Membership,
For those who don't know me - my name is Perry McLeod. I am an MA.com Core Member, and a member of the IIBA since isn't inception. I currently serve as VP of Certification for the Toronto Chapter. I am also on the team of reviewers of the Business Analysis Body of Knowlage (BABOK). The official version is still v1.6; however until May 15, 2008 we are allowing the public to download a draft of version 2 for your personal review.
As I read through the many forms on this site I see many questions that could be answered by the BABOK. I also see many inconsistent answers; many of which have been clairfied by the BABOK.
Now is your chance to give some feed back to the IIBA the the committee responsible for the BABOK. We are trying to build a standard, much like PMI - but we can't do it without your help.
When wondering how to do this, or how to do that I really encourage you to pick up and read the BABOK it is fast becoming the defacto way to govern ourselves as professionals.
For those new to the business it really is a must read. When someone asks me the difference between Business requirements and Functional requirements I am often forced to say have you read the BABOK yet?
If you had, you'd know that a functional requirement is intended to focus on WHAT the system does by way of discrete functionality geared towards the production of a BUSINESS result or deliverable. IT IS A BUSINESS requirement folks.
Sorry but I get upset when I read 'seasoned professionals' giving poor advice to the newbies out there.
PLEASE PEOPLE READ THE BABOK! Let's all be professionals working on the same page with the same set of core beliefs and sets of knowlage.
Until May 15th you can download a PDF at http://www.theiiba.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Version_2_0
Remember we are still working on this book - but I do highly recommend you read it and provide your feedback.
Thank you for your time
Perry McLeod, PMP