Back during the industrial revolution, the focus was on “output” – everything made by machines and people working like machines too. They clocked in hours to create quantity all day …
7 Ways to Improve Your Listening Skills
How can listening be a leadership skill? It doesn’t seem to make sense does it? Leadership is all about action and listening sounds so passive. That is why leaders need …
Unlock your BA potential – Grow Your Career
Great Business Analysts ask great questions. When applying the skill, discipline, art and science of asking the great questions, how often – if ever – do you apply these skills …
The Art of Collaboration
For the last five years I have traveled this wonderful journey of learning Ryukyu Kempo Martial Arts. It’s an Okinawan, Japanese style of martial arts with a focus on self …
Interview with Gero Decker, CEO of Signavio
Gero Decker, co-founder & CEO of Signavio, tells us about his experience as entrepreneur founding a BPM start-up and shares a piece of advice he received early in his career. …
Strategy: Crucial Enabler or Tired Cliché?
Say the word ‘strategy’, and many people will respond with a glazed look and a sigh. Seen as a Dilbert-esque ‘corporate’ buzzword, people throughout organisations often disengage, seeing strategic thinking as something …
Business Analysts Can Enable Innovation
“If I had asked my clients what they wanted, they probably would have said a faster horse.” Henry Ford, Founder of the Ford Motor Company This infamous Henry Ford quote …
Rules Of Work
I have a piece of card on my desk with the following words on it: Think without any dishonesty Forge yourself in the way Touch upon all of the arts …
Have You Ever Considered Speaking at One of Our Conferences?
Would you like to find out what it takes to speak at our conferences? We are running a webinar on 20 April at 5pm entitled “Presentation Skills for Conferences: An …
Business Analysis: Turning Gloop into Concrete
Business analysis is often seen as a technical skill. The business analyst builds process and data models, writes precise requirements, makes requirements traceable, estimates the effort involved, and so on. …
The Mythic Business Analyst: The Next Evolution of the BA Role
I have been interested in myths and legends for as long as I can remember, thrilling to the adventures of the heroes and heroines that battled the forces of darkness, …
BA Communities of Practice – Sweet Success Cannot be Achieved Alone
The term “Communities Of Practice” has not been around for that long in comparison to the word “Community” for sure, and the notion of the latter has been prevalent long …
Traceability is Vital in Harsh Conditions!
Adam and Ben, the two CIOs from rival companies eyed each other head to toe as they entered the main conference hall from two different entrances, not deliberate but a …
The Optimal Path to Success is Via Failure
Everyone has been a part of a project, willing for it to be over, disliking the results that they’re getting, and feeling like the project is rigid and they are …
The User Story Considered Harmful
Agile techniques have brought us many advantages and good ideas – unfortunately, the user story is not one of them. The user story is a “placeholder for a conversation”, or …
19 Ways to Boost Your Motivation and Personal Effectiveness
How to stay motivated and improve personal effectiveness is an important question to ask yourself as both of these things have a big impact on your results. There are many …
It’s Time To Ditch The Bridge
I suspect many people reading this article will, at some time in their career, have had the challenge of explaining what business analysis is. We’ve all had that dreaded moment …
Volere – the Evolution of Successful Requirements Techniques
It is more than 20 years since the first Volere Requirements Specification was launched. Since that beginning so much has happened and so many people in so many industries have …
Business Analysis – The What, The How And The Why – A South African Perspective
Saratoga’s Mohamed Bray is a business analyst who wears many hats. From consulting with other analysts and project managers to contributing to the establishment of the profession in South Africa, …
I’m Not a Business Analyst – I’m a Business Analyst Designer
For many years I have been calling myself a Business Analyst. But recently I’ve been feeling somewhat awkward in my own skin. I’ve noticed that I don’t do things in …