We Don’t Need BAs!

Since you are reading this post I assume you are most likely a business analyst, want to be a BA, or have BAs working for you.  At the end of this post I think you’ll all agree that we do not need BAs. I think it is also safe to say there is nothing positive about a BA.

Let me first define what I mean by “BA”.  I do not mean a Business Analyst.  I am referring to a Bad Attitude. I am a firm believer that we need business analysis, but we do not need business analysts with bad attitudes.  Our profession is still young, and bad attitudes will seriously impede our ability to positively impact organizations around the world.

I recently went to a store to make a purchase.  When I was next in line the cashier said, “Can I help the next person?”  Her words were fine, but the tone was terrible.  Her body language and lack of enthusiasm said “I don’t really want to help the next person in line, but that is what I get paid to say.” I knew this was going to be a bad experience, but I tried to approach it with an open mind.  Unfortunately it only got worse.  Here is an example of how I was treated. I had two items to pay for so I handed the cashier both.  I quickly learned she was not happy about that move. She yelled, “One thing at a time!”  I really like the store, but I had a really bad experience because of one person’s bad attitude.

In situations like this I normally don’t complain.  I will just never spend my money at that establishment in the future. There are too many options out there.  I don’t feel like trying to give feedback and help resolve the issue when I can just go down the street to the competition. 

As a business analyst do you have a bad attitude?  Let’s find out with this short quiz.

Answer the three questions below by choosing the answer that you most closely can relate.

1. When you are eliciting requirements for a specific process and your stakeholder starts talking about another process do you respond by saying something like:
   a. “One thing at a time!”
   or
   b. “This is a great conversation, but we have time scheduled to discuss that process tomorrow. Can this wait until then or should do we need to explore this process before continuing?”
2. When your project manager asks for your status do you respond by saying something like:
   a. “I’m working on it. I would be done if you didn’t keep asking me my status.”
   or
   b. “Things are looking good. I have a few more meetings this week. I’ll give you an update Friday.”
3. When your QA Analyst asks about a requirement for the third time do you respond by saying something like:
   a. “I already explained this to you twice; I doubt a third time will help.”
   or
   b. “Let me see if I can explain this better…”

If you answered “B” to all of these most likely you have a positive attitude and are viewed as a team player and contributor.  If you answered “A” to any of the above you may have a bad attitude.  Think about why you answered “A” and you may want to make some adjustments.

Similar to my response at the store, the people you work with may not give you critical feedback about the impact of your attitude.  They may choose to not work with you and decide to work with another BA without a BA (bad attitude).

Positively yours,

Kupe