Whether business analysts are missing link?
We all know that in today's business world, the search for competitive advantage has devolved into something of a rugby scrum, and the one way to break out from this melee and get ahead of the pack is through the effective and intelligent use of data. As a consultant in the data space, I understand this better than most, as my job is to engage with key decision-makers in order to help them take advantage of the information that they have available within their organization.
What is most surprising is that despite the clear understanding of how important the insights gleaned from such data can be to a business seeking an edge on its competition, time after time I see businesses struggling to obtain the insights they are seeking.
This is usually despite the significant investments made in business intelligence tools, or the fact that they have endless amounts of data and have employed quality data staff. Is it any wonder why the key decision-makers in a business are intensely frustrated with the lack of insights that they receive?
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In my opinion, a lot of this can be attributed to the simple fact that the role of a good business analyst is often overlooked. Without an experienced 'buffer' between the business leaders and the technical people, the needs of the decision-makers are often misunderstood. Sometimes, they are taken too literally, while at others they are drowned in too much other data. In some instances, their requirements are represented incorrectly to the point where insight is completely obscured.
The business analyst is therefore crucial, because it is a role that straddles both sides of this divide. The role demands an understanding of the business strategy and key drivers, knowledge of what data is available, and skills related to the interpretation of the needs of the business users. At the same time, it requires technical and communication skills in order to get the message across to the techies effectively.
In my personal experience , I have found that quite often, the business user has no clue as to what data is available, nor in what format they need to see it. The business analyst, on the other hand, brings the skills that enables them to understand the problem or the question that the enterprise needs answered. This, in turn, means that they are able to advise on how the data should be represented, in order to equip the decision-makers with the correct and best insights timeously.
But it is not only at the requirements gathering stage that the analyst's input is so vital; their role is equally important at the deployment stage. Think about it: the business users need to fully understand the data available, interpret the information correctly, trust it implicitly and buy-in to the ongoing use of this data. Who else but the business analyst – with a foot in both the business and technical camps – is in a position to ensure that all these criteria are met?
And even after the deployment has been undertaken, any system or data changes that take place post deployment should also be channeled through the business analyst, as this will allow them to determine the impact such changes will have on existing data provided to the business. When there is no business analyst acting as a go-between, this impact is often overlooked, and it is in this situation that the business intelligence tool, however good it may actually be, takes the blame for the problems that inevitably arise.
So, I hear you ask, who should fulfill this critical function? In my view, this role is best filled by someone who has business understanding, problem-solving skills, attention to detail and a desire to understand data structures.
Of course, finding someone who possesses that rare combination of business and technical skills is not easy, particularly in South Africa, with its ongoing skills shortage. This is why it is often necessary to outsource this function and utilize a specialist organization that has access to these vital skills. Sometimes they use different names for this role, such as data translator, data engineer and data strategist.
However, no matter what they choose to call it, it remains one of the most critical jobs in any business, as it is the key to translating raw data and technical specifications into a meaningful format that can be easily understood by those who make the important business decisions.