EXIN BCS International Diploma in Business Analysis Oral Examination study materials
EXIN BCS International Diploma in Business Analysis Oral Examination study resources

EXIN BCS International Diploma in Business Analysis Oral Examination key terms

EXIN BCS International Diploma in Business Analysis Oral Examination · Get comfortable with the vocabulary.

Business Analysis

The practice of identifying business needs and determining solutions to business problems, often involving requirements elicitation, analysis, documentation, and validation to deliver value to stakeholders.

Related: Requirements Engineering, Stakeholder Analysis
Requirements Engineering

A systematic process of eliciting, analyzing, documenting, and managing requirements throughout the lifecycle of a solution, ensuring they align with business objectives and stakeholder needs.

Related: Requirements Elicitation, Requirements Analysis, Requirements Management
Stakeholder Analysis

The process of identifying individuals or groups affected by or affecting a project, assessing their interests, influence, and communication needs to plan effective engagement.

Related: Stakeholder, Stakeholder Engagement
Stakeholder

Any person or group with an interest in the outcome of a project or business change, including customers, employees, managers, regulators, and suppliers.

Related: Stakeholder Analysis, Stakeholder Engagement
Stakeholder Engagement

The ongoing process of communicating with and involving stakeholders to understand their needs, manage expectations, and gain support for business analysis activities and solutions.

Related: Stakeholder Analysis, Communication Plan
Requirements Elicitation

The activity of gathering requirements from stakeholders using techniques such as interviews, workshops, observation, and document analysis to understand needs and constraints.

Related: Requirements Analysis, Requirements Engineering
Requirements Analysis

The process of examining, refining, and prioritizing elicited requirements to ensure they are complete, consistent, and aligned with business goals, often using models and techniques.

Related: Requirements Elicitation, Requirements Validation
Requirements Validation

The activity of confirming with stakeholders that documented requirements accurately represent their needs and are feasible, testable, and unambiguous before solution development begins.

Related: Requirements Analysis, Requirements Management
Requirements Management

The process of documenting, tracking, and controlling changes to requirements throughout a project's lifecycle, ensuring traceability and alignment with business objectives.

Related: Requirements Traceability, Change Control
Requirements Traceability

The ability to link requirements to their sources, design elements, and test cases, enabling impact analysis and ensuring that all requirements are addressed and verified.

Related: Requirements Management, Requirements Validation
Business Case

A document that justifies a proposed project or investment by outlining the business problem, options considered, costs, benefits, risks, and expected return on investment.

Related: Cost-Benefit Analysis, Feasibility Study
Cost-Benefit Analysis

A technique for evaluating the financial merits of a proposed solution by comparing its total expected costs against its total expected benefits, often using metrics like ROI or NPV.

Related: Business Case, Feasibility Study
Feasibility Study

An assessment of whether a proposed solution is practical and viable, considering technical, economic, legal, operational, and scheduling factors before committing resources.

Related: Business Case, Cost-Benefit Analysis
Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN)

A standardized graphical notation for modeling business processes, using flow objects, connecting objects, and swimlanes to represent activities, events, and gateways clearly.

Related: Process Modeling, Swimlane Diagram
Process Modeling

The creation of abstract representations of business processes to understand, analyze, and improve how work is performed, often using diagrams like BPMN or flowcharts.

Related: BPMN, Swimlane Diagram
Swimlane Diagram

A process diagram that organizes activities into lanes representing different roles or departments, clarifying responsibilities and handoffs within a business process.

Related: BPMN, Process Modeling
Use Case Diagram

A UML diagram that shows the interactions between actors and a system's use cases, providing a high-level view of system functionality and user goals.

Related: Use Case Description, UML
Use Case Description

A detailed textual specification of a use case, including actors, preconditions, main flow, alternative flows, and postconditions, used to capture functional requirements.

Related: Use Case Diagram, User Story
User Story

A short, simple description of a feature told from the perspective of the user, typically in the format 'As a [role], I want [goal] so that [benefit]', used in agile development.

Related: Use Case Description, Agile Business Analysis
Agile Business Analysis

The application of business analysis practices within agile frameworks, emphasizing collaboration, iterative delivery, and lightweight documentation to respond to change.

Related: User Story, Backlog Refinement
Backlog Refinement

The ongoing process in agile projects of reviewing, updating, and prioritizing items in the product backlog to ensure they are ready for upcoming iterations.

Related: User Story, Agile Business Analysis
Business Analysis Plan

A document that outlines the approach, activities, deliverables, and schedule for business analysis work on a project, aligning with the overall project plan.

Related: Business Case, Stakeholder Engagement
Communication Plan

A plan that defines how, when, and to whom project information will be communicated, including formats, frequency, and responsibilities for stakeholder engagement.

Related: Stakeholder Engagement, Stakeholder Analysis
Change Control

A formal process for managing changes to requirements or project scope, including requesting, assessing, approving, and implementing changes to maintain integrity.

Related: Requirements Management, Configuration Management
Configuration Management

The discipline of identifying, controlling, and tracking versions of project artifacts, such as requirements documents and models, to maintain consistency and traceability.

Related: Change Control, Requirements Traceability
Root Cause Analysis

A technique for identifying the underlying reasons for a problem or effect, often using tools like the '5 Whys' or fishbone diagrams, to address issues at their source.

Related: Problem Definition, Business Process Improvement
Problem Definition

A clear, concise statement of a business problem or opportunity, including its scope, impact, and symptoms, serving as a foundation for analysis and solution design.

Related: Root Cause Analysis, Business Case
Business Process Improvement

A systematic approach to analyzing and redesigning business processes to increase efficiency, reduce costs, and improve quality, often using methodologies like Lean or Six Sigma.

Related: Process Modeling, Root Cause Analysis
Gap Analysis

A technique for comparing the current state of a business process or system with a desired future state to identify the gaps that need to be addressed.

Related: Business Process Improvement, Requirements Analysis
Solution Evaluation

The process of assessing a deployed solution's performance and value against business objectives, identifying opportunities for improvement or removal.

Related: Business Case, Requirements Validation
UML

Unified Modeling Language, a standard visual modeling language used in software engineering to specify, visualize, and document system artifacts, including diagrams like use case and class diagrams.

Related: Use Case Diagram, Process Modeling
Business Analyst

A professional who analyzes business needs, elicits requirements, and recommends solutions to help organizations achieve their goals, acting as a bridge between stakeholders and technical teams.

Related: Business Analysis, Stakeholder Analysis
Oral Examination

A verbal assessment method where candidates answer questions and discuss scenarios with examiners, demonstrating their knowledge, experience, and communication skills in business analysis.

Related: Business Analyst, Business Analysis
Competency

A combination of skills, knowledge, and behaviors required to perform a job role effectively, often assessed in professional certifications through practical and oral examinations.

Related: Oral Examination, Business Analyst