Business Analysis
- Progression Towards A Strategic Asset
Ashish Mehta
VP, Global Practice Head –
Business Analysis
NTT Data Inc.
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
Director – Executive Leadership Council
Regional Director – India
IIBA
Learning
1
Why is it strategically important to have a well defined
Business Analysis Organization that is beyond just IT?
2
What should be its charter and organizational positioning?
3
What are the key considerations for a successful Global
Business Analysis Organization?
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Business Context
Business
Needs
Regulatory
Changes
Market
Forces
Business Strategies
Business Goals
Business Objectives
Enterprise
Customer
Needs
New Products and Services
Functional
Process
Changes
/
Process
Org Changes
& so on….
Changes is the IT layerITto enable the business
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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How to realize the opportunity?
Business Analysis Maturity
Enterprise Business Analysis
• Ensure alignment of IT initiatives with business goals
• Ensure synergies across initiatives
• Participate in enterprise project governance
Functional Business Analysis
• Analyze and improve business processes
• Assist in leading system change s that are in line with business needs
• Facilitate optimization of project portfolio
IT Business Analysis
• Define business requirements and translating them in
software specifications
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Opportunity
In today’s complex business environment, organizations need to maximize the
value of business analysis function to get the following benefits:
•
•
•
•
Efficient organizational IT landscape aligned to the Business
Consistent high project success ratio
Optimized business processes
Increased throughput of enterprise project portfolio
IT CAREERS: 13 Most Important IT Roles
1
2&3
4
5
6
7
8&9
10
11
12
13
Business Analysis
Architecture and IT Strategy/Planning
(tie)
Project Management
Security
Service management
Client Relationship Management
Business Continuity and IT Financial
Management (tie)
Portfolio Management
Asset Management
IT Research
Human Resources (within IT)
70%
66%
65%
62%
60%
56%
55%
50%
34%
30%
20%
The age of IT specialization is dead, replaced by an emphasis on skills that can translate across the
enterprise. That’s one of the chief findings of a recent Forrester Research survey in which 128 IT decision
makers were asked about their changing staffing needs
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Where are we today?
BA Role Definition
Most Prevalent Definitions…
What do we mostly FORGET…
Business Analyst is a bridge
between Business & IT
Business Analyst is also
a Problem Solver
Business Analyst is a
requirements gatherer
Business Analyst is
a “Solution-er”
One can move resources
across organization to play
Business Analyst role
Business Analysts need a specific
skill set to be successful
The business analyst is a Thought Leader who understands business problems and
opportunities in the context of the requirements and recommends solutions that enable the
organization to achieve its goals…..
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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What does the real world looks like?
Challenges
• Business Analysts across an organization have
varying level of maturity
• Lack of Organizational Context for them to collaborate
leading to Business Analysts working in silos
• Lack of consistent and integrated collaboration among
the BAs at all maturity levels
• Lack of proportional distribution of BAs across the
maturity levels
• Business Analysts across all maturity levels not
directed by common goals leading them in
multiple directions
• Inconsistency in approach, definition and output
• Lack of predictability due to inefficient business
analysis skills and processes
• Lack of collaboration and knowledge sharing
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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How do we get to the End State?
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How do we get to the End State?
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How do we get to the end state?
The Enabler
Enterprise Business Analysis
Functional Business Analysis
IT Business Analysis
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How do we get to the end state?
The Enabler
Enterprise Business Analysis
Functional Business Analysis
IT Business Analysis
TOOLKIT
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How do we get to the end state?
The Enabler
Enterprise Business Analysis
Functional Business Analysis
IT Business Analysis
TOOLKIT
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Foundation
Process and Approach
One of the most critical and important foundations for a
successful business analysis organization is a
Consistent business analysis process and approach
that leads to a Predictable output. Bad approach &
process means higher costs, rework, schedule and
project failure risks.
• An approach that deliberately brings in the focus on “Big Picture First” mindset
• An approach that follows industry standards laid out specifically for effective business
analysis e.g. UML, BPMN, EPC, RUP, AGILE, Visual Modeling…
• An approach that follows a repeatable “Step-by-Step” process to uncover the details “Peal the onion, don’t cut it”. It reduces surprises in the end
• An approach that has enough room for innovation and modification - “Each situation is
different – your approach towards business analysis may require Tailoring”
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Foundation
Collaboration
While Approach provides the ‘Theoretical
Knowledge’ for Business Analysis, ‘learning
from experience – one’s own and of others’
helps ‘Application’ of this Knowledge. The key,
therefore, is effective Collaboration…
• Vertical and Horizontal Collaboration among the business analysis community across
the organization adds a great impetus to achieving business goals
• Consistent mentorship is the best form of growing business analysis organization leading
to predictable results
• Management commitment and encouragement is most critical to bring synergy among
the business analysis community
• Underlying infrastructure and processes make collaboration very effective
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Foundation
Knowledge Management
Current Knowledge and its Timely Availability
can enhance the likelihood of the project
success. Effective Training model can go a long
way in increasing the maturity level of the
business analysis organization
• A well organized knowledge management is extremely valuable to the business analysis
community for them to be more effective and efficient
• Consistent business analysis approach and process should enable production of
knowledge artifacts
• Its just not about only gaining knowledge, producing, disseminating and organizing
knowledge IP is equally important and business analysts should diligently follow it
• Knowledge management processes and governing infrastructure can enable a business
analysis organization to have a strategic impact on business goals e.g. updating relevant
knowledge assets as a part of project closure
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Foundation
Governance
Governance is the Glue that shapes and sustain the
business analysis organization. Effective governance
is the extremely essential yet most ignored
overarching arm that decides the strategic nature of
this critical function.
• Executive Sponsorship and Commitment for a formal Business Analysis Governance is
critical to the success of this important function
• A committed Business Analysis Review Forum is essential to enable continuous
improvements in business analysis function to attain strategic status
• Dashboards and Metrics culture at all the levels of business analysis maturity can go a
long way
• Effective resource management including allocation, appraisals and a well defined
growth path is necessary to push business analysis organization along the maturity levels
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Foundation
Toolkit
An Integrated toolkit containing standards, guidelines,
templates, tools and checklists is essential to a
consistent BA output and enhanced productivity
TOOLKIT
• Toolkit should be comprehensive enough to address the needs of all the stakeholders both upstream and downstream
• Toolkit should be flexible enough to suit different nature of projects yet ensuring
consistency
• Usage of industry best practices and standards in the toolkit have a very positive impact
on business analysis output – it ensures consistent interpretation
• Toolkit should be integrated across all the three levels of business analysis maturity – IT,
Functional and Strategic
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Business Analysis Competencies
Enterprise
Business
Analysis
Highest
Functional
Business
Analysis
Very High
IT
Business
Analysis
High
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
Technology
Depth
Soft Skills
Analytical
Processes
Highest
Business
Processes
Very High
Functional
Processes
High
System
Processes
Domain
Knowledge
Depth
Breadth
Depth
Breadth
Breadth
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Organizational Positioning
Typical BA Positioning …
Corresponding Impact…
Part of the project team reporting into
Project Management and/or Delivery
Deliver projects within the reporting unit,
minimal collaboration across different
business lines
Belongs to PMO mostly from the resource
allocation point of view
Centralized allocation of BAs to various
projects, mostly resource focused than
enterprise focused
Business BAs (SMEs) belong to the
business side of the organization
collaborating with IT BAs in Delivery
Creates a divide between enterprise
focused vs. the delivery focused BAs
The true potential of a Business Analysis organization is harnessed when all the BAs
across the organization have a Sense of Belongingness to a Single Entity that:
•
•
•
provides great visibility into Business-IT alignment
•
provides a platform for organization-wide collaboration
provides great opportunities for career growth
•
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
leverages the potential of business analysis standards
and best practices
and finally, lay the foundation for a strategic asset…
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Challenges | Critical Success Factors
Management Commitment
Highly Critical and Must Have Criteria
Management’s confidence that the Structured Business Analysis “Will” Help!
Clear and Realistic Vision
Define the “To-Be” State of the Business Analysis Capability
“Step by Step” and “Realistic” Roadmap
Stakeholder Buy-in
Business Analysis affects Processes, Operations, SDLC, Infra etc…
Integrate Business Analysis “Framework” with others…
Experience and Expertise
Most needed for such critical “Transformation” that “Impacts” the organization
Leverage the learning of “Others” – They would have seen many such Changes!
Ready to CHANGE!
No one can bring this change “Alone”!
Everyone needs to be “Geared Up” for this Change! – Ultimately It’s Business!
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Progression Towards A Strategic Asset
Enterprise Business Analysis
• Build an Enterprise Architecture that is aligned to the business goals
• Make sure that the IT is aligned to the business by providing strategic
guidance to the Functional Business Analysts
Functional Business Analysis
• Make sure that all the projects within a function are tied together and
are able to optimize business processes across the function
• Make sure that the projects/processes across the function are in line
with the enterprise architecture
IT Business Analysis
• Have IT Business Analysts LOOK beyond their projects – its not
just a “Requirements Gathering” job
The progression towards the end state needs adjustments in mindset and activities
at an organization level as well as at an individual level….
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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Learning
1
Why is it strategically important to have a well defined Business
Analysis Organization that is beyond just IT?
2
What should be its charter and organizational positioning?
3
What are the key considerations for a successful Global
Business Analysis Organization?
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
22
Q&A
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
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ashish.mehta@iiba.org
ashish.mehta@nttdata.com
+91 987 138 7775
© 2013 NTT DATA, Inc.
This document contains confidential Company information. Do not disclose it to third parties without permission from the Company.