Responsibilities of the business analyst in the Initiate phase?

• A. Writing user stories
• B. All of the above
• C. Gathering requirements
• D. Creating user personas

Answer: (B)

In the Initiate phase, the goal is to establish a shared understanding of what the project aims to achieve and who will use the solution. A business analyst gathers high-level requirements from stakeholders to outline the problem, desired outcomes, and success criteria. Creating user personas helps the team see the different users, their goals, and their pain points, which guides what features will matter most. Writing initial user stories turns those needs into concrete, testable items that start the backlog and support early prioritization and validation with stakeholders. Together, these activities set direction, align expectations, and prepare the team for design and delivery, so all of these belong in the Initiate phase.