So You Want To Be A Business Analyst?
Cast your mind back to the end of your time at school or university when everyone was talking about what they wanted to do
. Perhaps you had some career ideas which helped determine your choice of subject(s), but they were probably quite broad: business management, economics, accountancy, IT or marketing. If you are reading this as a BA you are less likely to have opted to study medicine, dentistry, zoology, music or other arts.
However, at last Junes BA seminar at the Institute of Directors, one argument suggested that those with a creative background could bring something different and valuable to the work of an analyst; it had a lot to do with different ways of thinking.
The graduate trainee route into a company was and is very popular for many large organisations. Traditionally it gave the individual exposure to all parts of the business with a little time in each department. The full rotation would normally last about two years. The argument was that it provided a good understanding of all areas of the business in readiness for ones first junior management role. The better, forward-thinking companies provided a structured development path often towards specific goals.
So, a question often asked by newcomers to the discipline is: what does a business analyst do? Some options:
- business performance, evaluation of financial records, ratios, leverage, ROCE and advice on investments
- process flows, procurement, facilities (including disaster recovery planning), administration, marketing or internal communications
- systems analysis, systems support and development, programming, testing
- project or change management and delivery, training, documentation
- project financials, initial business case, gaining buy-in and commitment, tracking and reporting benefits
- strategic planning, future needs, senior management roles
- problem solving
The answer is all or any combination of the above plus anything else you can think of. This is why business analysis as a career and profession can mean different things to different people. It crosses many areas of a business, from accounting and finance, through administration and marketing to change initiatives. The common denominator is business direction, while utilising a natural tendency for logic and structure in ones thinking, methodologies and analysis.
For many individuals and companies, a business analyst is someone only concerned with delivering projects, but this isnt right. A BA should be seen as an in-house consultant, someone who may have a strengths in say finance, systems or projects, but who is flexible and able to evaluate ideas and propose solutions (and manage delivery where appropriate) business-wide. Work may be as an individual, as a team member or leader, or with external consultants on large scale projects.
Large companies may have a dedicated team of business analysts aligned to IT or change management. Smaller concerns may only have one or two such roles often isolated in one department. As markets are continually changing and each business must keep up, business analysis should be part of every managers role and where practical, supported by dedicated business analysts.
So when you are next searching the job ads make a note of the company details, its market, recent performance, future plans, the advertised role description and what career opportunities such experience will provide.
Finally, before you apply for business analyst jobs, give yourself some time to think about your career aspirations and appropriate stepping stones to achieve them. As an analyst you think and plan before you jump.
by: Nate Wood
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