Roles and functions of a Business Analyst
A very popular term or rather designation used in business circles since recently is “Business Analyst “. Many people get amazed and some even gaze at you in awe, if you say you are a Business Analyst. If it makes people feel so good about you, then it definitely must be worth being one!
If you are an aspiring Business Analyst, you must be clear on what a Business Analyst does and what are the precise role and functions that are expected for a Business Analyst to perform at his workplace. Usually a Business Analyst is needed, when the scale of operations of an organization is medium to large. So, that’s another plus point of being a Business Analyst. In most probability, you may end up happily getting employed with a Multi National Corporation (MNC). So, that is a good indication of a happy career in the offing.
A Business Analyst functions as a core intermediary of the organization. The role of a Business Analyst takes on many dimensions and responsibilities that all fit into the larger domain of the organization’s core businesses. Core businesses of any organization, are made up of processes, and the smooth functioning of these processes is in the hands of the Business Analyst, designated for that particular project. Ideation of new processes, making them, and most importantly implementing them to make sure they are working fine, is the primary role of a Business Analyst. At the same time, he needs to ensure that these processes are layered in a way that allows the processes to be adapted to other areas of the organization. A clear understanding of the way the processes are running currently in the business set up will enable him to realize how good it is and after judging the worthiness, he can find the loopholes and then think of ways to plug them in the new processes to be built for the business set up.
A Business Analyst is concerned with the core processes of the businesses in the organization. So he needs to interact with many departments of the organization. Interaction with the top management (upper most layer of the organization) is a must. Then interaction with the Marketing department, Sales force of the company, Human Resource department , Finance and Accounts Department and the Production Department are all part of the Business Analyst’s job. He also needs to know the consumer behavior of the customers that are pertaining to the businesses of the organization, in which he is made in charge of.
A Business Analyst’s job is not of a static nature. He needs to be dynamic in his thoughts, words and action. In the constantly changing pace of the corporate world, as we know it today, demands that a Business Analyst constantly reviews his processes in the business set up and makes adequate changes, if and when found necessary. This is of paramount importance to ensure maximum customer satisfaction for the customers of the organization as well for optimization of business profitability.
