BA role

What is the difference between BA2 and BA3?

BA2: Elicitation and Collaboration Definition: BA2 represents the proficiency level where a Business Analyst is primarily focused on eliciting requirements and collaborating effectively with stakeholders. Key Focus Areas:Requirements Elicitation: Stakeholder Collaboration: Requirements Analysis: Solution Assessment and Validation: BA3: Requirements Life Cycle Management Definition: BA3 represents a higher proficiency level where a Business Analyst is expected to manage the entire requirements life cycle from inception to retirement. Key Focus Areas:Requirements Planning and Monitoring: Ability to plan the approach for requirements management throughout the project lifecycle.Requirements Elicitation and Analysis: Advanced skills in eliciting complex requirements, analyzing them for feasibility and impact, and managing changes effectively.Solution Assessment and Validation: Thorough involvement in assessing proposed solutions against requirements, validating outcomes, and ensuring stakeholder acceptance.Requirements Communication: Requirements Management and Traceability: Key Differences: Scope of Responsibility: BA2 focuses more on eliciting and documenting requirements and collaborating with stakeholders, whereas BA3 encompasses broader responsibilities including managing the requirements throughout their lifecycle. Complexity of Tasks: BA3 involves handling more complex requirements, managing traceability, and ensuring that requirements are effectively communicated and validated across the project. Maturity of Skills: BA3 requires a higher level of maturity in business analysis skills, including strategic thinking, decision-making, and stakeholder management.

What kind of estimation techniques do you know? How do you estimate BA work (in a waterfall project and Agile project)

Bottom-Up Estimation: BAs decompose project tasks or requirements into smaller components and estimate the effort for each component individually. Three-Point Estimation (PERT): BAs use optimistic, pessimistic, and most likely estimates to calculate a weighted average for task duration or effort. Use Case Points (UCP): BAs estimate project effort based on the number and complexity of use cases or functional requirements. UCP assigns point values to different types of use cases based on their complexity and estimates effort accordingly. In Agile, estimating BA work is typically done iteratively and collaboratively. Here's how to estimate BA work in Agile: Story Points: Use story points to estimate BA tasks during backlog refinement or sprint planning sessions. Relative Sizing: Compare BA tasks to similar tasks completed in previous sprints to gauge their relative size and effort. Timeboxing: Set time limits for BA activities or tasks, such as conducting user interviews or creating documentation. allocation. Task Breakdown: Break down BA tasks into smaller, more manageable subtasks to facilitate estimation and tracking. In Waterfall, estimating BA work is typically done upfront during the planning phase. Work Breakdown Structure (WBS): Create a detailed WBS that outlines all BA tasks and activities required for the project. Estimate the effort and duration for each task based on historical data, expert judgment, or industry standards. Gantt Chart: Develop a Gantt chart or project schedule Estimate the start and end dates for each BA task to ensure timely completion.

What resources do you use when you're not sure what to do?

Google, Chat GPT, books, Youtube, my collegues.

How to handle the situation when you under capacity for stories at hand? How do you resolve the situation?

I discussed with PO requirement planned for the future release, UI improvements, overall application enhancements, planned with team work on techdebt.

How do you understand playing a consulting role as a BA? Why being able to do it is so important? If you provided consulting services on you previous projects - what was the case?

Playing a consulting role as a Business Analyst (BA) involves acting as a trusted advisor and problem-solver for stakeholders, providing expert guidance and insights to support informed decision-making and drive business success. BAs leverage their domain knowledge, analytical skills, and communication abilities to understand stakeholder needs, analyze business processes, and recommend solutions that align with organizational objectives. They collaborate closely with stakeholders to identify opportunities for improvement, propose innovative strategies, and facilitate change initiatives that deliver tangible value. By serving as a bridge between business and technology teams, BAs enable organizations to navigate complex challenges, optimize workflows, and achieve their strategic goals effectively.

What kind of time management do you know? What do you use?

Prioritization: Identify and prioritize tasks based on their urgency and importance. Use techniques like Eisenhower's Urgent/Important Matrix Time Blocking: Allocate specific time blocks for different activities or types of work, such as requirements gathering, analysis, meetings, and documentation. Pomodoro Technique: Break work into intervals (e.g., 25 minutes) separated by short breaks (e.g., 5 minutes). This helps maintain focus and productivity by providing regular breaks and preventing burnout. Task Lists: Create to-do lists or task boards to track and manage your workload. Avoid Multitasking: Focus on one task at a time to minimize distractions and maximize productivity. Manage Distractions: Identify and minimize common distractions in your work environment, such as email notifications, social media, or noisy surroundings. Delegate Tasks: Identify tasks that can be delegated to others, such as routine administrative tasks or less critical activities. Delegating tasks frees up time for higher-priority activities and allows you to focus on tasks that require your expertise. Learn to Say No: Be selective about taking on additional tasks or commitments and learn to say no when necessary. Prioritize tasks that align with your goals and objectives, and avoid overcommitting yourself to prevent burnout.

What is a benefit of BA in a project?

Requirement Clarity: BAs help clarify business needs and translate them into clear, actionable requirements. They bridge the gap between stakeholders and development teams, ensuring a shared understanding of project objectives. Risk Mitigation: BAs identify and mitigate project risks by conducting thorough analysis and identifying potential issues early in the project lifecycle. They anticipate challenges and propose solutions to minimize disruptions. Cost Savings: BAs contribute to cost savings by optimizing processes, streamlining workflows, and identifying areas for efficiency improvement. They help prioritize requirements based on business value, maximizing return on investment (ROI). Quality Assurance: BAs ensure the quality of deliverables by defining acceptance criteria, conducting reviews, and validating that requirements are met. They facilitate collaboration between stakeholders and development teams to ensure high-quality outcomes. Change Management: BAs manage change effectively by assessing the impact of changes on project scope, timeline, and resources. They communicate changes to stakeholders, obtain buy-in, and adjust project plans accordingly to minimize disruptions. Stakeholder Engagement: BAs engage stakeholders throughout the project lifecycle, gathering feedback, managing expectations, and building consensus. They act as advocates for stakeholders' needs, ensuring that project outcomes align with business objectives. Continuous Improvement: BAs promote continuous improvement by analyzing project performance, identifying lessons learned, and implementing best practices. They contribute to organizational learning and help drive innovation and growth.

Could you please describe the challenges/ biggest failure and outcomes you had faced?

Speed of project, fast onboarding, huge workload, failure - didn't discuss dependencies with team when lots of changes were made.

As a BA - the hardest decision you ever made? What techniques did you use to make a decision?

To ask my DM for support when he asked me to perform a demo of the project where I was very new.

What do you find to be the most challenging part of the BA work?

To learn and understand so many different aspects to be able to achieve business and development goals.