Business analysts are responsible for bridging the gap between IT and the business, using data analytics to assess processes, determine requirements, and provide recommendations and data-driven reporting to executives and stakeholders. The business analyst position requires personal skills. Business analysts need to know how to pull, analyze and report data trends and share this information with others and apply it on the business side.
What is a business analyst, and what it does?
A business Analyst is responsible for the alignment between Business and Information Technology. A professional business analyst assists in the architecture of the strategic plan and in the relationship area to project its future growth, cooperating with managers in their roles. The objective is to study the company’s needs and develop technological solutions. Among other activities, a business analyst also –
- Studies of technological innovations,
- Creates and reinvents products,
- Assists in decision making,
- Analyzes customer demand and needs,
- Evaluates business-related processes,
- Studies market competition,
- Seeks opportunities.
The types of business analyst you need to know.
Currently, staying competitive is not an easy task for companies. So that you meet market demands, the service of a multidisciplinary professional is essential. Besides having those skills mentioned earlier necessary for entry level business analyst jobs, the analyst must stay focused on current consumer demand, company financial growth, and teamwork.
There are three types of analysts, and it is essential to understand the differences between professionals. Besides business analyst, there are – process analysts and Systems analysts.
What is the salary for a business analyst?
The salary depends on job responsibilities: entry-level business systems analyst, intermediate level, senior business systems analyst and expert business systems analyst. Also, business analyst salary depends a lot on the years of experience, the reputation of the course, the financial health of the company, skills and responsibilities, professional or entry-level analysts, etc. A business analyst must have some necessary skills, such as –
- Interpersonal and consultative skills,
- Facilitation skills,
- Analytical thinking and problem solving,
- Being detail-oriented and able to provide a high level of accuracy,
- OrganizationalOrganizational skills,
- Knowledge of the business structure,
- Stakeholder analysis,
- Requirements Engineering,
- Cost-benefit analysis,
- Process Modeling,
- Oral and written communication skills.
Three key strengths of a business analyst –
Behavioral/communication skills
These requirements consist of Interpersonal and consultative skills linked to leadership, as the professional will deal with decisive questions about the organization’s future. The characteristics that describe this profile are – activity, knowing how to relate to people from different backgrounds and mentalities, being a leading strategist, non-verbal understanding communication, learning how to negotiate, taking responsibility for your commitments, etc.
Problem-solving skills
There is no project where there are no problems. Every project revolves around finding the solution to a problem. Analytical thinking and problem-solving ability is the ability to determine and understand a situation. Business analysts determine the potential solution to a problem while keeping the scope of the project in mind. Critical thinking is an organized way of interpreting, applying, analyzing, and evaluating an action.
Analysis skills
A business analyst needs various analytical tools and techniques to interpret the problem and the solution. A business analyst must also design and implement business processes, forecast, analyze gaps, document their systems, investigate, assess risks, analyze statistical data, review data, specify project requirements and more. These facilitation skills include working in a cross-functional team, good use of resources, leadership quality, ability to meet deadlines, etc.
Is business analyst a promising career?
Without the business analyst, the company is likely to fail in its digital transformation, as drastic changes involve issues beyond computing. The cost-effectiveness of creating this position in the company is exceptionally high. The demand for hiring professional business analyst is growing. It has spectacular career growth that comes with responsibilities. So a business analyst must be skilled enough. If you want to become a business analyst, you can find a professional business analyst course online.
Conclusion
The business analyst role requires a combination of IT and business skills. To be successful, business analysts need to understand how to work with data while analyzing how it will affect the business. The individual must have multidisciplinary knowledge: experience or technical knowledge in more than one area. Not all business analysts need IT experience. Alternatively, some business analysts have a solid IT background.
