CASE Method : Business Interviewing

An indispensable guide to successful information gathering, this book focuses on the techniques of how to interview, giving the reader more time to concentrate on what is actually being said. As a tool for personal skill development or as a training aid, this text serves as an easy-to-use reference on all aspects of business interviewing.

This text emphasizes the key role of user feedback and involvement in formulating a business model and evolving a system architecture. The text also provides readers with a variety of approaches to system development. It gives practical advice on the conduct of interviews at a variety of stages, along with effective presentation techniques. This highly practical book covers the basic techniques of interviewing clients and describes and illustrates different approaches to the various stages of their system development cycle.

In our consultancy role, we find that interviews play a major part in the information gathering for any project. We have learned that the activity is a valuable opportunity for discovering many layers of information. Where we once looked on it as a data collection activity, now we consider it one that can provide real knowledge and understanding of the individuals we are interviewing.

We enjoy interviewing and have become more and more fascinated with the whole process of communication. We find ourselves interviewing in varied industries, countries and cultures. In such situations, we are looking at how we can best create an environment for a free interchange of ideas and be able to interpret accurately the information we gather. The last part is the most difficult. Semantics and differing sets of assumptions blur our view of what we have heard. Throughout any interview, we are trying to put aside our own preconceptions and listen with an open mind. It is not easy. The task is made easier, however, by having a set of techniques in hand for interviewing.

The mechanics of an interview are just that, mechanisms for smoothing a process. Once the interview process can be carried out with less effort, we can devote our time and attention to the real issues that are being discussed. That is why we are focusing in this book on the techniques for interviewing-on how to interview-with the goal of helping you have more time to concentrate on the real part of the interview-on what is actually being said.

Over the years we have come to value the practical techniques we have discovered which enable us to get below the surface in an interview to really understand the perspective of the interviewee. We believe that Information Technology practitioners in particular have an opportunity to improve their knowledge and understanding of what the needs of their business are and thus to dramatically improve the role they play in their business. Good interviewing techniques become an important asset.

The understanding we gain from an interview brings with it another challenge. We must often take information from one interview and combine it with results from several other interviews in order to build a picture or models, about our understanding. At this point, clarifying meaning becomes especially critical. It is the dilemma of converging various points of view that brings us closest to the real issue in an interview-understanding what is being said. We have been developing techniques to help us with that task and want to share them with others.

A book develops slowly. Several years ago Linda wrote some practical guidelines for interviewing. We used feedback from practitioners to expand the guidelines, which in turn formed the starting point for this book. We hope that this book will help to answer more questions and lead to rewarding and successful interviews.

To all - new and experienced alike - good luck.

This book is about those "soft skills" and it has greatly influenced how I approach one of the most important activities in which consultants engage – interviewing and elicitation. Prior to reading this book I viewed this activity as an art and, to be honest, as a necessary evil. As a group IT consultants have traditionally failed at effectively communicating with business users. There has been much written about aligning IT to business, but little has been said about how to go about it. This book changes that – at least from a requirements gathering and communications point of view.

To begin, it takes a methodical approach to the interview process by defining deliverables. We consultants seem to do this for every activity *except* interviewing. It then gives an example situation, and covers the basics of interviewing.

As you go through this book you will find sound advice on note taking, managing interview material, and advanced techniques.

Among the advanced techniques are how to read non–verbal communications (body language), how to match conversation styles with your subjects, and how to manage the interview. This is excellent material that should be read by any consultant who has customer contact.

I especially liked the chapter on facilitating workshops and groups, managing feedback sessions and eliciting knowledge (as opposed to eliciting information). I also found the checklists provided throughout the book to be excellent aids and have copied them for my own use.

This book should be required reading for all consultants and IT professionals regardless of their level of experience. It gives us a set of tools to use to align IT and business, starting with the most basic of activities: effectively communicating.