the Business Analysis Work Plan – 4 hrs.• Step one - Create the business analysis task

list • Step two - Estimate analysis time

•• Using historical data to estimate •• Tracking actual time to estimate

• Step three - Finalize the business analysiswork plan

• Group workshop - Develop a task list ofanalysis and requirements activities for asample project

• Intelligent negotiation skills

• Getting signoff on the plan• Base-lining the plan and initiating change

control

Course Summary – 0.5 hr.• Final thoughts • Planning Worksheet Map • Optional Exercises

Appendix - Ongoing Requirements Management– Optional• What is Requirements Management?

•• Using a requirements repository •• Develop a requirements management plan •• Reusing existing requirements •• Reusing existing data •• Identifying requirements attributes

• Plan for requirements traceability. •• Learn about traceability matrices and

requirements links•• Understand the purpose of forward and

backward traceability•• Determine which requirements should be

"traced" •• Determine the appropriate approach for

managing traceability•• Exercise: Perform impact analysis using

traceability

Appendix - Project Cost/Benefit Analysis –Optional• Learn the purpose of cost/benefit analysis • Learn to use the requirements package to

estimate project costs and benefits

Appendix - Enterprise Analysis – Optional• Learn to use root cause analysis• Learn to use SWOT analysis • Learn to create a high-level Six Sigma SIPOC

process map

Appendix - Advanced Project InitiationRequirements – Optional• Advanced project initiation requirements:

•• Learn techniques to identify strong projectobjectives •• Learn a technique to help subject matterexperts scope a project with unclearboundaries•• Group workshop - Scope an unclear project

• Gap Analysis


3 DAYS

Facilitating Requirements

for Business Analysis



Intended AudienceThis course is designed forexperienced, knowledgeablebusiness analysts involved with requirements gathering.Students are expected tounderstand the purpose ofbusiness and functionalrequirements.

PrerequisitesWe recommend that studentsfirst attend our Essential Skillsfor the Business Analyst class or have experience in projectscope definition, gatheringrequirements from subjectmatter experts, andunderstanding how businessrequirements fit into the entiresystems development effort.


OverviewThe art of bringing people together, face-to-face or remotely, to gatherrequirements and gain consensus on solutions is a critical success factor for allbusiness analysts. This course teaches facilitation techniques that can be used forstructured sessions and “facilitation-on-the-fly.” This course goes beyondtraditional facilitation training by focusing on facilitation techniques specific togathering business and functional requirements.

This class is limited to 8 students, allowing each student the opportunity topractice facilitating multiple requirements gathering sessions in a “safe”environment with personalized feedback. Students will spend 60% of class timeparticipating in interactive, real-world business case studies and performing eachkey role in at least one session.

The workshops in this course require students to plan the requirements gatheringsession, develop the correct questions to ask the group, and facilitate the groupto a consensus on the requirements using one of the learned techniques.Students will conduct a requirements gathering session for at least onerequirement deliverable (i.e., context level dataflow diagram, workflow diagram).

In this course students will learn to:• Facilitate using proven techniques for business requirements gathering.• Identify when and how to use each technique.• Develop confidence and a skill set to conduct facilitated sessions.• Actively practice learned skills and techniques.• Use a requirements planning session template.• Prepare the participants for the requirements gathering session.• Perform each facilitation role through role playing each session.• Conduct the session to stay focused on the core requirement that was planned

as a deliverable.• Select which facilitation technique to use for each core requirement being

gathered.• Complete checklists for managing and conducting the session.• Facilitate a requirements gathering session.



Course OutlineIntroduction – 1 hr.• Learn guidelines for requirements facilitators. • Set session rules and manage the session. • Learn reactive techniques to use during the

session: •• Encourage participation •• Manage group focus •• Manage group conflict•• Consider remote facilitation techniques

Student Workshop – 1.5 hrs.• Conduct a mini facilitated session.• Practice techniques used for facilitated

sessions.

Session Feasibility – 1 hr.• Determine when facilitated sessions are

appropriate: •• Determine need/requirements deliverable

desired. •• Determine commitment level. •• Determine risks.

• Practice determining session need using real-world scenarios.

• Review the core requirements components anddiscuss how they are best gathered.

• Learn when not to use facilitated sessions.

Planning and Preparing for a FacilitatedSession – 4 hrs.• Plan the session:

•• Determine the number session(s) needed and the length of the session(s).

•• Document the purpose of the session. •• Identify potential participants. •• Define session requirements deliverables. •• Document the plan using session planning

templates.• Prepare for a session:

•• Outline the goals and requirements deliverables.

•• Select session participants and determine if pre-session interviews are appropriate.

•• Learn facilitation techniques:- Brainstorming- Consensus building- Flowcharting- Force field analysis- Hip pocket techniques- Nominal group- Root cause analysis - Storyboarding- Facilitating across distance

•• Develop focused questions to gather requirements:- Direct- Open-ended- Clarifying- Leading- Re-focusing

•• Create a detailed agenda for the facilitation team.

•• Learn group-oriented facilitation techniques.•• Create a formal agenda for the session

participant. •• Orient the facilitation team. •• Prepare the facilities.

Student Workshop – 3.5 hrs.• Each student will practice elicitation

techniques in a facilitated session. • Personal feedback will be provided to drive

skill development.

Conducting the Session – 1 hr.• Learn the stages of group

development/productivity. • Facilitate decision making – work toward

consensus. • Conducting the session:

•• Introducing the session •• Managing the session •• Creating a follow-up action plan

• Review/approve requirements deliverables.

Student Workshop – 8 hrs.• Plan and conduct a requirements gathering

facilitated session. • Use one or more of the learned facilitation

techniques.• Produce the requirements deliverable using

one of the facilitation techniques. • Personal feedback will be provided to drive

skill development.

Session Follow-Up – 1 hr.• Produce the final requirements document. • Share session feedback. • Determine the next steps to finalize the

requirements.


2 DAYS

Requirements Validation



Intended AudienceThis course is designed forbusiness analysts or anyoneinterested in improving andvalidating the quality of theirrequirements.

PrerequisitesWe recommend that studentsfirst attend our 3 core courses (or at a minimum DetailingProcess and Business RuleRequirements) before enrollingfor this course.


OverviewThis course takes you through the steps to ensure that business requirements arevalidated and that the solution is usable and meets the business needs. Validatingrequirements improves the likelihood of project success, making sure that we arebuilding the right solution. The cost to correct a software defect may be as highas 2900 times the cost to correct a requirement. Finding missing requirementsand requirements inconsistencies decreases the overall project length and cost.

Business analysts must use risk assessments to prioritize requirements andrequirements validation activities. The highest risk areas of the business must beaddressed first. This course teaches business analysts to design efficientrequirements validation tests to make the best use of limited resources and time.

Solution Assessment and Validation is one of the key knowledge areas in theBABOK. This course addresses many of the important tasks in the knowledgearea and equips business analysts to design efficient and effective tests todemonstrate that the application solutions meet their user’s needs.

This course answers many of the key questions about requirements validationincluding:• How do we validate requirements?• Which types of validation and verification processes are appropriate for my

project?• How does the team ensure that the solution meets the business stakeholder

needs?• What is software usability? Why is it important?• How does the team correct problems when they are discovered?• How do I work with technical members of the solution team? What do they

need from a business analyst to be successful?



Course OutlineIntroduction to Requirements Validation – 1 hr.• What are requirements?• Why do we validate requirements?• How do we validate requirements?• When should requirements be validated?• Who validates requirements?

Validating and Testing Requirements – 3 hrs.• What does it mean to validate requirements?

•• Conducting effective requirements reviews:• Review guidelines.• Sample review invitation and results form.• Review question checklists.• How do reviews improve future projects?• Workshop: validate requirements using a

formal review.•• Introduction to usability testing.•• Effective user acceptance testing (UAT).•• Post implementation user assessment.

• How to correct problems that are discoveredduring requirements validation?•• Use a consistent defect reporting procedure.•• Track defect types to improve requirements

on future projects.•• Assess defect type, severity, and status.

Usability Testing – 2 hrs.• Learn the principles of usability.• Learn how usability testing differs from

traditional testing.• Discuss methods of usability testing.• Learn to use requirements to design

usability tests.• Workshop: conduct a usability test.

Working with IT Stakeholders – 3 hrs.• Communicating with IT development

stakeholders.•• Verifying requirements or specification:

• Unit testing• Integration testing• Systems testing• Testing business requirements• Testing functional requirements• Testing technical requirements• Regression testing - re-testing after a

change•• Testing environments.•• Common IT testing methods:

• White box and black box testing.• Positive and negative testing.• Choosing data values for testing.

• Working with QA stakeholders:•• Software quality assurance (SQA) planning

and structure.•• Utilizing SQA personnel throughout the SDLC.

Documenting Requirements ValidationDeliverables – 3 hrs.• Designing a requirements validation plan:

•• IEEE testing templates.•• What is a test design, test case, and test

procedure?•• Identifying tests from requirements

documentation.•• Using use case descriptions to develop

testing procedures.•• Tracking test cases.

• Workshop: validating requirements using testcases.

• Tracing test cases to requirements - crosschecking the solution.

• Designing a requirements validation plan•• Planning considerations:

• Who will validate requirements?• How will this be accomplished?• Where are the highest risks?• Where will tests be conducted?• Who will conduct testing?• Who will review test results?• What test data will be used?

Solution Assessment and Validation BABOKKnowledge Area – 2 hrs.• Understanding the tasks in the IIBA BABOK -

Solution Assessment and Validation•• Develop alternate solutions.•• Ensure the usability of the solution.•• Support the QA process.•• Support the implementation/deployment of

the solution.•• Communicate the solution impacts.


M A N A G E M E N T / T E C H N I C A L S E M I N A R S

1/2 DAY

This seminar presents the business analyst role to managers and others who leadand work with business analysts. For the business analyst to be successful, both theIT and business community must embrace the business analysis process. This seminarcan be used as a working session to discuss how an organization will implementthe business analysis process and approaches for documenting the requirements.

Both large and small organizations are realizing the benefits of using businessanalysts on all of their application development projects. Improving thecommunication between the business areas and the IT team significantly increasesthe quality of the systems developed.

A business analyst’s main responsibility is to elicit, analyze, and documentrequirements in a format that is useful to their business stakeholders and thetechnical developers. Analysis is a very important and time-consuming phase ofevery project. Business analysts need strong leadership as they gather anddocument requirements that are often unclear, inconsistent, and expensive.Business analysts work most effectively when they have clear direction andfrequent reviews of progress.

Overview of Business Analysis

This class provides an overview of the business analyst role and a detailed reviewof the requirements document provided to the development team. To ensure anintegrated team, IT developers need to understand the role of the business analyst.They should also be familiar with the requirements that business analysts aregathering and documenting. This includes understanding categories ofrequirements, the core requirement components, and the documentation formatsused for each type of requirement. IT team members must also understand thetesting life cycle and the personnel involved. This course gives students anoverview of the role of the business analyst, requirements documentation, andsoftware testing.

Developer’s Introduction

to Business Analysis

Intended AudienceThis seminar is a managementoverview of business analysisfor managers, supervisors, andproject managers who workwith business analysts.

PrerequisitesNone.

Intended AudienceThis course is designed forsoftware developers, softwarearchitects, or any other projectteam member who will be usingrequirements documents fortheir development work. It isuseful for both new developersand experienced developers.Developers will learn howbusiness analysts gather,analyze, and documentrequirements.

PrerequisitesNone.


These seminars are only offered through onsite training.

1 DAY

Intended AudienceThis boot camp is designed forindividuals who are seekingthe CBAP certification andwant a focused, structuredsession to ensure a thoroughunderstanding of the BABOKand to prepare for the CBAPexam.

PrerequisitesIndividuals must meet theIIBA’s application requirementsto sit for the CBAP examincluding work experience,areas of expertise, educationand professional development, and references. See therequirements listed on the IIBAwebsite at www.theiiba.org fordetails. Attendees should readthe BABOK prior to attendingthe boot camp and bring acopy with them.

Check our website for datesand locations.

CBAP Exam Prep Boot Camp

Escape the clutter of your daily routine to focus on CBAP prep. We can help youprepare for the CBAP exam with our structured CBAP Exam Prep Boot Camp. Thisintense 4-day study session will streamline your study efforts and firm-up yourunderstanding of the BABOK. Our CBAP-certified instructors share their knowledge,expertise, and experience to get you in prime condition for passing the CBAP exam.

Get mentally prepared for the CBAP exam by:

• Assessing your areas of expertise and identifying your individual needs for concentration.

• Learning valuable tips for exam prep and exercises to strengthen your memory skills.

• Practicing 450 sample CBAP exam questions with CBAP-certified instructors.

• Understanding why an answer is correct or incorrect to reveal areas that may need more targeted conditioning.

• Focusing on key BABOK concepts to maximize your study efforts.

• Experiencing a recommended 12-hour pre-exam process.

• Completing a timed practice exam.

• Building endurance as you increase your understanding of each knowledge area.

“After many years of no formal study, I found it almost impossible to concentrate on subject matterthat I believed I already knew and had been practicing for years. Your study guide is not analternative to the BABOK. It led me to read the BABOK several times; each time with aninquiring mind to examine how the authors’ views differed from mine.

High marks on the choice of the 450 questions. The ‘practice exam’ format perfectly prepared meto comfortably pace myself in the exam that I had ample time to recheck my answers.”

Prefer independentstudy? Purchase our

CBAP Exam Prep Study Guide on our website for

only $149!

C B A P E X A M P R E P

4 DAYS


Study Guides

B2T Training offers study guides for experiencedbusiness analysts who would like to obtain certification.The study guides, like our certification program, arebased on our three core courses.

The study guides help business analysts practice andreview material to validate their understanding ofbusiness analysis techniques and approaches.Additionally, these study guides are appropriatefor business analysts who are consideringpursuing training, but are not sure at what levelthey should begin training. These study guides willhelp identify areas where business analysts mayneed to strengthen their knowledge.

Each study guide includes an initial online assessmenttest and two online practice exams consisting ofmultiple choice questions that test a business analyst’sknowledge regarding each proficiency area. Feedbackprovided for each response to the questions givesfurther assistance and insight for studying.

Additionally, each study guide consists of a textual filethat includes high-level content review for each course’sproficiency area, a case study with analysis exercises,and a list of recommended additional study resources.This file will be made available for use to download as a “pdf.”

To purchase a study guide visit www.b2ttraining.com.

Self Study Options

Requirements Template Roadmap

Each project that a business analyst works on is uniqueand may require different combinations of requirementscomponents. Templates provide a checklist for planningrequirements work. The RequirementsTemplate Roadmap helps thebusiness analyst chooseappropriate templates to use for each project. To assistbusiness analysts indocumenting requirements, weoffer a Requirements PackageTemplate that is available on the “Downloads” section of our website. The templates in this package provide businessanalysts with a structured formatfor eliciting and documentingrequirements. Standard, re-usable templates allow forfaster and easier requirements review and approval.

The Requirements Template Roadmap may be used as a companion to B2T Training’s Requirements PackageTemplate. This “Roadmap” serves as a reference tool forbusiness analysts when completing the requirementspackage based upon the templates. Using this Roadmapas a guideline or “map” for the requirements templates

will help business analysts determinewhat to include in a requirements

package, who should preparewhich sections of the package,and when and why therequirements components

should be prepared. Additionally,the Roadmap provides examples of

complete requirements templates.

The Requirements Template Roadmap is available for

purchase at www.b2ttraining.com.

$99each

A “must have”reference tool

$19.95

S E L F S T U D Y O P T I O N S



Mentoring and CoachingPost-training mentoring and coaching reinforce concepts taught in class and jump start a business analyst’s work after

learning new techniques. We offer business analysis onsite mentoring and distance coaching.

Contact B2T Training to learn more about our mentoring and coaching services.

How Mentoring Works

A B2T Training instructor stays onsite for 1-2 days after a class to assist your organization with business analysisactivities. Our experienced business analyst instructorshave helped hundreds of companies formalize theirbusiness analysis andrequirements activities. Adescription of the task/project forwhich you need mentoring andsupporting materials is suppliedto the instructor prior tomentoring. This allows theinstructor to preview materials tofully prepare for the sessions.

Examples of mentoring work thatmay benefit your organization:• Walk through the B2T

requirements templates to helpyou decide which ones will beadopted by your organization.Provide ideas for customizationto adapt templates andtechniques with yourdevelopment and/or projectmanagement methodology.

• Review and discuss existingorganization standards/templates and suggestmodifications and enhancements.

• Review and provide guidance to refine the projectinitiation document for a new project.

• Assist with the development of a requirementsmanagement plan.

• Help to develop questions for upcoming requirementselicitation sessions.

• Observe interviews/requirements gathering sessionsand give feedback for elicitation improvements.

Pricing and Scheduling

Mentoring is priced on a per-day rate and is scheduledimmediately following an onsite training class tominimize additional travel expenses for the customer.Mentoring assignments longer than 2 days will beconsidered based on instructor availability.

How Distance Coaching Works

Our instructors work with students who have attendedEssential Skills for the Business Analyst to establishgoals for structured and focused distance coachingsessions. Using phone calls, email, and collaborative

software, the sessions areintended to span over a 2-3 monthperiod to provide incrementalfeedback and benefits to thestudent.

During these coaching sessionsthe business analyst works with an experienced instructor whoperforms the role of a coach byreviewing projects. The businessanalyst takes an active role indefining issues, solutions, andgoals. The role of the coach is toshare personal tips to help the BAget started, answer questions toassist the BA when they arestalled, help focus the BA on thecritical steps, help the BA gainperspective when things get offtrack, and encourage the BA whentheir activities go well.

Examples of coaching sessions include:• Provide coaching for the development of data

requirements.• Provide coaching for the identification of essential

business processes.• Provide coaching to plan brainstorming sessions on

solution ideas.• Observe and give feedback in formal requirements

reviews.

Pricing and Scheduling

Distance coaching is sold as a package consisting of 7hours of coaching time. We recommend each coachingsession either be scheduled for 30 minutes twice a weekor one hour once a week, 2-3 weeks a month and span a2-3 month time period. There are no travel expensesincurred with this service.

M E N T O R I N G A N D C O A C H I N G

11675 Rainwater Drive, Suite 325Alpharetta, GA 30009www.b2ttraining.com

Education is ongoing.Go beyond the classroom with easy-to-access online resources!

B2T Training Web Site

� BA Blog

� Downloadable templates

� Library

� BA tools

� the bridge archives

Online Communities

� BA Collective (www.bacollective.com)

� Business Rules Community (www.brcommunity.org)

� Business Analysis Times (www.batimes.com)

� Business Process Management (www.bpm.com)

� Catalyze (www.catalyze.org)

� International Institute of Business Analysis (www.theiiba.org)

� Modern Analyst (www.modernanalyst.com)

� Project Management Institute (www.pmi.org)

� Requirements Networking Group (www.requirementsnetwork.org)

Download - B2T Training Course Catalog (2009)

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