What is business analysis?
Business analysis is a branch of research which essentially deals with the practice of providing information which enables structural and organisational changes in entities, geared towards delivering value to owners, stakeholders and employees. Although there is no exact definition of the scope of its purview, business analysis, as well as sub-disciplines such as strategy analysis and requirements engineering, can be primarily broken into three components:
- To examine, analyse and evaluate existing elements of business ecosystems including structures, stakeholders, support system, market, competition and supply chain
- To develop and identify observations, recommendations and solutions to increase the operational efficiency of organisations or marketplaces based data gleamed from item (i)
- To document and tabulate all data obtained as well as any solutions and recommendations for future review and analysis
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The Importance of Business Analysis
As the modern business world becomes increasingly more complex, there is an ever growing need for accurate information to help business leaders make better decisions and deliver higher returns of investment on capital expenditure and investments.
In light of this, a business analysis course has emerged as the chief source of information for businesses. Business analysts are capable of mapping out entire system flows in great detail. Their data contains critical information which highlights process inefficiencies, technological shortcomings, staffing inadequacies, uncompetitive manufacturing and distribution costs, unproductive internal policies, and damaging government regulations.
For many businesses, especially larger ones, business analysis equip decision makers with vital information to help companies and organisations make informed decisions. Owners, managers and stakeholders can no longer just rely on gut feeling, guesses, and word on the street to run a business. To put it simply, business analysis helps manage businesses more efficiently.
Businesses Embrace Business Analysis
Business analysis first made their presence felt in the 1980s in the IT departments of giant multinational companies. For two decades, their role were limited to just analysing limited internal data sets. However, over the last decade and a half, there has a sudden evolution of business analysis, brought upon primarily by the growth of the external consulting sector.
As companies start to realise the tremendous benefits that consultants being to the table, they began to shift business analysts into a more central position in operational and executive departments. Some companies even started to send their executives for business analyst courses and business analyst training as the value of business analysis gradually became more apparent.
Today, the importance of business analysis is no longer limited to just businesses. Business analysis has become an integral part of many government departments and agencies, non-profit bodies and even political organisations, among others.