Crocus Information Ltd
IT consultancy to blue chip companies

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Our Services

We have been supplying consultants to blue chip companies and government since 1991. The projects we have assisted have been varied and range from a commercial insurance system, through a general ledger taking feeds from across the world for an international banking group, to a set of systems to accommodate legislative change for government.

Centrica has been a major client in recent years as we have been helping them with business restructuring and a number of projects resulting from that. We have also assisted with the introduction of the New Electricity Trading Arrangements for England and Wales, the final phase of the deregulation of electricy here.

We specialise in requirements analysis, focusing on process and data. We use recognised structured methods (such as SSADM and DSDM) in a pragmatic way to ensure users' functional and non-functional needs are documented and incorporated in solution design. And Prince2 tends to be the project management method we use to control projects.

Consultancy / Business Analysis Client List

• International Financial Data Services
• Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
• Centrica Energy (utilities)
• Rural Payments Agency (central government) - twice
• Transco (utilities)
• Charity Commission (central government)
• Transport for London (TfL) (local government)
• Capita Consultancy
• Caledonian Life (life and penions)
• Logica
• British Energy Retail Markets (utilities)
• British Gas Trading (utilities)
• Centrica (utilities)
• British Telecom (utilities)
• Digital Equipment Corporation
• Prudential Insurance Services (life and pensions
• National Westminster Bank (finance)
• Agricultural Intervention Board (central government)
• Commercial Union Insurance Services
• Rover Group
• Oasys CC&T Ltd
• Kaos Design Ltd

Present and recent projects...

Welcome back to our lead consultant, Mark Ridley (details), who has just returned from a creative sabbatical pursuing fine art photography.

His last two contracts were consecutive ones with British Gas, delivering the requirements for major change within their debt collection field force and those for a credit/risk profiling project for customers on their "customer leave" journey.

Prior to that, Mark was on assignment with International Financial Data Services (IFDS) as part of a bid team for a Government contract. He delivered a set of business requirements and a logical solution architecture describing the conceptual business model needed to fulfil the contract

A typical quote from a senior business representative on one of Mark's projects:

Guy Robertson, ambassador user for the RPA, about the E-Calc system that helped deliver great customer service to all farmers within England, during a period of dramatic change to farming subsidies. As part of the team, Mark analysed and defined the requirements and designed the overall solution architecture, with Guy as the user requirements representative:.

"I am continually proud of E-Calc and how we delivered an excellent system that staff across the country were pleased to use. As someone who had never helped develop one before, you and your team were great with me..."

CV and Resume webpage

Other Services...

For students and junior business analysts

See a squidoo lens on the topic of requirements analysis and design with a pragmatic use of ssadm.

In addition to a briefing study (see next para.) we've now started on a Feasibility Study for Acme Fashion Supplies. See the study now. You can also bone up on the diagram notation and techniques here...

We've also added a briefing study guide for Requirements Analysis and Specification. It covers a data processing environment where an external supplier is to design build, test and deliver the new / modified sytem.

Real-life project documents... we have made available Study / Example documents taken from real life projects. If you are interested in seeing real examples of business analysis in practice as recorded in project documents, please click here.

So far we have the sale of Central Quincum Operations for the Utility Gas Co and a fault management system for Acme Energy Supplies. You'll also find templates for download for helping you analyse for and write Terms of Reference and Statements of Requirements see a screenshot of part of a Statement of Requirements.