How to document use cases template

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For more requirements templates see our BA resources. Name The use case name. Description A brief description that states what the user wants to be able to do and what benefit he will derive. Actors The type of user who interacts with the system to accomplish a task.

Actors are identified by role name. Organizational Benefits The value the organization expects to receive from having the functionality described. Ideally this is a link directly to a Business Objective. Frequency of use How often this Use Case is executed.

Triggers Concrete actions made by the user within the system to start the Use Case. Preconditions Any states that the system must be in or conditions that must be met before the Use Case is started.

Postconditions Any states that the system must be in or conditions that must be met after the Use Case is completed successfully. These will be met if the Main Course or Alternate Courses are followed. Some exceptions may result in failure to meet the Postconditions.

Main Course The most common path of interactions between the user and the system. Step 1 2. Not how the system is doing all that. Otherwise, you really have a different kind of document, not a use case.

Then, alternate flows and exception flows. These are the variant paths. You can do different things. You might have—Sometimes it might not fit within the scope of that use case but all the different things you can do. An exception flow might be: what happens if your Internet connection cuts out and the stream ends? How does that get presented to the user? Things that go wrong and keep people from, stopping reaching the end goal or the end of the use case.

Post-conditions are what are true after the use case is over. How do I communicate with developers, and how do I do things like requirements? What do I see the system doing for me? Then, the user fills in the order form; the user submits the order form, the shopping cart checks credit card details.

How does that actually happen? That would be really important, the user information from one system to the other, so we can automate that setup and get people their course registration details as quickly as possible. That is the kind of thing where you would see the gap. We see this thing happening here.

We have this thing happening here. Where does it come from, and how does it get there? It really helps you understand the technology without having to build the technology. Thank you for watching. Again, download that use case template here.

As always, we build our profession one business analyst at a time. Use case modeling takes time, effort, and planning. But used properly, use cases can also save you time and effort — and lots of rework. Use cases have many benefits, including these.

A use case outlines a single function. If you are planning a large project with multiple components, a use case brings an essential discipline that requires breaking down the project into discrete tasks.

Not only can this make it easier to grasp the entire project, but it can also help identify aspects with no value for the user — functions you may not need at all. While we all know we should be doing this in every aspect of our business, it's easy to overlook what a customer needs or expects. Since each use case solves a customer issue, all the use cases in your bigger projects bring value to your customer.

Breaking them out into discrete functions helps to define and clarify that value so you can focus on what the end user really wants and not be distracted by tasks that add more work than value. Part of developing a use case is to think carefully about how your end product, process, or service should work. For an existing process, you have to be willing to break your system down into its smallest components and examine how each functions. For a new process or product, you have to be wildly creative and imagine every possible glitch, slowdown, or source of dissatisfaction.

Make sure to rope in the relevant stakeholders and approach this as you would any project management process. Your use case design will probably be unique to your business, but every use case will have at least three elements:. The system is where you will spend most of your time, but it's essential to precisely define and consider all three of these. And while your use case will help you in project planning, it's a project in itself. But who is the user for your new marketing software?

Are you hoping it will make things easier for your sales team? Will it integrate with invoicing, inventory, and accounting systems? With a new website, what do your visitors want from your site? Are they looking for your physical address or a phone number?

Do they want to know more about your products? Or is the site itself a product, such as a video streaming site or a social network? And, if so, what do those users want to accomplish when they visit?

A Netflix user may want to watch movies, but he or she might also want to update their account settings or add a user profile. Your use case will ensure they're able to accomplish all their goals easily. If your restaurant is adding a drive-through, drive through!

Consider how a customer will access the ordering point and place your menu there, rather than deciding based on the current location of your deep fryer or landscaping. Is the signage visible from tall SUVs and tiny subcompacts? Are your menu options clear? Is payment quick? Measure ticket times for all menu items and all traffic situations. Consider what impact weather might have is there a roof over your order point and windows? Do all this on paper first — this is the beauty of the use case.

In the drive-through case, what happens if your customer decides they want fries at the pay window? What will you do if someone walks into your drive-through? Each use case scenario can provide valuable insights into how your whole system should work.

As shown in the diagram above, a restaurant has many transactions and many users. Consider what steps a server must take during the dining experience. Is your ordering system easy for servers to use — and does it provide clear directions to your kitchen staff? Do the same for your bartender, bussers, maitre d', valets, and managers. Your system refinement should allow for variety for your customers, clarity for your servers, and efficiency for the cooks. Give your restaurant or hotel a soft launch to shake out any hitches, beta test that software, and test market your new product.

Even the most creative team can misjudge how a new system fares in the real world. Plan your trial run early in the process so you can fix any glitches at minimal cost and delay. If you use project management software , let it help you automate workflows and simplify team communication as you refine your product. Intro business classes will often illustrate the use case concept with an oversimplified example — making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, for example, or filling a gas tank.

These are useful because they show the granularity you need when developing a use case. Here are some real-world examples of when use cases saved the day — or when they could have, had they been implemented.

A use case can help at any point in your project life cycle. Uniformed elevator operators filled the bill, but they still continued in service well after automatic elevators had become the norm.

For decades, department store patrons and luxury high-rise residents had scads of awkward encounters directing attendants, often still full-time and liveried, to push a button. Does your business have no-value-added holdovers?

A use case can help sniff them out and streamline your practices. A quote probably inaccurately attributed to Henry Ford states, "If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have asked for a faster horse. The prevalence of horses blinded most people to the underlying need.

Make sure you know what your users want, and then build your use case to map out, step-by-step, how your new product or process will provide it. Your user story is the big picture; a use case is the road map that gets your user to their goal. A use case helps you anticipate and prepare for problems so you can move your project forward with confidence.

The template includes a layout with all the sections you need for a stellar proposal, including descriptions and what information to include in each section.