A business analyst is someone who scrutinizes a specific company or entity and records of its business, processes, models, or methods, analyzing the business methodologies or its relationship with technology. Business Analyst can help in streamlining companies, helping them enhance their strategies through evaluation of their current work practices, develop new methods of performing business functions, and implement improved technologies to achieve competitive advantage. The term ‘Business Analyst’ has various other forms including business analyst consultants, business analysts, and business valuation analysts. In the United States, the most common type of business analyst job is in the Information Technology industry, though this outlook is changing rapidly due to the growth of the Information Technology industry in the United States.
There are various types of business analysts available in the United Kingdom. These include project managers and data analysts, who are responsible for understanding the business processes and systems of the organization, while planning strategies to improve organizational performance and implementing changes that will help in improving process efficiency. Project managers are usually senior level positions, working as advisors to the Managing Directors of the companies they work for on issues relevant to the organizations’ business processes.
Data analysts, on the other hand, are business analysts who examine and analyze the collected data, using different techniques and methods to arrive at conclusions based on the information they have gathered. As the data analyzed by these professionals are related to the activities of the organization, they may decide to go into the more detailed aspects of the processes and/or the areas of the business to analyze. They might also specialize in particular areas like Information Technology, which has become an important part of the business organizations, especially in the United Kingdom.