The document discusses the importance of an empathic business analyst understanding an organization's culture, identity, mission, and how those concepts relate to individual stakeholder morale and climate. It states that gaining stakeholder trust by showing empathy is key to obtaining important information about projects and what stakeholders truly think. It defines culture as the collective shared beliefs and values of an organization, while climate reflects how the organization feels to individuals based on factors like communication, leadership, and decision-making.

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The Empathic Business Analyst

2. Introduction
• It is easy to measure ‘something’.
• It is hard to measure the ‘right thing’.
• Knowing what you are not measuring is very
important because it can define things that you
may not take into account.
• Stakeholders’ feelings and attitudes are
extremely important and hard to measure; they
can only be revealed to a Business Analyst if the
stakeholders trust her and also trust what she
will do with that kind of information.
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3. Introduction
• Stakeholders’ feelings and attitudes are strongly
connected to the following concepts:
– Climate
– Culture
– Morale
– Identity
– Mission
• Climate and Morale are experienced at the
individual stakeholder level.
• Culture, Identity, and Mission are defined at the
organization or team level.
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4. Concepts Map
–Adapted from Kurstedt (2000)
Scope Concept Question Definition
Stakeholder
Climate
How do I fit in the
organization in relation to
other people?
The individual’s feelings, attitudes,
and perceptions of their current
relationship or alignment with the
larger organization.
Morale
How committed am I to
my organization and my
associates?
The dedication or commitment of the
individual to the organization and
what it believes.
Organization or
Team
Identity
-What do we do?
-Who are we?
What the organization is and does.
Culture
-What do we believe in?
-What do we stand for?
Collective shared feeling of or belief in
the organization and what it stands
for.
Mission
-Why do we do what we
do?
-Why do we believe what
we believe?
The purpose of the organization.
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5. Empathic Business Analyst
• The Business Analyst must seek to deeply understand
an organization’s Identity, Culture, and Mission.
• That initial understanding should carry into a better
empathy for a given Stakeholder’s Morale and
perceived Climate.
• Showing Empathy is a prerequisite for being trusted.
• By gaining trust the Business Analyst stands a much
better chance of learning important information about
any project or organization and what its members truly
think and expect.
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6. More on Culture
–Adapted from Kurstedt (2000)
• Culture is normative.
• Culture encompasses norms and expectations
that influence the way members of organizations
think and behave.
• Culture is something shared by members of an
organization.
• Values (what is important) and beliefs (how
things work) are central components of culture.
• Culture is deep and transcendent
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7. More on Climate
–Adapted from Kurstedt (2000)
• Climate is descriptive.
• Climate reflects the way the organization feels to
the people inside it.
• These perceptions include for example:
– Communication between superiors and subordinates
– Leadership style
– Interactions with co-workers
– Decision making processes
– Organizational effectiveness
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For Comments and Questions contact didier@pragmaticohesion.com
References:
• Kurstedt, H. (2000), Management Systems Theory, Applications,and Design,
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University - ISE Department,
Blacksburg VA. PP 1283-1306