Academic Handbook Course Descriptors and Programme Specifications
LISYS62108A Business Analyst End Point Assessment Course Descriptor
| Course Code | LISYS62108A | Discipline | Computing and Information Systems |
| UK Credit | 30 | US Credit | N/A |
| FHEQ Level | 6 | Date Approved | October 2023 |
| Core Attributes | |||
| Pre-Requisites | |||
| Co-Requisites | |||
Course Overview
Whether looking for ways to reduce waste, increase productivity, ensure resilient and responsive customer service, or create a secure transactional environment, organisations turn to digital and technological solutions to achieve these aims.
A business analyst is an interpreter between two worlds, business and information technology, and they bridge the gap of understanding between business and technology teams. They analyse and understand business needs and define and manage business requirements. They oversee design and delivery of tested system solutions throughout a project life-cycle to ensure these meet business requirements. They are key communicators and drivers of collaboration throughout the development life-cycle. They are focused on the customer and work closely with the information technology delivery team. They are essential in the development of successful digital and technology solutions because they use their rigorous analysis of business requirements to inform their recommendations and provide insights.
This course enables learners to demonstrate the occupational competencies of the role via a work-based project and a portfolio. The implementation of the course assessments will be in line with the https://www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/apprenticeship-standards/digital-and-technology-solutions-professional-v1-2
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the course, learners will be able to:
Knowledge and Understanding
| K1c | Plan and deliver a substantial individual project by applying a digital technology solution and demonstrate a competitive advantage by adapting and exploiting it. |
| K1c | Assess sustainable development approaches within digital technologies as they relate to their role including diversity and inclusion. |
| K1c | Apply legislation and industry standards relevant to the organisation and sector. |
| K2c | Evaluate the principles of strategic decision making concerning the acquisition or development of digital and technology solutions. |
| K2c | Produce a project plan which estimates risks and opportunities and determines mitigation strategies. |
| K2c | Critically evaluate appropriate techniques and approaches that are used in creating a business case. |
| K2c | Apply techniques to estimate cost and time resource constraints. |
| K2c | Critically analyse the business problem behind the project proposal to identify the role of digital and technology solutions. |
| K2c | Carry out the identified solution proposal utilising a range of digital tools and standard approaches. |
| K2c | Outline the approaches used for change control and requirements management within the project. |
| K2c | Apply the principles of ‘Solution Evaluation’ to assess performance of and value delivered in the project and outline recommendations on how to increase value in the future. |
| K2c | Critically evaluate the purpose and value of quality assurance techniques. |
| K2c | Apply the principles of ‘Strategy Analysis’, including how to identify the business need, address that need, and align the change strategy within the organisation. |
| K3c | Conduct process analysis, definition, mapping and modelling within a business situation without supervision. |
| K3c | Critically evaluate a range of business analysis investigative techniques. |
| K3c | Critically evaluate the nature and scope of common vulnerabilities in digital and technology solutions. |
| K4c | Critically reflect on core technical concepts for digital and technology solutions, and their applicability to organisation’s standards; data gathering, data management, computer networking and data analysis concepts. |
| K4c | Demonstrate how teams work effectively to produce a digital and technology solution applying relevant organisational theories using up to date awareness of trends and innovations. |
| K4c | Critically evaluate concepts and principles of leadership and management as they relate to their role and how they apply them |
| K4c | Demonstrate relevant evidence to produce a proposal for a digital and technology based project in line with legal, ethical and regulatory requirements whilst ensuring the protection of personal data, safety and security |
Subject Specific Skills
| S1c | Apply relevant legal, ethical, social and professional standards to digital and technology solutions considering both technical and non-technical audiences and in line with organisational guidelines. |
| S1c | Compare and contrast how to use requirements elicitation, analysis and documentation to produce an acceptable solution for business problems or further opportunities. |
| S1c | Evaluate the impact of ‘Use Cases’ on all stakeholders of a system. |
| S1c | Demonstrate how to produce a business case to scope a proposed project including business benefits and recommendations. |
| S1c | Evaluate the impact of model selection and how they interrelate with each other when generating business analytics in line with the project brief. |
| S1c | Recommend and apply software tools to implement business analysis tasks and outcomes in the project brief. |
| S1c | Use products of analysis in the design and development of a system. |
| S1c | Use tools and benchmarking to support modelling and requirements gathering and recommend approaches to team members as required. |
| S3c | Demonstrate the use of core technical concepts for digital and technology solutions, including initiate, design, code, test and debug a software component for a digital and technology solution;; and apply the principles of data analysis. |
Transferable and Employability Skills
| T1c | Present an overview of the project to appropriate stakeholders using appropriate language and style |
| T1c | Display an advanced level of technical proficiency in written English and competence in applying scholarly terminology, so as to be able to apply skills in critical evaluation, analysis and judgement effectively in a diverse range of contexts. |
| T3c | Make meaningful conclusions on the basis of a long period of independent study. |
| T4c | Manage the project delivery to achieve digital and technology solutions |
| T4c | Justify the methods of research and evaluation which determined the selection of digital and technology solutions identified for the project |
Teaching and Learning
The contact hours on this course are formed predominantly of supervisory meetings, typically 4 x 1 hour.
Students are also expected to manage their self-directed learning and independent study in support of the course.
The course learning and teaching hours will be structured as follows:
- Off-the-job learning and teaching (12 days x 7 hours) = 84 hours
- On-the-job learning (24 days x 7 hours) = 168 hours (e.g. 2 days per week for 12 weeks)
- Independent study (4 hours per week) = 48 hours
Workplace assignments (see below) will be completed as part of on-the-job learning.
Indicative total learning hours for this course: 300
Assessment
Both formative and summative assessment are used as part of this course, with purely formative opportunities typically embedded within interactive teaching sessions, office hours, and/or the VLE.
Summative
| AE: | Assessment Activity | Weighting (%) | Duration | Length |
| 1 | Project report with presentation, questions and answers | 50% | 6000 word (report) & 60 minutes (presentation and Q&A) | |
| 2 | Professional discussion underpinned by a portfolio | 50% | 60 minutes |
Feedback
Students will receive formative and summative feedback in a variety of ways, written (e.g. marked up on assignments, through email or the VLE) or oral (e.g. as part of interactive teaching sessions or in office hours).
Indicative Reading
Note: Comprehensive and current reading lists are produced annually in the Course Syllabus or other documentation provided to students; the indicative reading list provided below is for a general guide and part of the approval/modification process only.
- Walliman, N., (2013), Your Undergraduate Dissertation: The Essential Guide for Success, London: Sage.
- Rugg, G., & Petre, M. (2006). A gentle guide to research methods. McGraw-Hill Education (UK).
- Berndtsson, M., Hansson, J., Olsson, B., & Lundell, B. (2007). Thesis projects: a guide for students in computer science and information systems. Springer Science & Business Media.
- Stephan Felix, M., & Smith, I. (2019). A practical guide to dissertation and thesis writing. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
- Jarzębowicz, A. and Marciniak, P., 2017. A survey on identifying and addressing business analysis problems. Foundations of Computing and Decision Sciences, 42(4), pp.315-337.
- Alotaibi, Y., 2016. Business process modelling challenges and solutions: a literature review. Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing, 27, pp.701-723.
Indicative Topics
Note: Comprehensive and current topics for courses are produced annually in the Course Syllabus or other documentation provided to students; the indicative topics provided below is used as a general guide and part of the approval/modification process only.
- How to solve a technological problem based on an organisation’s problem
- Managing technology projects to a successful outcome
- Using real-world data and scenarios
Version History
| Title: LISYS62108A Business Analyst End Point Assessment Course Descriptor
Approved by: Academic Board Location: academic-handbook/digital-and-technology-solutions |
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| Version number | Date approved | Date published | Owner | Proposed next review date | Modification (As per AQF4) & category number |
| 1.0 | October 2023 | October 2023 | Dr Alexandros Koliousis | October 2028 | |