The Business Analysis Profession
Business Analysis is the practice of enabling change in an organizational context, by defining needs and recommending solutions that deliver value to stakeholders.
The set of tasks and techniques that are used to perform business analysis are defined in A Guide to the Business Analysis Body of Knowledge® (BABOK® Guide).
Continuing Evolution of Business Analysis
The evolution of business analysis professionals into expanding roles depends on a combination of digital skills, business acumen, and targeted knowledge to drive better business outcomes across all industries.
-
Business Analysis identifies and clarifies the intent and value of making a change. A problem can't be solved if the root cause of the issue isn't completely understood. Business Analysis professionals help identify the needs of the business and solve issues.
Consider a farmer suffering from a poor crop yield. This could be due to the land being arid, poor quality of seeds, wrong choice of plantation, unfavourable weather conditions or poor quality fertilizer. Unless the root cause of the problem is identified, there can be no viable solution. -
Business Analysis professionals forge a clear line of communication between the solution teams and the company leadership in order to help organizations make better business decisions.
-
See the image to your right to take a glimpse into the numerous industry fields business analysis professionals are found in. The profession encompasses a wide range of disciplines from technology-focused areas such as Business Data Analytics to more business-oriented functions such as Product Management.
-
The title of Business Analyst is not required to practice Business Analysis. Business Analysis is practiced by everyone to some degree e.g., Product Owner. The skillset of a business analysis practitioner helps mindfully and deliberately understand and solve issues.
