If you were able to take a sneak peek inside the mind of a business analyst, you might be surprised to discover there’s an entire construction team hard at work in there – everyone from the architect to the estimator to the brickie.
The difference with this crack team of in-head specialists is they’re not planning to build a house but a bespoke computer system.
Yes, the business analyst’s band of imaginary friends are focussed on designing and creating a super-smooth system that not only meets the business needs of a particular client but makes their stakeholders – from the managers and employees to the investors – very happy people.
Having number crunched, audited and costed the client’s precise requirements, and put a plan in place, the business analyst will also be on hand to deal with any issues or necessary alterations as the system is being built.
Finally, they will continue to support the company as its employees master and make effective use of the new system.
So, with so much business input involved, is this really an IT job?
Absolutely!
While a business analyst doesn’t need an in-depth background in IT, usually it will help to have at least an elementary understanding and working knowledge of how IT systems work.
This means many business analysts come into this specialist role from a programming or technical background in IT.
Of course, having a knowledge of how modern businesses work and interact is incredibly useful, with the analyst role often seen as a direct liaison between the complex world of IT infrastructure and the daily interests of the client’s management team.
This means soft skills are just as important as being computer literate and business savvy.
And so analysts are not only natural-born problem solvers but should also be able to show off great communication skills, able to ‘talk the talk’ with IT professionals and ‘walk the walk’ with company executives.
The really good news if you’re contemplating a move into analysis is this is a rapidly growing sector – expanding in tune with new technologies and software, as well as gradually increasing its business-focussed elements.
This means this is also a role that offers great opportunities to expand your skillset and become more marketable to new employers.
Why not take a look at the current Business Analyst vacancies on s1jobs?