Ideally, non technical users should be able to answer simple business questions on their own, without the assistance of more technical staff.

• Identify small number, approximately 5-10 simple questions users may have: How much did we spend? How many permits did we process? What was the average length of time? etc.
• Identify data sources that can help answer these questions.
• Generate datasets that will be used to answer the questions.
• Use existing tools to develop asnwers. Validate the results.
• What is the easiest way for a user to answer these questions? Do they need a chart, a map, or text?

• How succesful were they in answering these questions?
• Were the answers correct?
• Were they able to do this on a daily basis?
• Did they generate additional questions?