You may have seen the commercial for Domino's pizza where customers sit around and talk about how bad the pizza was and what could be done to make it better. This is a focus group where an organization is talking to group a customers trying to elicit opinions and suggestions from them. The same concept can be used when eliciting requirements. Remember that as a Business Analyst the people you are building a solution for are your customers. It does not matter if they are internal employees to the organization or people who are going to be purchasing a product or service from the company. Focus groups take place in an interactive environment where a moderator helps guide the conversation.
Preparation is an important part of a successful focus group. The size of a group should be between 6 and 10. When inviting people to participate there are two types of groups to consider. The first is a homogeneous group where the individuals in the group have similar characteristics. This group could be made up of people in the same department. The advantage of this type of group is that the people attending will all have a similar understanding of the challenges they face and the needs of the solution. The disadvantage is that by having everyone from a similar background in the same group, differing perspectives may not be shared. The way to overcome this disadvantage is to have multiple homogeneous focus groups each with a different group. The second type of focus group is a heterogeneous one. This group has participants with different backgrounds and perspectives. The issue with this type of group is that some members may not be as honest as you would like them to be if they are uncomfortable with other's background or opinion. In the end it is best to have both types of focus groups.
The moderator in a focus group has an important role. They must be able to promote discussion and get everyone involved. A good focus group not only has interaction between the moderator and members, but between members in the group. It is the job of the moderator to make sure this happens. The moderator should develop a list of questions before the session, but be willing to deviate from it if the conversation goes another direction that is still beneficial to the overall effort. Objectives should also be created by the moderator and it is their job to make sure those objectives are met by the end of the focus group session. There should also be a recorder in the focus group and it is best if this person is different from the moderator.
Focus groups are the most successful when everyone is in the same location. It is important for everyone in the group to feel comfortable to share their thoughts. A focus group along with a skilled moderator can produce requirements that have been strengthened by the different perspectives of the group coming together. The focus group is a technique that fits between the one-on-one interview and brainstorming sessions. It should be added to your requirements elicitation toolkit as a great way to gather the requirements needed for a successful solution.
