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BCS Course

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Overview

As a business analyst, you are the link between the business and its customers. This certification training course explores tools and techniques for maximising the value delivered to your customer, and covers fundamental aspects of business analysis, as outlined by The Chartered Institute for IT, to prepare for the BCS Foundation Exam — a first step toward the BCS International Diploma in Business Analysis.

Audience

The Business Analysis Foundation course is relevant to anyone requiring an understanding of Business Analysis including:

  • Business Analysts
  • Business Managers
  • Business Change Managers
  • Project Managers
  • System Engineers

Skills Gained

The Foundation Certificate in Business Analysis will help participants to:

  • Understand the roles and responsibilities of Business Analysts
  • Be familiar with best practices in Business Analysis and Requirements definition
  • Attain new skills to successfully develop, manage, and communicate business requirements and be a productive and contributing member of the Organisational team

The certificate covers the broad range of principles and techniques within the sphere of Business Analysis, and consists of 9 modules:

  • What is Business Analysis
  • Developing the Business Case
  • Defining The Business Problem or Opportunity
  • Modelling the Future State
  • Root Causes of Problems
  • Distilling the Requirements from Models
  • Solution Vision and Scope
  • Requirements Definition and Documentation

Prerequisites

Important Course Information Important Course Information Course Materials Course Materials

  • Included with the training material is the following book: Paul, Debra, et al. Business Analysis, Third Edition. BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, 2014. ISBN 9781780172774. Exam Information

Included with the training material is the following book: Paul, Debra, et al. Business Analysis, Third Edition. BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, 2014. ISBN 9781780172774. Exam Information Exam Information

  • included in course price
  • one hour, closed book
  • multiple choice
  • pass mark is 65% (26 out of 40) Certification Information

pass mark is 65% (26 out of 40) Certification Information Certification Information

  • International Diploma in Business Analysis
  • The BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, offers this internationally recognized certification, enabling you to take your skills around the world. The four modules required to apply for this certification include one foundation level course, and three practitioner level courses:
    • BCS Foundation Certificate in Business Analysis
    • BCS Certificate in Business Analysis Practice
    • BCS Certificate in Modelling Business Processes
    • BCS Certificate in Requirements Engineering
    • The International Diploma requires a 50 minute oral examination with two examiners. The questions will require you to apply your business analysis knowledge and understanding to scenarios described by the oral examiners. For additional information see: https://www2.bcs.org/certifications/ba/international-diploma-in-business-analysis
    BCS Associate Membership

The BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, offers this internationally recognized certification, enabling you to take your skills around the world. The four modules required to apply for this certification include one foundation level course, and three practitioner level courses:

  • BCS Foundation Certificate in Business Analysis
  • BCS Certificate in Business Analysis Practice
  • BCS Certificate in Modelling Business Processes
  • BCS Certificate in Requirements Engineering
  • The International Diploma requires a 50 minute oral examination with two examiners. The questions will require you to apply your business analysis knowledge and understanding to scenarios described by the oral examiners. For additional information see: https://www2.bcs.org/certifications/ba/international-diploma-in-business-analysis

BCS Foundation Certificate in Business Analysis BCS Foundation Certificate in Business Analysis

BCS Certificate in Business Analysis Practice BCS Certificate in Business Analysis Practice

BCS Certificate in Modelling Business Processes BCS Certificate in Modelling Business Processes

BCS Certificate in Requirements Engineering BCS Certificate in Requirements Engineering

The International Diploma requires a 50 minute oral examination with two examiners. The questions will require you to apply your business analysis knowledge and understanding to scenarios described by the oral examiners. For additional information see: https://www2.bcs.org/certifications/ba/international-diploma-in-business-analysis https://www2.bcs.org/certifications/ba/international-diploma-in-business-analysis BCS Associate Membership BCS Associate Membership

  • Candidates receive free of charge BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT, Associate Membership for 1 year on successfully passing their first BCS certification. Associate membership.

Candidates receive free of charge BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT, Associate Membership for 1 year on successfully passing their first BCS certification. Associate membership. Associate membership.

  • Upon passing your exam, BCS will contact you to activate your membership. Once activated you will be a BCS Associate Member and will have access to the wealth of benefits and support to help you in your career.
  • BCS Associate membership provides exclusive access to resources, content and opportunities that will enrich your career.
  • Note: This offer is only available once to each exam candidate. Exam candidates who have previously benefited from free Associate Membership will not be eligible for this offer again even if you have taken another qualifying BCS exam.

Outline

  • The Business Change Life Cycle

The role of the Business Analyst in the business change life cycle

  • Producing the business case
  • Other roles in the business change life cycle

The framework for business analysis activities

  • Relating business analysis to strategic analysis, definition, and IT systems analysis
  • The holistic approach to business analysis
  • Understanding the Strategic Context

Analysing the business environment

  • Internal and external environments
  • Analysing the business with SWOT analysis

Developing business metrics

  • Identifying your Critical Success Factors (CSF)
  • Creating Key Performance Indicators (KPI)
  • Identifying critical success with the Balanced Business Scorecard
  • Project Discipline for Business Analysis Studies
  • Reading the Terms of Reference or Project Initiation Document
  • OSCAR (objectives, scope, constraints, authority and resources)
  • What does the business wish to achieve and deliver?
  • Creating SMART objectives
  • Understanding the Business Situation

Stakeholder identification

  • Using the Stakeholder wheel
  • Overview of investigative techniques

Representing a holistic view of the business situation

  • Generating Rich pictures
  • Making Mind Maps
  • Analysing Stakeholder Perspectives

Stakeholder analysis and management

  • Power/Interest Grid
  • Stakeholder management strategies

Identifying and defining different perspectives

  • Contrasting different stakeholder perspectives
  • Analysing the root cause with CATWOE
  • Analysing and Modelling Business Activities

Developing a Business Activity Model

  • Depicting business perspectives with a Business Activity Model (BAM)
  • Describing the BAM process and notation
  • Identifying business events

Analysing business rules

  • Distinguishing between business rule types
  • Recognising business rules levels of constraint

Building the consensus Business Activity Model

  • Identifying differences between business activity models
  • Negotiating to resolve conflicts
  • Identifying Potential Solutions

Gap analysis - comparing the ideal and existing systems

  • Outlining the gap analysis process
  • Identifying inputs to, and outputs from, gap analysis

Defining a new business model

  • Exploiting areas for change - processes, people, technology and organisation

Identifying requirements using business activity and business process models

  • Classifying models that document and analyse requirements
  • Recognising data/processing requirements
  • Making the Business Case

The Business Case life cycle

  • Structuring the business case
  • Identifying and shortlisting options for business change

Identifying and categorising costs and benefits

  • Classifying tangible and intangible costs and benefits
  • Investment appraisal techniques

Risk and impact identification, categorisation, and management

  • Identifying and assessing risk impact and probability
  • Risk management approaches

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Thinking about Onsite?

If you need training for 3 or more people, you should ask us about onsite training. Putting aside the obvious location benefit, content can be customised to better meet your business objectives and more can be covered than in a public classroom. Its a cost effective option. One on one training can be delivered too, at reasonable rates.

Submit an enquiry from any page on this site, and let us know you are interested in the requirements box, or simply mention it when we contact you.

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