BCS Professional Certificate in Agile Business Analysis Training in Ireland

The BCS Professional Certificate in Agile Business Analysis explores how Agile principles, practices and techniques can be applied to business analysis and organisational change.

Within an Agile environment, the Business Analyst's contribution extends beyond gathering and documenting requirements. Understanding business goals, maintaining close stakeholder collaboration, prioritising requirements, responding to change and helping teams remain focused on business value are all important aspects of the role.

This course examines the Agile Manifesto, Lean thinking, iterative development, incremental delivery, stakeholder engagement, Agile modelling, user stories, product backlogs, MoSCoW prioritisation, estimation and Kanban from a Business Analysis perspective.

Theory is supported by practical application throughout the programme. Case studies, collaborative discussions and guided activities enable participants to develop practical strategies that can be transferred into Agile business analysis environments.

The course also prepares participants for the BCS Professional Certificate in Agile Business Analysis examination.

Participants are expected to have an established level of knowledge and experience in Business Analysis or Systems Development.

Knowledge equivalent to the BCS International Diploma in Business Analysis or BCS Solutions Development Diploma is recommended.

Participants should also be familiar with techniques including:

• CATWOE
• Business Activity Modelling
• Use Case Diagrams

The course is particularly suitable for:

• Experienced Business Analysts
• Business Architects
• Business Managers
• Project Managers
• Professionals working within Agile transformation and business change
• Practitioners seeking to strengthen their Agile Business Analysis capability
• Holders of the BCS International Diploma progressing towards the BCS Advanced Diploma in Business Analysis

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Describe the Agile philosophy and interpret the Agile Manifesto.
• Explain Agile principles such as collaboration, iteration and continuous improvement.
• Compare Agile approaches with more traditional linear methods.
• Explain the role and contribution of a Business Analyst within Agile environments.
• Develop effective approaches for engaging different stakeholder groups.
• Manage requirements using user stories and product backlogs.
• Apply MoSCoW prioritisation.
• Define, organise and decompose business goals.
• Apply Lean thinking to identify and reduce waste.
• Contribute to estimation using Delphi and story points.
• Use iteration and velocity concepts when managing Agile requirements.
• Apply visual planning techniques including storyboards, scenarios, prototypes and Kanban boards.
• Develop a flexible Agile Business Analyst approach based on the concept of the generalising specialist.

1. The Agile Philosophy

The programme begins by examining the origins, philosophy and business context of Agile.

• History and evolution of Agile
• The Agile Manifesto
• Core Agile components
• Agile within the business environment
• Lean Business Analysis
• Lean thinking

Participants explore Agile as a broader approach to value, collaboration and change rather than simply a project delivery methodology.

2. Agile Key Principles

This section examines the principles that shape effective Agile working environments.

• Collaborative working
• Self-organising teams
• Continuous improvement
• Iterative development
• Incremental delivery
• Planning and building for change

Attention is given to how these principles influence the day-to-day work of a Business Analyst.

3. Agile Methods

Participants examine the characteristics of different Agile methods and the position of Business Analysis within them.

• Linear versus empirical approaches
• Evolution of Agile methods
• DSDM
• Unified Process (UP)
• Scrum
• Extreme Programming (XP)
• Lean Software
• The Business Analyst role in Agile

The objective is to understand the thinking behind different Agile approaches rather than simply memorising individual frameworks.

4. Understanding and Engaging Stakeholders

Effective stakeholder engagement is central to Agile Business Analysis.

Topics include:

• Identifying stakeholder groups
• The Agile BA's role in stakeholder engagement
• Managing stakeholder relationships
• Collaborative ways of working
• Responding to changing needs with stakeholders

5. Agile Modelling and Business Goals

This section considers how modelling can remain useful and lightweight within an Agile environment.

• Agile Modelling
• Models and model hierarchy
• MoSCoW prioritisation
• Defining business goals
• Decomposing business goals
• Organising and prioritising objectives
• Applying Lean thinking to identify waste

6. Agile Business Analysis Techniques

Participants develop practical techniques for defining, estimating and managing requirements.

User Stories

• The user story approach
• Expressing needs from the user's perspective
• Using user stories for requirements management

Product Backlog

• Managing requirements through the product backlog
• Organising backlog content
• Adjusting priorities as needs change

Estimation

• Delphi estimation
• Story points
• Collaborative estimation approaches

Iteration Management

• Managing iterations
• Understanding velocity
• Assessing progress and delivery capacity

7. Agile BA Planning

Participants explore visual and collaborative techniques that support planning and communication.

• Storyboarding
• Scenarios
• Prototyping
• Creating Kanban boards
• Visualising workflow
• Making work and progress visible

8. The Agile Business Analyst Role

The final section brings together the skills, behaviours and responsibilities associated with Agile Business Analysis.

• Agile Business Analysis in practice
• The BA's contribution to the Agile team
• Connecting business and technical perspectives
• Responding effectively to changing requirements
• The concept of the generalising specialist

The generalising specialist concept considers how a Business Analyst can retain a core area of expertise while developing sufficient breadth to contribute across different areas of an Agile team's work.