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What is Business Analysis?
A business comprises of goals and drivers. The drivers understand and guide the business to reach its goals. This process of understanding a business, its needs, problems, solutions, etc. is known as business analysis. Business analysis is performed by the stakeholders or drivers of the business so that they can ensure all business problems are taken care of.
A business analysis can be an overview, in depth research on a particular segment, or a data deep dive process. But the core function of the analysis will be to understand how the business operates and how it can be operated better. Business analysis is an extremely important process and it is carried out by professional business analysts across the world. So, here are 8 basic steps that can help you perform an accurate business analysis.
8 Steps of Business Analysis Process
Usually, business analysts embrace the following 8 steps. Each step paly an important role in business analysis.
Get yourself Oriented with the Business Persona
Unless, as business analyst, you are analyzing a business that has just begun, of which chances are quite low, you will be required to deal with a multitude of data and ambiguity. It is your job as an analyst to dive into the data and find your requirements. But this is where the process goes wrong. If you are not acquainted with the business process before you start dealing with their data, then you will simply be performing a mechanical process. Rather, if you first gain a bird’s eye view of the entire business then the data will make sense to you immediately and ease the analysis process as well.
Understanding Stakeholders and Goals
Before you concentrate on the goals of your analysis what you should first try to understand in depth is the goal of the business you are analyzing. And this goal is very closely tied into what the stakeholders want out of a business. So, what you need to additionally study is the goal of the stakeholders.
While success is most likely to be measurable, the goals of each business are unique, and your business analysis is to serve this goal. Hence, first an acute understanding of business goals is required in order to have a flawless analysis process.
Define the Scope
When you define the scope of a project it becomes a more solution centric process than a research centric one. This does not mean that the analysis process will not be performed in depth, but rather that the entire process will have the final goal at hand during all times.
Thus, the scope of the business analysis needs to be defined in such a way that it makes the project tangible and allows the various teams involved to walk a combined path. Setting a scope early on can mean easy implementation of the solutions that will be devised based on the analysis.
Developing the Business Analysis Plan
Develop your plan from the ground up. First set up the entire basis of the plan and create its structure. Formulate the different teams, their goals, and responsibilities. Clearly define each step of the analysis process, how they connect with one another, and also state the goals of each individual step. If you develop the entire structure and then head for the individual requirements your process will be much easier.
And since you already have the business plans and goals analyzed, creating the analysis plan should be easy as you have your endgame in sight. If the different teams know the entire roadmap, they will understand their position and purpose in it, and provide a combined effort that will produce a successful analysis.
Define every Requirement in Detail
A business process is vast, and you need to take care of every detail in order to analyze it successfully. This means taking into consideration multiple sets of data and individual goals. The best way to allow your teams to process all these requirements is by defining them down to every last detail. The clearer the entire picture is the better and quicker the analysis process will be.
Another important part of this process is identifying the gaps that are within every business plan. An analysis process will have to find solutions to fill in these gaps and thus identifying them early on is a great option.
Technical Implementation
A technological environment is required in order to perform an analysis and further device solutions based on it. Your business analysis process should be well aware of the technical environment that exists within the business and you should plan ahead as to how it will be used for implementation purposes.
Chances are that you will notice certain requirements early on and will be able to sort them out. This will further smoothen the analysis process.
Solution Implementation
Developing a solution is one thing, but implementing it is another. Your business analysis roadmap should comprise of a complete solution implementation stage that will provide the various requirements and goals associated with the process.
A business analyst’s job is not over unless the business has used the analysis to its full scope. And this is something that an analyst needs to actively ensure.
Value Assessment of the Solution
Keeping in mind the bird’s eye view of the business process, acutely analyze how the implemented solutions have aided the process. This includes changes in tech environment, development in the business outcome, management performance enhancement, etc. But there will always exist gaps that have not been addressed by the solutions. It is the identification of these gaps that the value assessment process will be able to provide you.
Moreover, you will be able to deliver a more wholesome analysis process that is aimed primarily at the goals and values of the business. Value assessment is therefore an important part of your business analysis plan.
Conclusion
A business analysis is a must in today’s times to help a business grow. If you are a business analyst, then make sure you follow each of these steps while envisioning your analysis process and always remember that the macro view of the business process is as important as the micro view.
