2. Root causes of Project failures
• Poorly defined requirements
• Questionable Strategic Alignment
• Inadequate focus on business
Solutions were designed without clear
understanding of the business need, often with
many assumptions
Need and purpose has become critical
Getting it right the first time
Evolution of BA
4. Categorization of BA BAs could be stereotyped into the
following:
o Functional
o Technical
o Techno-Functional
o Generic
5. Pros and Cons
Functional BA
Maximum leverage of domain knowledge
Winning client’s confidence in terms of
understanding the business processes and
flows
Limited or minimal knowledge of technology
May face challenge in accessing the technical
feasibility of the solution
6. Pros and Cons
Technical BA
Adequate exposure to technology
Suggesting the best fit of technology after
assessment
Lack of domain knowledge
Might be inefficient to define functional
processes and workflows
7. Pros and Cons
Techno-Functional BA
Admirable combination of domain knowledge
and technology know-how
Able to communicate well at both ends-
business and technology
Mostly constrained to one domain and one
technology
May not be able to provide ‘out-of-the-box’
solution
8. Pros and Cons
Generic BA
Good exposure to a variety of domains and
verticals
Able to analyze different technologies and
suggesting the right mix of technologies
Lack specialization
Needs to be backed by extensive amount of
working knowledge
9. 3 Axes
BA discipline will develop along three axes
•Industry
Banking, Retail, Manufacturing, Healthcare,
Energy, Transport
•Function
Product, Software, Consulting
•Competency
Process, Data, Elicitation, Negotiation,
Strategy
Industry
Function
Competency
10. New Flavors
• Hybrid Practitioner- performing multiple roles
• Domain Practitioner- possesses advanced business subject
matter expertise
• Consulting Practitioner- possesses strong skills in enterprise
knowledge areas
• Generalist- jack of all trades
Organization must understand need to determine the type and
maturity of BA required.
11. Need of the hour BA should move from
• Mere requirement gathering and
documentation TO creating value through
greater experience, knowledge and context
• Introducing new solutions TO solve issues
toward a greater emphasis on redeploying
existing solutions to new issues
Requirement Focused TO Solution
Focused
12. Desirable type of BA • Hugely depends on the need and
focus of the organization
• Get specialized into one but good
know a little about the other
domains and technologies
relevant in your current
organization
• Keep a tap on the new waves in
market
13. “It is not the strongest of the species that
survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one
that is the most adaptable to change.”
– Charles Darwin
‘Adaptability’ is the key
