PMI-PBA II Flashcards
(200 cards)
Your project has been underway for three months. The solution requirements have been approved, and solution development is almost complete. Your client has seen an early version of the product and he requested significant changes that will be very costly. What should you do?
A. Review the business case with the client to determine if changes are aligned with the need
B. Escalate the issue to your senior management
C. Implement the change after assessing its impact on other project objectives
D. Review the solution design specifications with the development team to see if the changes can be done with lower costs.
Review the business case with the client to determine if changes are aligned with the need
A business case provides a documented economic feasibility study, establishing the validity of the benefits, in terms of value, to be delivered by a portfolio component, program, or project. The business case is the common link between the business goals and objectives and the portfolio components, programs, or projects established to execute the business strategy. Business goals and objectives may have any number of business cases to support them. An approved business case is used as input when creating a charter to initiate a portfolio component, program, or project. Business cases are assembled as one of the final process steps in Needs Assessment. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, Section 4.6.3.1 Business Case, page 101.
Dima is working as the senior business analyst for an IT services organization, and she wants to know the impetus for a change in the organization based on an existing problem or opportunity. In this situation, which of the following processes should Dima finish to achieve what she is looking for?
A. Assess current state
B. Assemble business case
C. Identify problem or opportunity
D. Determine future state
Identify problem or opportunity
A business need is the impetus for a change in the organization, based on existing problem or opportunity. It is the primary output of the identify problem or opportunity process, along with the situation statement. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, section 4.1.3.1: Business Need, page 62
Create and analyze models is the process of creating structured representations, such as diagrams, tables, or structured text, of any product information to facilitate further analysis by identifying gaps in information or uncovering extraneous information. While performing this process in your project, which of the following models can be created to clearly depict the in-scope systems and any inputs or outputs, including the systems or actors providing or receiving them?
A. Use case diagram
B. Feature model
C. Context diagram
D. Ecosystem map
Context diagram
A context diagram is a scope model that shows all the direct system and human interfaces to systems within a solution. A context diagram clearly depicts the in-scope systems and any inputs or outputs, including the systems or actors providing or receiving them. Context diagrams are generally created early to define scope and can be updated as new information is identified. They also help identify interface requirements and data requirements. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, section 7.2.2.1: Context Diagram, page 186
Data flow diagrams are usually created during analysis. Entity relationship diagrams, process flows, and ecosystem maps are usually created first to identify the data objects, processes, and systems. After doing so, which of the following models can be used to show the movement of data between external entities, data stores, and processes?
A. User interface diagram
B. Interface flow diagram
C. Data flow diagrams
D. Context diagrams
Data flow diagram
A data flow diagram is a data model that is used to describe the movement of data between external entities, data stores, and processes. External entities can be actors or systems. Data flow diagrams show the data inputs and outputs for each process. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, section 7.2.2.3: Data flow diagram, page 188
You are leading the business analysis team in a research and development project. Based on your experience, what tool or technique can you recommend to determine if a requirement cannot be satisfied without another requirement being present?
A. Requirements traceability matrix
B. Dependency impact assessment
C. Requirements traceability matrix
D. Dependency analysis
Dependency analysis
A dependency analysis is a technique used to determine whether a requirement cannot exist without the presence of another. Business Analysis for Practitioners, 5.3 Relationships and Dependencies, page 142
You are leading the business analysis team in a complex software development project. In the first meeting with the client, he required a model that show all the features that are in scope for the project, and can be updated as additional features are identified during elicitation and analysis. Which of the following is the model you will provide the client with?
A. Context diagram
B. Feature model
C. Use case diagram
D. Event list
Feature model
A feature model is a scope model that visually represents all the features of a solution arranged in a tree or hierarchical structure. Most projects have features at varying levels; the top-level features are called Level 1 (L1) features, followed by Level 2 (L2) features, and so on. Feature models are helpful to show how features are grouped together and which features are sub-features of other ones. Feature models are useful because they can easily display many features across different levels on a single page, which may represent an entire solution’s feature set. This model is typically started at the beginning of a project to show all the features that are in scope for a program or project, and is updated as additional features are identified during elicitation and analysis. In adaptive projects, features can be labeled for inclusion in different iterations to facilitate release planning. The feature model can be used in combination with a brainstorming technique to help stakeholders identify features by focusing on the groupings, similar to an affinity diagram. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, section 7.2.2.8: Feature model, page 199
Group decision-making techniques are techniques that can be used in a group setting to bring participants to a final decision on an issue or topic under discussion. While approving requirements in your project, which of the following techniques reaches a decision when support is obtained from more than 50% of the members of the group?
A. Autocratic
B. Unanimity
C. Plurality
D. Majority
Majority
Majority: Reaches a decision when support is obtained from more than 50% of the members of the group.
During business analysis planning, the team should establish how decisions will be made across the business analysis effort to avoid misunderstandings or conflict later on when performing the work. In this context, which of the following techniques is used when one individual makes the decision for the group?
A. Majority
B. Plurality
C. Unanimity
D. Autocratic
Autocratic
Autocratic: One individual makes the decision for the group.
You are part of the business analysis team in a web development project that is managed using an adaptive approach. Due to the large team size, the project manager is discussing with you the need of using a tool that maximize the productivity of the team by ensuring that it never takes on more work than it can handle. Which of the following would you recommend the project manager to use?
A. Cumulative flow diagram
B. Kanban board
C. Velocity chart
D. Burndown chart
Kanban board
A kanban board is used in adaptive approaches to track work that is in progress by the project team. It is a visual representation of what work is in progress, whereas the product backlog is the prioritized list of all possible work. The kanban board shows the steps in a workflow, such as the project life cycle phases, and work in progress (WIP) limits for each phase. WIP limits specify how many items (typically user stories or tasks) can be in one workflow step at a time. These limits maximize the productivity of the team by ensuring that it never takes on more work than it can handle. The project team pulls items from the product backlog (usually in priority order) into the kanban board and moves them across each workflow step as each is completed, assuming there is room in the next workflow step. This technique also shows clearly what is or is not complete for any given user story. If bottlenecks emerge, the kanban board and the WIP limits become input into prioritization decisions for work in the product backlog and to manage the progress of items allocated to releases. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, section 7.7.2.4: Kanban Board, page 233
While conducting elicitation activities in your project, prototyping can be a very useful method of obtaining early feedback on requirements by providing a model of the expected solution before building. You agreed with your team to use a prototype that is the actual finished solution in process. Which of the following is prototype kind you decided to use?
A. Wireframes
B. Storyboarding
C. Product roadmap
D. Evolutionary
Evolutionary
A prototype can be a mockup of the real result, as in an architectural model, or it can be an early version of the product itself. A few common kinds of prototypes are the following: Storyboarding: A prototyping technique that shows sequence or navigation through a series of images or illustrations. Wireframes: Diagrams that represent a static blueprint or schematic of a user interface used to identify basic functionality. Evolutionary. A prototype that is the actual finished solution in process. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, section 6.3.2.8: Prototyping, page 168
Product teams should avoid assuming that everyone involved in the business analysis activities will understand their roles and work assignments. Which of the following is the best action to assign a clear role and responsibility during business analysis activities?
A. Perform benchmarking
B. Develop resources management plan
C. Develop a RACI matrix
D. Conduct job analysis
Conduct a RACI matrix
A RACI model is a common type of responsibility assignment matrix that uses Responsible, Accountable, Consult, and Inform designations to define the involvement of stakeholders in activities. Portfolio, program, or project managers may develop a RACI model to identify roles and responsibilities for a body of work. In business analysis, a RACI can be developed to communicate the roles and responsibilities of those involved in the business analysis effort. Product teams should avoid assuming that everyone involved in the business analysis process will understand their roles and work assignments. Stakeholders can be confused when they participate on more than one project team and fulfill differing roles. Stakeholders may also have confusion about the roles they are assigned versus the roles they desire. Determining roles and responsibilities with a RACI model helps minimize confusion and conflicts, especially in areas where responsibilities appear to overlap. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, section 5.2.2.3: RACI Model, page 118
You are working as the business analyst of an ERP implementation project, and you are in the final stages of the project. While being involved in obtaining acceptance for the final solution release, you want to review an evaluation of the ability of the organization to transition to the future state enabled by the solution. Which of the following documents should you review?
A. Stakeholders engagement and communication approach
B. Readiness assessment
C. Transition plan
D. Evaluated acceptance results
Readiness assessment
A readiness assessment is an evaluation of how well an organization is prepared for a change. It provides an evaluation of the ability of an organization to transition to the future state enabled by the solution. It also identifies risks to achieving readiness for the transition, and may also propose responses for how to address those risks. Consideration of whether any unaddressed readiness risks remain and whether the organization is truly ready for the release at the proposed point in time will figure into release decisions. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, Section 9.4.1.4, Readiness Assessment, page 297.
You are leading the business analysis team in the project, and your team members are looking for a document that contains the approach for obtaining approvals, including who can approve requirements and other product information and who can reject requirements. You will advise the team members to look for which of the following documents?
A. Stakeholders onion diagram
B. Situation statement
C. Stakeholder engagement and communication approach
D. Project charter
Stakeholder engagement and communication approach
A stakeholder engagement and communication approach often has five components, one of them is the approach for obtaining approvals, including who can approve requirements and other product information and who can reject requirements. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, section 5.3: Determine stakeholders engagement and communication approach, page 124
Determining stakeholder engagement and communication means devising different ways to secure an optimal level of commitment from stakeholders at appropriate points in the product life cycle. In this context, which of the following is not a component of this approach?
A. How product and project information will be structured, stored, and maintained
B. An estimation of level of effort for business analysis activities
C. The approaches for making decisions
D. The level of involvement of each stakeholder or stakeholder group
An estimation of level of effort for business analysis activities
A stakeholder engagement and communication approach often has five components: The level of involvement of each stakeholder or stakeholder group, The approaches for making decisions. How stakeholders will be kept up to date about product and project efforts. How product and project information will be structured, stored, and maintained. The approach for obtaining approvals. An estimation of level of effort for business analysis activities is documented in the business analysis plan. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, Section 5.3, Determine Stakeholder Engagement and Communication Approach, page 123.
You are at the final stages of your project, and you are involved in evaluating acceptance results in order to address defects and resolve them. The senior business analyst in the project advised you to use the traceability matrix in this process. Which of the following is the core benefit of using the traceability matrix in this process?
A. To assess the business impact of not addressing variations from acceptance criteria and defects
B. To determine the cause and degree of difference between the baseline and actual performance
C. To rank each defect based on its severity
D. To determine the reason for a variance or a defect
To assess the business impact of not addressing variation from acceptance criteria and defects
A traceability matrix is a grid that links product requirements from their origin to the deliverables that satisfy them. A traceability matrix can be used to establish relationships among product information, deliverables, and project work to ensure that each relates back to business objectives. As part of evaluating acceptance results, a traceability matrix can be used as a tool to assess the business impact of not addressing variations from acceptance criteria and defects; for example, there could be a significant business impact from not addressing defects associated with features that trace to a high-priority objective. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, Section 9.3.2.3, Traceability matrix, page 293.
Sami is the senior business analyst in a professional services firm, and he wants to document functional aspects and a set of scenarios of the system from initiation to completion. Which of the following tools and technique would you recommend Sami to use?
A. Context diagram
B. Use case
C. User story
D. Process flow
Use case
A use case is a process model that uses textual narrative to describe the system-user interactions to achieve successful completion of a goal. The goal represents what the primary actor is trying to accomplish in the use case and usually is part of the use case name. Each use case contains a normal flow, which is the most common scenario of interactions between the system and user, as well as alternative and exception flows, where the scenario diverges from the normal flow. This model is frequently used to identify and elaborate requirements, especially when moving from business requirements to stakeholder requirements or solution requirements. PMI Guide to Business Analysis, Section 7.3.2.8 Use case, page 214.
Which of the following skills are utilized by the business analyst to process information of various types and at various levels of detail, break the information down, look at it from different viewpoints, and apply information to formulate decisions or solve problems?
A. Expert judgment
B. Analytical skills
C. Communication skills
D. Personal skills
Analytical skills
You are working as the business analyst for a software development project for an IT services firm. Your project manager wants to visualize the business data objects and the cardinality relationship between those objects. Which of the following models will you create to meet the project manager requirement?
A. Data flow diagram
B. State table
C. Entity relationship diagram
D. Data dictionary
Entity relationship diagram
You are working as the senior business analyst for a semi-government subcontractor that manufactures combat helicopters. While conducting tests for one product, an engineer discovered a new compound that will make the helicopters 25% lighter and 50% more durable. Becoming aware of this discovery, you promptly commenced a needs assessment and you are now assessing the feasibility of using this compound. Which factor is most important to consider?
A. Technology/systemic feasibility
B. Time to market
C. Operational
D. Effectiveness feasibility
Operational
While you and your team members are involved in the solution evaluation activities, one of the inspectors detected that the implemented product did not align with the formally approved baseline. As a professional business analyst, which of the following should be your next step?
A. Escalate this issue to the project manager
B. Issue a change request to align the product with the approved baseline
C. Immediately take a corrective action to fix this issue
D. Refer back to the version control system to have the latest approved baseline
Refer back to the version control system to have the latest approved baseline
Acceptance criteria are the conditions that need to be met before a solution is accepted, and it can be created at different levels, including requirement, iteration, release, and product levels. In this context, which of the following models can be used to define acceptance criteria at the product level?
A. State diagram
B. Business objectives model
C. Data dictionary
D. Context diagram
Business objectives model
Dima has started to build the requirements traceability matrix, beginning with high-level items and filling in the details as they become known. What is this process referred to as?
A. Detailed traceability
B. Progressive elaboration
C. Work breakdown structure (WBS)
D. Traceability matrix requirements
Progressive elaboration
Your project has just commenced, and earlier in the week Sami was assigned as your project manager. It’s now Friday, and you’re outlining the initial scope and discussing the building of the stakeholder register. Sami asked that on Monday, you begin drafting the outline of the authorization and key-decision making process. What should be your response?
A. This document should also include how requirements will developed, tracked, managed, and validated, along with communication plan.
B. This document should also include how requirements will be developed, tracked, managed, and validated.
C. Are there other core components that should be included?
D. This document should also include success factors and planning activities, but we should wait until we have approval of the project office.
This document should also include success factors and planning activities, but we should wait until we have approval of the project office.
Your college intern, Sami, inquires as to who can request a significant change to the approved requirements traceability matrix. Which of the following should be your answer?
A. Once documented, only the customer can request a significant change to the approved product.
B. The Change Control Board must review and vote on the change request.
C. Any stakeholder can request a significant change to the approved product, provided the request is documented.
D. Any team member can recommend a change, provided the request is documented.
Any stakeholder can request a significant change to the approved product, provided the request is documented.