Surveys and Questionnaires

Conducting a survey or questionnaire can be useful when the sources of information are in different locations or the number of participants answering a given question is large. Surveys and questionnaires may be administered to internal or external stakeholders.

Surveys and questionnaires allow the BA to ask exactly the same questions over a large group of stakeholders, removing any subjective interviewing bias. They may be conducted formally or informally. Formal surveys are usually designed and conducted by a market research firm or department. The BA will work closely with researchers to develop the questions and possible answers.

Informal surveys can be used to confirm the analyst’s understanding of a process, assess the impact of a change, or generate solution ideas. Informal surveys are used for a small number of people and require less preparation than more formal surveys. They also may be used for brainstorming ideas or getting an initial feel for the needs of the stakeholders.

Content and distribution are factors that require considerable planning if the BA expects a high rate of return and useful results. The layout of the form or screen sent to the participants must be clear and very easy to use. Participants must be told why they have been asked to participate and how valuable their responses will be.

The shorter the survey, the more likely participants are to respond. The questions should clearly relate to the survey objective and be focused on at most two subject areas.

Another way to increase the number of responses is to offer an incentive. An employee incentive may be as simple as: “You will be entered in a drawing to win a free lunch in the cafeteria.” An incentive for an external customer might involve the opportunity to win a free product or service.

Typically, closed-ended questions (i.e., yes or no, multiple choice) are used to allow answers to be tabulated and reported quickly. They must be carefully worded to minimize ambiguity. Be aware that you are forcing the participant to choose an answer. Closed-ended questions are limiting and can lead stakeholders to an answer with which they do not truly agree. Most analysts “test” the questions on a few stakeholders before sending out the survey. A useful resource for designing surveys is An Introduction to Survey Research, Polling, and Data Analysis (Weisberg et al., 1996).

Facilitated Sessions

A business analysis professional who needs to learn information from several stakeholders should consider conducting a formal requirements gathering session. This session is designed to bring together people from different areas of the business to focus on one particular process or topic. They work together to build a shared corporate understanding of the process and may also work to develop ideas for problem solving solutions. These sessions were developed by IBM and were originally called Joint Application Design™ (Wood and Silver, 1995). The technique was developed around an impartial, trained facilitator who conducted each session with specific rules and leadership skills.

Webster’s New World College Dictionary defines the word facilitate as to make easy or easier. This is a very nice way of explaining why facilitation sessions are often considered during project initiation and requirements gathering. To make requirements elicitation easy or easier is a goal toward which all teams strive. A facilitator is one who is a planner, designer, helper, instrument, or agent.

Facilitated sessions are not meetings. They are very structured, planned, working sessions where every participant is carefully chosen and has a critical role to play. Planning and preparing for a facilitation session is a significant task that if not done well results in a poorly run session and a huge waste of time for the participants.

Knowing when to conduct a facilitated session is very important. These sessions can be costly in terms of the number of participants and the time required. They should be scheduled and conducted only when there are more than two viewpoints that must be represented. Every business analysis professional must be familiar with the steps required to conduct a session successfully. Ideally, a new BA will be able to observe several sessions before conducting one of his or her own.

Facilitated sessions are an excellent technique for project initiation activities. The newly formed project team of business and technical stakeholders can come together to clarify understanding of the reason for and objectives of the project. In addition, the team can help to develop the scope or boundaries of the project. Bringing together project participants at the beginning of the project creates team enthusiasm and synergy. Everyone feels a part of the planning and decision making. They agree to “buy into” the project goals and will be advocates for change in their departments. These initial project kickoff sessions are even more valuable when the project sponsor starts the session by telling the group the reason for initiating the project and explaining its important business value to the organization.

Facilitated sessions are also useful for detailed requirements gathering and elicitation. A particular business process or set of business rules may be the focus of the session, with participants providing content for and review of requirements diagrams or models. These sessions can also be structured as brainstorming sessions where participants generate ideas for process improvements or new software designs.

Facilitated information gathering sessions are led by a facilitator who is usually supported by a recorder and a timekeeper. The session is carefully planned by this facilitation team. Topics on the agenda, participants, meeting location, and length of sessions are all carefully considered and documented.

Facilitated sessions are a great way for BAs to gather business requirements and help their business teams understand and articulate needs. Using facilitated sessions to gather and analyze requirements is a key task of many BAs.

It is important to recognize that a BA acting as a facilitator on his or her own project is not independent or completely objective, as traditional professional facilitators are. The BA brings his or her business area knowledge, understanding of technological options, and understanding of the organizational environment to the session, making him or her not only the facilitator but also a valuable member of the group.