Tài liệu Module 4: Gathering Information doc

Module 4: Gathering Information THIS PAGE LEFT INTENTIONALLY BLANK Module 1: Course Overview Module 4: Gathering Information Module 5: Analyzing Information: Use Cases and Usage Scenarios Module 6: Analyzing Information: Rationalizing Information Module 7: Presenting Information Gathering and Analyzing Business Requirements Module 2: Identifying Business Processes, Challenges, and Vision Module 3: Characteristics of Information Information Collection Techniques Process of Gathering Information Activity 4.2: Gathering Information Review Module 4: Gathering Information Module 4: Gathering Information 83 ! !! ! Overview " Information Collection Techniques " Process of Gathering Information " Activity 4.2: Gathering Information " Review In this module . In this module . Now that you have identified the characteristics of the information that you need to gather about the business challenge and vision statement, you are ready to look at a process for gathering the actual information. You will use the information to determine the business and user requirements. First, you will learn about six techniques that you can use to collect information. Then you will learn about a general process for gathering information that you can adapt to meet the needs of a project. After completing this module, you will be able to: " Describe six techniques for gathering information. " Identify the information-gathering techniques that are most appropriate for a given situation. " Summarize the major steps that are involved in gathering information. " Develop a strategy for gathering information. Slide Objective To provide an overview of the module topics and objectives. 84 Module 4: Gathering Information ! !! ! Information Collection Techniques " Shadowing " Interviewing " Focus Groups " Surveys " User Instruction " Prototyping " Activity 4.1: Choosing Techniques In this section . In this section . In this section, you will learn about six information-gathering techniques that you can use to collect information about a business challenge and vision statement. Some of the techniques that you will learn about require specific training to use them effectively. You may not always be the person who actually uses a particular technique. It is important to know the different techniques that you can use and when they are appropriate. Another team member may carry out the actual technique. For example, most surveys require someone who has knowledge about statistical analysis. A representative of the marketing department may be able to lend expertise in this area. In Activity 4.1, you will identify the information-gathering techniques appropriate for the Ferguson and Bardell, Inc. case study. Slide Objective To provide an overview of the section topics and activities. Module 4: Gathering Information 85 Shadowing " Passive or active observation of the user " Implicit knowledge becomes explicitly known " Benefits: $ Gather information from user perspective $ Uncover hidden information " Considerations: $ Ask the reasons behind user actions $ Avoid making assumptions about user actions Shadowing combines passive observation with active user interviews. It typically involves an interviewer observing the user’s activities by following the user through daily tasks. The information you can obtain is firsthand and in context. At the same time, you encourage the user to explain the intent of his or her activities in as much detail as possible. As the observer, you can be passive—simply observing and listening—or active, asking directed questions as the user offers explanations of events and activities. Team members observe the user at work and can interrupt at any time to ask questions. Because you are observing users while they are doing actual work, they can discuss with you what is happening and why. You can also collect relevant work artifacts, such as documents and screen shots of software, to use later in the process. Throughout shadowing, you can answer the following questions: " How do users structure their work? " What decisions do users make when completing a task? " How does the current implementation determine how users do their jobs? " How often does the system interfere with their jobs? " How do interruptions impact users? Can users pick up where they left off? " How many people do users interact with during a given activity? In addition to observing, you can ask questions to learn about the user’s intent and sentiments: why the user performs a task in a certain way, and what frustrations or satisfaction the user feels at each point in the process. Slide Objective To explain shadowing. 86 Module 4: Gathering Information Example questions that you can ask include: " What are you doing? (to facilitate conversation) " Is that what you expected? (regarding a system response) " What is the purpose for doing this? (to explore process) Keep the following set of questions constantly in mind: " What individual tasks are required by the activities under observation? • How are they currently done? • How can they be made more efficient? • What related tasks might impact the design? • What system features are needed to support the tasks? • What are the performance criteria? • How should the features be structured? " How can we improve the current system? • How do users currently use it? • What features of the current system do they use often or infrequently? • What do they like and dislike about the current system? • How can we reduce training and support costs? " What else do we not know about our users? • What is the user’s working environment like? • What characteristics/preferences do users have? • What concepts and terminology do they use? • What training do they have and what training might they need? Make sure that you observe and question both management and users. If there are external customers, include them in some of your observations. External customers represent the ultimate end users. It may by difficult to record all of the information when a user performs activities rapidly. Ask the user to repeat or explain any action as necessary. Also, some activities are performed only once a month or once a quarter. You need to ask users about related tasks that they may not do on a daily basis, so that you do not miss important information. Finally, a user may have performed an action so many times that they no longer think about the process. It is important to convince the user to provide explicit steps for each task. Module 4: Gathering Information 87 Interviewing " Collecting information from an individual by asking a series of questions " Interview multiple individuals in similar functions " Benefits: $ Helps drive the generation of information $ Encourages follow-up when answers are incomplete " Considerations: $ Requires additional time and resources when interviewing many people While shadowing provides an effective means to discover what is currently being done in an organization, it will not provide all the necessary information. You will need to gather additional information on management-level activities, long-lived activities (covering weeks, months, and years), and system-to-system processes that have little or no human intervention, such as automatic bill paying services in financial institutions. An interview is a one-on-one meeting between a member of the project team and a user or some other stakeholder. The quality of the information a team gathers depends on the skills of the interviewer and the interviewee. An interviewer who becomes an ally can learn a great deal about the difficulties and failings of the present system. Interviews can also be a starting point for other information-gathering techniques. Structure questions carefully to avoid asking misleading questions or questions that ask for more than one item of information. Interviews provide an opportunity to ask a wide range of questions about topics that you will not be able to observe through shadowing. Example questions you can ask include: " What problems do you encounter or what help do you need when working remotely? " Do you have special needs that are not documented? " What policies in the business help or constrain you from doing your job? " What individuals or documents provide critical information that you need to do your job? " Are there hidden users, such as third-party suppliers or support specialists, who impact your work? Slide Objective To define the interviewing technique for gathering information. 88 Module 4: Gathering Information Focus Groups " Facilitated session of similar individuals " Benefits: $ Provide detailed and valuable information $ Provide multiple views " Considerations: $ Smaller groups are more effective $ Often limited to qualitative data A focus group is a session in which individuals discuss a topic to provide feedback to a facilitator. Focus groups concentrate on group interviewing techniques. The participants in a focus group should be representative of the users or stakeholders associated with the business challenge. You can use this method in cases in which there are many more users than you can involve directly in the information-gathering process. Focus groups allow you to gather detailed information about the activity, but also allow you to see how an activity fits into the larger picture of a business. Individuals in a focus group can fill knowledge gaps for one another and provide a complete picture of a business process. For example, a focus group with support personnel can determine: " Characteristics of the current computing infrastructure that can or cannot be changed from a business perspective. " Upcoming plans for technology that the final product will need to take into consideration. " Security and deployment requirements with which any new solution must conform to fit into the current computing infrastructure. " Current applications and systems, including legacy systems, that need to interact with a new business solution. " The volume of support calls, the major support issues, and the difference in support between existing applications and new ones. A focus group with management personnel can help determine: " Financial constraints that determine the budget for a project. " Planned changes in business processes or the structure of an organization. " Future growth in the business or external customers that will affect scalability. Slide Objective To define a focus group. Module 4: Gathering Information 89 Surveys " Series of directed questions designed to gather information on a given topic " Benefits: $ Can control questions and provide a range of answers $ Easily administered to a selected group of participants " Considerations: $ Development and administration can be a labor- intensive process $ Require trained survey administrators Surveys are a series of questions that are created to gather information. They can provide close-ended and open-ended questions. Examples of surveys include user registration forms and customer feedback or satisfaction forms. Creating the survey questions can be a labor-intensive process and requires an individual with special skills to both prepare the survey and analyze the results. You can use surveys as a means of gathering initial information that you can use to plan more detailed information-gathering activities. Surveys can provide anonymity, producing information that you cannot collect with any other technique. Examples of information that can be collected through surveys include: " Organizational structures, policies, or practices that interfere with tasks. " Frustrations with technical support structures or policies. " Special needs related to hardware or software. " Training issues, such as the effectiveness of current training programs, the types of training programs that users like best, and what training programs work best in users’ work environment. Slide Objective To define surveys. 90 Module 4: Gathering Information User Instruction " Participating in the activity with the source " Benefits: $ Provides detailed and valuable information $ Provides perspective of the user experience " Considerations: $ Can be time consuming $ Requires users to think about a process that may now be automatic Having users teach you about their work tasks allows you to participate in the activity and view each step of the process from the user’s perspective. You can gather detailed and valuable information on the activity performed. You may also gain knowledge that an individual has learned over time that will not be available from artifacts or systems. User instruction can be time consuming if the process is long or the user is not accustomed to teaching others. Some people are uncomfortable teaching others and may not respond favorably to this technique. Different users may perform the same activity differently. Consequently, you should collect information from multiple users. Identify the experts in different activities within the business. They may know shortcuts that overcome problems in a process. Experts can serve as models for developing or improving new processes. User instruction can also provide information needed for determining: " User interface design. " Training needs for both current and future processes. " System performance criteria. " Impact of the physical environment on a task. Slide Objective To define user instruction. [...]... and user instruction 100 Module 4: Gathering Information Looking Forward Slide Objective To relate the current module to the next module and the course Module 7: Presenting Information Module 6: Analyzing Information: Rationalizing Information Module 1: Course Overview Gathering and Analyzing Business Requirements Module 5: Analyzing Information: Use Cases and Usage Scenarios Module 2: Identifying Business... which information -gathering techniques are appropriate and what information you intend to collect with each technique After completing this activity, you will be able to: " Identify the information -gathering techniques that are most appropriate for a given situation Module 4: Gathering Information 93 Process of Gathering Information Slide Objective To identify a general process for gathering information. .. experiences may provide information that helps the project team to look at the business challenge in a new light 98 Module 4: Gathering Information Review Questions Slide Objective To reinforce module objectives by reviewing key points Lead-in The review questions cover some of the key concepts taught in the module " Describe six techniques for gathering information " Identify the information -gathering techniques... provide to you As you plan your information -gathering strategy, choose a method for recording information that has the least impact on the process, while providing accurate and complete information Module 4: Gathering Information 95 Activity 4.2: Gathering Information Slide Objective To introduce the activity In this activity, you will develop a strategy to gather information on the business challenge... Processes, Challenges, and Vision Module 3: Characteristics of Information Module 4: Gathering Information In this module, you learned about six techniques for gathering information, as well as a general gathering process that you can modify to fit the needs of your business and the business challenge Next, you will move on to the analysis step and learn how to synthesize information that you gather into... you use to gather information include: The amount of time you have to gather information The access you have to information about the business challenge and vision The extent to which the business challenge is understood by a project team Plan how you will record information with each technique that you use Module 4: Gathering Information 99 2 What are the techniques for gathering information? Describe... gathering information " Develop a strategy for gathering information 1 Explain some of the general considerations for developing a process of gathering information? Ideally, the information -gathering process should: Have minimal intrusion in the daily routine of the users Have a high benefit-to-cost ratio Not be affected by organizational politics Build confidence and rapport with the users While gathering. .. relates to the next module and other information and skills you encounter in this course Module 4: Gathering Information 97 Guidelines Slide Objective To present some general guidelines related to the information in this module Lead-in Following are some general guidelines to consider " Use multiple information -gathering techniques " Balance the advantages and disadvantages of each technique to choose... structure the process to ensure that you obtain information on all of the tasks that pertain to an activity This includes sequence, interactions with others, decision-making, thought processes, and reasons or motivations Attempt to contrast exceptional and unusual situations with normal situations 94 Module 4: Gathering Information While you are gathering information, gather both perspectives of a process... plan the manner in which you will record information before you begin gathering it The process for recording information from a focus group is very different from the process for recording information from artifacts Each process presents its own obstacles that you must account for as you design your information -gathering strategy For example, to record all the information produced in a group discussion, . Module 4: Gathering Information THIS PAGE LEFT INTENTIONALLY BLANK Module 1: Course Overview Module 4: Gathering Information Module 5: Analyzing Information: . Review Module 4: Gathering Information Module 4: Gathering Information 83 ! !! ! Overview " Information Collection Techniques " Process of Gathering