Business Analysis

 

Business analysis is the process of analyzing the business needs of clients to help identify business problems and propose solutions.

 

Specifically it is a consultancy function that involves investigating the business systems in place, identifying options for improving them and bridging the resulting gap through the use of IT.

 

Within the systems development life cycle domain, the business analyst typically also performs a liaison function between the business side of an enterprise and the external or internal providers of IT services.

 

Project Management

 

Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, and managing resources to bring about the successful completion of specific project goals and objectives.

A project manager is the person accountable for accomplishing the stated project objectives.

Key project management responsibilities include understanding the exact needs of a client, formulating clear and attainable project objectives that will meet those needs, building the project requirements, and managing the triple constraint for projects, which are; cost, time, and quality.

 

IT Audit Services

 

An IT Auditor develops and implements a risk-based Information Systems audit strategy for an organization in compliance with audit standards, guidelines and best practices.

 

Depending on the agreed audit scope, specific audits are planned to ensure that IT and business systems are protected and controlled.

 

Following conclusion of the audit process, key stakeholders (normally senior management in this context) are presented with a comprehensive report consisting of:

 

An outline of the general findings

Highlighted areas of concern including issues and potential risks

A list of recommendations for remedial action

 

An IT Auditor can also advise on the implementation of risk management and control practices within the organization whilst maintaining independence.

 

Consultancy/advise/negotiation relating to Service Level/Support Agreements

 

A service level agreement (SLA) is a negotiated agreement between two parties where one is the customer and the other is the service provider.

 

The SLA document would typically contain a description of the services covered by the agreement, priorities for provision of the different services, responsibilities for any actions that should be taken upon occurrence of specified events, guarantees (which could also include Quality of Service), and penalties for non-provision of the agreed service within the agreed parameters.

 

Creation of an IT Strategic Plan

 

An IT Strategy Plan is a document that contains an analysis of the existing situation as regards IT together with a  plan showing how IT resources should be utilized in the most effective and efficient manner possible over a specific period of time in order to fully support the business strategy of an organization and thus achieve the required objectives.

 

The plan is typically divided into three sections, namely “As-Is” (where we are today), “To-Be” (where we want to be) and “Action Plan” (how to get there) and normally includes:

 

An executive summary

An analysis of internal capabilities

An inventory of current IT projects and their status

An inventory of existing applications and the resources they require to support them

A list of applications/projects that need to be implemented to meet business needs, with prioritization

Architectural directions and proposed methods for implementation of IT solutions

IT division strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats

IT organizational structure, roles, responsibilities, staffing levels, shortfalls

Milestones and deliverables (where appropriate)

 

An IT Strategy Plan normally spans a 3 year period but this may vary depending on the type of organization involved.

 

Consultancy/negotiation on Software licensing

 

The services covered under this heading include provision of advice, sourcing of appropriate software to meet particular requirements, and negotiation of licensing and/or support agreements to ensure the most advantageous terms. 

 

Consultancy on Asset Management

 

There are three types of “IT asset”, namely:

 

Hardware assets:        Items of IT equipment, such as servers, laptops, printers and so on

Software assets:         In-house developed, off-the-shelf or outsourced software packages and systems.

Information assets:     The organization’s data.

 

The term Asset Management covers a range of functions, including:

 

· Inventory and Tracking of asset location and movements (Software and Hardware)

· Life cycle tracking, i.e. Planning for redeployment, disposal and replacement (Software and hardware)

· Change and configuration management, i.e. ensuring that all changes are made only through appropriately documented and authorized procedures (Software and Hardware and Information)

· Ensuring all procurement is carried out in accordance with set policies and procedures (Software and Hardware)

· Ensuring use of software is in compliance with licensing and copyright laws (Software)

Ensuring Business Continuity through Escrow agreements (Information)

 

Creation of User/Technical manuals

 

Typical cases where such manuals may be required include:

 

Where the development of a system has not followed the correct development lifecycle, i.e. development of the manual has been omitted

Where the software itself has undergone various amendments over time, but these have not been documented anywhere with the result that users are totally confused as regards the functionality of the software

Where off-the-shelf software was provided with a system and then customized to meet the organizational requirements, but again the changes were never documented

Where the existing manual is too concise and is not useful for its intended purpose of guiding the end-user

 

In-house Services