The Digital Business Analyst

Digitalization is not a one-time thing or binary in the sense that one is digital or not. Rather many companies ranging from SME to large incumbents are at the beginning or middle of this journey. Even new companies that are built entirely on digital foundation, have to evolve on this journey. This journey can be divided into three main steps, each building upon the previous one. These are digitization, digitalization and digital transformation. Digitization means turning an analogue product or process to digital [6], for example filling forms by typing instead of writing by hand. Most companies have developed this capability by now.

The next step is digitalization. Digitalization is used in various contexts and sometimes carrying different meanings. Generally, it means implementing digital technologies to change the processes and products [7]. It can also reshape the business model [8] by, for instance, implementing Internet of Things (IoT) solutions that change the way people interact with products and related processes or increase automation of processes [7]. Digital transformation is distinctively different from digitalization. Digitalization is on initiative (project) level while digital transformation is a strategic business transformation [7]. Digital transformation entails bringing about cross-organizational changes, implementation of various digital technologies, and acquiring new capabilities at the corporal level. The change is much than that of a digitalization initiative.

As can be seen, the digital era affects businesses at the level of their DNA, beginning from converting the analogue to digital and extending all the way to full transformation. For business analysts to be able to recommend solid solutions that can capitalize and be aligned with digitalization and its trends, they need to be well acquainted with how opportunities, needs, and problems can benefit from digitalization. For an analyst, each project offers an opportunity to bring the company a step further on the digital journey. Analysts should be able to identify such opportunities and not only help solve immediate problems, but also see ahead and propose solutions that will be beneficial in the overall context of digital changes. Digitalization influences the business analysis process as well, allowing for efficiencies but also new sets of required skills and competences.

E-collaboration is a topic that is of relevance for business analysis projects as well as day-to-day work at companies. Digital technologies have made global outsourcing of workforce affordable. A variety of tools have been developed to make collaboration experiences as productive as possible. The most beneficial tools for business analysts are email and instant chat for everyday communication, videoconferencing and screen sharing for interviews or workshops, and project management tools to synch calendars and provide stakeholders with access to the change initiative and its status. Online surveys can be used to gather requirements from a large number of employees and thereby set the analyst free from limitations of small samples of representative stakeholders.

During the current state analysis, the analyst should pay attention to overall business goals as well as digital goals. Many companies have developed digital strategies and every initiative should be aligned with such strategic aims. When analyzing specific business elements, such as processes or customer journeys, the analysis should support the findings with data. Process mining and data mining can provide new insights previously unknown and inaccessible. Data itself can be also studied to detect shortcomings in information flows. For example, CRISP-DM and data value chain give a generic framework to map data transformation and see if and how the data can be used to bring value to the company. When designing and developing the solution, tools such as prototyping or A/B testing can be used to improve quality. Such methods allow gathering constant feedback from many end-users and to identify issues before solutions are implemented.

Working with business analysis in a digital era, requires some basic digital skills. Most importantly, the analyst should be digitally literate, which means that he/she is able to access, evaluate, use, share, and create content using digital technology [10]. Analysts should be able to collect and process data in various programs. If a new program is encountered, the analyst should be able to pass the basic learning curve fairly quickly, know how to use forums, tutorials, wikis, and other sources to figure out the basics. The same applies to navigating between various devices and operating systems [11]. Digital technologies have made vast amounts of internal and external information available at our fingertips. The analysts should be able to conduct productive research in a large pool of data [11]. The analyst should also be able to sense when enough data has been gathered to continue the work. Business analysts do not have to be ICT professionals in terms of knowing how to write code or structure databases. However, analysts need to have a certain level of design and computational thinking [12]. This means knowing how systems work, what the key elements are, and terminology used by developers. The analyst does not have to build a system but has to bridge the communication between stakeholders with various backgrounds. It has become more common to use agile approaches in projects, especially if the projects involve digital aspects [13]. Therefore, it is important for the analyst to be skilled in agile tools and methods. Overall, the analyst should continuously learn new skills to keep up with the pace of change. The business environment is constantly evolving, to which analysts have to match their skills and competencies. Perhaps the ability and flexibility to adapt, is the key competence required of analysts in the future.