Requirements Gathering

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Key Ideas
The goal of the analysis phase is to
truly understand the requirements
of the new system and develop a
system that addresses them.
The first challenge is finding the
right people to participate.
The second challenge is collecting
and integrating the information
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INTERVIEWS

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Interviews -- Five Basic
Steps
Selecting interviewees
Designing interview questions
Preparing for the interview
Conducting the interview
Post-interview follow-up

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Selecting Interviewees

Based on information needed

Often good to get different
perspectives
Managers
Users
Ideally, all key stakeholders

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Types of Questions

Types of Questions Examples

Closed-Ended Questions * How many telephone

orders are received per day?
* How do customers place orders?
* What additional information
would you like the new system
to provide?

Open-Ended Questions * What do you think about the

current system?
* What are some of the problems
you face on a daily basis?
* How do you decide what types of
marketing campaign to run?

Probing Questions * Why?

* Can you give me an example?
* Can you explain that in a bit
more detail?
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Designing Interview
Questions
Unstructured interview
Broad, roughly defined
information
Structured interview
More specific information

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Questioning Strategies

EXAMPLES?
High Level TOP DOWN
Very General

Medium-Level
Moderately
Specific

Low-Level
Very Specific BOTTOM UP
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Interview Preparation
Steps
Prepare general interview plan
List of question
Anticipated answers and follow-ups
Confirm areas of knowledge
Set priorities in case of time shortage
Prepare the interviewee
Schedule
Inform of reason for interview
Inform of areas of discussion
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Conducting the Interview
Appear professional and unbiased
Record all information
Check on organizational policy regarding tape
recording
Be sure you understand all issues and terms
Separate facts from opinions
Give interviewee time to ask questions
Be sure to thank the interviewee
End on time

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Conducting the Interview
Practical Tips
Don’t worry, be happy
Pay attention
Summarize key points
Be succinct
Be honest
Watch body language

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Post-Interview Follow-Up

Prepare interview notes

Prepare interview report
Look for gaps and new
questions

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Interview Report
INTERVIEW REPORT

Interview notes approved by: ____________

Person interviewed ______________

Interviewer _______________
Date _______________
Primary Purpose:

Summary of Interview:

Open Items:

Detailed Notes:

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Your Turn
You are interviewing the director of the PC
lab at your school regarding a new
program to support keeping track of
students’ borrowing software
With a partner, write 5 questions you would
ask the PC lab director
Take turns having one pair of students posing
the questions to another pair of students
Be sure to take notes and write up the results
when you have finished.

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JOINT APPLICATION DESIGN
(JAD)

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JAD Key Ideas
Allows project managers, users,
and developers to work
together
May reduce scope creep by 50%
Avoids requirements being too
specific or too vague

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Joint Application Design
(JAD) Important Roles
Facilitator
Scribe

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Joint Application Design
(JAD) Setting
U-Shaped seating
Away from distractions
Whiteboard/flip chart
Prototyping tools
e-JAD

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JAD Meeting Room

JPEG Figure 5-5 Goes Here

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The JAD Session
Tend to last 5 to 10 days over a three week
period
Prepare questions as with interviews
Formal agenda and groundrules
Facilitator activities
Keep session on track
Help with technical terms and jargon
Record group input
Help resolve issues
Post-session follow-up
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Managing Problems in JAD
Sessions
Reducing domination
Encouraging non-contributors
Side discussions
Agenda merry-go-round
Violent agreement
Unresolved conflict
True conflict
Use humor PowerPoint Presentation for Dennis, Wixom & Tegardem Systems Analysis and
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QUESTIONNAIRES

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Questionnaire Steps
Selecting participants
Using samples of the population
Designing the questionnaire
Careful question selection
Administering the questionnaire
Working to get good response rate
Questionnaire follow-up
Send results to participants
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Good Questionnaire
Design
Begin with non-threatening and interesting questions

Group items into logically coherent sections

Do not put important items at the very end of the questionnaire

Do not crowd a page with too many items

Avoid abbreviations

Avoid biased or suggestive items or terms

Number questions to avoid confusion

Pretest the questionnaire to identify confusing questions

Provide anonymity to respondents

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Document Analysis

Provides clues about existing “as-is”

system
Typical documents
Forms
Reports
Policy manuals
Look for user additions to forms
Look for unused form elements
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Observation
Users/managers often don’t remember
everything they do
Checks validity of information gathered
other ways
Behaviors change when people are
watched
Careful not to ignore periodic activities
Weekly … Monthly … Annual

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Selecting the Appropriate
Techniques
Interviews JAD Questionnaires Document Observation
Analysis

Type of As-Is As-Is As-Is As-Is As-Is

Information Improve. Improve. Improve.
To-Be To-Be

Depth of High High Medium Low Low

Information

Breadth of Low Medium High High Low

Information

Integration Low High Low Low Low

of Info.

User Medium High Low Low Low

Involvement

Cost Medium Low- Low Low Low-

Medium Medium
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Suggest how CD Selections
should proceed in eliciting
requirements.

Consider steps, techniques and

goals, who and how.

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How would you identify possible
improvements?

What possible improvements

would you suggest?

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Summary
There are five major information
gathering techniques that all
systems analysts must be able to
use: Interviews, JAD,
Questionnaires, Document Analysis,
and Observation.
Systems analysts must also know
how and when to use each as well
as how to combine methods.
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Expanding the Domain
Additional resources regarding
Joint Application Development
can be found at:
http://www.carolla.com/wp-jad.htm
http://www.utexas.edu/hr/is/pubs/jad.html

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