The Business Analysis material organizes BA work into six process groups:
- Defining and Aligning
- Initiating
- Planning
- Executing
- Monitoring and Controlling
- Releasing
These groups provide a way to understand how BA activities fit across the lifecycle.
Defining and Aligning
Focus on feasibility, product direction, scope, and alignment with organizational strategy.
Key question:
Should we pursue this change, and how does it fit the broader direction?
Initiating
Establish objectives and organize the resources needed to begin the initiative.
Planning
Determine how BA work will be performed and understand the stakeholders who will influence the solution.
Executing
This is where much of the hands-on BA work happens:
- Elicit information
- Analyze
- Model
- Define requirements
- Verify
- Validate
- Prioritize
- Obtain approval
Monitoring and Controlling
Evaluate changes, monitor BA performance, and maintain communication as the product evolves.
Releasing
Determine whether a whole or partial solution is ready to move into operational use and support the transition.
Six BA knowledge areas
The source material also organizes BA work into:
- Needs Assessment
- Stakeholder Engagement
- Elicitation
- Analysis
- Traceability and Monitoring
- Solution Evaluation
The important connection
A practical BA flow is:
Problem → Current State → Future State → Options → Requirements → Solution → Acceptance → Evaluation
That flow can become a visual diagram on the portfolio.