Business Analysis Manager - IT

Business Analysis Manager - IT

It’s about you
Are you a business professional who knows how to lead teams to help non-
technical colleagues to solve problems using technology? Are you are a logical
thinker with experience in project and people management? If so, then a position
as a Business Analysis Manager may be for you.

What is IT business analysis management?

Business analysis management is focused on leading a team of professionals,
including IT Business Analysts, who ensure that an organization’s information
and communications technology (IT) systems support business objectives to
enhance quality, efficiency, effectiveness and profitability. It occupies a unique
position ensuring effective communications between an organization’s business
systems user community and its technology solutions development community.
Depending on the size of the organization, the composition of the business
analysis team may vary.
In a large organization with a substantial business analysis function, the
Business Analysis Manager may manage a specialized team of IT Business
Analysts. In smaller or more matrixed organizations the team may also include
individuals such as Software Designers, System and Program Testers, and
Process Analysts.

What is the role of the IT Business Analysis Manager?

The IT Business Analysis Manager leads a team that interacts more closely with
other parts of the business than anyone else in the IT department.

While not normally directly engaged in client projects on a daily basis (as are the
IT Business Analysts in the team), the Manager may facilitate a wide range of
initiatives to develop and implement operational business systems. In the
financial services sector this could involve anything from participating in a project
team to implement upgrades to a new securities trading system to advising
colleagues in the corporate loans division of a bank on the business case for
developing an in-house credit risk assessment tool versus buying an off-the-shelf
solution.

To be successful, an IT Business Analysis Manager needs to have a deep

enough understanding of IT business analysis to provide quality oversight to the
team’s work while still being able to grasp the priorities and challenges of the
core business of the organization.

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Areas of focus
[no particular areas of focus for this role]

Main Duties
Main duties and related activities of Business Analysis Manager:

Business Analysis Team Leadership

The Business Analysis Manager is accountable for the day-to-day functions and
resources of the business analysis team.

Key activities:

§ Facilitate the establishment of team structure and roles, hiring and on-
boarding Analysts and ensuring adequate resource and talent allocation
§ Collaborate with the Business Analysis Practice Manager (or other leader)
with function-wide planning, budgeting and reporting
§ Manage the annual team budget
§ Manage employee/team performance by setting objectives and
performance metrics and standards and conducting performance reviews
§ Provide ongoing coaching, feedback and guidance to team members,
creating personal and professional development plans that include on-
and off-job learning and development opportunities
§ Monitor service requests and project progress
§ Manage escalated project issues
§ Maintain quality of project deliverables by ensuring that best practices are
applied
§ Manage client expectations

Business Analysis Functional Expertise

As a leader and technical specialist, the Business Analysis Manager represents

the team within the broader IT function and within the organization as a whole.

Key activities:

§ Participate in the planning and developing company-wide IT strategies

§ Engage with key business and IT stakeholders to identify changing
business priorities and requirements, market trends and introduce new
processes and technology to enhance the business analysis service
offering
§ Lead the development of feasibility studies, cost/benefit analyses,

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business case development and risk assessments for various technology

projects
§ Liaise with Program and Project Managers, client system users, functional
analyst leads and developer leads to review workflows and ensure current
system capabilities meet operational requirements
§ Understand and work within defined technical architectural processes as
well as data and organizational frameworks

Product Deliver Quality Assurance

The Manager must ensure that all client deliverables meet the organization’s
quality standards.

Key activities:

§ Ensure client needs are met by engaging in client feedback and

continually improving work quality
§ Ensure that Analysts are adhering to the standard methodologies in the
business analysis function
§ Review and edit all work produced by Analysts (e.g. analyze and critique a
detailed business requirements document produced by an IT Business
Analyst before it goes into software programming stage)

Develop Methodologies for Business

Analysis
In some cases, the Manager may be accountable for designing the methods the
IT Business Analysts use to develop the business requirements in a given
project.

Key activities:

§ Help set the direction for the business goals and business analysis
methodologies
§ Establish standards for business analysis including methodologies,
metrics, requirements and tools
§ Ensure analysts are adequately certified and/or trained

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Work Context, Knowledge, Skill Requirements and Applicable

Experiences

Work Context

The IT Business Analysis Manager spends considerable time in meetings with

project teams, IT department colleagues, external vendors and internal ‘clients.’
Much of the effort involves organizing the work of others, including planning,
organizing, monitoring, trouble-shooting, negotiating and reporting.

Within the business analysis team itself, the Manager’s leadership activities
include performance reviews, development planning, coaching and training.

Knowledge

The Business Analysis Manager requires specific knowledge of:

§ System development lifecycle phases (i.e. project planning, system

analysis, system design, implementation, integration and testing,
acceptance, installation and deployment, and maintenance)
§ Business process reengineering and modeling techniques
§ Management tools and techniques for quality assurance
§ Current technology trends and innovations
§ Knowledge of the financial services industry and business operations

Technical skills

The Business Analyst Manager requires specific technical competencies:

§ Developed analytical skills with the ability to solve complex and

ambiguous problems that may be technical in nature
§ Ability to budget and organize a project
§ IT system design methodology that defines the architecture, components,
modules, interfaces and data for a system

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Soft skills

The Business Analyst Manager requires specific soft skill competencies:

§ Well-developed team leadership skills (e.g. coaching and mentoring)

§ Well-developed communication, negotiation, and persuasion skills
§ Ability to think logically to analyze and solve problems
§ Ability to work collaboratively as part of a team
§ Ability to prioritize and balance multiple tasks or projects
§ Ability to see beyond the parameters of a single project to identify
patterns, risks, trends and strategic context more broadly within the
organization

Applicable Experience

There are a number of related experiences that are applicable to the Business
Analysis Manager role. People with experience in the following areas may do
well as a Business Analysis Manager:

§ Project management
§ IT business analysis
§ IT business consulting
§ Service management

Education, Certifications, Designations, and/or Licenses

Entry Level Position

[this is not an entry-level position]

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Senior Level Positions

More senior positions typically require:

þ Undergraduate university degree

In the fields of:

§ Computer science
§ Technology
§ Business
§ Management Information Systems
§ Economics

Certifications and designations

Certifications and designations may include:

§ Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP)

§ Certification of Competency in Business Analysis (CCBA)

Professional Associations

Professional Associations may include:

§ International Institute of Business Analysts (IIBA)

Representative Job Titles

§ Business Analyst Project Manager
§ IT Manager

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Career Pathways

Moving in to the role

To move into a Business Analysis Manager role, you will most likely start out as
an IT Business Analyst. This position provides exposure to the various aspects
and processes involved in IT business analysis.

Some Business Analysis Managers may come from a project management

background if they have significant exposure to projects in IT.

Progression beyond the role

A career as a Business Analysis Manager can be very interesting and is often a

long-term career choice with a great deal of personal growth opportunities.

You may choose to stay in the business analysis field and become a Business
Analysis Practice Manager or transition into a related management role such as
IT Development Manager or Project Manager.

It is also possible to make a move into a position within the business area with
which the Business Analysis Manager has worked closely.

External Factors Impacting the Role

There has been an increased focus on the field of business analysis over the last
five years with the emergence of professional associations and designations. The
practice is newly standardized with the introduction of the IIBA Business Analysis
Body of Knowledge (BABOK) in 2005, making it difficult to recruit for directly out
of university, as most graduates have not had much exposure to the IIBA
BABOK. In the future, it is expected that colleges and universities will create
programs that directly feed in and align with the field of business analysis.

The role of Business Analysis Manager is more common in larger financial

organizations which have many analysts to coordinate.

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Employment Trends and Outlook

Employment Trends

The IT Business Analysis field has grown significantly over the last decade.
Through 2014, the expectation is that this job position will grow more than 27%.
The demand for Business Analysts is expected to rise as advances in technology
lead to new applications for computers (2009, US Department of Labor).

As technology is essential in supporting the operations of financial services firms,

the need for Business Analysis Managers is expect to continually increase over
the next few years and emerge at the forefront of business success.

Compensation

Business Analysis Manager roles are salary-based with the potential for a
performance-based bonus.