For most people, a new experience brings with it feelings of nervousness and anxiety. These feelings are brought about by the doubts lingering in your head about your ability to deliver what is expected of you. This is especially so if you moved from a job where you had everything figured out. It’s no different for a certified business analysis professional starting a job as a lead business analyst. Below we go over a few tips for newbie business analysts.
- Have the Basics Covered
You need to have the basic skills of a business analyst covered. Be a good communicator, have problem solving skills, and think critically. Some of the things you’ll need to know how to do include creating a requirements specification, analyzing the requirements, creating visual models, facilitating elicitation sessions, and using the requisite business analytics tools.
- Be Resourceful
A business analyst should be able to find answers to tough questions without waiting for things to work themselves out. You should be in a position to find alternative paths through the organization and get the right people on board at the right time. Working under pressure in very challenging situations is the order of the day.
- Improve Your Skills
Do not be content with doing the same thing day in day out. Venture out of your comfort zone and apply new business analysis techniques whenever you can. This will help improve your marketability and efficiency on the job. Instead of relying on a single go-to tool for all jobs. You will be able to pick the right tool for every situation.
- Create Ownership and Alignment Around the Solution
Its easy to write down what is asked of you by the business stakeholders. This is what will be expected of you when starting out as a business analyst. This is okay for a start. However, you need to do much more. Resolving conflicts and making sure the solution you recommend is truly owned and used by the business should be one of your key tasks. To do this, you need to understand the business process and the underlying problems.
- Create Clarity
You need to be able to bring a blend of soft skills and analytical skills to the table. These two skills help you bring clarity using analysis techniques and being able to delve into the details by asking relevant questions. Instead of just signing off during the validation and verification stages, you get the whole organization to buy into what you are working towards.
- Go Beyond the Call of Duty
You don’t have to get recognition for your work – in fact you might never get it. However, you need to do the following:
- Be an active listener to ensure the business stakeholders feel heard.
- Set clear expectations to build trust and follow through on what you commit to doing.
- Honor any confidentiality agreements and avoid talking behind people’s back. You need to be professional and pleasant to work with.
