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Adapting BA Practices for Complex Projects Part I

Adapting BA Practices for Complex Projects Part I. Kathleen (Kitty) Hass, PMP. Award Winning Author, Consultant, Facilitator, and Presenter

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Adapting BA Practices for Complex Projects Part I

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  1. Adapting BA Practices for Complex ProjectsPart I © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  2. Kathleen (Kitty) Hass, PMP Award Winning Author, Consultant, Facilitator, and Presenter President of KHass and Associates, Inc., a consulting practice specializing in strategic business practices, including enterprise business analysis, complex project management, and strategy execution through portfolio management. Ms. Hass has provided professional services to major corporation and the federal government for over 25 years. Serves on the IIBA Board of Directors and Chair of the Nominating Committee . Kitty has authored numerous white papers and articles on leading edge PM/BA practices

  3. Professionalizing Business Analysis, Breaking the Cycle of Challenged Projects • The Business Analyst as Strategist, Translating Business Strategies into Valuable Solutions • Unearthing Business Requirements, Elicitation Tools and Techniques • Getting it Right, BusinessRequirementAnalysis Tools and Techniques • The Art and Power of Facilitation, Running Powerful Meetings • From Analyst to Leader, Elevating the Role of the Business Analyst

  4. The Challenge Diagnosing Complexity Practices to Manage Complexity © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  5. The Challenge © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  6. The Global Challenge The Global Economy The Internet Complexity Complexity The Financial Crisis Political Crises Complexity complexity Innovate or Die Information Technology Complexity © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  7. 1,500 CEOs Can’t Be Wrong Complexity is our biggest challenge “We doubt our ability to manage complexity” “We do not have the creative talent needed” Creativity is the most important leadership quality Capitalizing on Complexity Insights from the 2010 IBM Global CEO Study © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  8. Achieving Innovation Arriving at the Decision Implementing the Change Planning Execution Monitoring Controlling Prioritization Communication Risk management Conflict resolution Issue management Team management Managing complexity Project Management Problem analysis Experimentation Opportunity analysis Business requirements Search for alternatives Solution assessment System requirements Feasibility analysis Business case analysis Benefits management Capitalizing on complexity Business Analysis © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  9. The Most Creative, Productive State • Complex systems fluctuate between: • Equilibrium: paralysis, death • Chaos: unable to function • The genius of Complexity -it nourishes creativity © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  10. BA as Creative Leader Edge of Chaos Leadership

  11. Complex ProjectsThe Hotbed of Creativity Standout companies use projects to: • Change work culture • Reinvent business model • Unlearn past success formulas • Transform outmoded systems • Reduce the number of trivial projects • Co-create innovative new products and services with: • Employees • CustomersExternal partners © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  12. The Troubling IT Performance Only 32% of projects delivered on time, on budget, with required features and functions CHAOS Report 2010 Standish Group The Cause: Gaps in Business Analysis and Complex Project Management © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  13. The Looming IT Meltdown The annual cost to the US economy is around USD 1.22 trillion per year. Worldwide, we are losing over USD 500 billion per month on IT failure, and the problem is getting worse. If we could solve the problem of IT failure, the US could increase GDP by USD 1 trillion/yr. Roger Sessions, Simple Architectures for Complex Enterprises © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  14. “Every organization –not just business–needs one core competence: innovation” Peter Drucker Diagnosing Complexity © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  15. How Manage Project Complexity? Complexity Management Framework © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  16. The Project Complexity Model © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  17. Highly Complex Project © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  18. “Everyone is Creative” Edward de Bono, Ph.D. Practices to Manage Complexity © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  19. Assign Competent Project Leaders © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  20. Assign Competent Leaders andUse the Shared Leadership Model © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  21. Select the Right Project Approach © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  22. © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  23. Low Complexity Independent Projects • Linear Approaches: • The Waterfall Model • The RAD Model © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  24. The Rapid Application Development Model The Waterfall Model © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  25. When do Linear Methods Work? • Maintenance, enhancement, continuous improvement, well-understood projects when: • Business problem, opportunity, and solution are clear • Requirements are well understood • No major changes are expected • We have successfully done this before © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  26. Challenges with Linear Models We Just Aren’t That Good at: • Requirements • The nature of requirement volatility prevents clean transition from phase to phase without iterating • As requirements and design defects are discovered, must go back to the beginning phases • Change Management • The “Big Bang” delivery of the solution is rarely successful • It takes so long, business requirements have changed • Does not allow for adjustments to the solution as learnings occur • Estimating • We suffer from the “Conspiracy of Optimism” © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  27. BA Best Practices • Reduce or eliminate interdependencies • To reduce complexity • Feature-driven requirements • Prototype - Visualize • For requirements understanding • To reduce risk • To prove a concept • Use inteGREAT™ • For traceability • For integration • Evolve requirements • Continuously validate, evolve, and improve requirements and the solution throughout the project • Freeze design at the last responsible moment © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  28. “…the nations and people who master the new sciences of complexity will become the economic, cultural, and political superpowers of the next century.” Heinz Pagels, Physicist Moderately Complex Projects • Iterative Approaches: • The Agile Model © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  29. Why are Traditional Approaches Not Enough? • 21st century projects are chaotic, unpredictable • Methods that work on small projects break down • Combine the elements of classical PM practices, agile methods, and lean product development © K. Hass and Associates, Inc. 29

  30. The Agile Model © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  31. Why do Adaptive Methods Work? • Agile decomposes the large batches of the waterfall model into a series of time-boxed iterations • These smaller batches accelerate feedback, producing huge benefits • Easier mid-course correction • Higher quality • Greater release frequency • Better IT/Business alignment • Agile Development • 50% faster to market • 25% more productive • ¼ of expected defects Source: Agile Software Requirements: Lean Requirements Practices for Teams, Programs, and the Enterprise, By Dean Leffingwell © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  32. Challenges with Adaptive Models The Culture must Support the New Assumptions • Organizations need to accept the change • Projects will adapt to changing conditions and as more is learned • Employees are valuable assets • Autonomous teams are the basic problem-solving mechanism • Minimal up-front planning/requirements • Welcome change that adds value • Reduce the cost of change through iteration • Agile with Distributed Teams • Removes a key cornerstone of agile • Defect rates double • Tools are essential! • To gain back real-time communication • For visualization, simulation, integration, validation © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  33. BA Best Practices • Challenge the belief that it is feasible to develop valid requirements up front • Customers don’t always know what they want • If they know, they can’t describe it • They often describe a solution vs. the real need • The context constantly changes • Customer needs evolve as we learn • Involve all customers to validate requirements Requirements, the Agile Way, Don Reinertsen , Projects@Work.com, February 23, 2011 © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  34. Iterate to Innovate! • Start with the belief that even the best requirements will contain major errors, and that these errors grow exponentially with time “Rather than using heavy front-end investment to create perfect requirements…invest in creating processes and infrastructure that can rapidly detect and correct poor fits between our solution and the customer’s evolving needs.” Requirements, the Agile Way, Don Reinertsen , Projects@Work.com, February 23, 2011 © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  35. “Just Enough” Requirements • At the Beginning: • Spreadsheet of features and independent user stories • Each sprint a mini-SDLC • 5-9 members teams : PM, BA SME, QA, DEV • Lightweight requirements models • Simple low-fidelity mockups • Independent user stories • If needed: structured use cases • Validate via simulation to find errors and identify missed requirements © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  36. The BA: Keeps the Focus on Value • Conduct “real” enterprise analysis • Foster creativity and innovation • Develop the business case • Develop “Firm Basic Requirements” • Create a release plan prioritized by business value • Validate after each sprint and each release • Provide guidance during the project • Keep your eye on the business case • Continually re-prioritize • Measure real benefits after each release © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  37. “Welcome a certain amount of complexity and churn because it creates a chemical reaction that jars creative thinking.” Colleen Young, VP and Distinguished Analyst and IT Adviser, Gartner Highly Complex Projects • Extreme Approaches: • Discovery, then Modular Model • Evolutionary Prototyping Model © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  38. CPM Models Still Emerging • Combining elements of existing models • Iterative learning • Adapting and evolving • Experimenting • Delayed decision-making • Experimenting with contemporary practices • Late design freeze • Built-in redundancy • Lots of experimentation • Designing and building prototypes for multiple parallel solutions © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  39. Extreme Models • Scaled-up Agile practices • Minimal early requirements • “Emergent Architecture” - through many short experimental iterations to determine goals and identify the most viable solution • Customer involved until the solution emerges • Terminates after the solution is found • Or when the sponsor is unwilling to fund any more research • Then transitions to one of the other models Source: Doug DeCarlo, eXtreme Project Management: Using Leadership, Principles, and Tools to Deliver Value in the Face of Volatility, 2004 © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  40. Discovery, Prototype, Then Modular DevelopmentModel Source: Center for Strategic International Studies, Organizing for a Complex World, Developing Tomorrow’s Defense and Net-Centric Systems, 2009 © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  41. Challenges with Extreme Models • Knowing how long to keep your options open • Building options into the approach without undue cost • Bringing the right group of experts to discover, experiment, create, innovate © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  42. The Continuous Innovation Loop © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  43. Questions and Answers © K. Hass and Associates, Inc.

  44. See you for Part II How Can BAs Manage Complexity Dimensions August 3rd – same time Kathleen Hass and Associates Principal Consultant kittyhass@comcast.net 303.663.8655 IIBA Board of Directors Kitty.Hass@theiiba.org

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