Task Analysis

Task analysis involves observing end users performing work in their normal environment to determine end users' needs and key design requirements. It identifies the mental and physical tasks and subtasks that must be performed, and determines how the application's design can assist the user in accomplishing their work most effectively. The information collected during task analysis should be the basis of the interface design.

The Task Analysis will identify users' workflow patterns, conceptual models, objects, actions, and the interrelationship between those objects and actions. A Task Analysis is different from systems analysis in terms of goals and output. The goal of systems analysis is to define the processes and data of the system and yields a description of what the system will do and how it will be implemented. By contrast, the goal of Task Analysis is to provide the basis for the user interface and the output is a high-level design specification which describes how the functionality will be presented to the user. The main objects of systems analysis are data and functions, by comparison, the objects of Task Analysis are user tasks.

Requirements:

To complete this activity, Client provides:

• Staff, as needed, that are familiar with the end users' environment and work, must be available to provide information about users and their tasks.
• End users (or end user representatives) must be available for interviews, observation as they perform work, and participation in developing or validating user task scenarios.
• Information sources such as user profile(s), requirements documents, design specifications, or system documents.
• Access to application prototypes, existing, competitive, or predecessor applications, if required.

Deliverables:

A task analysis document (and task workflow) showing the tasks and subtasks performed by end users and the order in which they are performed. A representative sample of user task scenarios may also be developed and documented.