Although an increasingly unpopular view, the need for business analysts has never been more critical for product development success. Business analysts must take this on board if the discipline is not to vanish forever.

1. The evolving, emerging role
of business analysts
This is presentation is a call to
action

2. Imagine…

3. The role of the BA (according to the masses)
“…to work with project stakeholders to translate
their requirements into something that developers
can understand as well as to translate the resulting
questions that the developers have into something
the stakeholders can understand…“
“business analysts have to act as ‘stakeholder
surrogates’…“
Scott Ambler

4. What is a Business Analyst? The de facto
definition in practice in nearly every organization
•As previous slide, plus:
• “Catch-all” for non-development jobs
• Not a senior role

5. What about the IIBA, BABOK,…
• IIBA is “the Voice of the Business Analysis Profession”
• “Business analysis is the practice of enabling change in an enterprise by
defining needs and recommending solutions that deliver value to
stakeholders.”

6. Business Analysis <> Business
Analyst

7. Business Analysis <> Business Analyst: my
opinion
Organizations
that value
knowledge of
their business
Organizations that
value generic
problem / solution
skills.
PROBLEM!

8. We are allowing this to
happen

9. We are destroying the role of
business analyst

11. BEFORE DEVELOPMENT: Build the right
thing, build it right
What is the business problem?
What are candidate solutions?
What is the preferred solution?
What does the preferred solution have in common
with other solutions (existing and pending?)
Are there economies of scale and how are they
achieved?
Architecture, Portfolio and
Program Management
C
O
N
C
U
R
R
E
N
T
Business Analysis

12. So what does work: Building the right thing
right
• Just enough up front planning and analysis (possibly none!) to be
sure:
• Everyone is on the same page (situational motivator: invest just enough to
avoid the risk of waste later)
• We broadly understand the scope
• We broadly understand the economics
• We broadly understand the overall fit
• Then, small, focused iterations that deliver complete functionality
ready to use in production

13. So what does work: Building the right thing
right
• Disintermediation
• Participation from the right stakeholders, facilitated by the BA
• Multi-disciplined teams (generalizing specialists)

14. The call to action

15. 1. Business analysts must
show how they add value

16. 2. Business analysts must be
accountable to educate
themselves in the skills they
need to add value

17. 3. Business analysts must
educate others if an
organization does not
understand how they can add
value

18. 4. Business
analysis is of
critical
importance to
organizations

19. Warning

20. Organizations are doing, and
will continue to do, business
analysis

21. DO YOU WANT TO BE PART OF THAT?
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https://needpoweredchange.com/category/ba/
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2017. All rights reserved
Email: andy.miles@needpoweredchange.com