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benefits:
Accurate definition of system requirements is essential, particularly
where the person specifying will not build the solution. The variety
of techniques on offer can lead to misuse and inconsistent application.
This course describes a set of tried and tested techniques that will
enhance the quality of specifications.
The subject matter will convey benefits to the organisation through
accurate and complete specifications, with less rework required during
the specification process. Project Managers will also benefit from having
team members who take a consistent and recognisable approach to the
work.
Who should attend:
This course is for people who specify computer systems and in particular,
systems that someone else will build or implement using a software package.
Prerequisites:
Familiarity with systems analysis, design and construction is required.
What you will learn:
On successful completion of the course, attendees will be able to:
- Apply techniques for describing processes, data and dynamics
- Model accurately the application systems being developed and maintained
What you will cover:
- Introduction - techniques for specifying systems; how to make specifications
useful to the person whose job it is to design and build what has
been specified; representing processes, stored data, and dynamics;
common examples: function decomposition diagrams; flow diagrams, data
models, state diagrams; the specification process
- Delivery Scenarios - rapid, incremental and risk driven delivery;
rework, the enemy of progress; anticipating what is required; minimum
task execution; time-boxing the work; parallel activities; prototyping
- Principles of Systems Modelling - the system as a collection of
objects and relationships; object types and properties, example relationships;
system aspects: boundary flows, system structure, data structure,
data derivation and flow, quantification, system control, dynamics,
requirements tracing
- Modelling the Data - the entity, attribute and relationship technique;
entity relationship diagrams; entity types, relationships and cardinality;
data attributes; entity keys and key types; the relational model;
populating the model; validation; representing data structure using
diagrams and other notations
- Product and Process Reviews - managing the quality of the deliverables;
planning for quality; the power of the team; walkthroughs and inspections;
round robin reviews; art gallery reviews; process reviews and process
management
- Modelling the Processes - process descriptions; process decomposition:
business processes, elementary processes and process steps; process
decomposition diagrams; swim lane diagrams and data flow diagrams
- Modelling the Dynamics - the glue that holds the system together;
timing and control; process dynamics; process triggers: events, conditions
and other processes or flows; types of event: real-world and time-based
events, initiating and resuming events; conditional processing; state
transition diagrams; data dynamics; the entity life history; states
and state variables
- Associating Processes with Data and Time - The relationship between
events, entities and actions in the system; the event list; the create,
retrieve, update and delete matrix
- Describing Elementary Processes - business policy and business rules;
the outcome oriented approach; pre and post conditions; exit conditions;
diagrammatic representations
- The Design and Build Process - setting goals for the design and
build process and resulting product; critical success factors; measures
of performance; business objectives and system performance goals;
project risk, risk assessment and mitigation
How you will learn:
The course material assumes a familiarity with systems analysis, design
and construction. Familiarity with the techniques is achieved through
an extensive case study with example worked solutions for later reference.
Duration and availability:
Four days non-residential. In-house only.
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