Tag: Best Practices

An End and a Beginning: A Practical Application of Business Analysis Techniques

Written by Nosa Adagbasa on January 24, 2024. Posted in Articles.

Business analysis is not just an IT-related profession; it is a profession that has expression in every facet of life, and hence one of the reasons why you should take pride in this profession if you are a business analyst or why you should aspire to be one.

The tools and techniques are transferable skills that have applications or expressions in other aspects of life.

I briefly discuss two as the curtains close in 2023.

Lessons learnt
MoSCoW

Have you taken time to reflect on 2023 and list out the lessons learned? Making use of this powerful BA technique is one of the ways you can identify what went well in 2023, what didn’t go well, where you made mistakes, and what you can put in place to avoid those mistakes in 2024.

Note that this does not only apply to the current year or next year; rather, it is a set of business analysis techniques that can be applied to different seasons and phases of life.

Lessons learnt

What went well?

A1: Why did it go well?

B: What didn’t go well?

B1: Why did it not go well?

C: What mistakes did I make?

D: What can I do to rectify or avoid the mistake in the future?

E: What are my achievements?

F: What lessons have I learned?

2. MoSCoW

Based on your analysis above and the lessons learned, you can draw up your plan for the future (the next phase).

A: What must be done?

B: What should be done?

C: What COULD be done

D: What won’t be done

This can also be seen as a positive thing to do in the new year and a negative thing to avoid.

While new year resolutions may be difficult for some, using the above BA skills should help you plan your coming year with hopefully less pressure.

Concluding Remarks

As a phase comes to an end and you look forward to a new beginning, take time to consider these business analysis techniques, take time to reflect on the lessons learned, and plan the MoSCow for the future.

Five Ways BAs and Inventory Managers Can Make Jobsites More Profitable, Together

Written by Lucas Marshall on December 13, 2023. Posted in Articles.

Business analysis is a critical skillset and operational imperative companies need to prioritize as they look to be profitable and understand how they can make measurable improvements as they scale. This fact is not lost on corporations, either—for example, 72% of manufacturing executives said that they considered advanced analytics to be important, according to a report by BCG.

The construction sector, meanwhile, consistently finds itself in a precarious state in terms of profitability no thanks to employment challenges, influx materials pricing, and the disjointed nature of the construction ecosystem. For example, experts estimate job growth in the construction industry is projected to be at a stagnant 1.1% for ten years (Data USA via Finances Online). Underperformance, Autodesk concludes, is an industry-wide norm with 72% of firms saying projects have taken longer than anticipated—and 44% of firms putting longer completion times into their bids, according to data from Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). In fact, merely 25% of projects came within 10% of their original deadlines, a KPMG report found.

The World Economic Forum (via Autodesk) estimated that a 1% reduction in construction costs could save society $100 billion globally. As the construction sector ecosystem looks to execute projects in a quickly changing environment, these existential challenges warrant organizational changes to better negotiate the trials and tribulations at hand.

We also have to consider the average construction company’s costs to better contextualize these challenges and opportunities. If we assume that the average cost of a construction project is comprised of overhead, materials, tools and equipment, and labor, then focusing on what you can control will help move the needle toward greater profitability. For example, while you might not be able to affect the cost of materials, you can negotiate work to accommodate the resourcing you currently have, and you can make plans for improving internal processes to drive greater efficiency.

I’ve previously written about how project managers in the construction industry should embrace change management, as well as how the industry might adopt big tech’s displaced software engineers to address industry digitization problems, and how the construction industry looking to adopt lean management principles may borrow some of the similar practices from agile software project management.

Studies show that business analysts are more prone to support collaboration in agile projects.

With this in mind, in this article, I look to unpack two roles—the Business Analyst and the Inventory Manager—and discuss how a collaboration matrix between these roles can help construction companies work leaner, more efficiently, and drive greater profitability over time.

The Role of the Business Analyst & Why BAs May Be a Critical Construction Industry Hire

Considering construction’s profitability concerns, the role of a business analyst (BA) from the corporate environment is one that construction companies may look to fast-track.

Responsible for “bridging the gap between IT and the business using data analytics to assess processes, determine requirements, and deliver data-driven recommendations and reports to executives and stakeholders,” a BA in a construction company setting can “offer valuable insights to enhance financial planning and resource allocation,” reads the job description for a Senior Construction Business Intelligence Data Analyst role at CBRE Group, a global commercial real estate company, which was available at the time of writing this article.

Consider CBRE’s job posting for some of the job-specific functions a Business Analyst in the construction industry may entail:

Applying advanced analytical techniques to conduct prescriptive, diagnostic, descriptive, and predictive data analysis on diverse construction-related data, incorporating data from Quickbase, eBuilder, SAP, and Google Sheets.
Developing dashboards, meticulously maintained [… that] provide real-time insights into construction project data while ensuring these dashboards are user-friendly, intuitive, and deliver vital information to project collaborators (e.g., stakeholders).
Generating regular and ad-hoc reports for the leadership team, highlighting essential performance indicators, project status, and emerging trends, while translating sophisticated data into practical, actionable insights, incorporating earned value measurement concepts to evaluate project performance.
Providing meaningful support for annual capital planning by conducting comprehensive analysis of historical data, project costs, and resource allocation, offering valuable insights to enhance financial planning and resource allocation.
Developing and maintaining strategic forecasts for construction projects, demonstrating data analytics to identify trends and make informed predictions about future outcomes, incorporating earned value measurement techniques to assess project performance and forecast project completion accurately.
Providing data-driven insights that support critical business decisions, helping to improve operational efficiency and profitability.

Construction forecasting is one critical business process a business analyst may help owners more accurately predict through advanced analytics, historical trends, and advanced technology management (e.g., artificial intelligence).

When they collaborate with other critical business functions (e.g., inventory management, discussed next), greater outcomes may become more easily within reach.

The Role of the Inventory Manager in Construction Projects

An inventory manager in the construction industry (aka: tool crib manager, tool room manager, asset manager, equipment manager, etc.) is responsible for the strategic direction, allocation, storage, and flow of all the physical assets needed to perform construction work—e.g., building materials, tools, vehicles, and equipment.

An inventory manager assures jobsite materials, tools, and equipment arrive on jobsites as they’re needed, are in working order (e.g., tools are properly serviced, materials are not damaged, etc.), and are returned or rerouted across projects as needed to prevent slippage and excess asset turnover.

With an inventory manager at the helm of the construction supply chain, companies might realistically see a 10-12% reduction in labor cost originating from avoiding non-productive idle time or downtime—that is to say, when materials are where they’re needed, manpower doesn’t need to search for them or idly wait for their arrival.

How BAs and IMs Can Work Collaboratively to Drive Better Profitability Outcomes

Now that we’ve discussed what a Business Analyst role may look like in the construction sector, as well as the role of an inventory manager in the same sector, how might these cross-functional teammates work together to drive better profitability outcomes?

Here are five ways:

1. Procurement Strategies

A business analyst, tied into company forecasting, can work closely with inventory managers to establish objectives for procurement strategies and capital investment as well as determine needs based on ongoing inflight projects and company annual goals.

Together, they might reasonably achieve strategic themes when approaching inventory-related financial commitments and implement cost-saving measures, including:

Appropriate Safety Stock Purchasing – Together, a business analyst and inventory manager can cross-pollinate company-specific analytics related to equipment purchasing, historical trends of project needs, and existing commitments in order to reasonably define policies for shelving inventory and planning for needs (i.e., how much to buy, when). Such a collaboration can help prevent excessive inventory procurement that would otherwise lead to unnecessarily rising overhead, while it can also help facilitate proper procurement to prevent inventory stockouts. What’s more, using advanced analytics via artificial intelligence can help predict future needs.
Proactive Inventory Audits to prevent needless spending over project lifecycles as well as to provide better long-term inventory management outcomes.
Deploying cost-centric, advanced inventory management strategies like just-in-time inventory. This method prioritizes strategic, lean operations in order to deploy only what’s needed when it’s needed, preventing excessive inventory procurement (and like above, preventing unnecessarily rising overhead). The method also requires inventory managers to proactively intervene to prevent jobsite hording, hence why inventory tracking (e.g., Bluetooth tags, GPS trackers, etc.) is critical.
Performing XYZ analysis to calculate: fixed demand (X), fluctuating demand (Y), uncertain demand (Z). Determining these inputs can help inventory managers more effectively achieve more positive outcomes by ranking the frequency and predictability of demand for items over time.

2. Job Costing

In addition to financial forecasts and reporting, business analysts can work with inventory managers to adopt a job costing solution. Job costing in construction refers to the proactive process and steps taken to track the associated costs and revenue of a given project throughout its lifecycle.

The process can be used in inventory management, where inventory managers can apply rental rates (daily, weekly) to equipment that is deployed to the field (either individual or bulk inventory that’s been kitted/bundled and sent at once). Job costing software then calculates the cost accrued for each day (or week) those items are in the field.

This process can help:

Inventory managers better account and monetize on the equipment they send to their network of jobsites.
Financially incentivize borrowers to return equipment in a timely manner, reducing the “time on site” of a particular piece of inventory as well as the need for additional safety stock, unnecessary rerouting of equipment from other jobsites, etc.
Provide additional revenue streams to construction businesses.

3. Reporting

In addition to the business analytics dashboards that a construction business analyst might build for a business owner as discussed in the above-mentioned job description, inventory managers can work hand-in-hand with business analysts to provide additional reporting opportunities, including:

Tool Management Reports – reports about ongoing usage of inventory (e.g., average “days on site,” as we discussed above, to help make improvements on how inventory is used in the future; service-related alerts, to help proactively take charge of equipment maintenance, improve longevity, and decrease overhead; inventory assigned by jobsite or person, to increase accountability; etc.)
Asset-specific reports, such as utilization on some smart power tools, which can help diagnose problems before a jobsite-halting breakdown occurs as well as provide quality assurance to customers and inspectors that installations were performed to specification.

4. Interoperability

Construction interoperability is the practice whereby construction systems (e.g., software platforms, apps, processes) interact with each other and the extent to which they possess the ability to operate seamlessly and share information between each other.

A KPMG report revealed that only 16% of executives surveyed say their organizations have fully integrated systems and tools—a serious problem when we consider how fragmented the construction ecosystem is. Consider, too, that only 36% of firms have implemented a process for identifying bad data and repairing it (Autodesk/FMI report).

Together, inventory managers and business analysts can start to build system interoperability that can both provide a single source of truth and prevent cost driving incidents like rework (e.g., from the same Autodesk/FMI report, 14% of all construction rework may have been caused by bad data, creating $88.69 billion in avoidable rework globally).

Possible interoperable systems include:

Connecting data flow between a project management system (e.g., Procore, Autodesk Construction Cloud, Contractor Foreman, Houzz Pro) and architecture, design, and civil engineering (e.g., Revit, AutoCAD, SketchUp, Bluebeam, Autodesk BIM 360, Civil 3D, ArcGIS, Bentley STAAD, etc.)
Connecting data flow between inventory management systems and mission-critical systems (e.g., project management, design, etc.)
Building digital twins (e.g., asset twins, component twins, system twins, process twins) to provide holistic views of cross-network activities, predictive analytics, and real-time data and simulations to aid in decision-making.

5. Planning for Addressing Technical Debt

Technical debt is a phenomenon whereby dependencies one introduces when deploying new software and hardware solutions lead to operational slowdown.

A colleague and I have outlined five ways construction companies can prevent technical debt. A business analyst and/or construction technologist may work hand in hand with an inventory manager to prevent technical debt relative to construction operations from piling up – e.g.,

They may work with IT to deploy cloud-based systems (i.e., real-time collaboration).
They’ll deploy inventory tracking hardware to ensure real-time inventory activity is recorded.
They’ll ensure mobile apps integrate with construction ERPs.
They may work with the cybersecurity team to ensure proper MDM deployment and data security best practices relative to inventory.

Bottom Line

The construction industry faces some dire operational challenges.

While construction companies might not be able to affect the cost of materials, they can focus on factors they can control—e.g., improving internal processes, empowering the team to work more seamlessly together.

When working collaboratively, business analysts and inventory managers can help companies operate more agilely, more strategically focused, and they can help achieve greater profitability over time.

Secure or Sorry: From Gym Lockers to Cybersecurity

Written by Adrian Reed on November 30, 2023. Posted in Articles.

I’m a member of a local gym, and a few weeks ago I noticed that they were maintaining the lockers in the changing rooms. The lockers are pretty standard metal boxes, and members bring their own padlocks for added security.

I’d noticed for months that the latch mechanisms had been getting very loose, so I was glad to see maintenance happening. The staff member doing the maintenance was chatting to another member, and I overheard him say that there had been a whole series of thefts the previous week. Accordingly, they were ramping up security, including turning on the keycode lock on the changing rooms (members each have a PIN code which can be used to access the facilities, but was usually switched off during the day).

I suddenly felt a real perception of risk, to the point that I decided not to leave my house keys in the locker, but take them with me onto the gym floor. I’m now even more cautious when closing my padlock, to make sure it’s properly secure.

The Horse Had Left The Stable

While all of those personal security measures are useful, the gym (and I) were only prompted to review our security posture after an incident had occurred. The thieves had probably long gone, and had moved onto a different gym. Perhaps they even tour the country, buying day passes, finding the gyms with weak security. Who knows. Not only this, but the gym had increased its security, so my possessions were probably the safest they’d ever been. Yet I felt the most uncomfortable I ever had.

Ironically, the time I was most at risk (the previous week, when security was lapse and thieves were at the gym) I was blissfully unaware, the risk wasn’t particularly on my radar. I may have been happily running on a treadmill at the very moment a thief was breaking into a locker and stealing someone’s property.

This pattern of the gym increasing security after an incident occurred might be seen as a classic case of ‘closing the stable door after the horse had bolted’. However, it’s not that simple—reacting to a security threat after an incident occurred is still valuable, as it will prevent a similar thing from happening again. I suppose it is more akin to closing the door after one of your three horses has bolted. Not as good as closing the door earlier, but better than continuing to leave it open…

Predictable With 20/20 Hindsight

The thing which struck me about the locker thefts is that it was completely predictable with hindsight. The latch mechanisms on some lockers were so loose it’s easy to see how they could be overcome. Not only this, a culture of trustworthiness (which is lovely) had emerged. People would leave their expensive coats out, and some people wouldn’t even use padlocks at all.

As my father used to say “it only takes one bad apple”. And as time goes on, it seems statistically likely that the bad apple will emerge.

It’s Not Just Lockers: Information & Cybersecurity

This pattern of trustworthiness and complacency doesn’t just exist in gyms, it can also be an issue within organizations. If you haven’t had a data breach, then security of data might seem an irritating formality, or it might not feel as ‘real’ as some other more proximate risks. However, the fact is that there are hostile actors out there targeting companies just like yours and mine.

I’ll bet in most organizations there’s at least one application that is creaking at the edges, is out of support (or nearly out of support), or an application where there’s a maintenance patch needed, but that’s not seen as a priority just yet. Or an application that’s been customized so much it’s not on the official upgrade path any more. Upgrading it or replacing it has always been seen as important but not urgent, so it’s left there, collecting more and more dust. Might there be some security vulnerabilities there? Perhaps it’s like an insecure gym locker, fine for the moment, but once a ‘bad apple’ finds it there will be chaos… and that single vulnerability might gain them wider access to all sorts of systems and information.

It’s not just about customer data either. Do you know what your organization’s key intellectual property is? Where it’s stored? Who can access it? Where it’s backed up and archived? In many organizations it’s spread out, with key information that yields competitive advantage mixed with more routine stuff, all dumped in a folder or repository of some type… Hopefully someone from ‘corporate IT’ is backing it up. Let’s hope so, eh?

Security Matters: Business, Process & IT

There is sometimes a perception that information and cybersecurity is an ‘IT thing’. The reality is so much wider than that. The weakest link might not be the tech, but the person operating the tech who receives a call out of the blue by someone they believe to be a colleague (but is actually a hostile actor engaging in ‘social engineering’ to gain information).

This has wide implications for business analysis. Security needs to be built into IT systems and processes from the very beginning. It’s important to think “who might be trying to gain unauthorized access to this, how would they do it, and how will we prevent it?”. It’s important to think about the types of information and data held, its sensitivity and the impact if it were to be damaged or disclosed. This will lead to specific requirements and acceptance criteria around these aspects. It will likely lead to a BA asking challenging questions, which might include “is this the right thing to do, right now, when we have a security vulnerability over here?”

Most of all, while things might be calm now, there might be a storm waiting round the corner. It is the calm times when a little investment in the ‘important but not urgent’ will save a lot of headaches in the future. And surely that’s worthwhile?

The Value of Business Analysis Competencies in the Successful Delivery of IT Projects.

Written by Nosa Adagbasa on November 29, 2023. Posted in Articles.

Several schools of thought have proffered reasons why projects fail; notable amongst these are studies by Forbes, the British Computer Society, Gartner, and many others. Generally, the causes of IT project failures have been described as ranging from poor business cases, requirements management, project management, talent, and poor processes.

Conversely, certain factors, which are described below, can be identified as factors responsible for successful projects.

BA competencies are a set of knowledge, behaviour, attitudes, and skills that enable a business analyst to perform business analysis successfully and efficiently. These BA competencies can be mapped to the factors that guide the successful delivery of IT projects.

Accurate problem definition and analysis

This is central to delivering successful projects as it entails proper identification of problems, the scope, and thoughts around solutions. One major reason for IT project failure is that the business is often focused on the consequences or symptoms of an underlying problem and quickly directs technology to resolve these symptoms. At best, the result is an expensive IT solution that is sparsely used by the users, who often find workarounds or, at worst, IT projects that fail.

BA Competency: Analytical Thinking and Problem Solving

This competency employs critical thinking, system thinking, and problem-solving techniques, amongst many others, to help carry out root-cause analysis and produce problem statements that help correctly identify a problem.

People

People are an organisation’s greatest asset. Several schools of thought, including Herzberg’s, Maslow’s, etc., have carried out studies on employee productivity. Too often, while embarking on IT projects, the focus is on the technical skills of the project team, while knowledge around behavioural attributes, emotional intelligence, and concepts that affect productivity resides with the human resources team, who are seldom part of the IT project team.

BA Competency: Behavioural Characteristics and Personal Quality

BAs understand behavioural characteristics and human resources concepts of motivation, productivity, and emotional intelligence and constantly need to keep these in sight as they seek to understand the problem and define relevant requirements for a successful solution.

Knowledge of organizational structure and culture

While structure deals with norms, rules, and policies, culture is concerned with organisational values, behaviours, and attitudes, and both can affect the agility of project delivery. Thus, an optimal combination of the two is vital to successful project delivery.

BA Competency: Business Knowledge

This involves the application of business acumen, industry, organisation, appropriate methodology, and solution knowledge. Peter Drucker famously declared that culture eats strategy for breakfast, buttressing the importance of a thorough understanding of business to aid organizational success.

Effective Communication

This is the process of exchanging ideas, thoughts, opinions, knowledge, and data so that the message is received and understood with clarity and purpose. The challenge for many businesses is that this is not recognised as a skill that goes beyond writing and speaking. It involves non-verbal communications, listening, and analysis. When this is lacking in an IT project, the risk of failure is increased.

BA Competency: Communication Skills

Business analysts act as intermediaries between the business and IT and, as such, are trained in effective communication skills. They understand business and IT concepts and help to facilitate and interpret conversations to help all stakeholders deliver successful solutions.

User needs and top management support.

IT solutions are intended to meet user needs; however, a major reason for IT project failures is half-hearted support from top management. Often, top management is concerned with strategy and has a broad view of concurrent projects without knowledge of user needs. There is therefore a disconnect between project delivery and top management, with the resultant effect that projects don’t get the full backing required for success. Support is usually given in principle but lacking in practice as top management is often far removed from the projects.

BA Competency: Interaction Skills

Business analysts not only act as the intermediary between IT and the business but can also act as an intermediary between top management and the business. With their interaction skills, they can drive conversations among stakeholders and ensure that difficult questions are asked and resolved to ensure the successful delivery of projects.

Business-Led Modular Technology and Data Platform

Organizations that intend to deliver successful IT projects need to have a modern technology architecture driven by business needs, as evidenced by data. Advances in technology mean that businesses no longer have the choice of being either technology-savvy or operating on the fringes of the technology spectrum. Technology drives agility in today’s business environment, and the influx of AI makes it more expedient that businesses that want to thrive will need to invest in sound technology architectures and platforms.

BA Competency: Tools and Technology

This BA competency fosters the knowledge and use of tools and technology to drive productivity. From the use of general communication and office productivity tools like ‘Teams, Slack, etc. to business analysis tools like Jira, Azure, Visio, etc. to AI tools like Chat-GPT, Google Bard, Slides AI, etc., business analysts are equipped to be versatile while continuing to broaden their toolset.

Clear Process Flows and Business Requirements Management

This covers the end-to-end process of delivering an IT project; it encompasses identifying the right requirements, managing stakeholders, ensuring an accurate depiction of information flow through the organisation, and managing change.

BA Competency: Professional Techniques

This deals with delivering excellence by design. It is an aggregation of several BA competencies with a focus on ensuring that excellence is delivered at every point of the customer journey. This implies understanding an organisation in terms of its people, processes, steps, and the data required to make each step as efficient as possible.

Concluding Remarks

Historically, the rate of IT project failures has been high; however, opportunities now abound to turn the tide. As knowledge and awareness continue to increase and the business analysis skillset becomes more mainstreamed across organisations, there is an opportunity for business analysts to hone their craft, be more visible, and help stem the tide.

Don’t Just Break the Mold, Shatter It: Rebel Recipes for the Business Analyst Maverick

Written by Paul Benn on November 16, 2023. Posted in Articles.

Photo by Nik on Unsplash

Picture this: You’re sailing on the vast ocean of the business world, navigating the wild waves of change. As a business analyst, you’re the captain of your ship, and your map? It’s pre-skilling – the compass that keeps you not just afloat but steering ahead of the storm. Gone are the days of up-skilling after the fact or re-skilling in the wake of a career hurricane. We’re talking about getting your sea legs “before” the tides turn. Ready to dive in? Let’s set sail!

Why Fit In When You Can Stand Out?

In the high-speed freeway of today’s business, being market fit isn’t just about keeping pace – it’s about setting the pace. As a business analyst, you’re not just in the driver’s seat; you’re also the navigator, the pit crew, and the spark plug all in one. Your adaptability isn’t just a cool party trick; it’s your bread and butter.

Pre-skilling is like having a crystal ball. It’s about harnessing your inner oracle to forecast the skills of tomorrow and training in them today. You don’t just react to change; you dance with it, two steps ahead, making waves rather than riding them.

Talent and Skill Development: The Game’s Changing, Are You?

If you think of your career as a video game, pre-skilling is the cheat code that helps you level up “before” the boss fight. The digital domain is like a game that updates overnight – new rules, new players, new goals. Traditional skill development is playing catch-up, but pre-skilling? It’s got you downloading the updates before they even hit the main server.

Pre-skilling: Not Just Another Buzzword

You see, pre-skilling isn’t a band-aid; it’s a blueprint. It’s not learning to fix a leak; it’s engineering a ship that rides the waves like a pro. It’s the difference between retrofitting your armor mid-battle and showing up with an indestructible suit.

Sailing the Pre-skilling Seas: How to Do It Right

So, you’re convinced pre-skilling is the way to go. But how do you sail these uncharted waters? Here’s your treasure map:

1. Potential Over Past Glory

Forget what you were; what you “can be” is the real gold. Cultivate a mindset that treasures soft skills – the ability to learn, adapt, and bounce back like a superhero.

2. Feedback is Your North Star

Steer by the stars of feedback and career guidance. Have real talks with the crew – managers, mentors, peers – to chart a course that aligns with the future, not just the now.

3. Broaden the Horizon

Your skill set is an ocean – vast and deep. Don’t swim in the kiddie pool. Dive into new knowledge areas, and you’ll find yourself swimming with the dolphins instead of the goldfish.

4. Captain Skills

In the AI-cohabited world, leadership is your sword. Sharpen it. Guide your crew with vision, inspire them with your cause, and lead them through the foggy seas of change.

5. All Hands on Deck for Diversity

Steer clear of the Sirens of sameness. Champion cognitive diversity and inclusive leadership. Different minds on deck make for a robust and innovative ship.

6. Spyglass on Trends

Keep your spyglass fixed on industry winds and currents. Trend analysis isn’t just fancy talk; it’s how you predict the next big wave and ride it like a pro.

7. Market Maps for Skills

Use market analysis to spot uncharted islands of opportunity. Customize your skill set to be the first to plant your flag and claim the land.

8. Bridging Skill Gaps

Perform a gap analysis like you’re checking for leaks. Find where you’re lacking and patch it up before it’s time to face the kraken.

9. Strategic Pre-skilling

Combine all these tools, and you’ve got yourself a pre-skilling compass that points true north. Use it to not just stay on course but to discover new worlds.

Conclusion: Charting Your Course to Market Fitness

So, what’s the final word for our intrepid business analysts navigating the shifting sands of the corporate landscape?

The key takeaway is that the art of pre-skilling is not just a strategy; it’s a dynamic, forward-thinking mindset. It’s about embracing the power of foresight and the excitement of what’s yet to come. In a world that’s racing towards an unknown future, pre-skilling is your secret superpower. It’s the equivalent of giving your career a jetpack, where others might settle for a safety net.

Remember, the sea of business is as merciless as it is magnificent. The winds of change are relentless, and the tides of technology wait for no one. By embracing pre-skilling, you become the captain of your destiny, navigating through the gales with grace and gusto.

To thrive as a market-fit business analyst, you must treat change like it’s your best friend. Why? Because it is! Change is the one constant you can rely on to bring you new opportunities, insights, and paths to personal and professional growth. When you pre-skill, you’re not just keeping pace; you’re setting the pace, transforming from a player to a game-changer in your industry.

By investing in pre-skilling, you’re not just enhancing your resume; you’re forging a professional identity that’s as resilient as it is versatile. This identity becomes your brand, signaling to employers and colleagues alike that you’re not only equipped to handle the challenges of today but also the revolutions of tomorrow.