Elicitation
We use this to .... so that we can ....
Elicitation is the obtaining of information from the right stakeholders and other relevant sources. The main purpose is to draw out, explore and identify information relevant to the change. It is the main path to discovering:
requirements
design information
Preparation for planned elicitation
Understand the scope of the elicitation activity
Select appropriate techniques
Make sure you have the right stakeholders for the activity
Plan for appropriate resources/materials
Establish logistics
Define desired /goals
Define desired outcomes
work products produced
Mindset to be in when facilitating Elicitation
Genuinely wanting to learn
Curious
Ask WHYs to
Challenge
Understand
Make sure there is value
Teach
Make sure to cover 5 Ws and 2 Hs
What - is the problem?
Who - finds this a problem?
Where - is the problem occurring?
When - did the problem start?
Why - is this a problem?
How - is the problem observed?
In what mode/situation did the issue occur?
How - often does the problem occur?
frequency of problem occurring; a form to quantify the problem
Essentially, by the end of a requirements elicitation session, we want to be clear of:
what the scope of the piece of work is
features that we are building is clear to all stakeholders (EPICS)
if it is a new project, confirm what is the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) for the first release
be mindful and manage scope creep
what the assumptions are
attempts have been made to clear out as many assumptions out as possible
who actually needs them and it is not assumed that they need it
there are valid reasons for the need
pretty much the business and technical stakeholders have been challenged to know that we really do need the solution
what the solution options could look like, platforms, application, technology constraints, knowledge constraints, etc. (very much depends on the project)
More high level at this point; solution options exploration
Where possible and it makes sense, we'd leave the solution to the delivery team
agreed To-be process (if applicable) is made clear to all stakeholders
highlight what aspects could potentially change, if we know
Benchmarking and Market Analysis/Research
Benchmarking is done by comparing a specific process, system, product, service, or structure with some external baseline, such as a similar organisation or baseline provided by an industry association. Market analysis is used to determine what customers want and what competitors provide.
Brainstorming
Group activity where a team works together to find a solution for a specific problem or come up with new ideas.
Benefit:
You can avoid potential “gotchas” down the road by enlisting others to help you discover your unknowns. Also, more than most other methods, brainstorming enables you to take in a wide amount of information at once, helping you figure out where you want to go from here.
Useful for:
Generating various ideas from a group of stakeholders in a short period and organise and prioritise those ideas
Make sure to:
Designate a facilitator
Timebox the session
Establish criteria to evaluate ideas
Never allow criticism
Business Rules Analysis
Identify the rules that govern decisions in an organisation and that define, constrain, or enable organisational operations.
Collaborative Games
Develop a better understanding of a problem and/or stimulate creative solutions
Concept Modelling
Identify key terms and ideas of importance and define relationships between them
Data Mining
Identify relevant information and patterns
Data modelling
Understand entity relationship
Document Analysis
Review existing systems, contracts, business procedures and policies, standards and regulations to elicit requirements
E.g.
Business Plan
Project Charter
Contracts
Statement of Work
Memos
Email
Business Rules Documentations
Existing older requirements documentation (if most are still valid)
Useful when:
SME's are not available
Checking out what’s already there. Look at the user guides, previous requirements, and existing systems of their own organization.
Drawback
Could take a long time and potentially what you are reading is out of date and it could mislead you
Focus Groups
Identify and understand ideas and attitudes from a group
Useful when:
You haven’t gotten a lot of feedback from customers or users through Customer Service complaints, responses to the sales force, or any other avenue, and you need to explore their thoughts to chart your direction.
Interface Analysis
Understand the interaction, and characteristics of that interaction between entities (e.g. systems, organisations, people, roles, etc.)
Interviews
Ask questions of stakeholders to uncover needs, identify problems, or discover opportunities
e.g.
What does the current system look like?
What are the challenges?
Format/Types of Interview:
Formal / Informal
Individual / Group
Face to face / Phone / Video conference
Open ended questions to find information & gaps
Closed ended questions to confirm / validate
Benefit:
By exploring someone’s knowledge and needs in-depth, one-on-one, you ensure you understand the real, not just the perceived, need.
Useful for:
To find answers
Help one to understand the problems
Drawback:
Not a good way to reach common consensus
Mind Mapping
Generate various ideas from a group of stakeholders in a short period and organise and prioritise those ideas
Observation
Gain insight about how work is currently done, possibly in different locations and in different circumstances
Benefit:
You can figure out exactly where users are at the start of your project, and you can use your strengths to document it.
Process Analysis
Understand current processes and identify opportunities for improvement in those processes
Process Modelling
Elicit process with stakeholders during elicitation activities
Prototyping
Elicit and validate stakeholders' needs through an iterative process that creates a model of requirements or designs. As the saying goes "A picture is worth a 1000 words". Stakeholders generally love it.
Benefit:
You can make sure that what you’re designing is really what people need while you still have time to change it.
Useful for:
when dealing Non technical stakeholders (like business owners and non technical end users) who will better relate to a visual representation to the end product
when working out feasibility with UI design
allows understand of customer needs and can make frequent changes to design at a relatively low cost
Who creates them:
BA/PO
Paper/Whiteboard & pen
Any wireframing tool (e.g. Balsamiq, gomockingbird.com, etc.)
Dev
End product software itself
UI Designer
Designing tool (e.g. Adobe)
Drawback
Works well only when delivery team (which includes the business decision maker e.g. PO) sits together and/or are readily available. (especially in Agile environment)
Survey/Questionnaire
Elicit business analysis information, including information about customers, products, work practices, and attitudes, from a group of people in a structured way and in a relatively short period of time
Useful when:
You have a large audience to gather information from
Your interviewees are scattered around time zones, making a virtual meeting or focus group unfeasible.
Workshop
Elicit business analysis information, including information about customers, products, work practices, and attitudes, from a group of people in a collaborative, facilitated way. Usually a cross functional team:
Marketing
BA
PO
Developers
Testers
Project Management
SME
Benefit:
You can get your basic requirements done in a hurry. Also, everyone you invite can become invested in the project.
Useful for:
Elicit requirement
Refine requirements
Drawback:
Could take a long time (from a few hours to a few days)
Useful links:
For more structured discussion, some approaches to explore:
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