Business Analysis: From Needs to Specifications
Business Analysis: From Needs to Specifications is an intermediate-level course of 5 lessons (about 1 h 27 min), with 15 exercises and 15 quiz questions. No prerequisites. Exercises run in the browser, with nothing to install.
- Cross-functional skills
- Intermediate
- 5 lessons
- 1 h 27 min
- 15 exercises
- Exercises run in the browser
The course in brief
This course teaches you the business analyst's craft: understanding a business problem and turning it into requirements that a team can build and test. You map stakeholders, run interviews, model processes in BPMN, write user stories and their acceptance criteria, then prioritize scope with MoSCoW and RICE. Every concept is practiced on a single running case, with exercises that have verifiable results.
What you will be able to do
- Map stakeholders and run interviews that separate the need from the solution
- Write measurable functional and non-functional requirements
- Model a process in BPMN (events, tasks, gateways, lanes) and compare AS-IS and TO-BE
- Write INVEST user stories and split an epic vertically
- Write acceptance criteria in Gherkin with boundary values and traced business rules
- Prioritize with MoSCoW, value/effort and RICE, and handle change requests
Syllabus: 5 lessons
- Identify and map a project's stakeholders
- Run a requirements-gathering interview or workshop
- Distinguish need from solution, and functional from non-functional requirements
StakeholdersInterviews and workshopsFunctional and non-functional requirements
- 02
Modeling Processes with BPMN
- Read and draw a BPMN process with events, tasks, gateways and lanes
- Choose the right gateway (exclusive, parallel, inclusive)
- Compare a current (AS-IS) and a target (TO-BE) process and measure the gain
- 03
Writing User Stories
- Write a user story in the role / action / benefit format
- Check the quality of a story with the INVEST criteria
- Split an epic into deliverable stories and organize them in a story map
- 04
Acceptance Criteria and Specifications
- Write precise acceptance criteria, including edge cases
- Write Gherkin scenarios (Given / When / Then) and scenario outlines
- Structure a functional specification with business rules and traceability
Acceptance criteriaGherkin and examplesBusiness rulesFunctional specification
- 05
Prioritizing and Managing Scope
- Prioritize needs with MoSCoW, the value/effort matrix and the RICE score
- Build a first-release scope that fits within a given capacity
- Handle change requests by measuring their impact
MoSCoW methodRICE score and value/effortFirst release and scopeChange request management
Final project
Analysis File for In-Store Order Preparation
A fictional neighborhood retailer wants to equip the preparation and pickup of online orders. Based on at least three interviews (real or role-played, stating which) with different roles, produce the complete analysis file that will let a team develop a first release.
Deliverables
- The stakeholder power/interest matrix and the validated interview write-ups
- The AS-IS and TO-BE processes in BPMN, with the estimated duration gain
- A story map and at least eight INVEST user stories
- The Gherkin acceptance criteria of three stories, with boundary values
- The numbered business rules, the non-functional requirements and a traceability matrix
- The first-release scope justified by MoSCoW or RICE and a given capacity
Assessment criteria
- Needs are distinguished from solutions and linked to the interviews
- The BPMN diagrams are correct (suitable gateways, message flows between pools, named ends)
- The stories comply with INVEST and are split vertically
- The acceptance criteria are concrete, observable and cover edge cases
- The prioritization is quantified, consistent with the capacity and traceable
Frequently asked questions
Do you need to know how to code to become a business analyst?
No. The job relies on listening, modeling and writing. Understanding the basics of development and data does help you talk to the technical team, though.
Is BPMN hard to learn?
The basic elements (events, tasks, gateways, lanes) are enough for most processes and can be learned in a few hours. The course focuses on them and on the most common mistakes.
Is this course suited to agile methods?
Yes. User stories, acceptance criteria, story mapping and prioritization are at the heart of agile methods; requirements gathering and process modeling remain useful whatever the method.
What is the difference between a business analyst and a product owner?
The business analyst gathers, analyzes and formalizes needs; the product owner holds the product vision and decides priorities. In small teams, one person often plays both roles.
This course, told for your job
Say what you want to be able to do: “Business Analysis: From Needs to Specifications” takes its place in your path, with examples from your field. The concepts stay those of the course.