Business Analysts are generalists and responsible for finding gaps in both core and supporting business processes with the aim of assessing whether the current approach has all the relevant ‘Es’ (effective, efficient, economical). They recommend improvements and present a business case for these improvements.

Role and responsibilities (varies by industry)

  • Identifying and analyzing business processes (either for a sub-part or the whole aspect of the business)
  • Gather data, organise, analyse and evaluate it
  • Identify trends and patterns to support decision making
  • Deduce problems that must be addressed or needs improvements
  • Projecting the feasibility, impact, and risks of the recommended improvements
  • Keep an up-to-date understanding of technology used to structure, manipulate, visualise/present information
  • Writing and presenting a business case
  • Contribute to proposed changes

Knowledge and Skills

  • Generally, good problem-solving skills
  • Excellent attention to details
  • Sound understanding of qualitative and quantitative data analysis
  • Awareness of commercial pressures
  • Oral and written communication skills
  • Proficient use of Microsoft Office Suite – Word, PowerPoint and particularly Excel with data analysis plug-in
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Additional consideration

A business analyst can work in any industry. It is important to be up-to-date with the trends and functions performed in this role. Once you grasp the basics from our content, further training will be required. We recommend you invest in a professional certificate from organizations such as the International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA) and BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT British Computing Society.

Some popular employers are:

  • Bain & Company
  • Boston Consulting Group
  • Booz Allen Hamilton
  • Deloitte Consulting
  • Ernst & Young (EY)
  • IBM Global Business Services
  • KPMG
  • McKinsey & Company
  • PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
  • Tata Consulting