6 ways that BAs add value to an organisation

Business analysts (or BAs) perform an important function within many New Zealand and multinational organisations. However, it’s still quite common for people not to know what exactly a business analyst does, or more importantly, what value they provide.

This can be frustrating, particularly if you are a BA looking to sell your skillset and convince potential employers about what you offer and why this is valuable for their organisation. Whether you’re looking for a permanent or contract role, make sure you effectively sell your skills and articulate your worth!

Before we look into the value that BAs add and how you can articulate this, we first need to understand what makes a successful project. This usually comprises four key components:

• Meeting timelines
• Delivering within budget
• Providing a positive impact on the organisation
• Delivering a solution that is useful and adds value.

Essentially, clients want to know they will get what they want, within the approved timeframe, for the agreed amount of money, and with minimum disruption to staff and the business.

This is where BAs come in. Their primary function is to identify and clarify the needs of the business group for a project. They’re responsible for developing a thorough understanding of the project goals and ensuring that the end product delivers the desired results.

Development teams work to define the technical direction and build the solution features, while business analysts work behind the scenes to provide timely information and clarity, remove roadblocks, and ensure functional development is moving the project towards a successful conclusion.

BAs do a lot of the heavy lifting in the background of a project to ensure all of the project's key components synch. This is a very broad-brush insight and definition into what BAs do, so let's dive a little deeper and explore specific ways that BAs can add value to an organisation.

1. Defining project scope

BAs are adept at understanding business objectives and potential technical solutions. They provide valuable insights that ensure critical features are defined correctly and that unnecessary features are omitted to save on time and costs. They can articulate how business needs can be met with the greatest impact on productivity while ensuring the least impact on time and money.?

2. Prioritise requirements

BAs help stakeholders hone in on the priorities that deliver the greatest value to the organisation and the end customer, in order to meet key business objectives and results. They help the business consider the essential requirements of the project and manage these requirements throughout the duration of the project.

This is particularly important for projects that involve multiple business units, which may have different ideas and opinions on the solutions. A BA will ensure all concerns are considered and clarified, then establish an overall prioritisation with maximum buy-in.

3.?Support business process recommendations

When an organisation has been using a specific business process for a long period of time, it may no longer be working as expected. There may also be a need to streamline the process and remove any hurdles.

BAs can help research and evaluate if any business processes need to change. They work with the organisation to research and map process improvements that can make it more efficient and meet customer needs better and more quickly.

4. Manage key relationships

It’s vital for different parts of a business to form productive working relationships, and it's up to the BA to build rapport between stakeholders. They also work to bridge any gaps between the business and technology using their excellent communication and ‘soft’ skills.

5. Allow developers to focus on development

While development teams can work directly with clients to clarify the business requirements, this approach means that valuable development time is lost. BAs understand – and can deliver – the level of detail that developers need to execute their tasks successfully. They bridge the gap between the business requirements and technical requirements. This time management lets developers focus on what they do best: designing and delivering solutions.

6. Help with testing and documentation

BAs also drive value through the testing and implementation phases to ensure the solution meets the client's requirements. Their intimate knowledge of detailed business needs, strategic initiatives, and technical functionality allows them to build or facilitate test cases and execute test scripts that align with the client's business requirements. They then provide knowledge transfer and documentation targeted at the stakeholders in a way that’s easy to understand and apply.

Are you a BA looking for your next role?

If you’re a BA looking for your next assignment or preparing for an interview, consider the skills you have in delivering projects and meeting targets and how you can add value to a company’s project goals. Identify which of these points apply to you and what you can bring to the table; after all, you are a valuable asset to any organisation.

At Techspace, I've helped place many BAs in fulfilling permanent and contract roles. Connect with me when you're ready to use your BA superpowers in a new job!