Tag: Training

BAs of the 21st Century: Are We Really Business Technologists?

Written by Kathleen B. Hass, PMP on June 16, 2016. Posted in Articles.

The good news is that business/technology optimization-focused business analysts are beginning to add value to their organizations at the strategic level. Executives now realize that savvy enterprise business analysts are essential to their success.

WE’VE COME A LONG WAY BABY!

Let’s take a look at the how the 21st-century business analysis profession has evolved from a focus on requirements engineering into an essential strategic business practice.

Business analysts work at all levels of organizations, including strategic, tactical and operational.
Business analysts work in all business and non-profit sectors including insurance, banking, health, financial services, communications, government, IT, retail, entertainment, energy, health care, education, high tech, community revitalization, and many other domains.
As executives and managers recognize the value business analysis brings to their organizations, the 21st-century enterprise business analyst is becoming a business-driven strategic player, an integrator, enabler of organizational change, and driver of business success.
As a strategist, the enterprise business analyst often serves as an internal consultant – a business relationship manager at the top of the food chain of the BA profession.

WILL THE REAL ENTERPRISE BUSINESS ANALYST PLEASE STAND UP

The understanding of the value of the enterprise business analyst is finally coming into view. However, because there are so many different titles and roles, it is often unclear which players are actually working as enterprise business analysts.

The enterprise business analyst fulfills many strategic roles, essentially putting her finger in the dike for many functions that have been woefully inadequate in organizations today, from business relationship manager to internal strategic change consultant. According to IIBA, titles for business analysis practitioners include not only the project-level business analyst, business systems analyst, systems analyst, requirements engineer, but also the more enterprise-level process analyst, product manager, product owner, enterprise analyst, business architect, management consultant, business intelligence analyst, data scientist, change manager, and more. Indeed, to fulfill the core purpose of business analysis and of IIBA, to unite a community of professionals to create better business outcomes, the enterprise business analyst’s role has evolved over the past few years to become a central strategic position within organizations.

Today there is no one job description that sums up the role of the enterprise business analyst. And to make it even more complex, BAs provide support in the way of strategy analysis, problem analysis, competitive analysis, data analysis, and solution alternative analysis to executives, middle managers, project managers, product managers, software developers, and quality assurance professionals. Some say that enterprise BAs relieve “the burden of analysis” that many of these players simply do not have the time, skills, or inclination to conduct. Without this valuable analysis, business decisions are made absent critical information.

THE EMERGENCE OF THE BUSINESS TECHNOLOGIST

Just when we thought we had identified all the possible roles of the BA working at the enterprise level, another has emerged. Suddenly, or not so suddenly, business literature is talking about the role of the Business Technologist. Are you ready to fill this critical role for your organization? It is very much the purview of the enterprise business analysts.

The business technologist fills the void as businesses grow and new needs emerge. As the competitive landscape changes, innovative solutions are needed for organizations to remain viable. World-class technology is the heart and soul of complex businesses today. Businesses are constantly taking another look at where business and technology can come together for even more efficiency and innovation. Enterprise business analysis practices are the way to make sure organizations are always innovating and getting the most out of their supporting and enabling technology. However, IT talent management has not kept up to recruit and develop skilled business/technology optimization experts to conduct this critical work. CIOs are looking at their high performers to become these enterprise, strategic BAs, but not the BAs we have today. As a result, relatively new roles are emerging such as the business technologist, a new more powerful way of talking about the enterprise business analyst.

Successful business technologists need more than pure technical skill: they must know how to solve strategic and operational problems in an integrated way, across multiple technology domains.ⁱJames Kaplan. Principal at McKinsey&Companyii

Business technology (BT) is described as the ever-increasing reliance on information technology by businesses of all types to handle and optimize their businesses.ⁱⁱⁱ James Kaplan defines the business technologist as “an executive or a manager who’s responsible for making sure an enterprise gets the most value from its investments in business technology. It includes not only the CIO and all the CIO’s reports who may be working on issues of technology strategy, or in technology delivery, but also many people in business units, or business functions, who are charged with thinking about what technology investments will create the most business value.”^iv

COMBINING DISCIPLINES LEADS TO SUCCESS

The business technologist (as well as the enterprise business analyst) is not a title but a skill set that converges lots of different disciplines such as engineering, architecture, strategy development, operational management, transformational design, project and change management, financial viability analysis, creativity and innovation, and complexity management. Traditional IT and organizational talent management have not sought after or developed individuals with a combination of the skills required of these disciplines. So it is easy to see why the enterprise business analyst working as a business technologist – fulfilling that elusive role that combines many talents and competencies – is emerging as a critical role in the 21st century.

Clearly, one individual cannot embody the diverse skills and competencies required of these disciplines. Therefore, perhaps the most critical skill for the enterprise business analyst/business technologist (EBA/BT) is the ability to bring diverse individuals together to foster creativity, to drive radical collaboration, as the Stanford D-School calls it. BAs transition from project-focused to enterprise work because they become skilled at combining an interconnected set of practices to “…foster the type of integrative, cross-cutting business-technology problem solving that’s required to address the most sophisticated challenges around applying new types of technologies, about addressing new types of business problems, about … creating innovative delivery models to capture opportunities as they arise in the marketplace.”^v

Clearly, the business analysis profession needs to step up to the plate to close the gap in business/technology optimization talent, and the EBA/BT is emerging as that transformational role. EBA/BTs are drastically changing the way we manage projects by adopting a more holistic view of change initiatives so that we:

Focus on delivery of business value and innovation vs. requirements management,
View change initiatives holistically, understanding that critical projects will likely impact the entire business ecosystem of people, process, organizations, rules, data, applications, and technology,
Embrace architecture and design to help temper complexity and uncertainty, and
Strike a balance between analysis and intuition, and order and disruptive change.

In future articles, we will discuss the business technologist in more depth, other roles of the enterprise business analyst, as well as the business and technical domains within which they do their magic.

ⁱBecoming a Better Business Technologist, May 2016. McKinsey and Company. Online at http://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/business-technology/our-insights/becoming-a-better-business-technologist.
ⁱⁱ Mark McDonald, Ph.D., former group vice president and head of research in Gartner Executive Programs http://blogs.gartner.com/mark_mcdonald/2012/01/30/amplifying-the-role-of-the-business-analyst/
ⁱⁱⁱ TechTarget. Online at: http://searchcio.techtarget.com/definition/business-technology-BT
^iv Becoming a Better Business Technologist, May 2016. McKinsey and Company. Online at http://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/business-technology/our-insights/becoming-a-better-business-technologist.
^v Becoming a Better Business Technologist, May 2016. McKinsey and Company. Online at http://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/business-technology/our-insights/becoming-a-better-business-technologist.

6 Audiobooks Every Business Analyst Must Listen To

Written by Yaaqub (Yamo) Mohamed on June 2, 2016. Posted in Articles.

Let’s say on an average you commute 2 hours everyday (to and from work) – which I do. So, that’s 10 hours a week and roughly 520 hours a year. If an average audiobook is about 8 hours in length, then technically you can listen to 65 books in a year!

Well, practically speaking that might be a lofty goal. You will also have to mix in music, podcasts, reading or just observing strange behaviors of your fellow-commuters. Right?

However, what about a goal of listening to 6 books? Much more achievable, eh?

If you have never heard of audiobooks and you always thought listening was for music and radio only, think again!

Your world of learning is about to change!

In this post I will share 6 must-listen audiobooks for business analysis practitioners. Read on to start your audiobooks journey.

The first one of the list …

1. Start With Why – How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action

Why are some people and organizations more innovative, more influential, and more profitable than others? Why do some command greater loyalty from customers and employees alike? Even among the successful, why are so few able to repeat their successes over and over? People like Martin Luther King Jr., Steve Jobs, and the Wright Brothers might have little in common, but they all started with why. This book is for anyone who wants to inspire others or who wants to find someone to inspire them.

What’s in it for a Business Analyst?

Learn about the “Golden Circle” and how great companies work from inside out of that circle. Go from “why” to “what” to “how” and apply this in your practice to understand the “why” of a certain area of analysis. This concept could be applied both at macro (strategy) and micro (detailed analysis) levels in an organization.

2. Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People has been a top seller for the simple reason that it ignores trends and pop psychology for proven principles of fairness, integrity, honesty, and human dignity.

What’s in it for a Business Analyst?

This was the first audiobook I listened to, and that’s how I started my audiobooks journey about 15 years ago. There are many things to apply to your business analysis practice, including being proactive and setting goals.

3. Getting Things Done -The Art of Stress-Free Productivity

From core principles to proven tricks, Getting Things Done has the potential to transform the way you work – and the way you experience work. At any level of implementation, David Allen’s entertaining and thought-provoking advice shows you how to pick up the pace without wearing yourself down.

What’s in it for a Business Analyst?

If you want to master the art of getting things done, and take your personal productivity to the next level, this is a must-listen book.

4. How To Win Friends and Influence People

For over 60 years, the rock-solid, time-tested advice in this audiobook has carried thousands of now-famous people up the ladder of success in their business and personal lives.

What’s in it for a Business Analyst?

We deal with people side of analysis on a daily basis. If you want to learn how to form friendships, bonds and build trust with your stakeholders, listening to this book will help you go the extra mile.

5. Linchpin – Are You Indispensable?

Linchpins are the essential building blocks of great organizations. Like the small piece of hardware that keeps a wheel from falling off its axle, they may not be famous but they’re indispensable. And in today’s world, they get the best jobs and the most freedom. Have you ever found a shortcut that others missed? Seen a new way to resolve a conflict? Made a connection with someone others couldn’t reach? Even once? Then you have what it takes to become indispensable, by overcoming the resistance that holds people back.

What’s in it for a Business Analyst?

I am a big champion of Seth’s work. He is one of the inspirations behind my first book and also TheBACoach brand. My key takeaway from this book was that everyone now can be an artist. According to him:

“An artist is not just some person who messes around with paint and brushes, an artist is somebody who does “emotional work.””

Work that you put your heart and soul into. Work that matters. Work that you gladly sacrifice all other alternatives for.

Business Analysts are artists of the knowledge work, and this book will help you discover this in various ways.

6. Just Listen – Discover the Secret of Getting Through to Absolutely Anyone

You’ve got a business colleague who’s hostile, a client who’s furious, a staffer who’s deeply cynical—how do you get people to do what you want in tough situations like these? In Just Listen, veteran psychiatrist and business coach Mark Goulston reveals the secret to how to get through to anyone, even when productive communication seems impossible.

What’s in it for a Business Analyst?

From the audiobook page:

“Here’s the challenge,” Mark says. “People have their own needs, desires, and agendas. They have secrets they’re hiding from you. And they’re stressed, busy, and often feeling like they’re in over their heads. To cope, they throw up barricades that make it difficult to reach them even when your goals are in sync with their own.” But the good news is that there are simple strategies that can make you compelling, and break down the walls that keep you from getting through to the people you need to buy into your ideas and goals.

Which one of these have you listened to and/or look forward to listen to? Do you have any additional recommendations?

Please use the comment space below to leave your comments, feedback and questions.

Is a Multi-tiered BA Certification Program the Way to Go?

Written by Laura Paton on May 26, 2016. Posted in Articles. 1 Comment on Is a Multi-tiered BA Certification Program the Way to Go?

For anyone waiting for the unveiling of the new certification program from International Institute of Business Analysis™ (IIBA®), I have been wondering whether such changes will be helpful for organizations and the practitioner community as a whole.

The one thing I have learned over the years from the community was that the certification process, including how one applies and qualifies for these exams needs to be more straightforward and avoid complexity at all levels. Having been proposed for some time now, we still don’t know enough about the changes being made to the program to form an opinion – or do we?

Here are a few factors I have been thinking about with regards to these changes. I would love to hear what you have been pondering. In this post, I am simply putting the questions out to the community for consideration. I form no opinion, but as a current Certified Business Analysis ProfessionalTM (CBAP®) I am really interested in knowing what other certification holders are thinking.

1. Level 1 – Today knowledge based certificates in business analysis are plentiful as a large number of training providers already offer BA certificates. Will this new Tier 1 certification be a differentiator in the industry? Several years ago IIBA spoke with EEPs about providing a jointly branded BA certificate, and for many really good reasons Endorsed Education Providers (EEPs) did not want IIBA crossing the line into the training space. Has enough changed here? Do employers and practitioners believe Level 1 recognition from IIBA which assesses general BA knowledge (no experience) is more significant than a certificate from an EEP whose sole focus is on training?

2. Level 2 – The market for the Certification of Competency in Business AnalysisTM (CCBA®) has never really taken off, as of today after 5 years, there are only 850 CCBA holders. Are the proposed changes to scenario-based exam questions significant enough here to help IIBA grow this certification or are there other issues with this certification that if addressed would help the viability of the CCBA®?

3. Level 3 – The CBAP® used to be the gold standard, and those of us who acquired the CBAP® felt like we were demonstrating our senior level experience to employers. After all, the CBAP® has always been an experienced based exam. In the early years, many of us struggled to find employers who found the certification as a differentiator or who deemed it mandatory for employment. Over the years some awareness has taken place; although still not as widespread as the PMP.

CBAP® recipients felt the certification demonstrated their commitment to the profession and identified themselves as senior practitioners. With the proposed changes, CBAPs will no longer be the top tier. Are CBAPs ok with this? Do CBAPs feel an urge to run out and spend more time and money to get back on the top tier of the ladder? Anyone feeling like their credential is less attractive or valuable to you, to your employers or to the BA community? On the other hand, are the CBAPs excited about pursuing this next higher level certification?

4. Level 4 – Lastly, the new level geared to thought leaders. It has always been the case that thought leaders are recognized in the community by their contributions. Their credibility is achieved through the engagements they are completing within organizations, with the research they are performing, the articles, books, and other products and services they provide the community at large. If you look today, many very influential, experienced, top-notch thought leaders do not have a credential nor do they need it because they are already well-known in the industry for the work they are doing for all us. I am very curious to hear from the community whether our thought leaders require a certification to be recognized or acknowledged as a thought leader? If organizations are looking for thought leaders to be validated through such a process, is such a model scalable since level 4 will require an assessment?

Lastly, I want to ask about the idea of moving to a competency-based framework for certification. Back in the day when Angela Wick and her team developed the Competency Model, it was and still is an amazing product. The team spent countless hours building a framework to help articulate what skills and competencies define a novice business analyst from an expert business analyst, but it was a tool that must be applied along with a lot of other factors to be able to tell an accurate story of competency.

For example, if you are a business analyst in an organization and are not working on large, complex, transformational projects you may never leverage a lot of the skills in the upper categories of the competency framework. For your organization, for the role you have been hired into, does that make you less competent? What about the business analysts in financial institutions responsible for bringing their clients online with a standardized financial service, where each client is a new project, but the projects have little variation to them? These business analysts become very proficient working in their organization as a business analyst/implementation analyst without needing to leverage many of the top tier skills in the framework. Does this mean they are less valuable or less competent to their organization because their projects are consistent in type and size?

In my opinion, the role of the business analyst is defined by the organization based on a multitude of factors that really can’t be standardized across industries because there are an infinite number of factors that apply. To make an assessment of competency, consultants have to work with the organization to conduct interviews, look at templates, watch processes and practices first hand, and understand the project environment to assess competency within context. Knowing this ‘as-is’ state is very critical before conducting a gap-analysis to assess what competencies are missing. I have performed competency assessments for years in this fashion. My question here for the community is could a 3rd party working outside the walls of your organization assess competency without having this ‘as-is’ picture? Is this approach old school and is this 4 tier approach answering some newer needs organizations have today about the competency of their BA resources?

Lastly, I myself am interested in understanding the research completed to support a 4 tier certification. Typically I have seen a role delineation study conducted to provide the insight to align and structure a product like certification. I am not proposing it has not been done, but simply asking whether anyone knows. Since I don’t know, I am really interested in raising some dialogue in the community to hear your likes/dislikes to the pending 4 tier structure.

Please share your thoughts and provide different perspectives.

Fill Your Business Analyst Toolbox

Written by Janet Walker on April 26, 2016. Posted in Articles.

Every good mechanic has a toolbox, and that toolbox literally gives the mechanic the confidence and capability to do whatever it takes to get the job done.

Here’s an example. The mechanic gets a call during business hours, sometimes on weekends, from a customer requesting a need or want. What is the first thing the mechanic does? The mechanic asks questions about what’s broken, what isn’t working as expected, or what the customer wants and why. The mechanic needs to get to the bottom of the challenge before offering a solution. This diligence is, in fact, the most important tool the mechanic has – the skill to dive deeply and fully understand what is needed.

Related Article: Business Analyst Experience: Pay it Forward

The next thing the mechanic might do is ask to see what is wrong. The mechanic pulls the offending auto into the shop, or if the request is for something new, the mechanic might see how the manual process is being completed today.
Observation is the mechanic’s second most important tool. Not everyone has the skill to look around at all the moving pieces, check things out, put it up on a hoist, and look at what connects to what.

After the mechanic fully understands what the customer wants or thinks they need, sees what the customer is doing today or can’t do anymore, the mechanic is now ready to begin. The mechanic rummages through those stored items in the toolbox that can resolve, highlight, measure, clarify, explain, visualize, assist, poke holes, slice, or make things run smoothly. The toolbox might start out kind of light, but as the mechanic becomes more experienced, the toolbox get heavier and more valuable with the tools needed to get the job done.

Does any of this sound familiar?

Now, the business analyst gets the call – “I need, I want, I can’t, I wish.” You pull out the first tool from your toolbox. OK, virtual toolbox. This is the beginning of the deep dive.

You want to know everything about the situation, and can’t stop or move on until you have all the details and know exactly what your client is so concerned or excited about. This particular tool doesn’t ever wear out though. Notice that? It actually gets stronger and more accurate the more it is used. Business analysts are lucky this way.

Next, you need to see the challenge or your client in action. Your second tool helps you here as you’re confident about taking things apart, holding them up to standards, checking out metrics, and evaluating performance. You understand any systems that are impacted or needed, can copy down to lower testing environments, and your sign-ons are still active. You have the investigative tools that you need.

Ready to make a difference? Let’s pull out some other tools of the business analyst trade.

Most business analysts need to know how to use the desktop applications in their toolbox, such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Visio. Being able to use these tools comes in handy when it’s time to document notes and findings. This is the toolbox tray where you find your test plans, and the names and numbers of every Subject Matter Expert (SME) you will ever need. That process flow you just figured out is here for anyone who asks, and when you have to explain how you are going to fix something, that PowerPoint you had the skill to do is going to get you through.

Can we have too many computer skills in our BA toolbox? I think not, so we’ll discuss a wide variety of computer skills in another article; they will fit into your toolbox nicely.

Another set of tools you want in your toolbox (and kept sharpened) are those that let you schedule, call meetings, and get everyone on the same page. Sure, the whole BA package (BA 360!) is far more than being a requirements gatherer and meeting caller, but being able to get the right people together, show them your plans, and organize the conversation in a room is critical.

Here are some ideas regarding meetings:

1. Whether the meeting requires a conference room or call-in number, you don’t want to fumble around when you can finally get the right people in the room or on a call. Have the call-in number saved where you can find it quickly; and make yourself comfortable with Meeting Planner, Reservation Maker, or plain old Outlook for meeting requests.

2. I mentioned getting the right people in the room. Being able to figure this out is a key skill to have, and from my experience, it can be a challenge. I still get half way through a meeting and wish I had invited someone. (I even get half way through a meeting and wish I hadn’t invited someone.) Now that you have mad meeting-scheduling skills in your toolbox (right?), you can spend time thinking about who the players are for your task or analysis.

a. What process is downstream and will be impacted?
b. What upstream process has expectations?
c. Who asked for the change or new functionality?

I personally don’t like the “mass-meeting,” but if you are up to herding these cats, go for it. I prefer a room of SMEs. They don’t want their time wasted, and neither do I. Plus, they have all the information you need.

3. Another skill I believe needs to be included in our BA toolbox is whiteboarding. Don’t underestimate the skill it takes to draw straight lines and print legibly! Once you see a BA show amazing whiteboarding skills, you may never want to write on a wall or poster board again due to pure embarrassment. Seriously, try holding a marker over your head, writing the alphabet, and drawing tic tac toe boards. The attendees may not say it out loud, but everyone appreciates whiteboard talents.

There a lot more tools to talk about and we can do that another day, but now, are you ready to list what you have in your BA toolbox? You’ll be surprised at how much you know!

Find some tools missing? Sign up for an in-house training, ask the business analyst sitting next to you to teach you, or, of course, there is the Internet.

Nothing missing? Then now is the time to refresh your old skills using new technology, or challenge yourself and take on a task that requires you to dust off those old skills.

Even virtual tools can get rusty.

Facebook using Business Analysis and Improvisation

Written by Kupe Kupersmith on January 19, 2016. Posted in Articles.

There are two things I really love. One is business analysis, and the other is improvisation (improv). Even more so, is applied improv. Applied improv is the concept of applying improvisation skills to other things besides acting. I focus on helping others apply improv skills and business analysis in a business environment.

So, when I read this article via Business Insider, How Facebook’s design team organizes its critique meetings so nobody gets offended and everyone has clear goals, I loved how they talked about business analysis and improv in one article. I thought they wrote this for me. Or maybe their Product Designer, Tanner Christensen, is my long lost twin.

Here is the catch, though. They never mentioned business analysis or improv in the article. Not once. Regardless, you can recognize it if you read between the lines. This phenomenon is a big issue in the business analysis space. I believe that business analysis is happening everywhere in organizations, and no one even knows it. We are also always improvising. When is the last time you had a conversation with someone and you used scripts?! Articles like this prove it.

In our book, Business Analysis for Dummies, Kate McGoey, Paul Mulvey, and I wrote a chapter about business analysis happening at all levels of an organization. We mention there is analysis at the enterprise level, organizational level, operational level, and project level. With books like ours, other experts in the field writing and speaking about this, and even some companies realizing it, the majority of people and organizations either don’t understand the value of analysis or see the value only at the project level.

To help break the trend of some not seeing business analysis happening at all levels, I will break down two key points in the article about Facebook. The article is covering Mr. Christensen’s design critique process his teams use to yield positive, useful information to create or improve products.

1) Business Analysis: The first step in their process is to make sure everyone understands and agrees to the problem that is trying to be addressed. At its heart, this is business analysis. If teams do not have a shared understanding of the problem or goal that is trying to be achieved, then the chance of success is limited.

The best business analysis professionals around the world do this day in and day out. Even if a solution is handed to them, they work to understand the problem that the solution is trying to solve. They use tools like the problem statement, impact mapping, etc. to draw out the problem and communicate it in a way that it is clear and visible to the team. In creative ways, they are asking the “5 Whys.” Since asking why can put people on the defense you can ask, “What does success look like” or “What will be different after we implement this solution?”

2) Improv: For the team members critiquing the proposed design for a product there is a general rule they should follow. In the article it is written, “To make a critique valuable to a presenter, it is advisable to begin with a positive note on something you liked about the solution and to pose your thoughts as questions. Doing so will encourage him/her to offer reasonings instead of being defensive.” I almost jumped out of my seat when I read that. It was music to my ears.

When I work with individuals and teams, I stress the need for having positive conversations. One way to do that is by having the “Yes, and” mindset. The mother of all rules in improv is never deny. Since there are no scripts used when you are performing improv denying just kills scenes. In improv if someone walks into a scene and exclaims “Wow, I love that you colored your hair yellow,” you never say “it’s not yellow.” That denial instantly puts the burden back on the other actor to come up with something else. If you deny like that on stage too often, the other actors won’t want to work with you anymore. The same applies to the work you do. If someone proposes something and you consistently deny them using words like “that idea is terrible” or “yeah, but I have a better idea” your co-workers won’t want to work with you much longer. And, no value is gained.

Improv actors practice the art of never denying by playing a game called “Yes, and.” One version of the game goes something like this. A topic is given, and one actor starts off with a sentence. The next actor says “Yes, and…” then adds to the conversation. Then is goes back and forth. The feeling is very positive and rewarding as you keep adding things and supporting your partner. And crazy ideas come out of those conversations. Try it!

When I am teaching this to business professionals the conversation around not agreeing with someone always comes up. In real life, you can’t just keep saying “yes, and…” Absolutely, you need to critique without putting others on the defensive.

The advice I give is exactly what Mr. Christensen gives to his team. One idea is saying, “What I like about that is…” You need to have the mindset of finding something good in other people’s ideas. The other piece of advice I share is to ask a question. Sometimes the ideas people have are viewed to you as crazy, wild, unimaginable, or maybe you know things like that have failed before. So instead of saying, “yeah, but that idea is crazy, what about this.” Ask, “Help me understand how that idea gets us closer to solving our problem. I just don’t see the connection yet.” Two things can happen there. One is the person may realize that their idea is crazy and does not work for this problem or two, they convince you the idea is good and will work. Either way, both parties have a positive conversation rather than an adversarial one.

One way to help others understand that business analysis (and improv) is happening everywhere is for us to highlight it when you see it. Read between the lines, keep your eyes open. When you see good business analysis and improv happening tell the people around you what is really happening.

All the best,

Kupe