Business Analysis: Process Modeling & Requirements Gathering from Coursera

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Syllabus

Business Analysis Overview and BABOK

This module provides an overview of business analysis, focusing on the essential tools and techniques used in the field. It introduces you to the BABOK principles, highlighting its importance for business analysts in structuring their work and adhering to industry standards. You’ll learn how to identify key stakeholders and understand the dynamics of stakeholder relationships, ensuring effective communication and collaboration. The module also covers business needs analysis and gap analysis, equipping you with the skills to assess organizational requirements and identify areas for improvement.

Agile Business Analysis and Modeling Techniques

This module offers a deep understanding of data modeling and analysis, emphasizing the tools and techniques critical for business analysts. You will learn to create entity-relationship diagrams (ERDs) to represent data structures and develop data flow diagrams (DFDs) to illustrate how data moves within systems. The module covers the Unified Modeling Language (UML), enabling you to perform detailed system modeling. You’ll also get an opportunity to explore process modeling and analysis tools to extract insights and support business decision-making. Additionally, the module delves into use case modeling, where you’ll identify and define actors involved, write clear and concise use cases, and draw use case diagrams to visualize interactions. You’ll explore use case scenarios and relationships, enhancing your ability to capture complex system behaviors. The module also introduces Agile methodologies, guiding you through writing user stories, conducting backlog refinement sessions, participating in sprint planning, and facilitating retrospectives to improve project outcomes continuously.

Process Modeling Methodologies and Advanced Techniques

This module provides a thorough understanding of process modeling, focusing on methodologies and tools essential for business process analysis and optimization. You will learn how to map out business processes for in-depth analysis, identify inefficiencies, and optimize them for improved performance. The module also covers key techniques such as business process reengineering (BPR) and introduces you to advanced process modeling notations such as BPMN and swimlane diagrams. You will also learn about popular process modeling tools such as Visio and Lucidchart, which enable you to develop process models that align with your goals accurately. In addition, you will explore future trends and emerging technologies in process modeling, preparing you to adapt to the evolving landscape. Finally, you will be equipped to validate and verify process models, avoid common mistakes, and apply detailed mapping techniques for complex processes.

Requirements Management and Elicitation Techniques

This module discusses the critical aspects of requirements management, focusing on both functional and non-functional requirements, stakeholder analysis, and effective techniques for elicitation. You will learn how to identify and analyze key stakeholders, ensuring comprehensive and accurate requirement gathering. The module covers industry best practices for documenting, organizing, and categorizing requirements, as well as applying prioritization techniques such as MoSCoW and the Kano model. You’ll also explore the use of traceability tools to efficiently manage requirement changes, ensuring that all modifications are tracked and communicated clearly to stakeholders. Finally, the module will help you develop proficiency in conducting interviews, facilitating workshops, applying observation techniques, designing surveys, and using prototypes to refine and clarify requirements.

Final Project

This module focuses on the development of comprehensive requirements for a startup company that specializes in renting motorbikes for enthusiasts. The aim is to create a robust framework that addresses the specific needs of our target audience while leveraging best practices in business analysis.

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Provides a comprehensive understanding of the Business Analysis Body of Knowledge (BABOK) framework, which is essential for professionals in this field

Teaches stakeholder analysis, which is crucial for effective communication and collaboration in business analysis projects

Explores advanced process modeling techniques like BPMN and Swimlane diagrams, which are widely used in the industry for process visualization and optimization

Covers requirements prioritization techniques like MoSCoW and Kano model, which are valuable for managing and prioritizing project requirements effectively

Requires learners to use Visio and Lucidchart, which may require a subscription to use fully

Culminates in a final project developing requirements for an e-bike rental startup, offering practical experience in applying business analysis skills to a real-world scenario

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in Business Analysis: Process Modeling & Requirements Gathering with these activities:

Review Business Analysis Fundamentals

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Reinforce your understanding of core business analysis concepts before starting the course. This will help you grasp the more advanced topics covered later.

Browse courses on Business Analysis

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Review introductory materials on business analysis methodologies.
Familiarize yourself with key terms and definitions.
Practice identifying business needs and potential solutions.

Create a Glossary of Business Analysis Terms

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Reinforce your understanding of key terminology. Creating a glossary will help you internalize the language of business analysis.

Browse courses on Business Analysis

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Identify key terms from the course materials.
Write clear and concise definitions for each term.
Organize the terms alphabetically.

Read 'Business Analysis Techniques: 99 Tools for Solving Business Problems'

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Expand your knowledge of business analysis tools and techniques. This book provides a practical guide to applying these techniques in various scenarios.

View Business Analysis Techniques: 123 essential... on Amazon

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Read the book, focusing on techniques relevant to process modeling and requirements gathering.
Take notes on key concepts and examples.
Consider how these techniques can be applied to the course's final project.

Four other activities

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Model a Simple Business Process

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Practice process modeling techniques learned in the course. This hands-on experience will solidify your understanding of BPMN and swimlane diagrams.

Browse courses on Process Modeling

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Choose a simple business process, such as ordering food at a restaurant.
Use Visio or Lucidchart to create a BPMN diagram of the process.
Identify potential areas for improvement in the process.

Practice Requirements Prioritization

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Sharpen your skills in prioritizing requirements. This is a crucial skill for effective requirements management.

Browse courses on Requirements Management

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Find a list of sample requirements for a software project.
Apply the MoSCoW method to prioritize the requirements.
Apply the Kano model to prioritize the requirements.
Compare the results of the two methods.

Develop a Stakeholder Analysis Matrix

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Apply stakeholder analysis techniques to a real-world scenario. This will help you understand the importance of identifying and managing stakeholders.

Browse courses on Stakeholder Analysis

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Choose a project or organization you are familiar with.
Identify the key stakeholders for the project or organization.
Create a stakeholder analysis matrix, including their interests, influence, and potential impact.

Read 'BABOK Guide'

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Deepen your understanding of the BABOK framework. This guide provides a comprehensive overview of business analysis principles and practices.

View Strategy to Execution Framework version 1.5 on Amazon

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Read the BABOK Guide, focusing on the knowledge areas covered in the course.
Take notes on key concepts and definitions.
Consider how the BABOK framework can be applied to your own work.

Career center

Learners who complete Business Analysis: Process Modeling & Requirements Gathering will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Business Analyst

A business analyst is a key role in any organization, translating business needs into actionable requirements. This course in business analysis directly aligns with the responsibilities of a business analyst, providing training in the Business Analysis Body of Knowledge and practical exercises. It emphasizes essential skills such as stakeholder analysis, gap analysis, process modeling with BPMN and swimlane diagrams, and requirements management using prioritization techniques like MoSCoW and the Kano model. The final project, involving detailed requirements for an e-bike rental startup, provides experience that is applicable to a business analyst ready to enter the field. Mastering these skills from the course helps build a strong foundation for a successful career as a business analyst.

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Process Improvement Analyst

A process improvement analyst focuses on identifying inefficiencies in existing business processes and developing solutions to enhance performance. This course is beneficial to an aspiring process improvement analyst because it includes training in process modeling methodologies, including BPMN and swimlane diagrams, critical for process analysis and optimization. The course also covers business process reengineering. The practical experience with process mapping and analysis using tools like Visio and Lucidchart, along with learning how to validate and verify process models, makes this a useful course for a process improvement analyst.

See salaries and explore the career path for Process Improvement Analyst

Requirements Engineer

A requirements engineer is responsible for eliciting, documenting, and managing the requirements of a project. This role is highly suited for those with a firm grasp of the concepts in this course, such as techniques for requirements management, stakeholder analysis, and prioritization techniques. The course offers thorough coverage of both functional and non functional requirements, and it discusses industry best practices for documenting, organizing, and categorizing requirements. The module covering traceability tools to manage requirement changes is directly relevant to a requirements engineer, and thus the course has value to one who wishes to enter this career field. Further, a requirements engineer would derive many benefits from the practical experience gained in the final project.

See salaries and explore the career path for Requirements Engineer

Systems Analyst

A systems analyst evaluates and improves information technology systems. This course helps build a foundation for a systems analyst, with its coverage of data modeling and analysis using entity relationship diagrams and data flow diagrams. It includes training in process modeling and analysis, which are essential for improving system workflows. The course's focus on the Unified Modeling Language assists a systems analyst in performing detailed system modeling. Further, the use case modeling training with the identification of actors, and writing clear use cases, helps prepare a systems analyst to perform their role with greater efficacy.

See salaries and explore the career path for Systems Analyst

Project Coordinator

A project coordinator assists in managing project activities. This course helps a project coordinator by teaching strong skills in business analysis, which are essential for understanding project requirements and ensuring alignment with business goals. The deep dive into stakeholder analysis and the emphasis on effective communication and collaboration from this course will prove extremely useful. Moreover, this course has training in agile methodologies, which are valuable for assisting in project planning. This course helps a project coordinator gain crucial business analysis understanding by teaching practical experience through hands-on labs and a final project.

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Management Consultant

A management consultant advises organizations on how to improve their performance and efficiency. This course may be useful for a consultant, as it provides a strong foundation in business analysis which is critical for understanding client challenges. The course's coverage of process modeling, requirements management, and stakeholder analysis helps a management consultant more effectively assess complex issues and propose effective strategies. Further, consultants may derive value from mastering tools like Visio and Lucidchart, and employing prioritization techniques like MoSCoW and Kano when crafting client proposals. The emphasis on practical exercises and a final project enables application of the learnings.

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Product Owner

A product owner defines and manages the product backlog. This course may be helpful for a product owner because it focuses on requirements gathering and management. The course offers training in how to write user stories, conduct backlog refinement sessions, and participate in sprint planning. The course's comprehensive study of requirements management, including both functional and non functional requirements, is important because a product owner defines the needs of the product and communicates them to the team. A product owner would benefit from understanding the prioritization techniques of MoSCoW and Kano model. This course may help a person succeed as product owner.

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Data Analyst

A data analyst processes data to identify trends and insights to help guide business decisions. The data modeling and analysis skills covered in this course, including entity relationship diagrams and data flow diagrams, may be helpful for a data analyst. Additionally, the course's exploration of process modeling tools and techniques may aid in understanding the data's workflow. While the course's focus is not solely on data analysis, the skills learned provide a better understanding of organizational processes and how data is structured and used in these contexts, possibly making this course useful to a data analyst.

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Business Development Analyst

A business development analyst focuses on growing revenue and market share for an organization. This course may be beneficial for a business development analyst, as strong business analysis skills help identify new opportunities and understand the competitive market. Specifically, this course's focus on gap analysis and stakeholder analysis help a business development analyst understand where to focus their efforts. The course's training in process modeling and business process reengineering may also be useful in improving sales processes. While the course does not directly focus on sales, the course may help in understanding how to improve business processes.

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Operations Analyst

An operations analyst improves the efficiency of an organization's daily operations. This course helps an operations analyst with its focus on business process modeling and analysis. The curriculum's emphasis on process optimization and the identification of inefficiencies is highly beneficial for operations. Further, the skills learned using tools like Visio and Lucidchart directly apply to process mapping and analysis. This course's training in business process reengineering is particularly valuable. Therefore, this course may be useful for an operations analyst.

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IT Consultant

An IT consultant advises clients on how to best use technology. This course may be useful to an IT consultant because the study of business analysis helps improve the consultant's ability to understand client needs. Specifically, the training in process modeling and business process reengineering may be useful in understanding how technology fits within the client's operations. While the course does not focus on the details of IT, the course's curriculum may help an IT consultant, enhancing their ability to understand a client's needs and how IT can fit into their processes.

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Market Research Analyst

A market research analyst studies market trends and consumer behavior. Although this course does not focus directly on market research, a market research analyst may find some of the course useful. Specifically, the course's focus on stakeholder analysis may be helpful in understanding the market and its main players. Further, the course's understanding of needs analysis can also be useful in understanding the needs of consumers. While no direct link exists, the course may be helpful in building business acumen.

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Technical Writer

A technical writer creates documentation for technical products and processes. This course may be helpful to a technical writer in that it teaches methods of documenting requirements and processes. The course also discusses best practices for organizing information and communicating it effectively. A technical writer may benefit from the training in requirement elicitation and the management of functional and nonfunctional requirements. Although the course does not focus on writing, the structure of the course may help a technical writer better organize their documentation.

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Training Specialist

A training specialist develops and delivers training programs for employees. This course may be somewhat useful to a training specialist. The course's focus on process modeling and analysis may be helpful in understanding how to best teach particular processes. Further, the skills learned in this course, such as those concerning stakeholder analysis, may help when creating training programs for particular stakeholders. The course's final project, involving the creation of detailed requirements, may provide valuable skills to those who teach others about requirements. However, the course is not focused on teaching, so it is not a high fit.

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Financial Analyst

A financial analyst examines financial data to advise on investment decisions. This course may be useful to a financial analyst as it builds a general understanding of business processes. Specifically, learning business analysis, process modeling, and how to manage business requirements can help a financial analyst better understand the financial implications of business decisions. However, because the course does not focus directly on financial analysis, it may not be a perfect fit for financial analyst.

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Business Analysis

Process Modeling & Requirements Gathering

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