By Martin Pienaar, COO of Mindworx
There is opportunity everywhere – for those wanting to grab it. At least, this is the sentiment that I have learnt over the years of running Mindworx. We are seeing two distinctive trends in the industry. The first, as corroborated by Gartner’s 2015 CEO technology investment priorities survey, is that competitive companies continue to invest heavily in business analysis/big data, cloud computing, EComm/digital marketing and CEM. The second trend pertains to the fact that companies are increasingly facing competition from unexpected competitors with market disrupting strategies. What this alludes to is the fact that, in future, companies will have enhanced requirements from their staff – whether knowing how to integrate machine learning or using location services for security, marketing, operations efficiency and even reach. All of this lies within the scope of the future-forward business analyst’s (BA’s) know-how.
The crux of these trends is that they require BAs to rethink their approach, positioning and their skillset. BAs are in a strong position to influence how companies tackle the road to digitisation and remain competitive in a turbulent environment. After all, companies are continuing to invest in, and grow ever more reliant on technology. So now more than ever, the combination of tech and business savvy BAs are needed to form a natural bridge between what business needs and what IT can deliver.
This means that there needs to be more focus on being increasingly agile when it comes to the way in which BAs deliver solutions. Our most successful candidates are those BAs whose skills can quickly be redeployed onto another project that requires a completely different set of professional abilities. Also, given the need for speed to be competitive, BAs need to be competent in the very latest methodologies enabling fast cycle delivery.
At Mindworx, we are also seeing a movement towards skills being made available on demand and skills being deployed across multiple organisations simultaneously. In the US over 30% of the workforce are not permanent staff of the companies they contribute to, this trend is likely to spread. The rating systems that we are becoming comfortable with now when we use Uber and Airbnb, are likely to be part of this landscape.
Dynamic corporations recognise that access to a large base of contractor skills is a prerequisite for innovation and growth. In turn, this results in a growing demand for organisations to rapidly scale their businesses so that they can keep up with the ever-accelerating speed of the innovation cycle. For BAs to flourish in this new employment landscape, they will need to become more entrepreneurial. This means taking more risks and being comfortable with not being employed full- time. It is about being innovative, being a problem-solver and having the right skills at the right time. If they invest in their skills business analysts are more likely to wave the ride of success – we are seeing those with degrees, BA certifications and tools training and appropriate experience being snapped up by our employer clients. It’s an exciting time for business analysts; those that can strategically position themselves and are prepared and equipped to handle the enhanced requirements of the future world of business, will have long and prosperous careers.
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