1University of TorontoDepartment of Computer Science© Easterbrook 20041Lecture 8: Stakeholder Goals Boundaries Scoping the problem Stakeholders Identifying the problem owners Goals Identifying the success criteria Scenarios Using concrete examples to understand the problemUniversity of TorontoDepartment of Computer Science© Easterbrook 20042Where do we start? Identify the problem what is the objective of the project? the “vision” of those who are pushing for it? e.g., “Meeting scheduling is too costly right now” Scope the problem given the vision, how much do we tackle? e.g. “Build a system that schedules meetings”, …or… e.g. “Build a system that maintains people’s calendars” …or… Choose a business process ? given the problem, what is the appropriate business process for solving it? e.g. “Anyone who wants to schedule a meeting goes to the secretary, givesdetails and the secretary handles the rest”, …or… e.g. “Anyone can submit a meeting request, participants are informed and anegotiation settles meeting details” …or… Choose among alternatives ? Given a business process, what parts should be automated, and how? e.g. “Computer takes in scheduling request details, outputs a solution” …or… e.g. “Solution arrived at interactively by secretary and computer” …or…University of TorontoDepartment of Computer Science© Easterbrook 20043Requirements Elicitation Starting point Some notion that there is a “problem” that needs solving e.g. dissatisfaction with the current state of affairs e.g. a new business opportunity e.g. a potential saving of cost, time, resource usage, etc. Collect enough information to: identify the “problem”/”opportunity” Which problem needs to be solved? (identify problem Boundaries) Where is the problem? (understand the Context/Problem Domain) Whose problem is it? (identify Stakeholders) Why does it need solving? (identify the stakeholders’ Goals) How does the problem manifest itself? (collect some Scenarios) When does it need solving? (identify Development Constraints) What might prevent us solving it? (identify Feasibility and Risk) become an expert in the problem domain Learn how to find your way round a new problem area quickly Use your (initial) ignorance as an excuse to ask questions Recognise the domain expertise of the people you talk toW6HThejournalist’stechnique:What?Where?Who?Why?When?How?(Which?)University of TorontoDepartment of Computer Science© Easterbrook 20044Identifying the Problem Vague problem stated by the customer: E.g. university textbook store: Manager wants to computerize the book order forms filled out by instructors; E.g. A large insurance company: Claims manager wants to cut down the average time it takes to process aninsurance claim from 2 months to 2 weeks E.g. A telecommunications company: CIO wants to integrate the billing system with customer record systems ofseveral affiliates, so there is only one billing system... E.g. Large Government Aerospace Agency: The president wants to send a manned mission to Mars by the the year 2020 Often you only see symptoms rather than causes: E.g. “Ontario patients needing X-ray scans have to wait for months” The long wait is the symptom, not the problem. The problem may be: Shortage of X-ray machines; Shortage of trained staff; Shortage of doctors to process the data Inefficient scheduling procedures2University of TorontoDepartment of Computer Science© Easterbrook 20045Stakeholders Stakeholder analysis: Identify all the people who must be consulted during information acquisition Example stakeholders Users concerned with the features and functionality of the new system Designers want to build a perfect system, or reuse existing code Systems analysts want to “get the requirements right” Training and user support staff want to make sure the new system is usable and manageable Business analysts want to make sure “we are doing better than the competition” Technical authors will prepare user manuals and other documentation for the new system The project manager wants to complete the project on time, within budget, with all objectives met. “The customer” Wants to get best value for money invested!University of TorontoDepartment of Computer Science© Easterbrook 20046Finding stakeholders: The Org ChartSallySales ManagerPercyProduction ManagerOscarVice-President (Ops)SarahChief ScientistDesmondHead of Product DesignRichardVice-President (R&D)PennyPresidentresponsibilityauthority Organization charts show Areas of responsibility (flows upwards) Lines of authority (delegated downwards) A useful tool for figuring out where the stakeholders areUniversity of TorontoDepartment of Computer Science© Easterbrook 20047Finding Stakeholders: Levels of authority Top managementestablishes goalsdoes long-range planningdetermines new market &product developmentsdecides on mergers &acquisitions. Middle managementsets objectivesallocates & controls resourcesdoes planningmeasures performance Lower managementsupervises day-to-dayoperationstakes corrective action whennecessary. Operational levelperforms day-to-day operationstopmanagementmiddlemanagementlowermanagementoperationalstrategictacticalsupervisoryfunctionalmarketingadmin supportfinancialservicesproductdevelopmentUniversity of TorontoDepartment of Computer Science© Easterbrook 20048Identifying Stakeholders’ Goals Approach Focus on why systems are constructed Express the ‘why’ as a set of stakeholder goals Use goal refinement to arrive at specific requirements Goal analysis document, organize and classify goals Goal evolution refine, elaborate, and operationalize goals Goal hierarchies show refinements and alternatives Advantages Reasonably intuitive Explicit declaration of goals provides sound basis for conflict resolution Disadvantages Captures a static picture - what if goals change over time? Can regress forever up (or down) the goal hierarchySource: Adapted from Anton, 1996.3University of TorontoDepartment of Computer Science© Easterbrook 20049Goal Modeling (Hard) Goals: Describe functions that must becarried out. E.g. Satisfaction
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