Dividing the roles and responsibilities

Let’s look at one particular area where trouble can arise. The division of responsibilities between different teams or groups within a project. For example, IT roles and responsibilities versus business analysis team roles and responsibilities when it comes to the requirement definition.

Now for the sake of this argument let’s specifically call it the business requirement definition. So you might say it is simple the responsibility lies with the business analysis team to complete the requirement definition effectively. But you need to think about it in a bit more detail than that.

It is my view that when a project neglects to include IT in this process you are setting yourself up for failure. Imagine a large program of work and the business analysts are busily working away defining the business requirements without discussing with IT the feasibility or difficulty in meeting those requirements. The project could end up agreeing to and working towards a solution that sounds great to the client but is difficult, lengthy, costly or even impossible to fulfil.

Now IT’s role and responsibilities are around defining and developing a solution to meet those requirements, it makes it very difficult to do that if they have had no input and involvement in determining those requirements.

So in our example of the requirement definition, how should it work?

Business Analysis Team Role and Responsibilities

• Gather and assess requirements of the business

• Determine relevance of requirements in comparison to project objectives before inclusion

• Provide project impact assessment on requirements where required to determine impact on cost, duration and project outcomes

• Document requirement definition

• Consult IT and any other involved departments in the requirements gathering process from the beginning

• Obtain sign-off and approval from all involved parties

IT Roles and Responsibilities

• Provide accurate guidance on feasibility of requirements during the requirements elicitation process

• Work with the business analysis team to determine the impact on the project of including various requirements in relation to cost, duration and project outcomes

• Work with the business analysis team to determine alternatives where requirements prove to be not feasible or beneficial for inclusion

• Thoroughly review and provide feedback and sign-off of requirements

Your explanation of and division of roles and responsibilities should be as detailed as your requirements document itself, because getting it wrong can have dire and disruptive impacts on your project and your team.

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