About the techniques

The techniques described in this Briefing Study are cross validating, coherent and complementary.

Before you get on with looking at a list of the techniques, bear in mind that they are a means to an end, akin, say, to a sculptor's tools. The subject, its lighting and environment, and the medium being sculpted dictates overall approach and the extent to which the sculptor uses each type of tool.

It's the same with the techniques here. The size and complexity of the project will hugely influence the extent and depth to which the techniques are used. For smaller, more straightforward projects involving a business change of narrow scope and tightly focused impact, you'd expect the barest minimum of technique use, perhaps developed as just one single document with embedded diagrams and tables of user requirements.

At the other extreme, you have projects that are complex, with processes that are highly regulated and with sophisticated business rules; perhaps industry-wide agreements dictate many requirements (as applies in financial services and utilities). Other attributes that make for complex projects are wide scope; wide-ranging impacts on many of the standard impact areas (Customer, Product, Process, Organisation, Location, Data, Application and Technology); success of the project is a critical success factor in achieving specific board-level strategies.

Whatever the size and complexity, the techniques are more than adequate for the job - they have the provenance of appearing in most structured methods. So they are a standard set of tools in the professional business analyst's tool belt.

They are not a panacea by themselves, though. They have to be used judiciously by an experienced practitioner. However, if you are someone with a shorter, informal background in analysis, then being armed with a working knowledge of these techniques and by working alongside a skilled practitioner, you'll quickly gain the required experience. And at the same time, prove to be a boon. It might even get you assigned to a project that otherwise you wouldn't be considered for.