The Unified Dublin Transport Analytics Project

1. Introduction

The research for transportation strategy and planning has always represented a crucial area of study for the urban planning field as well as for the business field considering the impact that this may have on the economic development of a nation (Wey, W.M. and Huang, J.Y., 2018).

Transport services represent an essential backbone for social and economic development, but they can also cause significant costs on society if they are not planned and developed sustainably.

Therefore, according to Susniene and Jurkauskas (2008), the growth and the development of urban mobility should aim to meet the needs of both citizens and businesses in order to have a positive impact on the environment, the society and the economy.

This project is collocated in this context and it is designed to identify and respond to business needs emerging from some flaws in the current Dublin transportation system.

Considering the recent population increase, National strategic policy on land use, settlement, economic development and sustainability has consistently identified Dublin transportation service a driver of national economic development. This is even more relevant in the context of the current economic growth and the capacity of Dublin City to adapt and develop its transportation service is crucial in order to maintain its growth in the coming years.

2. Scope

The project of unified Dublin transport analytics aims to understand how the integration of Big Data, advanced technology, control technology, electronic sensing technology and data communication could have a significant impact and represent the development of the future direction of the traffic system.

The scope of integrating this form of ‘intelligent transportation system’ (Quin, L. et al., 2017) should eventually aim to contribute to a reduction of both traffic and costs through the unification of Dublin’s various ways of transport.

3. Core Concepts and Business Analysis through Project Cycle

Before getting into a more detailed Business Analysis and the Project Cycle, it is recommended to outline the importance of the six core concepts in the business analysis: change, need, solution, stakeholders, value and context (IIBA, 2015).

Among the duties of the appointed business analyst for this project, the identification and the understanding of the problem and the potential impact of the proposed solution would represent crucial aspects (Hass, K.B., 2008).

Once the Business needs, objectives and goals have been identified through the analysis of the core concepts applied to this project, it was also possible to identify opportunities by defining the nature of solutions.

At this stage, a Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) can be drafted. A BPMN is a standard process model/tool that provides a graphical path that specifies the stages of the business analysis process (Von Rosing, M., et al., 2015).

The process diagram below frames the dialogue in the context of the project life cycle and it consists of a sequential development approach.

Figure 1. Business Solution Life Cycle.  Hass, K.B. (2008)

The importance of this graphical representation of the various phases of the project is fundamental in relation to the stakeholders’ analysis. As previously mentioned, stakeholders are involved and are interested in the change proposed and therefore they are constantly involved in all the various phases of the project.

4. Stakeholder Analysis: roles and responsibilities throughout the Project Cycle

4.1 Stakeholder list and roles

The business analysis literature affirms that stakeholder analyses are undoubtedly more important than ever due to the increasingly interconnected nature of the world (Bryson, J.M., 2004). The increasing importance of stakeholder analysis reflects a growing recognition on how the characteristics of each stakeholder would influence the entire decision-making process (Brugha, R. and Varvasovszky, Z., 2000). Therefore, failing in fulfilling stakeholders’ requirements and/or omitting to consider and address their concerns would clearly represent a flaw that could predictably lead to poor performance (Bryson, J.M., 2004).

Therefore, consideration of potential risks and what solutions might work are actually part of the project, and taking stakeholders into account is a crucial aspect of problem solving within the Business Solution Life Cycle and the Requirements Life Cycle – as shown in Figure 1.

Before understanding what the stakeholders’ responsibilities are and how these vary depending on the project phase, it is fundamental to obtain a list of external and internal stakeholders with a brief description of their generic roles. The table below will help in this first stage of the stakeholder analysis.

4.2 Stakeholder responsibilities: RACI matrix

Once a list of stakeholders and their respective roles have been identified, the literature in Business Analysis (IIBA, 2015; Batabyal, K. et al., 2017) suggests that a RACI matrix can be defined.

The RACI matrix consists of a schema of stakeholders’ roles and responsibilities and it is utilised to ensure that all the stakeholders involved in the project development are aware of their respective ownerships (Batabyal, K. et al., 2017).

Following on a list of activities reported in the RACI matrix in Figure 2., according to Cadle et al. (2010) it is possible to notice that each stakeholder can be:

–          Responsible (“R”): role that is responsible for the execution of one or more activities.

–          Accountable (“A”): role that is ultimately accountable for signing off in relation to a decision regarding one or more activities.

–          Consulted (“C”): role that may or must be asked to provide input and support for a specific activity or for a decision before it reaches its conclusion.

–          Informed (“I”): stakeholder may or must be notified of the completion or of the output of a decision or activity.

Figure 2. RACI matrix for Unified Dublin Transport Analytics Project

From the figure above, it can be observed that the responsibilities of the various stakeholders would differ based on the stage where the project is at.

4.3 Power Interest Matrix: analysis of actors’ constellation

After stakeholders have been identified along with their responsibilities within the management life cycle of the project, it is fundamental to determine what is their potential impact on the project. In this instance, the Power/Interest Matrix can represent a useful two-dimensional table utilised to classify and prioritise stakeholders based on how interested stakeholders in achieving the project objectives and whether or not they have power to influence the achievement of these objectives (Johnson et al., 2005).

Figure 3 shows the Power/Interest Matrix specifically related to the stakeholders involved in this project. Stakeholders categorised in quadrant 2 would have the highest salience and therefore a prioritised form of attention is required as well as a specific focus in terms of stakeholder engagement activities. Due to the fact that they play key roles in the project, it is crucial to monitor and manage them closely.

A similar attention is required for stakeholders in quadrant 4 and focus on whether their level of salience fluctuates is crucial in order to have a clear understanding of a potential resultant impact on the project.

An engagement strategy for stakeholders in group 4 would be keeping them informed all the time in order to ensure that they are satisfied.

Considerably less focus would be applied to stakeholders in quadrant 1 and 3 as they have lower levels of power and interest than stakeholders in quadrant 2 and 4.