Benefits of Business Analysis
The article titled “The Benefits of Business Analysis” was able to raise some interesting and thought-provoking perspectives about the processes and ideas involved in business analysis, as well as the roles and responsibilities of Business Analysts. Business Analysts often take responsibilities together in their respective projects. As it was mentioned in the text, the role that Business Analysts assume in a project can be equated to that of a Project Manager. Both roles are essential and cannot exist without the other. Through the effective implementation of management skills and developing needed technical solutions, business analysts can help in ensuring the success of projects.
A Business Analyst is responsible for doing many pertinent tasks that can affect the projects at hand. Projects need more than project management because there are some responsibilities that need to be carried out in order to ensure its success. Guy Beauchamp argues that the scope of the Business Analysts’s role can be related to ten different groups of people namely the owners, sponsors, project stakeholders, solution builders, project managers, strategists, programme managers, design analysts, solution builders and business, and users (1). For instance, the role of Business Analysts in relation to owners has something to do with the process of documenting and confirming projects. In relation to project managers, Business Analysts are responsible for helping them with data migration and contributing significant insights for the design of the needed activity.
The BA role is also evidently critical for a project’s success. First of all, Business Analysts make sure that requirements are met properly according to the needs of the project at hand. There are some instances where project failure can occur due to incomplete or inaccurate requirements. While Business Analysts may not be solely responsible for doing these requirements, it is a part of their role to ensure that proper actions will be taken in order to minimize potential risks from requirement-related problems.
Business Analysts can also contribute to a project’s success by ensuring that user involvement will be taken into consideration. They are responsible for handling and minimizing the potential risk that stems up from the lack of user involvement. Meanwhile, Business Analysts are also important for projects because they are responsible for overseeing that objectives are being met. In some instances, projects encounter the risk of unrealistic expectations which can be countered through proper analysis and knowledge of the established objectives.
On the other hand, Business Analysts can also help in the process of securing the objectives of the project which should be in line with the priorities of the business owners. Through their help, risks can be mitigated in relation to the lack of executive support. Another important role that Business Analysts assume in ensuring the success of a project is minimizing the risks of changing requirements. This responsibility involves familiarising themselves with the project objectives and requirements, as well as the business rules which can affect the needed changes. Finally, Business Analysts can be helpful in terms of carefully specifying their roles and responsibilities to make the project work. Generally, the role of BA involves ensuring success by reducing the risks from the aforementioned common issues that are encountered in projects. They are responsible for guaranteeing that business requirements and solutions are carefully met in order to achieve the best results for the project at hand.
References
Beauchamp, Guy. The Benefits of Business Analysis. Modern Analyst. Retrieved from http://www.modernanalyst.com/Resources/Articles/tabid/115/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/602/What-are-the-Benefits-of-Business-Analysis.aspx
