13 Innovate360 Capstone Project
This capstone project integrates everything you have learned throughout the course. You will apply Business Analysis techniques to a realistic organizational scenario, demonstrating your ability to analyze problems, gather requirements, design solutions, and recommend a path forward.
13.1 The Scenario: Innovate360
Innovate360 is a mid-sized professional services firm with 500 employees across five offices. The company provides consulting services in strategy, operations, and technology to clients in various industries.
The company has grown rapidly over the past five years, doubling in size. This growth has created challenges that leadership wants to address through a strategic initiative to modernize operations.
13.2 Current State Challenges
Through interviews with stakeholders, you have learned about several interconnected problems.
13.2.1 Project Management Chaos
Project managers use different tools and approaches across offices. Some use spreadsheets, others use various project management applications, and some rely primarily on email. This makes it difficult to get a consolidated view of project status, resource allocation, or profitability across the firm.
Clients have complained about inconsistent project delivery experiences. The same type of engagement feels different depending on which office or team handles it.
13.2.2 Knowledge Management Gaps
The firm’s intellectual capital is poorly captured. When consultants complete engagements, their deliverables and lessons learned are stored in various locations (or not stored at all). New consultants struggle to find relevant past work that could accelerate current projects.
Senior partners worry that when experienced consultants leave, their knowledge leaves with them. There is no systematic way to capture expertise or transfer knowledge to less experienced staff.
13.2.3 Talent Development Struggles
The HR team cannot easily identify skills gaps or track professional development. Staffing decisions for projects are based on availability and relationships rather than optimal skill matching.
Employee satisfaction surveys indicate that consultants feel their development is not prioritized. Several high performers have left for competitors who offered clearer career paths.
13.2.4 Client Relationship Fragmentation
Client information is scattered across individual consultants’ files, a partially implemented CRM system that few people use, and the finance system’s billing records. No one has a complete picture of the firm’s relationship with any given client.
Cross-selling opportunities are missed because consultants in one practice do not know what colleagues in other practices have done for the same client.
13.2.5 Financial Visibility Limitations
The finance team produces monthly reports, but project profitability is difficult to determine. Time tracking is inconsistent. Expense allocation to projects varies by office. Leadership makes decisions based on incomplete information.
13.3 Your Assignment
Your assignment is to conduct a comprehensive Business Analysis for Innovate360’s modernization initiative. This involves the following deliverables.
13.3.1 Deliverable 1: Problem Statement and Root Cause Analysis
Write a problem statement that captures the core challenge Innovate360 faces. Remember to identify who is affected and what the impact is.
Conduct root cause analysis using the Five Whys technique for at least two of the challenges described above.
Create a fishbone diagram showing potential causes across multiple categories.
13.3.2 Deliverable 2: Stakeholder Analysis
Identify all stakeholders for this initiative. Consider internal stakeholders at various levels and external stakeholders who might be affected.
Create a stakeholder matrix showing power and interest levels.
For the five most important stakeholders, document their potential attitudes, concerns, and what they need from this initiative.
Develop a RACI matrix for key activities in the initiative.
13.3.3 Deliverable 3: Requirements Documentation
Write at least ten user stories covering different aspects of the solution. Include stories from multiple stakeholder perspectives.
For three of your user stories, write detailed acceptance criteria.
Identify and document at least three non-functional requirements that would apply to any solution.
13.3.4 Deliverable 4: Process Modeling
Create an activity diagram showing the current state of project initiation (how projects are started today based on the challenges described).
Create an activity diagram showing a proposed future state that addresses the identified problems.
Explain the key differences and why the changes improve the process.
13.3.5 Deliverable 5: Use Case Analysis
Create a use case diagram for a proposed knowledge management system. Include relevant actors and use cases.
Write a complete use case narrative for one of the use cases, including basic flow, alternative flows, and exception flows.
13.3.6 Deliverable 6: Solution Options and Recommendation
Identify at least three solution approaches Innovate360 could pursue. Consider options ranging from minimal intervention to comprehensive transformation.
For each option, document expected benefits, expected costs, risks, and key assumptions.
Develop a recommendation with justification for which option (or combination) Innovate360 should pursue.
13.4 Guidance for Success
This capstone requires you to make assumptions. The scenario description does not provide every detail you might want. In real Business Analysis work, you would gather additional information through elicitation. For this exercise, make reasonable assumptions and document them clearly.
Connect your deliverables. Your requirements should trace back to the problems identified in your root cause analysis. Your process models should reflect the needs documented in your user stories. Your solution recommendation should address the issues raised by stakeholders.
Be specific. Vague deliverables do not demonstrate competence. “Improve communication” is not a useful requirement. “Project managers must receive automated weekly status summaries for all projects in their portfolio” is specific and actionable.
Consider feasibility. Grand visions that cannot be implemented are not valuable. Consider the realities of organizational change when developing your recommendations.
Think about change management. Even a perfect solution fails if people do not adopt it. How will affected employees be brought along? What resistance should be anticipated?
13.5 Evaluation Criteria
Your capstone will be evaluated on several dimensions.
Completeness: Did you produce all required deliverables with appropriate depth?
Correctness: Did you apply techniques correctly using proper notation and terminology?
Consistency: Do your deliverables align with each other? Do requirements trace to problems? Do solutions address requirements?
Practicality: Are your recommendations feasible for an organization like Innovate360?
Communication: Are your deliverables clear and professional?
Insight: Do you demonstrate understanding beyond mechanical application of techniques?
13.6 Reflection
After completing the capstone, reflect on your experience.
What aspects of Business Analysis work do you find most engaging?
What techniques felt most natural to apply?
Where did you struggle, and what does that suggest about areas for continued development?
How has this course changed your understanding of what Business Analysts do?
How will you continue developing your Business Analysis skills after this course?
13.7 Conclusion
This capstone project brings together everything you have learned. The skills you demonstrate here are the same skills you will use throughout your career, whether your title includes “Business Analyst” or not.
The ability to understand problems deeply, engage stakeholders effectively, document requirements clearly, and recommend solutions wisely is valuable in any role. You have developed these capabilities. Now it is time to demonstrate them.
Good luck.