The PMI Guide to Business Analysis for Managing Product and Project Requirements with Joyce Brown and Thomas McCabe

What You Will Learn

Upon completion of this training, learners will be able to: 

  • Identify the evolving roles and skill sets of the business analyst in a range of contexts: product, project, program and portfolio management.
  • Demonstrate the art and science of requirements elicitation and elaboration, along with tailoring of the development approach: predictive, hybrid (iterative or incremental), and adaptive.
  • Lead stakeholders in developing a strategic plan, needs assessment and gap analysis, resulting in business case, benefits management plan and project charter.

Description

Every business analyst has experienced that sinking feeling when a major requirement pops up late in the project, often impacting scope, schedule and cost. The PMI Guide to Business Analysis provides a structured approach to identifying the business need and confirming its strategic value in the context of product, portfolio, program, and project management. This PMI standard provides an important deep dive into the critical competencies to help a business analyst work with stakeholders to elicit, model, prioritize, verify, validate and monitor requirements.

The training will begin with discussion of the evolving role of the business analyst and their sphere of influence.  The relationships among the standard’s six Knowledge Areas and six Process Groups will then be explored, with tailoring activities to adapt the business analysis processes to specific life cycles (predictive to agile). The training emphasizes the critical first step in business analysis—a needs assessment—conducted to ensure that portfolio components, products, programs, and projects can provide the expected business value. A case study will walk the group through the needs assessment process, ending in the development of the business case, benefits management plan, and charter. Following these critical pre-initiating and initiating activities, participants will discuss the business analysis planning activities that are required and agreed upon.

The importance of establishing business metrics and measurements will be stressed.  Instruction will move to techniques for defining, elaborating, verifying, and prioritizing requirements and developing a traceability and monitoring approach.  The group will prepare a SWOT analysis for a case study product in order to identify and analyze risks.  Throughout the training, techniques for establishing and maintaining stakeholder engagement will also be emphasized, with a review of tools for analyzing stakeholders, facilitating consensus, and communicating requirements status.

Instruction will be supplemented with case studies, hands-on team exercises, group sharing, games, and other activities that are intended to engage learners and provide them with tangible takeaways. Attendees will work in teams to create key business analysis artifacts.

AGENDA

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    • Introductions
    • Projects, Programs, Portfolios, and Products
    • Importance of Requirements Management for Business Value Creation
    • Changing Role of the Business Analyst and Their Sphere of Influence
    • Business Analyst Versus Project Manager
    • Business Analysis Process Groups and Knowledge Areas From the Standard
    • Stakeholder Identification and Needs Assessment Overview
      • Identify Problem or Opportunity
      • Assess Current State
      • Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT/TOWS)
    • Case Studies, Discussions, Examples, and Games
    • Needs Assessment Overview (Continued)
      • Determine Future State
      • Determine Viable Options and Provide Recommendations
      • Develop Business Case, Benefits Management Plan, and Project Charter
    • Stakeholder Analysis Models and Stakeholder Register
    • Tailor Business Analysis Planning for Predictive, Iterative, Adaptive, and Incremental Projects
    • Case Studies, Discussions, Examples, and Games
    • Agile Scope Is Flexible
    • Product Vision
    • Feature Roadmaps, Releases, Product Backlogs, and User Stories
    • Determine Elicitation Approach and Prepare and Conduct Elicitation
    • Five Categories of Analysis Models 
    • Case Studies
    • Define and Elaborate Requirements and Associated Acceptance Criteria
    • Validate Versus Verify Requirements
    • Prioritize Requirements – General Tools and Techniques 
    • Agile Prioritization Schemes
    • Risk Management Processes
    • Assess Product Design Options
    • Select, Approve, and Baseline Requirements
    • Manage Changes to Requirements
    • Wrap-Up and Next Steps

PDU Allocation Table

The table below displays the number of professional development units (PDUs) awarded for each PMI® credential, as they align to the PMI Talent Triangle®. Power Skills and Business Acumen PDUs apply evenly across all credentials and Ways of Working PDUs apply only to specific credentials. PDUs will be added in full to all eligible credentials. *Please note that the asterisked row below applies to the PMI® Agile Certification Journey and includes Disciplined Agile® Scrum Master (DASM), Disciplined Agile® Senior Scrum Master (DASSM), Disciplined Agile® Coach (DAC), and Disciplined Agile® Value Stream Consultant (DAVSC) certifications.
Ways of Working Power Skills Business Acumen Total
CAPM® / PMI-CP™ / PMP® / PgMP® 8 10 10 28.00
PMI-ACP® / Agile* 0 10 10 20.00
PMI-SP® 0 10 10 20.00
PMI-RMP® 0 10 10 20.00
PfMP® 2 10 10 22.00
PMI-PBA® 6 10 10 26.00
Ways of Working Power Skills Business Acument Talent Triangle

Instructor(s)

Joyce

Joyce D. Brown PMP

Joyce D. Brown is managing director of W. W Mentorprises, Inc. She instructs on project, program, and portfolio management at the University of Connecticut School of Business. She is also an adjunct professor of project and program management for several graduate programs at UConn’s School of Business / Stamford campus. Previously, Ms. Brown spent more than fifteen years as vice president of operations for three global luxury goods companies. In these positions her responsibilities included logistics and distribution, construction, procurement, production and manufacturing, after sales service, and security. Her earlier experience includes a role as a retail / wholesale industry consulting manager at a “Big 4” consulting firm. Ms. Brown holds a bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University and an MBA from Middle Tennessee State University.

Thomas

Thomas F. McCabe PMP

Thomas F. McCabe is managing director of W. W. Mentorprises, Inc. He instructs on project, program, and portfolio management at the University of Connecticut School of Business. He is also an adjunct professor at Fairfield University’s Dolan School of Business where he teaches project management at the graduate and undergraduate levels. His previous positions include e-Infrastructure consulting manager at a “Big 4” consulting firm, and vice president, global risk management for a major financial services organization. Professional expertise includes: eBusiness transformation, PMO establishment and organization, project risk assessment, business continuity planning, software selection, new product development, and business process re-engineering. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Fordham University and a master's certificate in project management from George Washington University. Mr. McCabe has held several global volunteer positions for PMI. He was a co-founder of PMI’s eBusiness Specific Interest Group (SIG) and formerly served as its chairman & executive advisory chair. He also served as vice-chairman of programs for both the PMO SIG and Financial Services SIG. He is cited in the PMBOK® Guide — 5th Edition as a contributing subject matter expert.

Training Information

PDUs
28
Level
Intermediate
Dates
14 - 17 July 2025
Length
4 Days

Price

Member Price
US$3228.00
(US$3066.00 before 19 May)
Nonmember Price
US$3695.00
(US$3510.00 before 19 May)
Government Price
US$2910.00
Student Price
US$1441.00

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