Database Reference
In-Depth Information
K
IRA
: “Then you don't supply the customer type or the last purchase date. Is that
correct?”
J
OAN
: “Yes.”
K
IRA
: “Can you tell me who provides this data?”
J
OAN
: “I'm not really sure, but . . .”
K
IRA
: “Do you have an idea of where these items come from?”
J
OAN
: “As a matter of fact, I do. They come from the sales department.”
K
IRA
: “That sounds good to me. I'll make a note of that on this sample, and then
we can move on to the next one.”
Note that as the dialog begins, Kira first tries to determine whether Joan submits any data
at all to the report. When Joan reveals that she contributes two of the items for the report,
Kira then poses a follow-up question to verify that Joan is not submitting any of the other
data. Finally, Kira tries to identify the source of the remaining data by asking Joan if she
knows from where the data originates. In this case, it takes only two well-phrased ques-
tions to find the answer. If Joan could not answer the last two questions, Kira would need
to continue her investigation with other participants.
You're sure to obtain all the information you need about your report samples if your dis-
cussions progress in the same manner as the preceding dialogue. Remember: Follow-up
questions are a crucial part of the conversation. You must phrase your questions properly
to elicit the types of responses you need from the participants.
Additional Information Requirements
The next subject of discussion is
additional
information requirements. The objective here
is to determine whether users require additional information that is not being delivered
to them currently. If this is the case, you must identify what additional information they
require and then define new data structures to support this extra information later in the
design process.
Start this conversation by directing the participants to review the reports they currently re-
ceive. Ask them whether there is other information they would like to see in their reports.
Next, direct them to discuss the additional information, which reports the information will
affect, and the reason they believe the information is necessary. Then determine whether
the additional information represents new subjects or new characteristics. If it does, identi-
fy each new item and add it to the appropriate list. Finally, review the participants' com-
ments and determine whether there are further issues you need to discuss with them in re-
gard to the reports. Here's an example that illustrates the process.
