Business Value is a Conversation, Not A Number Kent J. McDonald @beyondreqs

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Business Value is a Conversation, Not A Number

Kent J. McDonald@beyondreqs

The Prime Directive:

Deliver Business Value!

The organizers wish to apologize for any gratuitous trekkie references that may appear in this presentation.

Those responsible have been sacked.

What is business value?

I’ll know it when I

see it

Justice Potter Stewart, concurring opinion in Jacobellis v. Ohio 378 U.S. 184 (1964), regarding possible obscenity in The Lovers.

Why do we care about Business Value?

Some key decisions

Is it worth it?

Are we delivering the right thing?

How unique should it be?

Is it worth it?

Decision Filters

Simple questions used to guide decision making.

“To be the low cost airline.”

- Southwest Airlines

“Will this help us be

the low cost airline?”

- Southwest Airlines

Student Information System

How Unique Should It Be?

Purpose Based Alignment Model

Purpose Based Alignment Model

Innovate, Create

Achieve and maintain parity, Mimic, Simplify

Do we take this on?

Minimize/Eliminate

Order new pages by 2pm and get them tomorrow!

The Billboard Test

Things to consider

Parity is

mission

critical

Purpose is

not priority

Different-iating

changes over time

Distribute the

decision filters

Purpose

shifts the

burden to

behavior

change

Deep Thought Academy

15:1 Student Teacher Ratio

“Personalized” lesson plans

Music Education w/ DSM Symphony

OTM

EnrollmentFundraisingBook keepingCurriculum FacilitiesParent Communication

Are we delivering the right thing?

Start with value, then identify

stories

Use Goals & Objectives to define value

Goal:

Increase our ability to

handle expected

increase in students

during enrollment

Objective:Reduce time spent enrolling students from 60 min/student to 20 min/student by 2015

Describing ObjectivesAttribute

Description Example

Name Unique name for objective Reduce enrollment time

Scale What to measure (units) Minutes per student spent by Dir. Of Enrollment

Meter How to measure (method) Total time spent on enrollment/# students

Target Success level we’re aiming to achieve

20 min/student by 08/2015

Constraint

Failure level we’re aiming to avoid

> 60 min/student by 08/2015

Baseline Current performance level 60 min/student 08/2014

Identify Assumptions

Most student’s

enrollment

information does not

change from one year

to the next

The enrollment attributes we request does not change from one year to the next.

Parents would provide enrollment information electronically

Identify stories to validate assumptions & meet objectives

Most student’s

enrollment

information does not

change from one year

to the next

In order to determine

how much new

information we need

from students each

yearAs Enrollment Director

I need…

Parents would provide enrollment information

electronically

In order to gauge our

parent’s willingness to

provide enrollment

information

As Enrollment Director

I need …

Questions?

If you remember nothing else…

Business value is a conversation to help us decide: Is it worth it? How unique should

it be? Are we delivering

the right thing?Use business objectives to tell if you delivered value

Questions: kmcdonald@b2ttraining.com Connect!

http://www.linkedin.com/in/KentMcDonald

Follow!@beyondreqs

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