Question 1

The following are requirements elicitation techniques EXCEPT ____________.
A)brainstorming
B)document analysis
C)focus groups
D)feasibility studies

Accepted Answer

The following are requirements elicitation techniques: brainstorming, document analysis, and focus groups.
Key Takeaway: There are a number of requirements elicitation techniques that a Business Analyst can use when gathering information from stakeholders. Typically, the techniques involve interviewing and meeting with stakeholders in brainstorming and focus group sessions. Analyzing process and procedure documents is also another technique that provides information on the business problem. For example, if a production line follows a 20-step procedure and yet managers complain of delays, then analysis of how the steps are carried out is important in finding out why these delays happen.

Question 2

Volkswagen hires a team of Business Analysts to lead the development of new Passat designs to be released in 2014. To elicit requirements from industrial designers and engineers, the Business Analysts conduct a __________ workshop to elicit design requirements.
A)joint application design
B)document analysis
C)focus group design
D)differential application design

Accepted Answer

Volkswagen hires a team of Business Analysts to lead the development of a new Passat design to be released in 2014. To elicit requirements from industrial designers and engineers, the Business Analysts conduct a Joint Application Design (JAD) workshop to elicit design requirements.
Key Takeaway: Joint Application Design (JAD) workshops or sessions are designed to coordinate the meetings of technical and specialist team members. These meetings usually occur over several days and are facilitated by a Business Analyst.
For Volkswagen, the JAD workshop would include industrial designers and engineers who would define and review design ideas for a new Passat.

Question 3

Melinda is a Business Analyst who works with a national clothing manufacturer. She stresses to managers that the requirements elicitation component of her project faces ______________, which is an expansion beyond time and resources limits.
A)growth creep
B)scope creep
C)focus creep
D)elicitation creep

Accepted Answer

Melinda is a Business Analyst who works with a national clothing manufacturer. She stresses to managers that the requirements elicitation component of her project faces scope creep, which is an expansion beyond time and resources limits.
Key Takeaway: During requirements elicitation, a Business Analyst has to make sure that requirements elicited from stakeholders are traced back to the original business goals/objectives. For example, Melinda may notice that eliciting or gathering requirements is now becoming so wide and unfocused that it does not serve the original business goal of the clothing manufacturer. An unfocused requirements elicitation risks scope creep which means that it takes longer and costs more than budgeted.

Question 4

As part of the requirements elicitation, a ___________ of key domain terms and their business definitions has to be defined clearly when compiling information.
A)document
B)brief
C)glossary
D)plan

Accepted Answer

As part of the requirements elicitation, a glossary of key domain terms and their business definitions has to be defined clearly when compiling information.
Key Takeaway: A glossary of key domain terms and their business definitions is an important component of a comprehensive requirements elicitation effort. For example, assume that a Business Analyst is working with a private college to restructure and improve their IT infrastructure. The Business Analyst must define the domain terms that are essential to the college's business operations and then define them clearly. The purpose of the glossary is to make it accessible and easy for all stakeholders to understand and follow-through.

Question 5

To conduct an effective brainstorming session, a Business Analyst must limit the number of participants to ________________ people.
A)2-4
B)2-7
C)6-8
D)6-12

Accepted Answer

To conduct an effective brainstorming session, a Business Analyst must limit the number of participants to 6-8 people.
Key Takeaway: Practice shows that brainstorming sessions are best when the number of participants is limited to 6-8 people. The goal of a session is to gather people with a range of backgrounds and experience to engage in an active discussion and develop creative solutions to business problems. If the number of participants is greater than 8, it may make it difficult for the Business Analyst to facilitate the session effectively. If the number is much fewer than 6, then the brainstorming session may not have enough capable people to develop ideas.

Question 6

An effective Business Analyst will ______________ during a brainstorming session.
A)limit the number of ideas because there has to be an upper limit
B)criticize ideas from some of the participants
C)record only those ideas that are comprehensive
D)encourage participants to be creative

Accepted Answer

An effective Business Analyst will encourage participants to be creative during a brainstorming session.
Key Takeaway: A Business Analyst must make certain that participants in a brainstorming session are creative in developing solution ideas. The goal of the session is to let the participants, who are from a wide range of experiences and backgrounds, to think of solutions that they may not otherwise individually. If the Business Analyst, as the facilitator, limits the number of ideas or criticizes them prematurely, then he or she risks missing out on valuable ideas.

Question 7

During a focus group, a Business Analyst acts as a moderator to a group of ___________ people who discuss their impressions, preferences, and needs.
A)2-4
B)2-7
C)6-8
D)6-12

Accepted Answer

During a focus group, a Business Analyst acts as a moderator to a group of 6-12 people who discuss their impressions, preferences, and needs.
Key Takeaway: A focus group of 6-12 people is gathered to elicit their impressions, preferences, and needs about a product or a service. This figure is ideal to create an interactive environment whereby people share their thoughts.
The role of the Business Analyst is to make sure that the discussion doesn't veer too far off from its original focus on the specific product or service. The Analyst also follows through with the participants' comments in an effort to elicit more information.

Question 8

A Business Analyst may recruit participants for a focus group who are similar in background and experience, a(an) ______ group, or participants who are different, a(an) ________ group.
A)homogenous; heterogeneous
B)trained; untrained
C)junior; senior
D)analyst; manager

Accepted Answer

A Business Analyst may recruit participants for a focus group who are similar in background and experience, a homogenous group, or participants who are different, a heterogeneous group.
Key Takeaway: The experience and background makeup of focus group participants can be either similar (homogenous) or different (heterogeneous) people. Either composition has its advantages and disadvantages in how valuable the information elicited can be for the project.
For example, if an insurance company wishes to form focus groups to gain information about sales procedures, those in the focus group may be all sales agents which makes them homogenous.

Question 9

To conduct a successful interview with a subject matter expert (SME), all of the following are important EXCEPT:
A)the business analyst must be able to document the discussion accurately
B)the business analyst must be experienced in conducting interview
C)the business analyst must know as much about the subject as the SME
D)the business analyst must familiarize him/herself with the business domain

Accepted Answer

To conduct a successful interview with a subject matter expert (SME), the business analyst must be able to document the discussion accurately, be experienced in conducting interview, and must familiarize him/herself with the business domain.
Key Takeaway: While a Business Analyst who is conducting an interview must make him/herself familiar with the business domain of the project, he or she does not need to know as much about the subject as the SME. It is sufficient that the Business Analyst can ask relevant questions and then follow-up when he or she receives the answers.

Question 10

After completing an interview to elicit information, a Business Analyst sends copies of notes to the __________ to make certain that information was captured accurately.
A)interviewee
B)technical writer
C)project stakeholders
D)project sponsors

Accepted Answer

After completing an interview to elicit information, a Business Analyst sends copies of notes to the interviewee to make certain that information was captured accurately.
Key Takeaway: After completing an interview, a Business Analyst must make sure that he or she has captured the right information in a complete form. To do so, the interviewee is sent a copy of the interview notes and asked to comment on whether all relevant information had been recorded accurately and completely. Once the interviewee comments on the notes, the Business Analyst can make modifications to the information elicited during the interview.

Question 11

The _____________ technique of requirements elicitation involves conducting an assessment of the subject matter expert's (SME) work environment by studying them directly while they work.
A)self-reports
B)observation
C)interviews
D)online surveys

Accepted Answer

The observation technique of requirements elicitation involves conducting an assessment of the subject matter expert's (SME) work environment by studying them directly while they work.
Key Takeaway: Observation, or 'job shadowing' as it is called sometimes, is a technique developed to observe SMEs as they go about performing their work duties. The observer simply follows the SME around, noting procedures and the overall work environment, and recording what they see. The goal of observation is to examine work procedures in real-life and then comment on the flow of work and such factors as productivity. Observation is usually used in industries such as manufacturing that are procedure-heavy.

Question 12

In the _______ approach for the observation technique, the Business Analyst asks questions during the observation period when needing clarification.
A)recorded
B)unrecorded
C)active
D)passive

Accepted Answer

In the active approach for the observation technique, the Business Analyst asks questions during the observation period when needing clarification.
Key Takeaway: In the active approach for the observation technique, when the Business Analyst has a question about why a certain step is done, he or she interrupts the subject matter expert and asks the question.
Unlike the passive approach when questions are done after the completion of the entire observation period, the active approach gains information as the observation continues. The benefit of the active approach is that more detailed information can be elicited about procedures.

Question 13

AVON hires a Business Analyst to introduce a more efficient, user-friendly interface for management reporting. The Business Analyst uses __________ techniques during requirements elicitation to produce "mock ups" of the screens or report layouts for an application.
A)recording
B)observing
C)interfacing
D)prototyping

Accepted Answer

AVON hires a Business Analyst to introduce a more efficient, user-friendly interface for management reporting. The Business Analyst uses prototyping techniques during requirements elicitation produces "mock ups" of the screens or report layouts for an application.
Key Takeaway: Prototyping is a requirements elicitation technique that helps clients identify, describe and verify their interface techniques. AVON managers, for example, would give the Business Analyst information about the specific reports management should receive.
The Business Analyst, then, would prepare 'mock ups' that would help managers identify whether the report layouts would match their needs and preferences.

Question 14

The two functional scopes of prototyping are ___________ and ____________.
A)horizontal; vertical
B)active; passive
C)open system; close system
D)growth; recession

Accepted Answer

The two functional scopes of prototyping are horizontal and vertical.
Key Takeaway: Prototyping has two functional scopes which define how the models are prepared for clients: horizontal and vertical. Horizontal prototyping models a wide view of the system's functionality that may not have lots of details on the business logic behind it. Vertical prototyping models a narrow, more detailed view of the system's functionality that incorporates the business logic behind the visualization.

Question 15

In prototyping, the sequence of events to prepare a model of a business system's functionality is to ____________, ____________, and then __________ the prototype.
A)evaluate; build; identify
B)identify; build, evaluate
C)evaluate; identify; build
D)identify; evaluate; build

Accepted Answer

In prototyping, the sequence of events to prepare a model of a business system's functionality is to identify, build, and then, evaluate the prototype.
Key Takeaway: In prototyping, the sequence of events to prepare a model of a business system's functionality is to identify the needs of the client first. Once the needs are identified, the Business Analyst prepares a model of the system that may be horizontal or vertical. After the model is prepared, the client evaluates whether it meets his or her expectations and needs.

Question 16

A requirements workshop is a(an) ____________ way to capture information.
A)open
B)closed
C)unstructured
D)structured

Accepted Answer

A requirements workshop is a structured way to capture information.
Key Takeaway: Requirements workshops are used to scope, discover, define, prioritize and reach closure on requirements for a target system. For example, if a car manufacturer wishes to gather information from industrial engineers on new safety standards, a requirements workshop would be used to gather their input. Typically, the workshop would be done during a 1-day session and facilitated by a Business Analysis.

Question 17

A large printing company has an outdated printing system for which documentation is not available. A Business Analyst is hired to use _________ to analyze the printing system and identify its underlying business processes, data and rules.
A)foreword engineering
B)foreword analytics
C)reverse engineering
D)reverse analytics

Accepted Answer

A large printing company has an outdated printing system for which documentation is not available. A Business Analyst is hired to use reverse engineering to analyze the printing system and identify its underlying business processes, data and rules.
Key Takeaway: Reverse engineering is a process whereby a system with old or outdate documentation is analyzed using its products. From the products (such as printing materials), a Business Analyst can understand the underlying business processes, data and rules.
Reverse engineering is especially useful for companies which have not updated their system for long periods of time but who are otherwise satisfied with how well the system has produced.

Question 18

___________ refers to the reverse engineering process whereby the system or product is analyzed without examining its internal structures.
A)white box reverse engineering
B)red box reverse engineering
C)green box reverse engineering
D)black box reverse engineering

Accepted Answer

Black Box reverse engineering refers to the reverse engineering process whereby the system or product is analyzed without examining its internal structures.
Key Takeaway: Black Box reverse engineering refers to an examination of a system or a product for which poor documentation exists in order to understand its underlying business processes. In this type of reverse engineering, the internal structures of the system are not examined. For example, if a printing company wishes to examine its large printing machine's output and efficiency, the type of products that are received are analyzed.

Question 19

___________ refers to the reverse engineering process whereby the inner system or workings of a structure are examined.
A)white box reverse engineering
B)red box reverse engineering
C)green box reverse engineering
D)black box reverse engineering

Accepted Answer

White Box reverse engineering refers to the reverse engineering process whereby the inner system or workings of a structure are examined.
Key Takeaway: White Box reverse engineering refers to an examination of the inner workings or system of a product for which poor documentation exists in order to understand its underlying business processes. In this type of reverse engineering, the internal structures of the system are examined. The benefits of White Box reverse engineering are that it provides a way to investigate errors and limitations in existing programs and a chance to correct them.

Question 20

One of the weaknesses of reverse engineering as a method for requirements elicitation is that it __________.
A)is time saving and inexpensive
B)provides investment in an existing system/product
C)is time consuming and expensive
D)provides detailed information to develop documentation when it is missing

Accepted Answer

One of the weakness of reverse engineering as a method for requirements elicitation is that it is time consuming and expensive.
Key Takeaway: Reverse engineering is done after management conducts a cost-benefit analysis on whether to update a system so that good documentation is available or to work backwards and develop the documentation themselves. If it is too expensive to replace a system, then reverse engineering provides an alternative.
In many cases, however, reverse engineering, can be time consuming and expensive. This is especially true if the system is complex and has not been analyzed in a long period of time.

Quiz 4: Requirements Elicitation

The following are requirements elicitation techniques EXCEPT ____________.

Volkswagen hires a team of Business Analysts to lead the development of new Passat designs to be released in 2014. To elicit requirements from industrial designers and engineers, the Business Analysts conduct a __________ workshop to elicit design requirements.

Melinda is a Business Analyst who works with a national clothing manufacturer. She stresses to managers that the requirements elicitation component of her project faces ______________, which is an expansion beyond time and resources limits.

As part of the requirements elicitation, a ___________ of key domain terms and their business definitions has to be defined clearly when compiling information.

To conduct an effective brainstorming session, a Business Analyst must limit the number of participants to ________________ people.

An effective Business Analyst will ______________ during a brainstorming session.

During a focus group, a Business Analyst acts as a moderator to a group of ___________ people who discuss their impressions, preferences, and needs.

A Business Analyst may recruit participants for a focus group who are similar in background and experience, a(an) group, or participants who are different, a(an) __ group.

To conduct a successful interview with a subject matter expert (SME) , all of the following are important EXCEPT:

After completing an interview to elicit information, a Business Analyst sends copies of notes to the __________ to make certain that information was captured accurately.

The _____________ technique of requirements elicitation involves conducting an assessment of the subject matter expert's (SME) work environment by studying them directly while they work.

In the _______ approach for the observation technique, the Business Analyst asks questions during the observation period when needing clarification.

AVON hires a Business Analyst to introduce a more efficient, user-friendly interface for management reporting. The Business Analyst uses __________ techniques during requirements elicitation to produce "mock ups" of the screens or report layouts for an application.

The two functional scopes of prototyping are _ and __.

In prototyping, the sequence of events to prepare a model of a business system's functionality is to __, , and then the prototype.

A requirements workshop is a(an) ____________ way to capture information.

A large printing company has an outdated printing system for which documentation is not available. A Business Analyst is hired to use _________ to analyze the printing system and identify its underlying business processes, data and rules.

___________ refers to the reverse engineering process whereby the system or product is analyzed without examining its internal structures.

___________ refers to the reverse engineering process whereby the inner system or workings of a structure are examined.

One of the weaknesses of reverse engineering as a method for requirements elicitation is that it __________.