Knowledge Areas define what a practitioner of business analysis needs to understand and the tasks a practitioner must be able

to perform. Business analysts are likely to perform tasks from all knowledge areas in rapid succession, iteratively, or simultaneously. Tasks may be performed in any order as long as the required inputs are available. In principle, a business analysis effort may start with any task, although the most likely candidates are Define Business Need or Evaluate Solution Performance. Knowledge areas are not intended to represent phases in a project. It is certainly possible and permissible to proceed from performing enterprise analysis activities, to requirements analysis activities, to solution assessment and validation activities, and treat each as a distinct phase in a project. However, the BABOK Guide does not require that you do so, and it should not be construed as a methodology for the performance of business analysis. Business Analysis Planning and Monitoring covers how BAs determine which activities are necessary in order to complete a business analysis effort. It covers identification of stakeholders, selection of business analysis techniques, the process that will be used to manage requirements, and how to assess the progress of the work. The tasks in this knowledge area govern the performance of all other business analysis tasks. INPUTS
BA Performance Metrics Business Need Enterprise Architecture Expert Judgment Organizational Process Assets

TASKS
Plan BA Approach Conduct Stakeholder Analysis Plan BA Activities Plan BA Communication Plan Requirements Management Process Manage BA Performance

OUTPUTS
BA Approach BA Communication Plan BA Performance Assessment BA Plan(s) BA Process Assets Requirement Management Plan Stakeholder list, role & responsibilities

Elicitation describes how BAs work with stakeholders to identify & understand their needs & concerns, and understand the environment in which they work The purpose of elicitation is to ensure that a stakeholders actual underlying needs are understood, rather than their stated or superficial desires. INPUTS
Business Case Business Need Organizational Process Assets Requirement Management Plan Solution Scope Stakeholder List, Roles and Responsibilities

TASKS
Prepare for Elicitation Conduct Elicitation Activity Document Elicitation Activity Confirm Elicitation Results

OUTPUTS
Elicitation Results Scheduled Resources Stakeholder Concern Supporting Materials

Requirements Management and Communication describes how business analysts manage conflicts, issues and changes in order to ensure that stakeholders and the project team remain in agreement on the solution scope, how requirements are communicated to stakeholders, and how knowledge gained by the business analyst is maintained for future use. INPUTS
BA Communication Plan Organizational Process Assets Requirements Requirements Management Plan Requirement Structure Solution Scope Stakeholder List, Role and Responsibilities

TASKS
Manage Solution Scope and Requirements Manage Requirements Traceability Maintain Requirements for Re-use Prepare Requirement Package Communicate Requirements

OUTPUTS
Requirements (Approved) Requirements (Communicated) Requirements (Maintained and Reusable) Requirements (Traced) Requirements Package

Enterprise Analysis describes how business analysts identify a business need, refine and clarify the definition of that need, and define a solution scope that can feasibly be implemented by the business. This knowledge area describes problem definition and analysis, business case development, feasibility studies, and the definition of solution scope. INPUTS
Assumptions and Constraints Business Goals and Objectives Enterprise Architecture Organizational Process Assets Requirements (Stated) Solution Performance Assessment Stakeholder Concern

TASKS

OUTPUTS
Business Case Business Need Required Capabilities Solution Approach Solution Scope

Define Business Need Assess Capability Gaps Determine Solution Approach Define Solution Scope Define Business Case

Requirements Analysis describes how business analysts prioritize and progressively elaborate stakeholder and solution requirements in order to enable the project team to implement a solution that will meet the needs of the sponsoring organization and stakeholders. It involves analyzing stakeholder needs to define solutions that meet those needs, assessing the current state of the business to identify and recommend improvements, and the verification and validation of the resulting requirements. INPUTS
Business Case Business Need Requirements Organizational Process Assets Requirements Management Plan Stakeholder Concern Stakeholder List, Roles and Responsibilities Solution Scope

TASKS
Prioritize Requirements Organize Requirements Specify and Model Requirements Define Assumptions and Constraints Verify Requirements Validate Requirements

OUTPUTS
Assumptions and Constraints Requirements Structure Requirements (Prioritized) Requirements (Validated) Requirements (Verified) Stakeholder Or Solution Requirements

Solution Assessment and Validation describes how business analysts assess proposed solutions to determine which solution best fits the business need, identify gaps and shortcomings in solutions, and determine necessary workarounds or changes to the solution.

It also describes how business analysts assess deployed solutions to see how well they met the original need so that the sponsoring organization can assess the performance and effectiveness of the solution. INPUTS
Assumptions and Constraints Enterprise Architecture Requirements Solution Option (s) Solution Performance Metrics Solution Scope Stakeholder Concern Solution (Constructed, Deployed, Or Designed)

TASKS
Assess Proposed Solution Allocate Requirements Assess Organizational Readiness Define Transition Requirements Validate Solution Evaluate Solution Performance

OUTPUTS
Assessment of Proposed Solution Identified Defects Mitigating Actions Organizational Readiness Assessment Requirements (Allocated) Transition Requirements Solution Performance Assessment Solution Validation Assessment

Underlying Competencies describes the behaviors, knowledge, and other characteristics that support the effective performance of business analysis.