When I was asked to write this blog I initially had an "Oh No" moment, especially as the subject matter was somewhat controversial.
So, I ran the headline past my BA colleagues - both male and female. To say I had a mixed reaction was a bit of an understatement. Comments ranged from "Isn't that obvious" to "Rubbish" - not surprising given the topic, but this really made me think:
"What makes an excellent BA and are women more suited to the role?"
Here are a few of the areas to consider:
- Multi tasking - a key skill for any BA. In these days of increasing workloads and assignment of Business Analysts to multiple projects and programmes, multi-tasking is essential to success.
- Communication skills - not just the ability to outwardly communicate but to actively listen.
- Analysis skills - utilising a logical approach and additional alternative strategies to problem solving
- Stakeholder Management - the ability to lead and manage stakeholders to project success and ensuring that their needs are met
So are women more suited to offering these skills - from my experience I would have to say "Yes". Recent evidence suggests that this could be the case, given that our BA of the Year and the first two successful Expert BA candidates are women. A straightforward conclusion or not? Over to you to decide.
