Business Analysis Competencies. 10 Key BEHAVIOURAL SKILLS AND PERSONAL QUALITIES for a Business Analyst.

March 16, 2011 by smsadmin
Filed under: Business Management

BEHAVIOURAL SKILLS AND PERSONAL QUALITIES
These are the interpersonal skills and characteristics that are useful for a business analyst.

Communication
Communication is perhaps the most important skill a human possesses. It encompasses a wide range of skills such as building rapport, listening, influencing and building empathy. Much analysis work involves collecting and analysing data and then presenting back information that brings new perspectives on the project, so as to propose a course of action. Poor communication skills are often cited as problematic for IT staff and this is explained by the fact that communication at the system level is between computer and human. This type of communication is based on logic. Generally, computers are predictable and do as they are told. When dealing with people, a logical approach does not always apply and many IT professionals become frustrated with business colleagues when there is a failure to do ‘the obvious thing’.
Business analysts need to communicate with business colleagues in a language and style they are comfortable with and avoid what they perceive as ‘techno-babble’.
Spending time with the intended audience will help you to understand what the communication norms are and what will be effective.
It is important, too, that business analysts can adjust their communication to align with the people they are talking to. The managing director, for example, will most likely have a different view and different interests, and use different language, from shop-floor workers.

Relationship Building
This is an extension of communication skill and concerns the ability to get on well with people, at a working if not a social level. Some people seem to possess this ability naturally but others have to work at it—either way, it is essential for a business analyst. As a business analyst, you need to get people to impart information and share opinions with you, and also to discuss ideas for change. All of these things will be very much easier if the people concerned like and trust you. Those who possess this skill naturally seem to take a real interest in other people, making them feel respected and important. This approach is often vital for successful relationship building.

Influencing
Business analysts often conclude their analysis by recommending a course of action. If that conclusion is at odds with preconceived ideas about what is required or calls for radical or unexpected action, then the ability to influence is essential. Successful influencing requires a concerted effort. Emailing the decision-makers with a set of PowerPoint slides is not enough. You need to understand the people who will influence the decision. Some are obvious, such as the project sponsor, project management, governance committees, project boards and other steering groups. Some are hidden, such as networks of colleagues, with personal agendas and hidden information. Identifying each of these stakeholders and understanding the amount of power they exert over the decision-making processes will allow you to target and influence the decision-makers most effectively. Once decision-makers have been identified, you can then define a course of action to take the decision forward. This may involve briefing other colleagues, such as more senior staff or representatives on decision-making groups, or influencing business colleagues directly.
The influencing itself needs careful consideration and prior planning. Business analysts have to develop an understanding of where the other party stands on their proposal, the likely resistance and the influencing style needed to approach the person or group. For example, some managers might defer all decisions to another group, require all information at a very detailed level or ask only for a high-level summary. Some are interested in all the technicalities, others in just the ‘vision’ or the ‘big picture’. Tailoring the approach is vital for a successful outcome.
The analysis itself may be questioned, and business analysts are often themselves influenced to take or suggest another course of action. This may involve another round of influencing, facilitating a round-table discussion or seeking support from senior colleagues on the best course of action. This is especially true when the business analyst is caught in the middle of opposing views. It also suggests that another personal quality that business analysts need from time to time is the ability to withstand pressure.

Team Working
Business analysts often work in teams. The nature of business analysis work is that it requires information to be collected from many sources, such as business colleagues, IT suppliers and internal suppliers as well as project team members or management. Hence, a team approach is often used.
An understanding of your role within the team and of what needs to be done and an appreciation of the working style of others are, therefore, important to ensure that the project objectives are achieved.

Political Awareness
This is a bit like an elephant—hard to describe, but you know it when you see it. One way of defining such awareness is to use the word ‘nous’, which one dictionary describes as ‘common sense; gumption’, but that doesn’t quite convey what we mean.

The term ‘streetwise’ also captures part of what we are getting at. Essentially, what we are talking about is an ability to work out what is and is not politically acceptable in an organisation and to use the right organisational levers to get things done. This means knowing the sources of power within the organisation, understanding what they like and don’t like and tailoring our approach accordingly. Having political awareness, by the way, emphatically does not mean accepting the status quo; it does mean using resourcefulness and being astute to get results, even in the face of opposition.

Analytical Skills and Critical Thinking
Since the role we are talking about here is that of business analyst, it is clear that analytical skills form a major part of the job, but what does this mean in practice? It means not settling for the obvious, not accepting things at face value and not jumping to premature conclusions. It means digging deeper and deeper until the true situation is uncovered and the real problem has been defined. It involves sifting through masses of often conflicting data and determining which is relevant and which is not and presenting the results of the analysis in a form suitable for the relevant stakeholders. And it involves challenging received wisdom at every turn: Why do you do this? What value does it add? Where is it done? How is it done? Who is or should be responsible? When should it happen? Some analysts seem to believe that the job simply consists of amassing of more and more data in the hope that the answer will somehow magically reveal itself, but it will not do so without the active and critical intervention of the analyst. Over time the analyst will be able to assess the level of analysis required for a specific situation. One maxim often used advises doing 20 per cent of the analysis required to get an answer that is 80 per cent of the right answer, and then being 100 per cent convincing in your influencing. This doesn’t mean taking shortcuts on the analysis; it does mean recognising the key factors rather than trying to analyse everything.

Attention to Detail
Although it is sometimes true that the answer to a business problem is obvious, in most cases this is not so and the real solution is only revealed after painstaking research. In addition, many business cases fail because there is insufficient detailed evidence for the proposed change. When a project is handed over to the IT specialists, they often find that many important issues of detail have not been addressed. So it appears that having an eye for detail is also an important attribute of a good business analyst.

Problem Solving
There are many techniques associated with problem solving, and numerous books and training courses address the topic. A business analyst has to approach an issue with the attitude that problems can be solved. A variation on this is that even if the optimal solution cannot be implemented, for financial, technical or political reasons, the business analyst must be pragmatic and be prepared to find other solutions that will yield at least some business benefit.

Leadership
Leadership is a competency that is often associated with line-management job roles. However, the fundamental characteristics of leadership—developing a vision, taking ownership of that vision and ensuring the actions to achieve that vision are implemented—can be applied to all types of work. Thus, leadership is also applicable to business analysis and in this context may be defined as creating a vision of the options available to address a business issue, advising stakeholders in order to obtain agreement about the vision and then driving the business change process towards the achievement of that vision.
No two projects are the same. Each project has different objectives, constraints and stakeholders, and hence the required approach, skills and resources will differ. It is important to assess each situation on its own merits, decide what is needed and then design the analysis process. The word ‘analysis’ is used here in the broad context of analysing business systems, not just IT systems. Business analysts need to consider all aspects of the environment within which they work, including the people, culture and processes as well as commercial and technical aspects. Getting the vision and actions right will require holistic thinking and rigorous analysis, and will position the project for success with key business stakeholders.

Self Belief
This last quality is one that is often overlooked, but is extremely important. It does not relate to having an enormous ego and wanting to carry all before you. It does mean that you have sufficient confidence in yourself, in the quality of your analysis and in the correctness of your solution to be able to withstand pressure and sustain your arguments. Self belief is a key competence for working effectively with stakeholders across the broad range of situations likely to be encountered by business analysts.