2024 Festival of Business Analysis - Online Program

Embrace the future of business analysis at the IIBA® Business Analysis Conference 14 – 18 October 2024, where innovation meets inspiration and sparks are ignited. Our theme, “Innovate. Inspire. Ignite.” sets the stage for a dynamic exploration of cutting-edge trends, transformative methodologies, and the limitless potential within the realm of business analysis.

Storytelling and the Business Analyst - Understanding the Stories

In this webinar we will discuss the aspect of defining and understanding the stories about the business and organization.
• What is different about defining stories as opposed to defining requirements?
• What are the benefits of collecting stories instead of information?
• Is everything a story?
• What if I don’t have a really good imagination and I can’t tell a story?
• Do I need to take creative writing classes?
In this webinar we will present the steps for defining information in context (the difference between elicitation and engagement), facilitating the users and customers in telling you stories, and weaving together the information you gather as a business analyst into understandable and compelling stories. This is the first part of a two part webinar series on storytelling.

The Product Backlog is Not a Backlog

A backlog, by definition, contains a list of things that Must Be Done, usually with some time factor. When companies talk about an order backlog, they are talking about orders that are going to be filled, and must be filled as soon as the inventory is available. A product backlog does not contain items that Must Be Done. And that is the primary reason the Product Backlog is not a backlog. Just as a Sprint is not a Sprint, and a daily scrum is not really a scrum. This webinar is not a discussion of agile lexicon but a revisit to the concept and practice of the product backlog which, once employed, likely will make the life of the business analyst (not to mention the product owner) a lot easier. We will look at various concepts of product backlogs in use in agile today and what the business analyst’s relationship with each is.

Storytelling and the Business Analyst - Telling the Stories

Identifying the stories is half the battle. The other half that now faces the business analyst is how to tell the stories. How can we use data and graphics and such to make our stories and our recommendations more understandable and appealing? In today’s world of business analytics, the business analyst is likely to draw on the art and craft of Data Visualization to make and sell the business analyst’s story. So how do we use data graphs and charts to explain our story and enhance our points? How do we weave a convincing and compelling story around the data points that we have uncovered in our elicitation process? This webinar addresses those issues with specific guidelines and best practices for business analysts preparing data oriented presentations.

Decision Making and the Business Analyst

A decisive person, one who makes good decisions, is not one who always makes the right decision. Considering that the average CEO, making millions of dollars a year to make decisions about the business, industry, and so forth, is only right one third of the time, the correctness of the decision is a small factor.
• So how do we define a decisive person?
• Why does a business analyst need to be a good decision maker?
• And, how should the business analyst work with those in the organization who make the Big Decisions?
Increasingly, the business analyst is filling a role of decision support for upper level management. This webinar discusses the roles necessary for decision making and how the business analyst fits in those roles, how to identify indecisiveness in a manager and how to overcome it, and how to present information and recommendations to upper level management so that the business analyst will be considered an effective decision maker, even if you don’t make executive decisions.

The Side Hustles of the Successful Business Analyst

I am not suggesting that the profession of business analysis is in such dire straits that we all need side hustles in case our primary source of business analysis income dries up. I'm suggesting that the main focus of business analysis, namely gathering information and defining requirements, is too narrow for the business analysis profession in general.

There are other areas of the business where a business analyst can shine because the fundamental criteria for being successful in these business areas are the same as being a successful business analyst. For example creating the Business Impact Assessment for business continuity is more a business analytical job then a platform engineering task.

Business analysis expertise is also needed in security, artificial intelligence and machine learning, analytics, product management, executive decision making, and many more areas of the business. This webinar looks at all of the different areas of the business in which a successful business analyst can be even more successful and build a solid background to move into the executive echelons of the organization.

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Estimating for the Business Analyst

Let’s face it, the job of producing an estimate for a project is not the business analyst’s responsibility; that chore belongs to the project manager. However, as part of the overall project estimate, the business analyst will have to contribute the estimates of his or her time and level of effort.
• How do we do this?
• And what about estimating for agile?
• What is all this about story points and planning poker? Is this really estimating?
• Do we really need estimates in the first place?
In this webinar we will talk about the need for an estimate and how best to get estimates from others on the team. We will review the various agile estimating methods and how we might use them. And maybe we will come up with some less fear inducing approach, a magic “get out of jail free card” for when management (or anyone) asks, “How long will it take?”

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