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Tag: Talent Triangle

5 Competencies that help Business Analysts Connect the Dot

What do detectives, entrepreneurs/innovators, doctors, lawyers, and effective business analysts all have in common?

Larson 032817 1Among other things, they all have to connect the dots1 to be successful. Like detectives sorting through objects at the scene of the crime, or doctors sorting through sometimes disjointed information provided by patients, business analysts need to sort through information—lots and lots of information—in order to identify problems and uncover requirements of the solution. This process requires the ability to connect the dots.

And although the phrase “connecting the dots” has been around for a long time, it has crept into our popular culture, thanks in part to Steve Jobs. He talked about it in August 2011 when he described what connecting the dots meant to him. He said, “You cannot connect the dots looking forward. You can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that somehow the dots will connect in your future.” 2

Well, that sounds good. But what does it actually mean? How do we go about connecting the dots? Here are some prerequisites:

  1. Experience. We cannot look backwards if we don’t have the background or experience to make sense of the new information we’re taking in. That does not mean we need to have specific industry or project experience. But it does mean that we need to have learned from similar situations. We need to apply appropriate business analysis skills to new situations, guided by what worked and what did not work in the past.
  2. Understanding context. We need to understand the context of the current situation. “Context” is one of the core business analysis concepts in the BABOK® Guide 3.0, an important concept indeed. Understanding the context provides important information about such things as the culture of the organization and the stakeholders, values and beliefs of the organization and the stakeholders, processes followed, conditions that affect the situation like weather (think shoe prints in the snow, or clues washed away in the rain), terminology, and technology—just about anything that can affect identifying the problem and the creation of the solution.
  3. Ability to recognize patterns. Recognizing patterns requires an ability to take in information from a variety of different sources, to synthesize lots of disparate information and make sense of it, to rearrange it, to understand what is important, to stay focused, and not get distracted by the irrelevant. Larson 032817 2The ability to recognize patterns is what allows us to understand which “clues” are relevant, because we’ve seen them, just in different situations. It’s about the ability to see a problem and say with confidence: his particular solution will work (and this one won’t and here’s why).
  4. Using both the rational mind and intuition. BAs need to use both their rational minds and their intuition.3 Several years ago there was a heated discussion on a social media group about which would serve the BA better—being “analytical” or being “intuitive.” Most discussion participants saw it as an either/or. Effective BAs were either more logical or more intuitive.
    We do need to be analytical. We need to break down information into smaller pieces and determine which pieces are needed. We need to use our analysis to uncover the root causes of a problem which helps separate facts from hearsay, gossip, and opinion. But we also need to use our intuition if we have any hope of being able to think critically and conceptually, as well as to be able to synthesize a lot of information quickly and be able t make sense of it.4
  5. Ability to thrive in ambiguous situations. We often hear about the need for BAs to tolerate ambiguity. I think that effective detectives and business analysts are those who not only tolerate but actually thrive in ambiguous situations. The ability to thrive in uncertain situations allows business analysts to create structure from chaos. When business analysts can synthesize all the information they have accumulated during elicitation activities, put it together in meaningful ways, and are able to create understanding and gain consensus—that’s a true thing of beauty.Larson 032817 3

Having these competencies does not necessarily mean a BA will be successful. But these skills are necessary to connect the dots and connecting the dots is necessary if we BAs are going to do our jobs of finding problems and recommending solutions that provide value to stakeholders (BABOK® Guide v.3).

About The Authors

Elizabeth Larson, PMP, CBAP, CSM, PMI-PBA is Co-Principal and CEO of Watermark Learning and has over 30 years of experience in project management and business analysis. Elizabeth’s speaking history includes repeat presentations for national and international conferences on five continents.

Elizabeth has co-authored five books on business analysis and certification preparation. She has also co-authored chapters published in four separate books. Elizabeth was a lead author on several standards including the PMBOK® Guide, BABOK® Guide, and PMI’s Business Analysis for Practitioners – A Practice Guide.

Richard Larson, PMP, CBAP, PMI-PBA, President and Founder of Watermark Learning, is a successful entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience in business analysis, project management, training, and consulting. He has presented workshops and seminars on business analysis and project management topics to over 10,000 participants on five different continents.

Rich loves to combine industry best practices with a practical approach and has contributed to those practices through numerous speaking sessions around the world. He has also worked on the BA Body of Knowledge versions 1.6-3.0, the PMI BA Practice Guide, and the PM Body of Knowledge, 4th edition. He and his wife Elizabeth Larson have co-authored five books on business analysis and certification preparation.

References
1 “To draw a conclusion from disparate facts.” http://www.dictionary.com/browse/connect-the-dots?s=t
Originally a form or puzzle involving drawing lines between numbers to form a picture, as in “To draw connecting lines between a seemingly random arrangement of numbered dots so as to produce a picture or design.” http://www.thefreedictionary.com/

2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sr07uR75Qk0 4:41 minutes in

3 The term “intuition” has a variety of meanings and is used differently in different contexts. Although there are different nuances, the term basically is “There are a variety of definitions of intuition. This is from http://www.dictionary.com/browse/intuition?s=t “direct perception of truth, fact, etc. independent of any reasoning process; immediate apprehension; a keen and quick insight.”

4 Critical thinking is the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action from The Critical Thinking Community, http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/defining-critical-thinking/766
Conceptual thinking “…make sense of large amounts of detailed and potentially disparate information.” Conceptual thinking is applied “to find ways to understand how that information fits into a larger picture and what details are important, and to connect seemingly abstract information..” BABOK® Guide 3.0, 9.1.6.

Strategy Spotlight: 7 Reminders from an Unlikely Place, What Makes for Great Business Analysis

Often when working with clients on a strategic business analysis, planning or roadmap engagement I look to see if they are teaming with success.

I learned the importance of this from my time at PricewaterhouseCoopers and then later working with clients across various industries. This was recently reaffirmed, not by a business engagement, but through working with a group of songwriters and musicians. The engagement was to facilitate (share), document (write), integrate (edit), and present (perform) a song to be video recorded for a major sponsor (influencer). The outcome (song) was a tribute to a lawyer, business leader, and musician, whose struggle with cancer became a catalyst for people engagement and a reminder, we all serve somebody. In some way, I believe we can all relate.

Here are the 7 reminders from an unlikely place that makes for great business analysis:

1. Never be the Lone Ranger

I am guilty of this one. Love my independents and autonomy. As someone who is into senior business analysis type work, it is easy to become the lone ranger, trying to do everything yourself. The interesting thing you learn when hanging out with a group of musicians (who are sincere) is everyone has different talents and a contribution to be made. The best part is you are not alone. So don’t be. There is always someone available to help. All you need to do is belong.

2. It Takes a Community

It takes a community to be successful. That means a team. I learned this when I wrote my first book. You think I would have learned it with all the teams I worked on throughout my career. However, no I did not. You see, in my mind, writing a book meant you went off somewhere, in isolation at some remote cabin and the book was magically created. Pouf! When you write a song or a book, you need a team to succeed. It turns out to be the same way for when you write a requirements document. It should become a team effort to make sure it is great. Within the Business Analysis career, we need to break down the barriers of work competition and work together to create successful communities, teams.

3. ‘Cheers’ Had an Important Message

Now, I do not expect you remember the TV show, Cheers. The opening song, Where Everybody Knows Your Name, by Gary Portnoy (https://youtu.be/h-mi0r0LpXo), serves as a good reminder for something we all secretly desire. Most people will recall Norm, one of the main characters. When he walked into the establishment, everyone would yell, NORM. In our profession, there is an opportunity make like everyone welcome. As a professional leader who facilitates sessions, you can create your own ‘Cheers’ opportunities. I have seen it in other businesses, and I experienced it myself.

4. Acknowledgeable Goes a Long Way

During my experience with the group of musicians, the song written was presented. I was just one person among a larger group of people and was asked for my feedback. As an analyst and writer, I cannot help myself but analyze the written words. I had marked up the paper and reluctantly shared with the group. To my surprise, my remarks were well received. Several days later, at another professional event, the writer sat down beside me, leaned over and said he had incorporated my suggestions and the song was better. I was shocked and humbly thankful. My point is being willing to share your thoughts can be intimidating.

Maybe you are concerned about what people think. In business analysis, we are leaders. It is important to acknowledge people on your team for their contribution. Great communities share and acknowledge one another’s contributions.

5. Know What You are Working Towards

This is something I have learned to be extremely important. In business analysis we generally refer to having a clear definition of the problem or opportunity. Ideally, we get this from leadership. However, that is not always the case. The ability to clearly articulate the challenge/opportunity is 150 words or less is not a gift or a skill most people have developed. My Dad had an expression; I have more years behind me than in front of me. He is 95. He has been saying this for a long time. Something I noticed though everything he did was based on not knowing what tomorrow will bring. So he would work towards something. It was the innate understanding and answer to what ‘what’ and ‘why’ (what is the focus, why is it important). Business analysis needs to be focused the same way. It is important to treat things as if there is no tomorrow, so you need to know what you are working towards, why and get it done. It could be your last chance. So don’t have regrets.

6. Believe in Yourself

This last twelve months I had the opportunity to get to know and work with someone who I am sure their tag line is ‘let’s do it.’ We would be discussing an idea and if it made sense, he would say, let’s do it. When I am wearing my business analysis hat, I can be critical, skeptical and candid. Not because I am a negative person but because I am engaged to ‘question everything,’ be factual and present ideas for decision making. There are times I do wonder though if within business analysis we (you) can hide behind our (your) insecurities. Working with this musical group, I was sometimes reminded you need just to put yourself out there, to believe in yourself and allow others to support you. In management consulting I use to have a sponsor who would say, do first and ask for forgiveness later. Sometimes that is all we need to do. It is great lesson learned.

7. Communications is Key

Recently I was in a meeting with a sponsor of a large financial investment organization regarding a senior business analysis contract opportunity. Like anyone else I have to make a living. They asked me what makes a professional successful in business analysis. I told them the story about the former Australia Business Analysis Association now part of the IIBA. They had this door lock diagram I always liked. I still reference it in my business analysis training programs today. The diagram was of a lockset with all the tumblers around it. Each tumbler represented a skill set; facilitation, modeling, financials, decision making, etc. In the middle, where the key is placed to unlock the business analysis magic kingdom, was one word, communications. Whether verbal or written, formal or informal, the key to success is mastering your communications skills. Something I think we can all do better.

Final Thoughts

No doubt the musicians applied the hard and soft skills of business analysis; the facilitation, documenting, integrating, and presenting requirements with a final outcome, video recorded song. In this case, a tribute to an important sponsor (Pearl River), someone who is a connector of people, a supporter, who influenced the lives of many people professionally and personally, and knows how to get things done. A dream sponsor.

It is easy to talk or write about tools and techniques you can use in business analysis. It is harder to communicate those professional and life experiences that make you a better professionally and personally. I love the business analysis career, people development and diversified initiatives with opportunities to incorporate what you learned in all you do. Working with a group of creative people from all walks of life and professions reminded me of the things that make teams great.

When you know what you are doing and why you are doing it, there is an endless opportunity to build your skills. You just never know when you are going to learn something you can apply to your business, career, and life to serve others. In the end, I think that is what it is all about.
Remember, do you best, invest in the success of others, make your journey count, Richard.

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