Do we need a professional business analyst?

Do effective decision-making and business success depend on the job of a professional business analyst as an expert?

When business analysis becomes a mindset shared by everyone in an organization, do we still need a professional dedicated to this role? I’m sure anyone who understands “what is business analysis” understands its value and importance in making an organization nimble. However, the question above asks, “Does an organization need to hire an individual in the role of business analyst as a dedicated job function“?

Do we need a Professional Business Analyst?
Do we need a Professional Business Analyst? – Created by Ideogram AI

It is possible a generic team with the right mindset and a defined method could run a business transformation without a professional business analyst in a simple context. The problem is I haven’t seen simple contexts for a while.

The presence of a professional business analyst is always valuable and sometimes essential. The rest of this article explains why.

Analysis is everywhere

I’ve said and I reaffirm that “every professional should be a business analyst“. Independent of your job, business analysis can help you get better outcomes. You might work as a Product Owner, Project Manager, System Analyst, Enterprise Architect, Business Manager, Accountant, Salesman, or whatever, and use the same techniques and concepts used by professional business analysts to understand the bigger picture and identify better solutions to solve organizational problems or explore opportunities. Having business outcomes as a shared goal and working collaboratively is the best way to transform an organization.

However, an organization where everyone is a business analyst might be an idealistic dream. In reality, not all employees may have the skills or interest to engage. It’s the duty of a professional business analyst to continuously foster a culture based on the business analysis mindset by engaging and coaching others with business analysis practices.

The importance of a formal role

I was once in the traffic of São Paulo city when the position of the cars on a roundabout created a situation where no one could go forward or backward. We were all stuck.

Someone was needed to organize the situation saying who should go forward or who should wait until that mess could be in order again. I felt an internal call to leave my car and take that place, but my wife said “Stay here! This is not your job and people are so angry that one may attack you.”

A chaotic roundabout scene with cars stuck in different directions, highlighting the need for someone with authority (a traffic warden) to organize the situation, symbolizing the role of a business analyst.
The need for someone with authority (a traffic warden) to organize the situation,
Created with Dall-e AI

She was right. As much as I wanted to help, I didn’t have the authority to tell anyone what they should or not do in that situation. Eventually, a traffic warden wearing an official uniform came and solved the situation.

A formal official role guaranteed he had the needed authority to act. In the case of a business analyst, the formal job provides the authority to ask hard questions and challenge assumptions.

Unlike the traffic warden, a professional business analyst usually doesn’t have the authority to tell people what to do but has the expected expertise and neutrality to facilitate and influence decision-makers.

Who feeds the dog?

Having a formal role is not just about authority; it’s about responsibility. You know what happens when everybody is responsible for feeding the dog, right? The dog will be fat with too much food or starving waiting for someone to remember about it.

A dog sitting next to an empty or overflowing food bowl, with multiple hands reaching out, illustrating the concept that if everyone is responsible for a task, no one may actually do it properly.
Who feeds the dog? – Created by Dall-e AI

Feeding the dog (a task) is different from saying that everybody is responsible for the dog’s well-being (a goal). For the dog’s well-being, no one should give the dog inappropriate snacks and all should play with it healthily. Feeding is a very specific task and someone must take responsibility for it or it won’t work properly.

The same happens to business analysis goals and tasks. Everyone should commit to the business strategy and develop a holistic understanding of what is involved in a business change. But if we expect some specific tasks to be done, such as building a business case, specifying requirements, or obtaining approval for a shared decision, we better define clear roles and responsibilities for those and assign someone with the needed skills to do them. Usually, a professional business analyst.

Back to the question

No complex organizational change should abdicate having a professional business analyst. A professional business analyst can:

  • Foster the business analysis mindset among all stakeholders, coaching them on how to use business analysis techniques;
  • Use the neutrality of the role to ask hard questions and challenge assumptions;
  • Use facilitation and analysis skills for more rational decision-making;
  • Elicit requirements from different stakeholders and understand the real needs from multiple perspectives;
  • Assess different alternatives to identify the most valuable course of action;
  • Make strategy clear and ensure that execution is aligned with the business goals and objectives; and
  • Help everyone to align their job to the expected business outcomes.

References