Key Differences Between Business Analysts and Business Analytics Professionals
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“Business analyst” and “business analytics professional” are two job titles that should not be used interchangeably. Understanding the difference between business analysts and business analytics professionals is important. Read on to discover more about each role and find out how they differ.
What is a Business Analyst?
A business analyst is an agent of change. CIO defined business analysts as “agile workers (who) straddle the line between IT and the business to help bridge the gap and improve efficiency.” The source said business analysts are responsible for:
- Guiding businesses in improving processes, products, services, and software through data analysis
- Engaging with business leaders and users to understand how data-driven changes can improve efficiencies and add value
- Working with data sets to improve products, hardware, tools, software, services, or processes
According to CIO, a contributor to Robert Half Technology stated business analysts need “a strong understanding of regulatory and reporting requirements as well as plenty of experience in forecasting, budgeting and financial analysis combined with understanding of key performance indicators…”
The term “business analyst” refers to anyone who performs business analysis activities, despite their job title or organizational role. Business analysis professionals include not only people with the job title of “business analyst,” but also often include:
- Business systems analysts
- Systems analysts
- Requirements engineers
- Process analysts
- Product managers
- Product owners
- Enterprise analysts
- Business architects
- Management consultants
Because all of these roles (and others) fall under the “business analyst” umbrella, some individuals prefer the term “business analysis professional” over “business analyst.”
Keep learning: Check out our blog article “What is a Business Analyst?”
What is a Business Analytics Professional?
A business analytics professional is an individual who takes a company’s raw data and makes sense of it. They then share their insights with company leaders so that better business decisions can be made, which will hopefully result in better business outcomes. The Harvard Business Analytics Program blog stated,
“Business analytics focuses on data, statistical analysis and reporting to help investigate and analyze business performance, provide insights, and drive recommendations to improve performance.”
The blog also said the task of business analytics professionals is to improve the product, marketing, or customer experience. They do this by using the insights they derive from data as opposed to analyzing functions and processes. This is very different from the role of the business analyst.
The BA Times explained the primary way business analytics professionals differ from business analysts:
“A business analyst doesn’t work with data and is mostly concerned about processes and functions. On the contrary, reporting and data are the key components of a business analytics professional’s job.”
“A business analyst doesn’t work with data and is mostly concerned about processes and functions. On the contrary, reporting and data are the key components of a business analytics professional’s job.”
Business Analysts and Business Analytics Professionals are Equally Important
Both business analysis professionals and business analytics professionals are equally important. Individuals in these roles work together to ensure successful delivery of the final product. It’s helpful for both types of professional to learn about the responsibilities of the other role. This will help them perform more effectively on a team.
As a business analysis professional, are you interested in getting into business data analytics? If so, the IIBA Specialization in Business Data Analytics credential can help you establish yourself in this field.
About The Author:
Tiffani Iacolino is a Product Marketing Manager at IIBA® and has 15+ years of marketing experience across the legal, technology, telecommunications, publishing, media, and professional services industries. She’s passionate about delivering meaningful products and solutions to the business analysis community, including IIBA’s latest offering the Cybersecurity Analysis Learning and Certification Program. Hailing from the Greater Toronto Area, she enjoys an amazing cup of coffee, running, and yoga -- between chasing her two adorable children!