IIBA IIBA Certifications CCBA Questions & Answers

• Question 421:

  A business analyst (BA) is working on a project that has a number of stakeholder conflicts and issues. The BA is finding it difficult to resolve the conflicts and issues effectively. What should the BA do to prevent a similar situation in the future?

  A. Plan business analysis governance

  B. Verify requirements

  C. Perform stakeholder analysis

  D. Validate requirements

  Correct Answer: C

  Stakeholder analysis involves identifying the stakeholders that may be affected by a proposed initiative or that share a common business need. Stakeholder analysis notes, considers, and analyzes the various characteristics of the identified stakeholders.

• Question 422:

  Two business analysts (BAs) are working on a requirement elicitation activity. One BA comes across a checklist that contains stakeholder details such as who are involved, location, group dynamics that are to be considered before beginning the elicitation activity and seeks a clarification from the second BA. The other BA explains that these details, along with several other items mentioned in the checklist, are required to:

  A. select elicitation techniques.

  B. prepare stakeholders.

  C. secure supporting material.

  D. understand scope of elicitation.

  Correct Answer: B

  Business analysts may need to educate stakeholders on how an elicitation technique works or what information is needed. It may be helpful to explain an elicitation technique to stakeholders not involved in the activity to help them understand the validity and relevance of the information elicited. Stakeholders may be unresponsive or challenging during an elicitation activity if they feel that it is not aligned to their individual objectives, don't understand the purpose, or are confused about the process. In preparing for elicitation, the business analyst should ensure that there is buy-in from all necessary stakeholders. Business analysts may also prepare stakeholders by requesting that they review supporting materials prior to the elicitation activity in order to make it as effective as possible. An agenda might be provided in advance to support stakeholders in coming prepared to the activity with the necessary frame of mind and information. Eliciting through research or exploration may be a solo activity for the business analyst and not require preparing other stakeholders.

• Question 423:

  A business analyst (BA) decided to capture requirements by inviting all the stakeholders to meet at an office location. After invitations were sent, it turned out that not everyone could attend this meeting because of their individual dispersed locations.

  Which of the following does the BA need to adjust to handle this situation?

  A. Project stakeholders

  B. Logistics setup

  C. Elicitation scope

  D. Elicitation technique

  Correct Answer: D

  The BA needs to adjust the elicitation technique to handle the situation of not everyone being able to attend the meeting because of their individual dispersed locations. Elicitation technique is a technique for obtaining information from stakeholders or other sources3. The BA should choose an elicitation technique that is suitable for the type, scope, and complexity of the information needed, as well as the availability, location, and preference of the stakeholders. For example, if some stakeholders cannot attend a face-to- face meeting due to geographical differences, the BA can use an alternative technique such as surveys, interviews, or focus groups using online tools or platforms. References: 3:BABOK Guide v3, Section 4.2

• Question 424:

  Ralph is a business analyst for his organization and he's using the plan-driven approach for business analysis. Ralph has captured the requirements of the project, but what must happen before he can begin capturing and defining the requirements at a deeper level of detail?

  A. The initial requirements must be tested for time, cost, quality, and risk.

  B. The initial requirements must undergo a feasibility study.

  C. The initial requirements must be formally approved by the stakeholders.

  D. The initial requirements must pass through the Delphi Technique.

  Correct Answer: C

  Before Ralph can begin defining the requirements at a deeper level, the initial requirements must be formally approved by the relevant stakeholders. B is incorrect. The initial requirements do not need to undergo a feasibility study at this time.

  D is incorrect. The Delphi Technique is useful to gain consensus on requirements, but it's not a mandatory activity or needed (usually) with the initial requirements.

  A is incorrect. The requirements don't need to be tested for time, cost, quality, and risk at this time.

• Question 425:

  Which approach is best to take when a business analyst is assessing the solution options for a business need when there are relatively few criteria involved?

  A. Focus on the life cycle costs of the solutions.

  B. Focus on the commonalities of the solutions.

  C. Focus on the differences of the solutions.

  D. Focus on the implementation cost of the solutions.

  Correct Answer: C

  When there are only few criteria involved, it's often easiest and most direct to focus on the differences of the solutions.

  B is incorrect. The commonalities of the solutions won't expose the weaknesses, strengths, and values between the solutions.

  A is incorrect. The life cycle costs may be considered, but there are other elements that can be considered too.

  D is incorrect. The implementation cost of the solution is usually considered, but it's the business value of the solutions that the business analyst should actually focus on.

• Question 426:

  A Chief Information Officer (CIO) was discussing a solution approach for a technology project in a meeting where a business analyst (BA) was also present. Stakeholders were discussing advantages and disadvantages of each solution approach. What should be the top priority for the BA in assessing the solution approach?

  A. The trade-off and value to stakeholder

  B. The strategy alignment with the balanced scorecard

  C. The total cost of ownership of the project

  D. The strategy design options

  Correct Answer: A

  The top priority for the BA in assessing the solution approach is the trade-off and value to stakeholders. This means that the BA should evaluate how each solution approach balances the costs, benefits, risks, and impacts for the stakeholders. The BA should also determine how each solution approach delivers value to the stakeholders in terms of meeting their needs, expectations, and preferences. The other options are incorrect because: Option B is incorrect because the strategy alignment with the balanced scorecard is not the top priority for the BA in assessing the solution approach, but a factor that the BA should consider in assessing the solution approach. The strategy alignment with the balanced scorecard means how each solution approach supports or contributes to the strategic goals or objectives of an organization. The balanced scorecard is a framework that measures and monitors the performance of an organization based on four perspectives: financial, customer, internal process, and learning and growth. Option C is incorrect because the total cost of ownership of the project is not the top priority for the BA in assessing the solution approach, but a factor that the BA should consider in assessing the solution approach. The total cost of ownership of the project means the sum of all direct and indirect costs associated with acquiring, developing, implementing, operating, and maintaining a project or a solution. Option D is incorrect because the strategy design options are not the top priority for the BA in assessing the solution approach, but a factor that the BA should consider in assessing the solution approach. The strategy design options are alternative ways of designing or developing a solution to address a problem or an opportunity.

• Question 427:

  A business analyst (BA) is conducting a workshop with the purpose of analyzing a business process. Stakeholders of different business units are in attendance. Each stakeholder is able to explain their unit's contribution to the process, however, there is no end to end process owner who can provide a consolidated view. Which technique should the BA use to compare the stakeholder's inputs against each other in order to check for consistency and omissions?

  A. Schedule a follow-up workshop to give more time for additional input

  B. Create a use case scenario that describes the process step by step

  C. Develop a process model with swimlanes to highlight the handoff points

  D. Create a logical data model with the information elicited

  Correct Answer: C

  This is because a process model is a visual representation of the activities, inputs, outputs, and roles involved in a business process. Swimlanes are horizontal or vertical partitions that show the responsibilities of different actors or units in the process. By using a process model with swimlanes, the BA can compare the stakeholder's inputs against each other and identify any gaps, overlaps, or inconsistencies in the process flow. Scheduling a follow-up workshop (A) is not a technique, but a possible action that may or may not help to resolve the issue. Creating a use case scenario (B) is not a suitable technique, as it describes the interactions between a user and a system, not a business process. Creating a logical data model (D) is not a relevant technique, as it shows the relationships and attributes of the data entities, not the business process. References: CCBA Practice Test, CCBA Mock Test

• Question 428:

  A business analyst (BA), analyzing requirements, has decomposed information into components. What is the purpose of this exercise?

  A. To enable discussion regarding solution options

  B. To plan project iterations

  C. To plan test cases for the components

  D. To identify the project sponsor

  Correct Answer: A

  According to the BABOK Guide, decomposing information into components is a technique for structuring and organizing requirements. The purpose of this exercise is to enable discussion regarding solution options, as it helps the BA and stakeholders to understand the relationships and dependencies between requirements, identify gaps or overlaps in requirements, and evaluate alternative ways to meet the requirements. Therefore, the correct answer is A. References: [BABOK Guide], [CCBA Exam Simulator]

• Question 429:

  A new payments system was recently implemented to replace an old legacy system. The system users have lodged a complaint that the new system is slower than the old system but system performance statistics show more efficiency. How does the business analyst (BA) demonstrate to users how the new system is performing?

  A. Collect system metrics and communicate results in an understandable format

  B. Identify the dependencies of the system with other applications

  C. Analyze the feasibility of including additional hardware resources to the system D. Evaluate the payments process to identify areas of improvement in the system

  Correct Answer: A

  The best way for the BA to demonstrate to users how the new system is performing is to collect system metrics and communicate results in an understandable format. System metrics are quantitative measures that indicate the performance, quality, or efficiency of the system. Examples of system metrics are response time, throughput, availability, reliability, etc. The BA can use these metrics to compare the new system with the old system and show the users how the new system is more efficient. The BA should also present the results in a clear and concise format, such as graphs, charts, tables, etc., that can be easily understood by the users.

• Question 430:

  A change is desired in a project after the requirements are signed off and after technical design has started. The stakeholders want an additional product to be developed as part of the project. What tool can be used by the business analyst (BA) to assess the impact of the change?

  A. Concept modelling

  B. Requirements architecture

  C. Backlog management

  D. Balanced scorecard

  Correct Answer: B

  Requirements architecture is the tool that can be used by the BA to assess the impact of the change of developing an additional product as part of the project. Requirements architecture is the structure of requirements that defines their scope, boundaries, relationships, dependencies, assumptions, constraints, prioritization, traceability, and quality. Requirements architecture can help to assess the impact of change by identifying how a change in one requirement affects other requirements or solution components. References: : BABOK Guide v3, Section 7.1 : BABOK Guide v3, Section 7.1.2