Business Analysis Based on BABOK® Guide Version 2 - A Pocket Guide. Jarett Hailes

      Figure 1.1 Knowledge areas and their inter-relationships

      In addition to the knowledge areas, the BABOK® Guide contains a set of techniques that can be applied in a variety of tasks. Techniques support the performance of tasks but may not be the only actions that need to be performed to complete a task. A set of general techniques are defined in Chapter 9 of the BABOK® Guide; some tasks also describe other techniques not found in Chapter 9 but which are relevant to that task.

      1.8 Stakeholders and Their Influence on Business Analysis

      There are three main types of stakeholders who are involved in a particular initiative:

      ■ Team members involved in accomplishing the initiative with the Business Analyst. Potential team members include implementation subject matter experts, managers, testers, and other Business Analysts;

      ■ Stakeholders who are directly affected by the results of the initiative, such as end users and sponsors;

      ■ Stakeholders who are indirectly affected by the results of the initiative.

      

Note: Stakeholders such as customers, suppliers, and regulators may be directly or indirectly affected by a particular initiative, depending on the particular context of the situation.

      The particular makeup of the stakeholders involved in an initiative will greatly influence how business analysis is performed. Certain techniques may not be feasible while others may be explicitly denied. Some key factors include:

      

Where are stakeholders located and how can they be engaged in specific tasks?

      

What are the attitudes, influences and levels of engagement within each stakeholder group in relation to the initiative?

      

How do the various stakeholder groups feel about one another and are there potential issues which could arise when performing specific tasks that involve multiple groups?

      

Are there any particular cultural differences that would preclude or alter how certain tasks will be performed?

      

Do any of the stakeholders have specific expectations or mandatory approaches or methods that must be used when performing business analysis?

      

Example: Representatives from one stakeholder group often dominate workshops, presenting their point of view. Instead of performing a workshop, the Business Analyst decides it is more appropriate to perform interviews with each stakeholder group individually.

      Section 2.2 discusses stakeholder analysis and how its outputs are used throughout other business analysis tasks.