IIBA Updated CBAP Exam Questions and Answers by ingrid

 A communications management plan is a document that describes how the business analyst will communicate with the stakeholders throughout the project. It includes information such as the timing and frequency of communication, the location and mode of communication, the tools and techniques to be used, the delivery methods and formats, and the stakeholders’ preferences and needs. A communications management plan helps to ensure that the stakeholders are informed, engaged, and satisfied with the project progress and outcomes. A stakeholder collaboration plan is a document that describes how the business analyst will collaborate with the stakeholders to elicit, analyze, validate, and manage the requirements. A business analysis plan is a document that describes how the business analyst will conduct the business analysis activities, such as the scope, approach, deliverables, tasks, resources, and schedule. A stakeholder analysis plan is a document that describes how the business analyst will identify, analyze, and prioritize the stakeholders and their needs, expectations, and influence. References: BABOK Guide v3, Chapter 2: Business Analysis Planning and Monitoring, Section 2.5: Plan Business Analysis Communication, p. 38-40; Chapter 3: Business Analysis Governance and Information Management, Section 3.1: Plan Business Analysis Governance, p. 50-51.

 A purchase solution approach is one that involves acquiring a COTS software package from an external vendor or provider, rather than developing a custom solution in-house. A purchase solution approach can offer several benefits, such as faster delivery, lower cost, higher quality, and reduced risk. However, a purchase solution approach also has some drawbacks, such as limited customization, dependency on the vendor, compatibility issues, and licensing fees. A BA should evaluate the pros and cons of a purchase solution approach against the business needs and requirements, and compare it with other possible solution approaches, such as outsource, exploit, or create. References:

Evaluating Candidate COTS Packages, ArgonDigital

Seven Insights: Agile and Custom Off The Shelf (COTS) packaged software, Kenny & Company

COTS Software Procurement Methodology, IGI Global

An elicitation activity plan is a technique that helps to plan and prepare the activities and tasks that are required to elicit the information and requirements from the stakeholders. An elicitation activity plan defines the objectives, scope, approach, methods, techniques, tools, resources, schedule, and deliverables of the elicitation process. An elicitation activity plan can help the BA to create an output of the initial meeting with experts, as it can help to identify the stakeholders, their roles and responsibilities, their information and communication needs, their availability and preferences, and their expectations and constraints. An elicitation activity plan can also help the BA to select the most appropriate and effective elicitation techniques, such as interviews, workshops, observation, or document analysis, to obtain the relevant and reliable information and requirements from the experts. An entity relationship diagram is a technique that helps to represent the data and information needs of an organization or a solution using graphical or textual symbols and relationships. An entity relationship diagram shows the entities that are relevant to the domain, the attributes that describe the entities, and the relationships that exist between the entities. An entity relationship diagram can help the BA to define and analyze the data requirements, but it is not an output of the initial meeting with experts. A current state flowchart is a technique that helps to create a graphical representation of the activities and tasks that are performed to achieve a specific goal or outcome in the current state of the organization or the solution. A current state flowchart shows the sequence and flow of the activities and tasks, the roles and responsibilities of the performers, the inputs and outputs of each activity or task, and the rules and conditions that govern the process. A current state flowchart can help the BA to understand and document the current state of the delivery process, but it is not an output of the initial meeting with experts. An information management approach is a technique that helps to plan and manage the storage, access, distribution, and retention of the information and requirements throughout the project lifecycle. An information management approach defines the format, structure, level of detail, and quality of the information and requirements, the tools and techniques to be used, the roles and responsibilities of the information and requirements owners and users, and the policies and procedures to be followed. An information management approach can help the BA to ensure the consistency, accuracy, completeness, and security of the information and requirements, but it is not an output of the initial meeting with experts. References: BABOK Guide v3, Chapter 10: Techniques, Section 10.12: Elicitation Activity Plan, p. 513-514; Section 10.19: Data Modeling, p. 525-527; Section 10.43: Process Modeling, p. 557-559; Section 10.14: Information Management Approach, p. 516-517.

 A satisfy relationship is a type of traceability relationship that indicates that a model element (such as a requirement, a design element, or a test case) fulfills the intent of another model element (such as a stakeholder need, a business requirement, or a regulatory requirement). By using a satisfy relationship, the BA can link the solution components that implement the regulatory requirements and show how they meet the compliance criteria. References:

Overview of working with requirements (SysML)

SysML: Establishing Traceability using Matrix and ETL Table

IIBA BABOK Guide, Section 7.6, Traceability and Monitoring