Use Case Modeling and Solution Requirements

Course Description

Use case models can serve as a structured tool for eliciting and organizing functional and non-functional requirements for a proposed solution.  Once the overall scope of an effort has been determined, a use case diagram can depict the scope of near-term analysis work.  Each use case on the diagram is subsequently refined so that all desired behavior is well-understood:  the happy path, alternate paths, errors, exceptions, and edge cases.

Use cases and user stories are very different tools but can be used in conjunction with each other quite effectively.  Participants will learn to “paint the big picture” with use cases, then decompose each use case into user stories.  The user stories describe smaller subsets of needed functionality; this supports many agile development approaches.

Using a provided case study or a real-life project, participants will establish the scope for an overall effort.  Use cases will be identified, and participants will practice developing functional and non-functional requirements to describe how the solution should behave.  In addition to use case diagrams and use case descriptions, participants will practice developing business rule models, data dictionaries, Gherkin scenarios, user interface specifications, data mapping/conversion requirements, and non-functional requirements.  Approximately 50% of class time will be spent in hands-on activities, with review and coaching from the facilitator.  Participants will also leave with numerous job aids that will help them implement the learned concepts on their own projects..

Learning Objectives

• Distinguish between use cases, user stories, and test cases
• Clarify the scope for a work effort
• Prioritize requirements for inclusion in solution development using plan-driven (traditional) and change-driven (iterative and agile) techniques
• Create a use case diagram to clarify near-term analysis scope
• Elicit, analyze, and communicate functional requirements that specify how users will interact with the software and how the software will respond
  • Deliver consistent, detailed use case descriptions
  • Model business rules and business data
  • Specify functionality using Gherkin scenarios
  • Incorporate usability principles when developing prototypes
  • Determine the impact of interfaces and develop interface requirements
• Identify non-functional requirements appropriate for each project
• Combine use cases and user stories to leverage the strengths of each tool

Intended Audience

This course is designed for business analysts, systems analysts, or any other project team members responsible for developing functional and non-functional requirements. Participants are encouraged to bring examples of their requirements to class for review and feedback. This course may also be appropriate for individuals who manage business analysts. Developers and solution implementers will benefit from an understanding of how functional and non-functional requirements are elicited and analyzed.

Prerequisites

We recommend that students first attend our Essential Skills for Business Analysis class or have experience in project scope definition, eliciting requirements from stakeholders, and understanding how business requirements fit into the entire systems development effort. We also recommend that students attend Business Process Analysis Analysis before attending this class.