What skills make for successful BA’s and PMO’s?
There are many skills that overlap between BA’s and PMO’s and they are very useful in order to make
someone successful in both of these roles.
One of those skills is communication. This skill is vital for both of these roles as it is important for
someone to be able to communicate well with their team members for these roles. For example, in a BA
role, someone must be a good communicator in order to facilitate meetings, ask good questions and
also relay their ideas onto their teams. Furthermore, a good communicator must also be able to listen
effectively so they can absorb what is being said. This skill of being a good communicator is also
essential in today’s world as most meetings may become virtual.
For a successful PMO, being an effective communicator will enable the project team to run smoother as
it will allow the team to understand what is being required of them and make sure they are clear in what
they are doing. They also need to be good at communicating with different personalities whilst getting
the same information across to all of them.
A skill that links nicely with communication is management. This is also important for a PMO as their
main role is management. This may include people management and also project management and
therefore being an effective manager will bring success to this role. Furthermore, this skill links with
communication because good management only tends to happen when there is good communication
between the manager and the team.
Another skill that makes for a successful BA is problem-solving skills. This is because a BA will be
required to understand the problem for a project and think of the best possible solutions. If a BA did not
have good problem-solving skills, they would not be able to complete their tasks successfully. Along with
having good problem-solving skills, it is important for a BA to have critical thinking skills. This mean that
a successful BA must be able to think critically and make quick decisions under pressure regarding the
business. For example, a BA must be able to listen to stakeholder needs but also critically consider them
and make decisions based on those needs.
This skill is also relevant for a PMO. This is because a PMO may encounter several problems within their
team, to do with the project or even the members in their team. Therefore, a PMO having good
problem-solving skills will allow for them to solve these problems so the team can complete the
project.