What is a Business Analyst and What do They Do?
Business Analysts (BA) are professionals who work to develop solutions to improve the business operations, aiding in the identification of organizational problems and proposing solutions that enable their clients and stakeholders to achieve their goals. They are in charge of using systems thinking to provide the initial framework that serves to support the decision-making process of an organization while providing relevant data analysis to inform these decisions.
Essentially, the role of a Business Analyst is to be the bridge between the business and technical sides of a company. They are tasked with understanding the business needs of the stakeholders and helping to develop optimal solutions with technical guidance. As a result, they must have a balance of technical and business know-how, from financial analytics to software engineering.
What are the Main Responsibilities of a Business Analyst?
The responsibilities of a Business Analyst can vary depending on the organization and their skillset, but some of the key tasks include but are not limited to the following:
- Analyzing Business Requirements:
The Business Analyst must first understand the company’s current capabilities, challenges, and needs. This involves gathering information from stakeholders and users, performing cost-benefit analysis, forming a project timeline and budget, and delivering accurate requirements. This will involve conducting interviews and surveys, analyzing documents, and taking part in workshops to capture the full scope of the project.
- Developing Solutions to Business Requirements:
With a holistic understanding of the project, the BA must develop solutions to address the challenges. They must define the final product or system and document the necessary features. This includes constructing use cases, workflow models, prototypes, and organizational process maps.
- Interpreting and Translating Requirements:
The role of a BA also involves making sure that the requirements documented from the stakeholder interview have been understood and can be translated into technical language. This requires a great understanding of the technical language, tools and applications as well as the ability to communicate complex solutions in a way that stakeholders can understand.
- Building Project Documents and Helping Guide Technical Resources:
The BA must then build detailed project plans, documents, and models that describe the requirements and use cases, as well as help guide the technical resources. This includes developing the acceptance criteria of the project, the design documents, the test plans and procedures, and the user documentation.
- Validation and Verification:
The BA is responsible for validating their own solutions, as well as conducting inspections, tests, and reviews to make sure that the created system or processes meet the business requirements at a satisfactory level. The BA must also ensure that the correct project metrics are in place to track and measure the success of the project.
- Liaising with Stakeholders:
The BA must build and maintain relationships with the stakeholders throughout the project lifecycle. This requires great communication and cooperation with the stakeholders to ensure that their needs are understood and the correct solutions are being provided.
- Providing Technical Leadership:
The BA must also provide technical leadership, if needed, to the technical resources on the project. This involves providing guidance, outlining objectives, and understanding the technical solutions, as well as helping the technical resources troubleshoot solutions when needed.
What Skills are Necessary for a Business Analyst?
In order to be an effective Business Analyst, the following skills are essential:
- Problem Solving Skills:
As a BA, it’s important to have strong problem solving skills and the ability to think critically to identify the root causes of issues and come up with effective solutions.
- Communication & Interpersonal Skills:
A BA must be an effective communicator and listener, as they need to be able to convey complex solutions to non-technical stakeholders. They must be able to listen to other’s problems and needs, ask clarifying questions, and demonstrate empathy.
- Analytical & Strategic Thinking Skills:
Business Analysts need to have strong analytical skills and the ability to think strategically about solutions. This means looking ahead to potential opportunities and pitfalls, understanding the bigger picture and acting proactively.
- Technical Skills:
A BA must have strong technical skills, from coding and software engineering to financial reporting and data analytics. They need to be able to translate the stakeholders’ needs into technical solutions.
The role of a Business Analyst is not an easy one and requires a mix of soft and technical skills. They are responsible for understanding the business needs and translating them into solutions that benefit the entire organization. They must have excellent communication and problem solving skills and be able to think both analytically and strategically. It’s an important role that can help provide guidance to companies and ensure successful project outcomes.
