Category: Business Analysis

A user story is a description of a feature / functionality described from the perspective of the end-user. User stories describe the users’ expectations of the system. User stories are described in Agile projects, and are organized in a product backlog, which is an ordered list of product functions. It is a concise, simple description of a feature or functionality that is written from the perspective of an end-user or customer. User stories are commonly used in agile software development as a way to capture requirements and guide the development process.

A typical user story includes three main components:

• the user,
• the action, and
• the benefit.

A typical user story is written like this:

As a <type of user>, I want to <achieve / perform some task> so that I can <get some value>.

Example of a user story for an e-commerce website might look like this:

As a customer, I want to add products to the cart so that I can checkout.

Another example:
As a customer, I want to be able to view my order history, so I can track my purchases and see when they will be delivered.

In this example, the user is the customer, the action is to view the order history, and the benefit is the ability to track purchases and delivery dates. User stories are usually short and simple, and they are written in a way that is easy for both developers and non-technical stakeholders to understand. They are designed to be flexible and open to negotiation, allowing the development team and stakeholders to collaborate and refine the requirements over time as new information becomes available.

When are user stories created?

User stories are typically created during the planning and requirements gathering phase of a project, which is usually done at the beginning of each development cycle in agile software development. This process involves working closely with stakeholders, including end-users, customers, and product owners, to identify the key features and functionalities that are needed in the software.

During this process, user stories are used as a way to capture and communicate requirements in a simple, easy-to-understand format. The development team works with stakeholders to identify the key user roles and personas, and to define the actions and benefits that are needed to meet their needs.

Once the initial set of user stories has been created, they are typically prioritized based on their value to the end-user and their impact on the overall project goals. This allows the development team to focus on the most important stories first, and to deliver incremental improvements to the software in each development cycle.

Throughout the development process, user stories may be refined and updated as new information becomes available or requirements change. This allows the development team to remain flexible and responsive to changing needs, while still delivering software that meets the needs of the end-users. Business analysts are usually the professionals who create user stories and capture requirements.

Analytics User Stories Examples – Agile requirements template and format

The following user stories are examples in the analytics domain. These include those for business intelligence like charts, and machine learning like sentiment analysis.

1. As a strategy consultant, I would like to review KPIs related to my domain, because that would help me understand the status of the business.
2. As a business manager, I would like to review progress over a period of time as a line chart, so that I can make necessary corrective adjustments.
3. As a SEO copywriter, I would like to generate positive-negative-neutral sentiments of my copy, so that I can write better effective and catchy articles.
4. As the president of the department, I would like to review charts of income and expenses, because I can determine the profitability of the department (and the security of my job?)
5. As the chief investment officer, I would like to have an aggregation of all spends and ROI, so that I can determine investment areas of greater return on investment.

Business intelligence user stories examples – Agile requirements template and format

Here are some examples of business intelligence user stories:

1. As a marketing manager, I want to view real-time dashboards of customer behavior and engagement, so I can optimize marketing campaigns and improve customer retention.
2. As a sales representative, I want to access detailed reports on customer interactions and sales performance, so I can identify sales trends and opportunities to improve performance.
3. As a finance analyst, I want to generate ad-hoc reports on financial metrics and KPIs, so I can analyze financial performance and identify areas for cost reduction and optimization.
4. As an operations manager, I want to monitor key performance indicators for operational efficiency, such as cycle time, throughput, and inventory levels, so I can identify opportunities to improve operational performance.
5. As a product manager, I want to track customer feedback and sentiment data, so I can identify customer needs and preferences and make data-driven decisions about product development and marketing.

E-commerce user stories examples – Agile requirements template and format

The following user stories capture various aspects of an e-commerce website from the perspective of the end-users (customers) and the store owner. They focus on the functionalities and features that are important for a seamless and convenient online shopping experience, while also addressing the needs of the business owner for effective store management and data analysis.

1. As a customer, I want to be able to search for products by category or keyword, so I can easily find and purchase the items I am interested in.
2. As a customer, I want to be able to add products to my shopping cart, view the contents of my cart, and proceed to checkout, so I can complete my purchase quickly and easily.
3. As a customer, I want to be able to create an account, save my payment information, and view my order history, so I can have a personalized shopping experience and easily track my purchases.
4. As a customer, I want to be able to view product details, including images, descriptions, prices, and customer reviews, so I can make informed purchasing decisions.
5. As a customer, I want to be able to apply discount codes, promotions, and gift cards to my purchase, so I can take advantage of special offers and discounts.
6. As a customer, I want to receive email notifications about my order status, including order confirmation, shipping updates, and delivery notifications, so I can stay informed about my purchases.
7. As a customer, I want to be able to provide feedback and reviews on products, so I can share my experiences and help other customers make informed purchasing decisions.
8. As a store owner, I want to be able to manage my product inventory, update product details, and track sales and revenue, so I can effectively manage my online store and make data-driven decisions about my business.

Website user stories examples – Agile requirements template and format

Each of these user stories is designed to capture a specific user need or requirement to enhance experiences on various types of websites.

1. E-commerce Website: Search and Filter Products
   As a customer, I want to be able to search for products by category and keyword, so I can quickly find the items I am interested in.
2. Social Media Platform: Post Updates and Share Content
   As a user, I want to post updates, share photos and videos, and tag friends, so I can share my experiences and stay connected with my network.
3. Online Banking Portal: View Account Statements
   As a bank customer, I want to view my account statements online, so I can keep track of my transactions and account balance.
4. Healthcare Website: Book Doctor Appointments
   As a patient, I want to be able to book appointments with doctors online, so I can schedule my medical consultations conveniently.
5. Educational Platform: Access Course Materials
   As a student, I want to access course materials and lectures online, so I can study and review content at my own pace.
6. Travel Booking Site: Search and Book Flights
   As a traveler, I want to search for flights, compare prices, and book tickets, so I can plan and manage my travel arrangements easily.
7. Job Portal: Create and Manage Job Profiles
   As a job seeker, I want to create and update my job profile and resume, so I can apply for job opportunities and attract potential employers.
8. News Website: Customize News Feed
   As a reader, I want to customize my news feed based on my interests and preferences, so I can stay informed about topics that matter to me.

Media advertising technology user stories examples – Agile requirements template and format

These user stories highlight the key functionalities and features that are important for a media ad tech tool, covering the needs of different user roles such as media buyers, marketing managers, creative designers, publishers, data analysts, account managers, advertisers, and campaign optimizers. These stories focus on the capabilities that enable effective campaign management, performance tracking, ad creation, targeting, audience management, and optimization, among others.

1. As a media buyer, I want to be able to create and manage advertising campaigns, including setting campaign budgets, targeting criteria, and ad creatives, so I can effectively reach my target audience and achieve my marketing goals.
2. As a marketing manager, I want to be able to track and analyze the performance of my advertising campaigns in real-time, including impressions, clicks, conversions, and return on investment (ROI), so I can optimize my ad spend and make data-driven decisions to improve campaign performance.
3. As a creative designer, I want to be able to upload and manage ad creatives, including images, videos, and ad copy, in various formats and sizes, so I can easily create and update ads for different platforms and placements.
4. As a publisher, I want to be able to monetize my website or app by displaying ads from different advertisers, and to have control over the types of ads that are displayed, the frequency, and the placement, so I can generate revenue and provide a positive user experience.
5. As a data analyst, I want to be able to access and analyze ad performance data, including impressions, clicks, conversions, and audience demographics, in a visual and customizable way, so I can generate insights and reports to inform marketing strategies and optimizations.
6. As an account manager, I want to be able to manage multiple client accounts within the ad tech tool, including creating and managing campaigns, setting budgets, and providing performance reports, so I can effectively serve my clients and track their advertising performance.
7. As an advertiser, I want to be able to define and manage custom audiences, including demographic, geographic, and behavioral criteria, so I can target my ads to the most relevant audience and maximize my ad effectiveness.
8. As a campaign optimizer, I want to be able to use machine learning algorithms and predictive analytics to automatically optimize my advertising campaigns based on performance data, so I can improve campaign efficiency and achieve better results over time.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) user stories examples – Agile requirements template and format

These user stories cover various user roles within a CRM tool, including sales representatives, sales managers, customer service representatives, marketing managers, executives, product managers, system administrators, and mobile salespeople. They address the functionalities and features that are important for managing customer relationships, sales activities, marketing campaigns, customer feedback, and overall business performance.

1. As a sales representative, I want to be able to track my leads, opportunities, and deals in a centralized CRM system, so I can easily manage my sales pipeline, prioritize my tasks, and close deals effectively.
2. As a sales manager, I want to be able to monitor the performance of my sales team, including their sales activities, deal progress, and revenue targets, so I can provide coaching, feedback, and support to improve their performance and achieve team goals.
3. As a customer service representative, I want to be able to access customer information and interaction history in the CRM system, so I can provide personalized and efficient support, resolve issues, and deliver a positive customer experience.
4. As a marketing manager, I want to be able to segment and target my customers and prospects in the CRM system, based on criteria such as demographics, behaviors, and engagement levels, so I can deliver relevant and personalized marketing campaigns to drive customer engagement and retention.
5. As an executive, I want to be able to access high-level dashboards and reports in the CRM system, so I can monitor overall sales performance, customer acquisition, retention, and lifetime value, and make data-driven decisions to drive business growth.
6. As a product manager, I want to be able to gather and analyze customer feedback and product usage data in the CRM system, so I can identify customer needs, preferences, and pain points, and incorporate them into product development and improvement strategies.
7. As a system administrator, I want to be able to configure and customize the CRM system to match our organization’s sales, marketing, and customer service processes, so I can ensure that the CRM tool is aligned with our specific business requirements and workflows.
8. As a mobile salesperson, I want to be able to access and update customer and prospect information in the CRM system on my mobile device, so I can manage my sales activities and update customer interactions on the go.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) tool user stories examples – Agile requirements template and format

These user stories cover different functional areas within an ERP tool, including procurement, production planning, finance, human resources, sales, warehouse management, business analysis, and system administration. They highlight the key functionalities and features that are important for managing various aspects of an organization’s operations, such as procurement, production, finance, human resources, sales, inventory, and data analysis.

1. As a procurement manager, I want to be able to create and manage purchase orders in the ERP system, including selecting vendors, defining quantities, and tracking order status, so I can effectively manage the procurement process and ensure timely delivery of goods and services.
2. As a production planner, I want to be able to create and manage production schedules in the ERP system, including defining production orders, allocating resources, and tracking progress, so I can optimize production capacity and meet customer demand.
3. As a finance manager, I want to be able to manage financial transactions and records in the ERP system, including recording invoices, payments, and expenses, reconciling accounts, and generating financial reports, so I can accurately track and report on the financial health of the organization.
4. As a human resources manager, I want to be able to manage employee information, including hiring, onboarding, performance evaluations, and benefits administration, in the ERP system, so I can effectively manage the workforce and ensure compliance with company policies and regulations.
5. As a salesperson, I want to be able to create and manage sales orders, track customer orders, and view inventory availability in the ERP system, so I can efficiently process customer orders, manage order fulfillment, and provide accurate order status updates.
6. As a warehouse manager, I want to be able to manage inventory levels, including receiving, stocking, and picking inventory items, in the ERP system, so I can maintain accurate inventory records, optimize warehouse space, and ensure timely order fulfillment.
7. As a business analyst, I want to be able to access and analyze data from various modules in the ERP system, including sales, inventory, procurement, and finance, so I can generate insights, trends, and reports to inform decision-making and strategic planning.
8. As an IT administrator, I want to be able to configure and customize the ERP system, including setting up user permissions, defining workflows, and integrating with other systems, so I can ensure that the ERP tool is aligned with our organization’s business processes and requirements.

Create your own user story online

Savio Education Global User Story Generator · Streamlit (user-story-generator.streamlit.app)

INVEST in User Stories

Finally, all user stories must fit the INVEST quality model:

•         I – Independent
•         N – Negotiable
•         V – Valuable
•         E – Estimable
•         S – Small
•         T – Testable

1. Independent. This means that you can schedule and implement each user story separately. This is very helpful if you implement continuous integration processes.
2. Negotiable. This means that all parties agree to prioritize negotiations over specification. This also means that details will be created constantly during development.
3. Valuable. A story must be valuable to the customer.  You should ask yourself from the customer’s perspective “why” you need to implement a given feature.
4. Estimable. A quality user story can be estimated. This will help a team schedule and prioritize the implementation. The bigger the story is, the harder it is to estimate it.
5. Small. Good user stories tend to be small enough to plan for short production releases. Small stories allow for more specific estimates.
6. Testable. If a story can be tested, it’s clear enough and good enough. Tested stories mean that requirements are done and ready for use.

Best practices to write good user stories

Consider the following best practices when writing user stories for agile requirements:

1. Involve stakeholders: Involve stakeholders such as the product owner, end-users, and development team members in the process of creating user stories. This helps ensure that everyone has a shared understanding of the goals and requirements.
2. Focus on end-users: User stories should focus on the needs and goals of the end-users. It’s important to avoid writing stories that are too technical or feature-focused.
3. Use a consistent format: User stories should be written in a consistent format that includes the user, action, and benefit. This helps to ensure clarity and consistency across the stories.
4. Keep stories small: Keep user stories small and focused on a specific goal or outcome. This makes it easier to estimate, prioritize, and complete the stories within a single iteration.
5. Prioritize stories: Prioritize user stories based on their value to the end-user and their impact on the overall project goals. This helps to ensure that the most important stories are completed first.
6. Make stories testable: User stories should include clear acceptance criteria that can be used to verify that the story has been completed successfully. This helps to ensure that the resulting software meets the needs of the end-users.
7. Refine stories over time: User stories should be refined and updated over time as new information becomes available or requirements change. This helps to ensure that the stories remain relevant and useful throughout the development process.

By following these best practices, development teams can create effective user stories that help to guide the development process and ensure that the resulting software meets the needs of the end-users.

Prioritizing Agile User Stories

User stories are typically prioritized based on their value to the end-user and their impact on the overall project goals. Here are some common factors that are considered when prioritizing user stories:

1. User value: User stories that provide the greatest value to the end-users are typically given higher priority. For example, a user story that improves the user experience or solves a critical user problem may be considered more important than a story that adds a new feature.
2. Business value: User stories that have the greatest impact on the business goals and objectives are typically given higher priority. For example, a user story that increases revenue or reduces costs may be considered more important than a story that provides a minor improvement to the software.
3. Technical feasibility: User stories that are technically feasible and can be implemented easily are typically given higher priority. For example, a user story that can be completed quickly with minimal effort may be considered more important than a story that requires significant development effort.
4. Dependencies: User stories that have dependencies on other stories or features may be given higher priority to ensure that they are completed in the appropriate order.
5. Risks: User stories that address high-risk areas of the project or software may be given higher priority to mitigate potential issues.

The prioritization of user stories is usually done in collaboration with stakeholders, including product owners, end-users, and development team members. By considering these factors and working collaboratively, the team can ensure that they are delivering software that meets the needs of the end-users and achieves the project goals.

User Story – Acceptance Criteria Example and Template

User stories must be accompanied by acceptance criteria.  It is important to have descriptive summaries and detailed acceptance criteria to help the team know when a user story is considered complete or “done.” These are the conditions that the product must satisfy to be accepted by users, stakeholders, or a product owner. Each user story must have at least one acceptance criterion. Effective acceptance criteria are testable, concise, and clearly understood by all stakeholders. They can be written as checklists, plain text, or by using Given/When/Then format.

Example:

Here’s an example of the acceptance criteria checklist for a user story describing a search feature:

• A search field is available on the top-bar.
• A search is started when the user clicks Submit.
• The default placeholder is a grey text Type the name.
• The placeholder disappears when the user starts typing.
• The search language is English.
• The user can type no more than 200 symbols.
• It doesn’t support special symbols. If the user has typed a special symbol in the search input, it displays the warning message: Search input cannot contain special symbols.

Acceptance Criteria Formatted as Given-When-Then

According to the Agile Alliance, the Given-When-Then format is a template intended to guide the writing of acceptance criteria / tests for a User Story. The template is as follows:

(Given) some context
(When) some action is carried out
(Then) a particular set of observable consequences should obtain
An example:

Given my bank account is in credit, and I made no withdrawals recently,
When I attempt to withdraw an amount less than my card’s limit,
Then the withdrawal should complete without errors or warnings

The usual practice is the have the acceptance criteria written after the requirements have been specified and before development sprint begins. The acceptance criteria are often utilized during the user acceptance testing (UAT) of the product.

What are user story points?

User story points are a unit of measure used in agile software development to estimate the relative effort required to implement a user story. They are assigned to each user story based on the amount of effort and complexity involved in completing it, and help teams to prioritize and plan their work. Points are typically assigned using a scale such as Fibonacci numbers (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, etc.), where each number represents a larger increment of effort than the previous one. The purpose of using story points is to provide a rough, relative estimate of effort, rather than an exact estimate in terms of hours or days.

User story points are determined through a process called estimation. This is typically done as part of a team-based effort, with representatives from all relevant departments, such as development, testing, and product management.

Estimation is done by comparing each user story to others that have already been completed and assigned points, and by considering various factors that impact the effort required to implement the story, such as complexity, size, and uncertainty. The team then agrees on a point value for each story, usually using the Fibonacci scale. The way to think about estimating these points is similar to the way gap analysis is performed.

It’s important to note that the goal of user story points is to provide a rough, relative estimate of effort. The actual points assigned to each story are less important than the consistency in the way they are assigned and the fact that they allow the team to prioritize and plan their work. Over time, the team will gain a better understanding of what different point values represent and will become more accurate in their estimations.

If you’re using JIRA, then you see these points in the image as follows:

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Techniques to estimate points and size user stories

There are several different techniques that can be used to size (estimate the effort required for) user stories in agile software development. Some of the most common techniques include:

1. Planning Poker: A consensus-based technique where team members hold cards with values from a predetermined scale (such as Fibonacci numbers) and simultaneously reveal their estimates for each story. Discussions ensue until the team reaches a consensus on the story’s point value.
2. T-Shirt Sizing: A quick and simple technique where team members use descriptive terms such as XS, S, M, L, XL, etc. to size stories, based on their complexity and effort required.
3. Affinity Mapping: A technique where team members write down their estimates for each story on sticky notes, and then group similar stories together based on their estimates. The resulting clusters of stories can then be assigned point values based on the average of the estimates within each cluster.
4. Expert Judgment: A technique where an individual with expertise in the relevant domain (e.g. a senior developer) provides estimates for each story based on their experience and knowledge.
5. Analogous Estimation: A technique where the team estimates the effort required for a new story based on similar stories that have been completed in the past, taking into account any differences or additional complexities.

These are some of the most common techniques used in agile software development to estimate the effort required for user stories. The choice of technique will depend on various factors such as the team’s experience, the size and complexity of the project, and the culture and preferences of the organization.

Steps to measure the team’s velocity with user story estimations

The velocity of an agile team is a measure of the amount of work the team can complete in a given period of time, usually a sprint. The velocity of a team can be determined by tracking the number of points completed in each sprint and taking an average over several sprints.

To determine the team’s velocity, follow these steps:

1. Assign story points to each user story: Use a sizing estimation technique, such as planning poker or T-shirt sizing, to estimate the effort required to complete each story.
2. Track completed story points in each sprint: At the end of each sprint, tally the number of points assigned to each story that was completed and accepted by the customer.
3. Calculate the average velocity: Divide the total number of completed story points by the number of sprints to calculate the average velocity. For example, if a team completed 40 story points in the first sprint and 50 story points in the second sprint, its average velocity would be 45 story points.
4. Use the velocity to plan future sprints: The team’s velocity can be used to plan future sprints, by taking into account the number of story points the team is capable of completing in a given sprint.

It’s important to note that the velocity of a team can change over time, based on various factors such as changes in team composition, the complexity of the work, and the team’s level of experience. As such, the velocity should be re-evaluated regularly to ensure that it accurately reflects the team’s current capabilities.

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Elements of Agile Requirements

In addition to user stories, there are several other elements of agile requirements that are important to consider when developing software using agile methodologies. Some of these elements include:

• Epics: These are large-scale user stories that describe a high-level goal or feature. Epics are usually broken down into smaller user stories or tasks that can be completed in shorter iterations.
• Acceptance criteria: These are the specific conditions or requirements that must be met for a user story to be considered complete. Acceptance criteria are typically defined in collaboration with the product owner and the development team.
• User personas: These are fictional characters or archetypes that represent the different types of users who will be using the software system. User personas help the development team to understand the needs, goals, and behaviors of the end-users.
• Backlog: This is a prioritized list of user stories and tasks that need to be completed in the current iteration or sprint. The backlog is continuously updated and reprioritized based on feedback from the product owner, the development team, and other stakeholders.
• Iterations/sprints: These are short, time-boxed periods (usually 1-4 weeks) during which the development team works on a specific set of user stories and tasks. At the end of each iteration/sprint, the team delivers a working increment of the software system that can be reviewed and tested by stakeholders.

Frequently Asked Questions about Agile User Stories

Every successful project has a detailed and well developed business requirement document (BRD). The BRD describes the problems the project is trying to solve or the opportunities the project is attempting to benefit from, and the required outcomes necessary to deliver value. The business analyst is usually the person who develops the BRD.

When done well, the business requirements document directs the project and keeps everyone on the same page. However, requirements documentation can easily become unclear and disorganized, which can quickly send a project off track.

What is a business requirement document (BRD)?

Definition: A business requirements document describes the business solution for a project (i.e., what a new or updated product, service or result should do), including the user’s needs and expectations, the purpose behind this solution, and any high-level constraints that could impact a successful deployment.

Business requirements document also emphasizes on the needs and expectations of the customer. In simpler terms, BRD indicates what the business wants to achieve.  The BRD indicates all the project deliverables at a high level. Essentially, a BRD acts as the guideline for stakeholders to make decisions regarding project priorities, design, and structure to ensure the project remains aligned with the overall goals of the business.

In outsourced projects, it also represents a basic contract between the customer and the vendor outlining the expectations and deliverables for the project. The BRD sets the standards for determining when a project has reached a successful completion.

Objectives of a business requirement document:

Project utilize BRDs for the following objectives:

• To build consensus among stakeholders.
• To communicate the business needs, the customer needs, and the end result of the solution that must satisfy business and customer needs.
• To determine the input to the next phase of the project.

Business Requirements Document (BRD) Template Download

Sections in a Business Requirement Document BRD

Most businesses follow a template for all their project requirements documentation. This is helpful for keeping documentation standard across the organization.

The structure may vary but a basic business requirement document BRD will include the following sections and components:

• Executive Summary
• Project overview (including vision, and context)
• SWOT analysis
• Success factors
• Project scope
• Desired goals and project objectives
• Stakeholder identification
• Current state using BPMN
• Future state using BPMN
• Business requirements and corresponding priority
• Assumptions, Limitations, Constraints

Additionally, depending on the organization’s documentation process, sections for feature analysis, competitive analysis, benchmarking results, functional and non-functional requirements may also be included in a BRD rather than in separate requirements documents.

Steps to Create a Business Requirement Document

1. Project scope: The project scope draws the boundaries of the project and helps managers decide what is included in the project and what isn’t. Having a clear scope helps keep the team aligned and avoids unnecessary wastage of resources. All project functionalities or special requests need to be included here.
2. Goals and Objectives: In this section, describe the high-level goals and objectives of the project. What will the project ultimately achieve? Who’s it for? How does the project goals tie up to the overall business objective and mission? Describe in detail what success will look like.
3. Need for the project: Provide a rationale for the project. Having a needs statement in your document helps convey the importance of the project and how it will impact the company’s bottom line in the long run. This helps gain stakeholders’ and employees’ trust and confidence in the project and ensures smooth implementation.
4. Identify Stakeholders: Identify key stakeholders to elicit requirements from. You can include each person’s name, department, and their role in making the project a success.
5. Conduct a SWOT analysis: A flawless business requirements document (BRD) should contain a SWOT analysis of the project and how it fits in the big picture. The analysis should carefully articulate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that the project has. Adding this section to your BRD helps boost your credibility with upper management and external partners as it shows how aware you are of the project’s limitations and scope.
6. Requirements: The next step is gathering requirements from stakeholder and documenting them. Read more about elicitation techniques.
7. Assumptions, Limitations, Constraints: The team working on the project should be made aware of the possible assumptions, limitations and constraints in creating this document, and its contents.
8. Executive Summary: The executive summary summarizes the entire document, outlining the need for the project, its requirements, and how does it tie up to your overall business goals. Develop this section after completing other sections, and place it at the top of the business requirement document BRD.

Business Requirements Document (BRD) Template Download

How to write the perfect BRD

Now that you have a grasp on what a business requirements document should accomplish, you can follow these guidelines to make sure that you write an exceptional one.

1. Practice effective requirements elicitation

Even if you write an impressive BRD, it won’t be effective if you haven’t identified and documented all the requirements necessary. To ensure your BRD is complete and cohesive, you’ll need to apply proper elicitation methods.

A Guide to the Business Analysis Body of Knowledge (more commonly known as the BABOK Guide) lists nine primary elicitation methods:

• Brainstorming
• Gap analysis
• Document analysis
• Interface analysis
• Focus groups
• Prototyping
• Requirements workshops
• Interviews
• Observation
• Surveys

You could use all nine or a select few, but you will certainly need to incorporate multiple approaches to gather a comprehensive set of requirements.

Whatever methods you use, consider the following tips for improving your elicitation process.

Continually gather requirements

While most requirements gathering occurs early on in the project lifecycle, the business analyst should always be open to identifying and documenting new requirements as needed. It can be tempting to sweep new information under the rug if you’ve already progressed past the initial stages of the project. However, the end product will be better if you have fleshed out all the requirements necessary—even if they were added later in the game.

Get to know your stakeholders

Build a rapport with your stakeholders and learn how they operate. Tailor your elicitation methods to their style or preferred method. While some people work best in interviews, others might prefer to prepare written answers. By adapting your methods to the person, you will be more efficient and effective in gathering requirements.

Always be prepared

Come to stakeholder meetings prepared with questions and even answers. The right questions are often enough to get the ball rolling, but if the team is struggling to find an answer, propose one yourself. Offering options can get the group brainstorming and thinking through the problem more strategically.  

2. Use clear language without jargon

Requirements documents are often long and text-heavy. To prevent confusion or misinterpretations, use clear language without jargon. Keep in mind that multiple stakeholders will be using this document, and not all of them will be technically-minded. By keeping your language clear, you can ensure everyone can understand it.

When you do need to include jargon or other technical terms, be sure to add those to a project dictionary section in the document. This section can serve as a useful reference of all uncommon terms found throughout the document so no one misunderstands the requirements.  

Business Requirements Document (BRD) Template Download

3. Research past projects

A great way to jump-start your documentation process is to research similar projects your organization has completed in the past.

Review the documentation for those projects and use those insights to help you identify requirements and other key points to include in your own BRD. These projects can also help your team justify certain requirements based on successful past results.

4. Validate the documentation

Once you’ve finished writing the requirements document, have a subject matter expert and the project stakeholders review it. This is the time for everyone to validate the information and offer feedback or corrections.

This step is crucial to a creating a successful BRD. Without it, you risk missing key requirements or leaving critical errors that could set your project off track.

5. Include visuals

Although BRDs tend to be text-heavy in nature, visuals play an important role in presenting and clarifying information and making the document more user-friendly. Break up walls of text with data visualizations such as process flows and scope models.

One of the most common diagrams for a BRD is the business process diagram. This diagram visualizes a workflow process and how it relates to your business requirements. Depending on how complex your documentation is, you can use the process diagram to present high-level processes or drill down into more comprehensive and detailed processes for multiple requirements sections.

Business requirements vs. functional requirements

Although the terms are often used interchangeably, business requirements are not the same as the functional requirements for a project. The business requirements describe what the deliverables are needed, but not how to accomplish them.

That information (the “how”) should be documented in a project’s functional requirements document FRD. These are typically outlined within the software requirements documentation for development projects, but some organizations include a functional requirements section in their BRD. These functional requirements detail how a system should operate to fulfill the business requirements.  

Business requirements are the means to fulfilling the organization’s objectives. They should be high-level, detail-oriented, and written from the client’s perspective.

In contrast, functional requirements are much more specific and narrowly focused and written from the system’s perspective. Functional requirements are the means for delivering an effective solution that meets the business requirements and client’s expectations for that project.

Though the distinction is subtle, it’s important to know the difference between business and functional requirements to ensure effective requirements elicitation, documentation, and implementation. Understanding the difference also helps you keep the project properly focused and aligned so that your team can meet both the user needs and the business objectives at the end of the project.

Business Requirements Document (BRD) Template Download

FAQs

Being a business analyst is one of the best career options now and for the next two decades. Business analyst salaries have skyrocketed since the onset of the corona virus pandemic, because companies have increased digital adoption. This adoption has further fueled the demand for the role of the business analyst! In this article, discover credible and latest data about business analyst salary and launch your career as a business analyst. This is a good time to be a business analyst!

Business Analyst salary in United States

The average base salary a Business Analyst makes in the United States ranges between $82,411 and $93,000. (Data: Indeed and BLS).

Top 5 States for Business Analyst Employment Opportunities in the US

The following are the top 5 states in terms of employment opportunities.

Top paying states for Business Analysts in the US

The following are the top paying states for Business Analysts in the US:

Most common benefits for Business Analysts

Business analyst salaries exclude cash bonuses of $3,500 per year plus a host of other benefits that varies with company.

Business Analyst Salary across states in the US

The following are business analyst salaries across all states in the US.

The following is a state wise breakdown of business analyst salaries in the US:

• Business Analyst Salary in Massachusetts: $116870
• Business Analyst Salary in New Jersey: $116780
• Business Analyst Salary in New York: $114950
• Business Analyst Salary in Washington: $114730
• Business Analyst Salary in Illinois: $112420
• Business Analyst Salary in Virginia: $108890
• Business Analyst Salary in Rhode Island: $107250
• Business Analyst Salary in Connecticut: $94123
• Business Analyst Salary in California: $92823
• Business Analyst Salary in Texas: $92476
• Business Analyst Salary in Georgia: $92441
• Business Analyst Salary in North Carolina: $90400
• Business Analyst Salary in Minnesota: $89999
• Business Analyst Salary in Wisconsin: $89117
• Business Analyst Salary in Indiana: $88793
• Business Analyst Salary in Oregon: $87832
• Business Analyst Salary in Maryland: $87750
• Business Analyst Salary in Ohio: $87750
• Business Analyst Salary in Pennsylvania: $87500
• Business Analyst Salary in Kansas: $85650
• Business Analyst Salary in Iowa: $85158
• Business Analyst Salary in Tennessee: $85150
• Business Analyst Salary in Alaska: $85000
• Business Analyst Salary in New Hampshire: $85000
• Business Analyst Salary in Delaware: $84995
• Business Analyst Salary in Missouri: $84945
• Business Analyst Salary in Colorado: $84023
• Business Analyst Salary in Arizona: $84000
• Business Analyst Salary in Alabama: $82931
• Business Analyst Salary in Michigan: $82875
• Business Analyst Salary in Florida: $82847
• Business Analyst Salary in West Virginia: $82500
• Business Analyst Salary in Oklahoma: $80760
• Business Analyst Salary in Wyoming: $80313
• Business Analyst Salary in New Mexico: $80000
• Business Analyst Salary in Mississippi: $78000
• Business Analyst Salary in Vermont: $77544
• Business Analyst Salary in Nevada: $77500
• Business Analyst Salary in Louisiana: $77500
• Business Analyst Salary in Kentucky: $77303
• Business Analyst Salary in Utah: $76481
• Business Analyst Salary in South Carolina: $76050
• Business Analyst Salary in Nebraska: $75000
• Business Analyst Salary in Arkansas: $73500
• Business Analyst Salary in Maine: $65325
• Business Analyst Salary in Idaho: $62200
• Business Analyst Salary in North Dakota: $60450
• Business Analyst Salary in South Dakota: $60450
• Business Analyst Salary in Hawaii: $57822
• Business Analyst Salary in Montana: $57106

Allied Professions of Business Analysis

The following are occupations with job duties that are similar to those of business analysts along with their media salaries.

Frequently Asked Questions about Business Analyst Salary in the US

Become a Business Analyst with Experience

While different industries require industry specific skills, our research shows that most business analyst jobs vacancies tend to require a common set of competencies. The following is our compilation of the typical job description of a business analyst profile.

• Bachelor’s Degree or related experience (preferred in IT, technology, business, marketing, or a industry related field).
• 0-5 years’ experience.
• Data visualization (Tableau / Power BI) & SQL skills and experience.
• Advanced MS Excel skills including formulas, pivot tables, data filters/sorts.
• Works collaboratively with stakeholders and business leaders to understand, review, analyze and evaluate business needs.
• Responsible for business requirements: definition and documentation for new and changed application deliverables.
• Act as a liaison between business partners and IT development team.
• Scope, elicit, analyze and document business requirements – BRD for both new and existing applications using a variety of techniques and tools.
• Translate business requirements into functional requirements through the use of a functional requirement document FRD.
• Define and manage the scope of projects anticipating issues and proactively recommending solutions.
• Construct workflow charts, process diagrams and models.

• Self-motivated, willing to learn new technologies and able to work independently & cross-functionally
• Goal-oriented, passionate, high-energy professional with a “no excuses” attitude
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Must be comfortable and competent in communications with senior stakeholders both internally & externally 
• Possesses the drive to participate and succeed in the growth of the company
• Strong computer skills with experience using MS Office, and Google applications

Business analysts and data analysts share many responsibilities. But there are some key differences between them, too. Discover what the role of the business analyst and data analyst are, and how to decide which role might suit you best. To maintain a competitive edge, organizations rely ever more on data insights. This is either to solve existing problems or to identify new ones. Two common data roles you may come across are business analysts and data analysts. However, the many similarities between these roles can cause confusion when trying to distinguish between them.

In today’s world, data and technology increasingly pervades every industry and every aspect of how a business is run. This makes a career in data and technology a compelling prospect for many, with a variety of exciting career paths to choose from.

In this post, we’ll explore the differences between data analysts and business analysts. We’ll look at their responsibilities, how much they earn, and offer some tips for deciding which career path to take. We’ll cover:

1. What are the different responsibilities for business analysts and data analysts?
2. Should you become a data analyst or a business analyst?
3. Key takeaways

1. Business analysts vs. data analysts: What is the difference?

Before digging into the differences between business analytics and data analytics, it’s important to understand that they share many skills. For this reason, the terms are often used interchangeably and the responsibilities between them can be quite fluid. However, the core differences between data analysts and business analysts are threefold:

• What value each role brings to the organization
• The stakeholders they work with
• The skills required to succeed in the role

Let’s explore further.

What do business analysts do?

Business analysts help identify problems, opportunities, and solutions for their organizations.

A business analyst is someone who focuses on an organization’s business operations. While they work with data, their main aim is to help find solutions to known business issues. For instance, how to improve products, services, internal processes, or financial reporting. While business analysts need to understand and apply aspects of the data analytics process, this is a means to an end, rather than an end in itself. In short: data guides them, but profit drives them.

Business analysts are practical problem-solvers. They take a high-level view of what’s needed to make a business run more effectively. They’re strategic-minded and commercially focused. Business analysts need technical expertise, but their most invaluable traits are communication and leadership skills. In many ways, business analysts are not just problem-solvers, but salespeople. They must work with executive directors, board members, and other key decision-makers to get buy-in for their ideas. Having excellent powers of persuasion is vital for a business analyst. They must frame solutions in a way that convinces senior management that their chosen path is the right one for the business.

It can help to think of a business as a cruise ship. A business analyst would be the ship’s navigator. While they don’t make the final decision about the ship’s route (that’s up to the captain and other senior staff) they do have a better understanding than most of the ship’s quirks and nearby ocean topography (or the business landscape). As the most knowledgeable person on these matters, their job is to recommend the most scenic route—preferably one that also avoids unexpected icebergs!

They do this by:

• Evaluating a company’s current functions and IT structures
• Reviewing processes and interviewing team members to identify areas for improvement
• Presenting findings and recommendations to management and other key stakeholders
• Creating visuals and financial models to support business decisions
• Training and coaching staff in new systems

What do data analysts do?

Data analysts gather, clean, analyze, visualize, and present existing data to help inform business decisions. An effective data analyst uses data to answer a question and empower decision makers to plot the best course of action.

Unlike a business analyst, a data analyst focuses more closely on data. While their insights are used to inform business decisions, a data analyst’s role is usually less strategic. Of course, an outstanding data analyst will exhibit great communication and persuasion skills. But this is less of a vital skill than it is for a business analyst.

Instead, a data analyst’s value lies more in their technical abilities. Excellent programming skills, math and statistics, knowledge of a wide range of analytical processes, domain expertise, and creating custom dashboards and visualizations are a data analyst’s most indispensable skills.

To follow our cruise ship analogy, a data analyst can be seen as the ship’s engineer. While the navigator (or business analyst) sits on the bridge, the engineer (or data analyst’s) work usually takes place below deck. They have a much more in-depth understanding of all the ship’s systems. From the engine room to the propellers, the generators, and electrical systems, their job is to keep tabs on every aspect of the ship’s performance. While their insights are invaluable to the captain and for keeping the ship in tip-top shape, they don’t necessarily play a direct role in directing where it goes.

Common tasks for a data analyst might include:

• Working with business leaders and stakeholders to define a problem or business need
• Identifying and sourcing data 
• Cleaning and preparing data for analysis
• Analyzing data for patterns and trends
• Visualizing data to make it easier to understand
• Presenting data in such a way that it tells a compelling story

Educational background

Business and data analysts can come from a wide variety of academic backgrounds, though most companies look for candidates with at least a bachelor’s degree. Generally speaking, business analysts might have a degree in a business-related field, while data analysts often have degrees in STEM fields like statistics, math, or computer science.

2. Skills: business analyst vs. data analyst

Data analysis and business analysis involve a different skillsets. While both occupations work with data, they do so in different ways and to varying degrees.

Business Analysts Skills and Work

• Business development: Identifying and creating plans for the pursuit of new business opportunities.
• Building business cases: Backing up strategy with financial analyses, and reports on risks and returns.
• Producing roadmaps: Creating actionable step-by-step plans outlining the future direction of the organization.
• Business model analysis: Using data to evaluate an organization’s policies/structure, suggesting changes or improvements.
• Process design: Producing consistent workflows that are fit-for-purpose.
• Systems analysis: Defining the goals of an IT system, and building (or commissioning) it.
• Quality control: Evaluating/improving business output, e.g. products, services, IT systems, and procedures.
• Liaison: Acting as a go-between for management and technical personnel.
• Training materials: Creating project management methodologies, diagrams, and data flowcharts that can be used to upskill members of the organization.

Data Analysts Skills and Work

• Data collection: Scraping data from various sources, including the web, primary and third-party systems.
• Data modeling and processing: Devising new ways of collecting, storing, and manipulating data, often using tools like Python or Excel.
• Data cleaning: Tidying datasets and removing duplicate data points or inconsistencies in preparation for analysis.
• Data analysis: Knowledge of a broad range of analyses, including exploratory data analysis, descriptive, diagnostic, and predictive analytics (amongst others).
• Data visualization and reporting: Creating complex reports and eye-catching visualizations, using a variety of software and tools like Tableau.

Both our experiential programs – Business Analyst Work Experience program and the Data Analyst Work Experience Program teach you Tableau!

• Domain expertise: Data analysts often specialize in a very specific area of business operations, such as sales or finance (as opposed to the more organizationally global skills of a business analyst)
• Communication: Presenting findings in a variety of ways, e.g. multimedia reports, written reports, visualizations, or face-to-face presentations.

Here’s a look at a common comparison of skills for each.

The two roles share several skills as well. Whichever path you choose, you can set yourself up for success by being a good:

• Strong oral and written communication
• Problem solving
• Critical thinking
• Organizing
• Collaborating

3. Who earns more, business analysts or data analysts?

Despite different responsibilities, business analysts and data analysts earn approximately the same amount. To offer an idea of the salaries for each role, we’ve pulled data from the salary comparison site Payscale.

According to Payscale, data analysts in the United States earn a median salary of $61K. This ranges from $43K for entry-level positions, to around $85K for senior roles.

Meanwhile, business analysts also earn a median of $61K. Salaries range from $45K to $82K, depending on skill level.

While the difference here is minimal, data analysts often earn slightly more. This is because they usually need more technical expertise. From a practical standpoint, there are also many more graduates with business degrees than those with degrees in technical subjects such as math or statistics (more common requirements for data analysts). This reduces the pool of candidates for data analytics roles, contributing to the higher salary.

Importantly, what you’ll actually earn is more reliant on job-specific factors. For instance: the responsibilities and seniority of the role, the industry you’re working in, and an organization’s size. However, when choosing between the two career paths, salary shouldn’t be a key deciding factor. It’s far better to follow the one that most interests you.

4. Should you become a data analyst or a business analyst?

How can you decide which career path to choose? Hopefully, the first three sections of this post should give you a rough of idea which role might suit you best. If you’re still unsure, though, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

Should you become a data analyst?

Do you have a technical degree in a field like data science, math, statistics, or computing? Perhaps you have a technical background, with a career in software development or information systems management? Do you have a natural flair for making sense of abstract data? Are you happier working with spreadsheets and programming languages than interacting with people in high-stakes negotiations? If the answer to all these questions is yes, then a future in data analytics might be your best bet. Alternatively…

Should you become a business analyst?

Do you have a degree in a field like business administration, finance, or accounting? Perhaps you’ve spent much of your career working in senior management roles, dealing with commercial negotiations or strategic planning? Are you a big-picture person who enjoys getting hands-on with practical business problems? Do you love the challenge of dealing with different people, figuring out how to communicate data in ways that will push an agenda forward? If the answer to all these questions is a resounding yes, then business analytics might be your preferred path.

5. Key takeaways

In this post, we’ve explored the differences between business analysts and data analysts. We’ve learned that:

• Business analysts use data to create specific business solutions, such as how to improve products, services, processes, or increase profit.
• Data analysts take a slightly less strategic role, focusing on a deeper analysis of more complex datasets, often deriving broader insights from that data.
• Business analysts usually focus on strategic activities like driving new product development and winning stakeholder buy-in for new ideas.
• Data analysts (though requiring business know-how) tend to focus on the technical aspects of data analytics, e.g. data collection, analysis, and reporting.
• Data analysts and business analysts both earn about the same amount.

The demand for business analysts and data analysts is growing. As the digital economy adapts with the times, you can be certain that both roles will become even more in-demand, evolving in unexpected but fascinating directions.

Frequently Asked Questions about the difference between business analysts and data analysts