Chapter 2: Know Your Audience Seven Steps to Mastering Business Analysis

Chapter 2:
Know Your Audience
Seven Steps to Mastering Business Analysis
(Barbara Carkenord, 2008)
Concepts
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Stakeholders
Listening Skills
Stakeholder Analysis
Virtual Teams
Stakeholders
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Groups that are affected by the project’s actions
Groups that can influence the outcome
Groups that have an interest in the final
outcome
 Executives (sponsors)
 Managers (PM)
 End users
 Experts (SMEs)
 Other
dept. personnel – QA, IT
Stakeholder Analysis
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Identify stakeholders
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Prioritize stakeholders
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Understand stakeholders and their roles (e.g.,
use power-interest grid)
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Make sure to keep the high power-high interest
grid stakeholders satisfied
Power-Interest Grid
Question
 As
a Business Analyst, how many of these
stakeholders work for you?
 If
they don’t work for you, how do you get
them to do what you need them to do?
After all, they all have their regular job to
do too.
Common Issues faced
Dealing with non-cooperative
stakeholders
 Conveying bad news to stakeholders
 Working closely with the Project Manager

BA and PM
PM
BA
Role
Manage the project
resources
Manage the
requirements
Orientation
Big picture (macro)
Detail oriented (micro)
Objective
Keep the project going
smoothly
Bridge the gap b/w
business and IT
Key Skills
Managerial
Investigative
Project Changes
Controls the changes to
project
Manages the change
and ensures acceptance
Virtual Teams
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Bas may have to deal w/ stakeholders working
in different locations – dispersed / virtual teams
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Issues
 Physical
distance
 Time zone differences
 Cultural differences
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Use of collaboration tools (group support
systems) may facilitate this