Business Analysis Agility

James Robertson is a business analyst, problem solver, author, speaker, instructor, photographer, designer, and coach. He trained as an architect but left that for a career in IT and the sociological side of technology. He left the security of employment in Australia to move and start his own company (with his brilliant wife) in the United Kingdom. Since then he has gone on to co-author seven books, numerous courses, and the Volere requirements techniques and templates, which have been adopted by organizations all over the world as their standard for gathering, discovering, communicating, tracing, and specifying solution needs. James’ career is broad, both in a geographical sense and the areas and systems that he has worked with. It is fair to say that James has worked on almost every type of commercial IT project—from a start as a programmer in a software development house in Sydney, to consulting in New York, London, Rome, and most European capitals. He has earned his experience at the sharp end of both project and research work. He divides his time between London and the French Alps. He skis for as much of the winter as demands on his time allow, and hikes all summer. Suzanne Robertson is having a stellar career in information technology and systems engineering. She is a teacher, practitioner, writer, instructor, and guide. Suzanne is a pioneer in adapting ideas from other domains for automated solutions. She has collaborated in workshops using experts from fields as diverse as modern music, visualization, and cookery. Ideas from these domains were adapted to make major breakthroughs in creative ideas for domains ranging from air traffic control to local government. She is co-author of the best-selling Mastering the Requirements Process, among other books and courses. She is co-creator of the Volere requirements techniques. She was the founding editor of the Requirements Column in IEEE Software. She has also made an impact in the socio-technical arena. This includes research and consulting on managing project sociology, both individually and as collaborative efforts between business, technology, and academia. Her experience with different projects in both the private and public sectors has given her experience in a wide variety of systems and locations. She has worked in Europe, Australia, the Far East, and the United States. Suzanne is a founder and principal of the Atlantic Systems Guild. Her other interests include opera, cooking, skiing, and finding out about curious things.

Chapter 1: Agile Business Analysis
Chapter 2: Do You Know What Your Customers Value?
Chapter 3: Are You Solving the Right Problem?
Chapter 4: Investigate the Solution Space
Chapter 5: Designing the Business Solution
Chapter 6: Writing the Right Stories
Chapter 7: Jack Be Nimble, Jack Be Quick
Glossary
Bibliography
Index