What are the roles of a Business Analyst in an Organization?
Data is the new oil! Just like how crude oil fast-tracked industries’ growth, data has revolutionized the entire world. If you are the one who is looking for a career to build in IT, then you should have a look at Business Analyst. And this blog post is all about it.
Today in this digitally-driven economy, everything runs on data. No amount of development is possible without data. Data is generated, stored, and then analyzed to gain insights. Everything running today is brought to life based on the insights gained from the massive volume of data.
Any course of action that companies or organizations need is based on the intel and insights they extract from the data set they possess. It shows how important it is to store data, maintain it, and process it to make quick decisions based on insight and not on chance or guessing.
Data has created a new line of jobs that were unimagined a few years back. Today, many people associated with data work in different aspects of it. Some store it, some look after its maintenance, and others dedicate their time to analyzing it.
In the spectrum of Data Science, there are professionals called Business Analysts. We will be discussing the roles and responsibilities that they have daily.
And a little more about the skill sets a professional must have to begin their career as a Business Analyst. Those seeking a career in this domain must get trained for the best Business Analyst certification.
Who exactly is a Business Analyst?
A Business Analyst is a professional who works with organizations or companies to help them analyze their data related to products, systems, processes, and services to help them make better decisions to run a profitable business.
These professionals also help the organization assess the business model, document its integration with the technology, etc.
Suppose you aspire for a career in a trending domain like Business Analysis. In that case, I recommend you check out one of the best Business Analyst Certification courses by a recognized training partner.
Many myths surround their role within an organization. For example, some think their role is to mint money for the organization.
That’s not correct, but indirectly it’s correct. Business Analysts must give valuable insights to businesses to increase their profit margin and increase the efficiency of their business models.
So, these professionals have to take a course of action that will influence the financial aspects of an organization. There are many types of Business Analysts depending on the domain they work in and the kind of work they do:
- Business Process Analyst
- Business System Analyst
- Data Analyst
- UX Analyst
- IT Business Analyst
- System Analyst
- Functional Architect
What must a Business Analyst understand?
A Business Analyst’s primary role is communicating with all stakeholders and drawing out, analyzing, and identifying the reasons and steps to change the business process, information systems, and policies.
These professionals are more prominent in helping a company grow to be more productive, profitable, and efficient than it is.
What are a Business Analyst’s roles and responsibilities?
Business Analysts have become crucial in developing, sustaining, and growing a company. First, they understand the business the company is in. They know the business model their company has.
They then chart out all the necessary steps that need to be taken to achieve a particular set of goals within the stipulated time frame. After that, they understand the company’s resources and the resources they will need to complete the target.
- Understand how the business function
- Learn how to improve existing business processes
- Need to identify the steps and tasks to support the new feature implementation
- Learn to design these new features to implement
- Study the impact of implementing these new features
- Finally, execute these steps
Essential skills to become a Business Analyst
Business Analysts must have several skills in part of their portfolio:
- Technical Skills:
Business analysts in the IT sector must have good knowledge of Operating Systems, Database concepts, Networking, Software Development Lifecycle methodology, Hardware capabilities, etc. They also must know Data Visualization tools to represent the insights they gathered.
- Analytical skills:
Speaking of analytical skills, it’s perhaps one of the essential skills that Business Analysts must-have. These professionals must understand Business and Data Analysis, Analyze workflow, interact and work with stakeholders and users, etc.
- Business Planning and Processing:
Business Analysts must also understand the project requirements and scope, understand and implement project requirements, identify resources needed, and accordingly plan for the project.
- Leadership skills:
This is one of the essential skills that Business Analysts must have to help them navigate their projects within an organization. These professionals must be able to direct team members, forecast budgets, solve problems, delegate work, work with stakeholders, etc.
- Communication skills:
Good communication and interpersonal skills are essential to becoming a successful Business Analyst. Every time you need to go back and forth between stakeholders, users, and technical people who can bring the project to life or achieve the target. Good communication skills will help iron out problems between team members and help them become efficient leaders.
- Which certifications must they possess?
To become successful in Business Analytics, professionals must earn some certifications. These are CCBA (Certification of Competency in Business Analysis) which is a significant certification from IIBA (International Institute of Business Analysis), and then for a senior role, CBAP (Certified Business Analysis Professional), also from IIBA.
The prerequisites for both certifications are along similar lines. To get a CCBA, you must possess 3750 hours of work experience in Business Analysis. To earn CBAP, you must have a total of 7500 hours of work experience in the field of Business Analysis as a prerequisite.
You must follow all the concepts from the BABOK (Business Analysis Body of Knowledge). There are six knowledge areas or different domains inside this BABOK, which you have to cover to help you earn these certifications.
Wrapping up:
Business Analysts are an interface to businesses that will help them transform their company or organization from where they are to where they could be. They will analyze the data they generate to steer them to profitability, efficiency, lower expenses, and judicious use of resources to meet the expected goals and targets.
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