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New Post 4/8/2008 9:10 AM
User is offline rina
17 posts
9th Level Poster


Communication with Developers 
Modified By rina  on 4/8/2008 11:14:32 AM)

Hi,

I have a question. I have a QA background and have learnt how to gather and document requirements. Thanks to you guys!

 But with no developer background, I usually have tough time communicating with developers and understanding the technicalities.

Sometimes I feel life I am being fooled by them. Its happened where they've led me into thinking that I need to push back the requirements instead of finding a solution

I know I need to get strong technically, but I dont know what should I know. Can someone help me with that. How can I get technically strong enough to know if what a developer is telling me makes sense or not.Has someone else been in this situation?

 

 

 
New Post 4/8/2008 11:06 AM
User is offline VN
34 posts
9th Level Poster




Re: Communication with Developers 

Hi Rina,

You don’t need to become strong technically in particular area, or know all the intricacies of any programming language or tool. As Business Analyst you are supposed to be a “bridge” between the clients and the development team.

I try to involve tha engineering team as early as possible. After the list of requirements starts to take shape, I consult the engineering team to verify what is doable. I give them a short presentation of the requirements emphasizing the interfaces both GUI and with other systems, and anything that was rated as high priority by the client or is different than a similar project from the past. This is not an official visit, but gives them heads up about what is coming and before responding they seriously consider all facets of the situation.
When talking to developers I verify why they cannot implement a certain requirement.
Is it because of the hardware and architecture used, the database and languages chosen for the development, the tools used, the product being customized, etc.? (Of course these are implementation issues, but if this is a maintenance/upgrade project they have to be in the list of project constraints.)
Depending on the answer, and how well the requirements are detailed at the time, I may ask the developers to provide alternatives that will satisfy the business requirement and the project objective. Then I consult with the project manager about the impact on the project schedule. At the end I talk to the customer, explaining why, if any, of the requirements need to be reevaluated and ask them if there is an alternative set of functional requirements that will satisfy the same business requirement and objective.
Of course all is situational and depends on the particular circumstances.

 

Hope this helps,

Vessela

 
New Post 4/29/2008 5:30 AM
User is offline Craig Brown
560 posts
www.betterprojects.net
4th Level Poster




Re: Communication with Developers 
Modified By Craig Brown  on 4/29/2008 7:33:26 AM)

Rina

Think of yourself as the client advocate.  It's your job to solve their problem.  So take responsibility for making sure the solution is deliverred as fully as possible.

When developers push back on requirements you need to know why.  One generic technique you can apply is called the Five Why's.  Each time someone tells you why something can't be done, ask why.  When they give an answer drill into it further with another why (repeat 5 times.)  That should give you sufficient info to understand the issue. 

It's then your job to go back to the clent and explain the reasons why the feature is out of the solutions scope and to work out an alternaive solution (eg a workaround or achiveing the target benefits via an alternative requirement.)

Use the 5 Whys and you'll soon learn whether they are being honest or trying to decieve you.

 
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