Business Analyst plays a pivotal role in enabling change but there are still ambiguities around, “What does a business analyst do? Aren’t they just here to capture the minutes and requirements?
Let us understand 10 misconceptions around business analysis in the market...
1. Business Analyst are not technical people
Fact - To understand/analyze the requirements and recommend solutions, business analysts need to be profound with the processes, technologies, domains as well as competitors.
2. Their role is limited to capturing requirements
Fact - Business Analysts play varied roles in a project, defining project scope, finalizing requirements, finalizing solutions, managing stakeholders, defining stakeholder management approach, managing & tracing requirements and many more items fall under the business analyst’s umbrella.
3. Anyone can do business analysis work effectively
Fact - Having good business analysis acumen is not everyone’s cup of tea. It takes years of practice and intense study to perform business analysis work effectively and efficiently.
4. Anyone can play a role of business analyst
Fact - business analysis is not an easy job and to become a business analyst you need proficient knowledge of its core knowledge areas and techniques. A business analyst job requires a lot of self-research, conversations, negotiations, articulation, and many more. Doing all this may not be everyone forte.
5. You just need good communication skills to become a business analyst
Fact - having good communication skills is important in every profession but having “just” good communication skills will not make you a good business analyst. You need to learn and unlearn new skills and techniques to keep yourself updated with changing stakeholders, projects, systems, etc.
6. Certifications or courses guarantee a business analyst job
Fact - Certification is not the step towards a job guarantee, you need to apply the knowledge gained via certification or course to get a job offer.
7. Business Analysts should only be involved post-project kick-off
Fact - The business analyst plays a pivotal role in a project’s success. This success depends on how well-versed the business analyst is with project scope, requirements, stakeholders, RAIDs, etc. To have extensive knowledge of the project, end to end involvement of the business analyst is a must.
8. Business Analyst's only responsibility is to capture down minutes & send invites
Fact - Business Analysts are the change makers, they receive information from multiple sources, and one of the sources can be meeting notes. There is no thumb rule around capturing meeting minutes as business analyst responsibility. The business analyst role is NOT limited to minutes and invites.
9. Business Analyst does not have the right skill set to recommend solutions
Fact - Business Analysts are the bridge between the technical and business team. They can speak business as well technical language. They do have the right skills to analyze the solutions & what value they will deliver to business, technical, customer & other stakeholders.
10. Business analyst is not must have role in a department
Fact -Teams having a business analyst on board have more chances of success. Business Analyst helps in tying the entire project together. Business Analyst brings an attitude of having an eye on the details with focus on the end goal.
The list can be long, but to understand the business analyst role completely, you must get into their shoes, you need to get your hands dirty.
Author: Nitin Kumar Deswal
Nitin Kumar Deswal is an Electrical Engineer and an MBA from Symbiosis, Pune. He has worked as Technical Consultant with an IT firm and was also part of a Life Insurance Company. Nitin has also worked as a sales representative for a short stint with India’s leading private bank and currently working with a global bank as a Lead Business Analyst.
He has experience in varied roles such as consulting, sales, operations, data analytics, and business analysis. Nitin is an IIBA certified and AWS certified Business Analyst, he is an avid business analysis content creator and passionate about giving back to the society. His fields of interest are process analysis, requirement analysis, stakeholder management, mentorship, consultation, and teaching.
Nitin can be found on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitinkumardeswal/