Not wishing to piggy back too much on My Kitchen Rules (currently screening on Australian television) but for business analysts who like cooking – and even those who don’t – here’s a fun exercise to practice your process modelling skills.
If you like spending time in the kitchen, test your skills by translating something you’re familiar with into a process model. You’ll need to be objective and not rely on inside knowledge – just follow the instructions even if you can see better ways of doing things. That comes later.
If you don’t cook then completing the exercise will demonstrate that even without being a subject matter expert you can use a methodology to accurately document a process. Again, your first job is to accurately interpret the process description.
You’ll be using data flow diagrams (DFDs), the simplest of all diagramming languages. If you’re unfamiliar with DFDs, check out How To Draw Data Flow Diagrams. For those of you already comfortable with this modelling notation, parts B and C of the exercise test your skills in showing/hiding complexity through levelling. We’ve included example answers for all 3 parts if you get stuck. Bon appetit!
Click here to go to the exercise.
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