Business Analyst

Alternative titles: Business Systems Analyst, Business Process Analyst, Project Analyst

Without Business Analysts business would slow down!

Business Analysts are essential members of any project team and most commonly report their findings to a Project Manager.  Their goal is to understand how information flows around an organisation, to determine what happens to that information at each processing stage and then identify whether that process should remain, change or be abandoned. 

A healthy business requires strong, uninterruptable business processes.  So, think of an insurance company processing your insurance claim.  The Business Analyst will map the flow of information from your initial call through to the eventual success or failure of your claim. Information must be readily available at each stage of the process and appropriate instructions and data should be passed to the next person or system in the process.  Was your last claim processed efficiently, effectively and without interruption?  If not, you’d better call in a Business Analyst.

General skills and aptitude

•    Excellent written and verbal communication skills
•    Excellent listening skills
•    Comfortable presenting to mixed audiences with tools such as Microsoft PowerPoint
•    Clear aptitude for both planning and problem solving
•    An interest in business
•    Broad understanding of computing

Average starting salary: £20,000