The Business Analyst position is uniquely placed in the organization to provide a strong link between the Business Community and Information Technology (IT). Historically, the Business Analyst was a part of the business operation who was assigned to work with Information Technology (or Data Processing as it was once known). The Business Community was willing to provide these services because of the desire to improve the quality of the products and services being delivered by the IT organization and because it perceived this as a way to control the amount of resources being consumed by developmental support activities.
Originally referred to as “users” by the IT staff, the business organization had little control over the quality, cost, or the schedule of the development process. The IT staff was struggling with an evolving technology, with few rules, and a constantly changing infrastructure. What was not changing was the insatiable appetite for the productivity increases provided by automation on the part of “users.”
The Business Analysts, gathered Business Requirements, assisted in Integration and Acceptance Testing, supported the development of training and implementation material, participated in the implementation, and provided immediate post-implementation support. While doing this, they were actively involved in the development of project plans and often provided project management skills when these skills were not available in other project participants. Although there are many new tools and techniques to perform these tasks today, they are still the key functions performed by the Business Analyst.
Many of these activities relied on the outstanding communication skill, both verbal and written, which was one of the BA’s most valuable characteristics. As IT struggled to provided the improvements in quality and productivity which were being demanded by a “user” which had metamorphisized into a “customer,” the role of the Business Analyst became even more important. Over time, many of these individuals were recruited into IT because of their ability to translate business needs into terms that were understood by IT. They became Software Business Analysts.
The shift in the balance of power, which occurred when “users” became “customers,” failed to produce the kind of improvements in schedule, cost, and quality that the business community had anticipated. It was clear that this was also a “zero-sum game.” The evolution of the Business Partnership model, which had its roots in the very earliest days of the quality revolution, has finally created a relationship that is win-win. The Business Analyst, fluent in both the language of business and the language of IT, is once again the key player.