How to create the basis for project success

Duration: 2 days

Target Audience:  Project Managers, Business Analysts, End Users, Developers, Testers, and Software Quality Assurance Staff.

Description:
Lack of adequately defined requirements is often the single biggest factor when projects become stalled, exceed time and budget, or deliver systems which do not meet the users' needs.  Unless a "User Centric" methodology is used to elicit, analyze, specify and validate requirements, the project is at risk for not meeting its objectives.

Use Case methodologies have become the favored means for documenting business requirements.  Yet many business analysts and even project managers are not familiar with the concepts or may believe that the technique is useful only for highly technical specialists.  This course gives the practitioner the necessary skills and information to efficiently and effectively develop high quality business requirements, using Use Case techniques and a User Centric approach to requirements development.  Students will learn how to gather business requirements, analyze those requirements for functional and system attribute deliverables, document the requirements thoroughly and unambiguously, and validate that those requirements, once developed and delivered, will satisfy the success criteria of the business.

Additionally, the students will be introduced to the principles of UML (Unified Modeling Language), and will learn how to build Test Cases from Use Cases to ensure proper testing coverage of business requirements.

Hands-on exercises and class practice examples reinforce learning in every topic.

What you will learn:

• The essential features of good requirements.

• How to gather and document requirements thoroughly and unambiguously.

• Understanding the concepts, vocabulary, process, and benefits of Use Cases.

• Understanding the principles and objectives of Requirements Engineering and how Use Cases are employed.

• Understanding how a good set of Use Cases, with associated business rules, should drive the preparation of requirements models, Test Cases, and a Software Requirements Specification.

• How to build Test Cases from Use Cases to ensure proper testing coverage of business requirements.

Topics:

Module 1: Requirements Development

• The Need for Better Requirements
• The User-Centric Approach
• Characteristics of Excellent Requirements
• System Quality Attributes
• Business Analyst Activities

Module 2: Use Case Overview

• Use Case Basics

• Use Case Vocabulary

• Use Case Templates

• Use Case Development Sequence

• Results of Use Case Requirements Development

Module 3:  Use Case Analysis

• Well-Formed Use Cases

• Testability

• Pre and Post Conditions

• Operations Contracts

• UML and the Benefits of Modeling

• Use Cases and the UML

Module 4: Use Case Testing

• Testing Fundamentals

• Requirements Engineering

• Building Test Cases from Use Cases

• Use Case Testing Best Practices and Pitfalls

Prerequisites:  None.