Workshop Outline Business Case : Planning and Analysis Foundational Knowledge	This workshop is endorsed by the:

No foundational business systems analysis or technical knowledge is required.

Introduction

The project management and business specification for business projects has undergone a paradigm shift. Traditional project management and analysis techniques were derived from the engineering, construction and IT industries and reflected a mechanistic and rigid approach. Contemporary project management and analysis has evolved to become a dynamic and flexible approach that reflects the rapid changes in technology, organisations and development approaches. This workshop presents integrated models of project management and business systems analysis that are driven by the need for faster delivery cycles, full business client involvement and higher productivity and quality.

As the roles of business and technical experts become even more significant in the management and analysis of their organisation’s projects, the roles and responsibilities of project managers and business analysts remain poorly defined. Too many business people are required to undertake the project management and/or analysis and modeling of complex business processes with little or no training in either the concepts of participative planning or in techniques for process and data modeling.

Contemporary Project Management and Business Analysis is different from traditional information systems development in two critical areas:

Who should attend

The workshop is designed for all virtual team members who must collaborate on the planning and analysis of their organisation’s projects with:

• sponsors and project managers,
• business analysts,
• internal project development support groups; and
• stakeholders; and

Fast-track Your Development

This workshop is an ideal vehicle for project team members who want to fast track their development, as it is an amalgamation of the:

• 3 day Business Analysis: Essential Techniques workshop, and the
• 3 day Project Management: Essential Techniques workshop;

presented over 5 days.

The Workshop

This five day workshop provides integration of the essential information requirements for a project’s Initiation and Analysis Phases. With a focus on contemporary partnerships and service agreements between the project sponsor, project team, business experts and stakeholders, this workshop introduces a participative approach in the development of a project’s business case and the analysis of the business specification.

These techniques have been developed, adapted and applied by Thomsett INTERNATIONAL in many business and IT projects over the past 18 years. They are considered by experts as Best Practice and have been adopted by many leading organisations as a standard.

To ensure the maximum opportunity for skills transfer, this workshop comprises over 60% intensive case study work. The case study is used to highlight the practical application of the various models and techniques covered in the workshop. Small group sessions and simulations are also part of the workshop's design.

Topics Include

Day 1

• Introduction and context
• Project management paradigms
• Project definition
• Project Success - initial definition
• Project business drivers
• Overview of Project Steering Committees
• Project Justification/Business Case
• The project management model
• Project Approval/Business Case
• Project Planning
• Project Reporting
• Project Tracking
• Detailed Project Planning: Introduction
• Defining scope and objectives
• Stakeholders and related projects
• Project relationship management
• Case Study: Project Plan: Scope, objectives and stakeholders
• Introduction to data-flow diagrams
• Modeling scope and objectives
• Context Level Data-flow Diagrams
• Case Study: Current System Context Level Data-flow Diagram

Day 2

• Project risk assessment and management
• Case Study: Risk Assessment and management
• Select Project Development Strategy
• Select and tailor methodology
• Case Study: Strategy and methodology
• Estimation concepts/basic rules
• Sensitivity Analysis
• Metrics history
• Wide Band Delphi Model
• Effort based approaches
• Case Study: Developing project estimates

Day 3

• Essential analysis concepts
• Logical versus physical systems
• Data versus information
• Expectations versus requirements
• Modelling business processes
• Tips and tricks for modelling processes
• Level 1 Data-flow Diagrams
• Case Study: Current System Level 1 Data-flow Diagram

Day 4

• Analysing business problems
• Case Study: Business requirements analysis
• An introduction to Benefits Analysis
• Project Objective levels
• The IRACIS model
• Primary and secondary benefits
• Gathering benefits data
• Project objectives measures
• Case Study: Added Value Analysis Plan

Day 5

• Introduction to data analysis
• Basic terms and concepts
• Modelling data requirements
• Modelling proposed business systems requirements
• Case Study: Proposed System Context and Level 1 Data-flow Diagrams
• Putting it all together
• Case Study: Business Requirements Specification
• Case Study: Business Case review
• Conclusion

Documentation

Workshop participants will receive a full set of the workshop materials and a book written by Rob and Camille Thomsett on Business Analysis plus a number of articles and PM templates to help you get a quick start in your project endeavours.

Book an In-house Workshop or a place on a Public Workshop