Powerful questions are key to good analysis sessions.
From http://www.theworldcafe.com/pdfs/aopq.pdf a great quick read btw.
“Questions can be like a lever you
use to pry open the stuck lid on a
paint can. . . . If we have a short
lever, we can only just crack open
the lid on the can. But if we have a
longer lever, or a more dynamic
question, we can open that can up
much wider and really stir things
up. . . . If the right question is
applied, and it digs deep enough,
then we can stir up all the
creative solutions.”
Powerful questions dig into underlying assumptions, they create interest, and most of all they get people interested and good discussions come forth from them.
I am looking for what powerful questions you use in your analysis process so we can create a list (grabbing some from an old thread in my email as well). Here are some examples:
What is the smallest possible thing we can do to deliver this business value?
What is the need this system fills, not “what it does”
If I turned off the server tomorrow who would be the first person to notice and why?
How would you verify that this is working correctly?
what is the earliest point you can know whether the system has any value to you? How will we do this?
Why are we starting here?
Please keep them coming, the idea of powerful questions can quickly unlock the door to great discussions involving our software process.
When some architect/guru/wizard tells you to build or use any kind of solution, ask:
- Why is this better and how do I implement it?
If they don’t know the answer to one of them, don’t follow the advise! They’re probably of the non-coding-architect type!