Guaranteeing correct and workable requirements

This seminar will show you:

• How to use requirements models to prove the required functionality
• How to elicit requirements using models
• How to add rigor to your requirements
• How to understand your customer's requirements using models

Requirements modeling and you

Requirements models are used when gathering requirements, and during systems analysis. Whether you consider eliciting requirements to be a separate activity, or a part of systems analysis, the importance of correct requirements must be a high priority for you. Building accurate models means that you can guarantee the correctness of your requirements.

All engineering disciplines use models to develop the products they intend to build. Requirements models are used to discover and clarify the functional and data requirements for software and business systems. Additionally, the requirements models are used as specifications for the designers and builders of the system.

What a system is and what does a system do

You can describe a system by what it is, and by what it does. For an example of what it does, consider this typical statement from a requirements specification: "The product must calculate the cheapest fare". Beyond this innocent description of what the system must do, lies a complex set of rules, procedures, data and functions. It is the task of requirements modeling to discover the rules for calculating the cheapest fare, the algorithms needed, and the data needed to support those calculations. In other words, the requirements models describe what the system is.

You also use models when eliciting requirements. A quickly sketched data flow model is an indispensable aid during interviews. A data model reveals the policy of the system. Thus any gaps in the policy are quickly revealed by a data model constructed with your customer. A state model can explain how a system behaves, and thus clarifies for a potential user the consequence of the requirements.

This seminar shows you how to use the requirements models to elicit requirements, and how to prove the correctness of those requirements. Workshops during the seminar give you the practical skills to put these models to work for you right away.

This seminar is a companion to Mastering the Requirements Process. It teaches you the various models available to the modern requirements engineer and systems analyst. It gives you the tools to improve your skills, and to improve the way you build your systems specifications.

Is this for me?

By bridging the gap between the requirements gathering and systems analysis, this seminar brings you an intensive tour of the available requirements models, and most importantly, how you can make the best use of use them.

You should attend if you are a:

What will I learn in two days?

• Beneficial Models

Useful abstractions ­ how we can build models of systems to show what we need to see. Different models and notations are demonstrated, along with a explanation of when different viewpoints are appropriate and beneficial.

• Why Model Requirements?

Eliciting and communicating requirements ­ the requirements, analysis and design activities. How models are used when dealing with the client and the users, and how to prove the correctness of the functionality and data once the requirements are known.

• The Context

Getting the right scope for the product ­ start with the work that you are about to study. Model the work in its context of the adjacent systems that communicate with the work, and from there determine the scope of the product you intend to build.

• Event-driven partitioning

Breaking the work into manageable and convenient pieces ­ how to discover and use the business events to break the work into natural slices. How the lever the business event to determine use cases.

• Use case modeling

Making the best use of use cases ­ when we examine the business event, we find that the adjacent system plays a significant part in the work. The use case is selected to make the most of the aspirations of the adjacent system.

• Data Modeling

How to model data ­ data plays a significant part in the requirements for a system. This is an introduction to data modeling, and demonstrates how to use data models as part of the requirements and systems analysis process.

• UML

The Unified Modeling Language ­ how to use the object-oriented models for analysis and requirements. The most appropriate models are introduced, with a demonstration of when they should be used.

• Using Models to Elicit Requirements

Models are jointly owned ­ they are a collaboration between the requirements analysts and the user/client. How to draw your interview, how to communicate using models, choosing the right model for the situation.

Learn through practice

This seminar includes frequent exercises and opportunities to apply the illustrated techniques. Work with the instructor to build models and prove or disprove example requirements. Construct models to elicit requirements then feed them back to see if your understanding matches that of your client. Also learn to evaluate when each of the models is useful, and what degree of detail is necessary.

For more information ...

For in-house courses contact James Robertson at The Atlantic Systems Guild or one of the agents below.

Download a pdf copy of this course description.

For information about any of the courses, consulting or other services, either contact us directly or one of the agents shown below.

The Atlantic Systems Guild
11 St. Mary's Terrace
London W2 1SU
United Kingdom

Tel: +44 (0)20 7262 3395

Email James Robertson

Email Suzanne Robertson

	In Australia please contact DP Education  +61 (02) 9973-3777
	In the Benelux please contact Telelogic NL
	In Deutschland please contact QA Systems
	In Italy, please contact Technology Transfer S.r.l.   +39 06 6832227
	Seminars and consulting in the United Kingdom are available from IRM UK Strategic IT Training  +44 (0)20 8866 8366
	In-house and public seminars the United States from Software Quality Engineering  800-423-8378