All too often Business Analysts are brought in to define requirements once a transformation strategy has been formed, or a solution has been decided.

This is too late, as the valuable analysis of the initial problem space is critical if the transformation strategy or solution design is to meet the business or customer needs.

Analysis, at the early stages of any endeavour, helps organisations to understand the situation they are in, identify any problems that exist, experiment with potential changes, and allow for clear solution strategies to be articulated and communicated. At an organisational level, this may be to form and agree their mission, vision and strategy. At a technical level, this may be a clear product/solution vision and roadmap.

The work of Business Analysts is often constrained to technical product development or process improvement activities. But this doesn’t have to be their starting point!

Business Analysts can, and should, be engaged in the analysis of the external environment to see the impact it is having on an organisation. These skills are becoming more and more critical for digital organisations that need to constantly monitor the situational sensitivity of their external environment, to keep abreast of competitors and maintain their customer base.

Utilising Business Analysts and business analysis techniques can provide essential insights that not only help understand potential areas for change and improvement, but can also prevent unnecessary or nugatory work taking place.

By Lynda Girvan, Head of Business Agility and Business Analysis at CMC Partnership Consultancy Ltd