AKA
MONITOR – www.akamonitor.cz – doc.
Arnošt Katolický - INFOSERVIS
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Kopie textu Paula Harmona, vystaveného na portálu BPTrends.com.
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Autor se v článku zamýšlí nad pojmy a rolemi funkcí „business Analyst“,
„software analyst“,
„business process practicioner“ a „BPx“ ( business process expert ). Při tom
vychází s vlastního
schematu znározňujícího zdroje procesních problémů. Autor článku, Paul Harmon je známý
publicista a provozovatel portálu BPTrends.com.
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Greetings, Many business managers think that all Business Analysts are just
Software Analysts focused on defining the requirements for software
automation projects. Recently, however, there is a broader role emerging for
BAs-one that might be called Business Process Practitioner which extends
beyond software automation to include a focus on improving the performance of
business processes across the enterprise. Here are a few questions to ask
yourself when thinking about the role you would like to play. Celia Wolf,
CEO/Publisher |
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Are You a Business Analyst? |
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Like so many terms we use when talking about business process
work, the term "Business Analyst" has multiple meanings, depending
on who you talk with. I suspect most people think that "Business Analyst" is
just another name for "Software Analyst." The idea is that someone
stands between IT and the business users, specializes in particular business
processes, and is available to translate user requirements into software
requirements that IT can then use to develop software. Companies started out
calling these intermediaries "Software Analysts" and then began
calling them "Business Analysts," without really changing the role.
This idea is reinforced in the International Institute of
Business Analysis's (IIBA) latest Guide to the Business Analysis Body of
Knowledge (Version 2.0). The IIBA was founded in 2003 and has some 10,000
members. They recently revised their BOK documentation to reflect the state
of today's practice. There are those involved in the IIBA effort who had
hoped to expand the use of the term "Business Analyst" and who
suggested that business analysts should help companies solve a variety of
process problems. In the end, however, Version 2.0 of their BOK looks pretty
much like the earlier version, and both basically define how an individual
should go about defining business problems that are to be automated. A more aggressive effort to redefine the historic role of the
"Software/Business Analyst" is being led by SAP. In I've followed the SAP BPx website off and on for the past two
years. Indeed, some of my own articles have been published there. There is
clearly an effort being made to reposition the role of the "Business
Analyst," but, broadly speaking, the progress is slow. The problem is pretty straight forward: There are lots of people
who already have the title "Business Analyst." And, whether they
are working with SAP implementations or are members of IIBA, they understand
their job to be gathering business automation requirements and handing them
on to their organization's IT developers. Articles on an expanded role may be
interesting, but the reality is that Business Analysts already have a job
description, and they already have assignments, and those assignments involve
being an intermediary between a business unit and IT. I was reminded of this at a recent conference when I heard
several good talks on major BPM projects that companies had undertaken. In
almost all cases, the project teams reported to the organization's CIO, but
in almost all cases they were operating as a more-or-less independent group
that was focused on delivering BPM services. In about half the cases, the
individual heading the BPM group didn't have an IT background, but had, instead,
a background in quality control. If I were to make a short list of key groups involved in process
change, it would include:
And, although I have not included the role above, there are a
growing number of individuals responsible for managing processes on a day by
day basis who think that continuous process improvement is simply a part of
being a good manager. We might try to fit some of these groups into a redesigned role
as "Business Analysts" or "Business Process Experts" but
most just don't fit. Few Black Belts would identify themselves as
"Business Analysts." Hardly anyone from the International Society
of Performance Improvement (ISPI) would term themselves "Business
Analysts," nor would most Lean specialists. For better or worse, the term "Business Analyst" and
"BPx" will probably remain roles that describe someone who
interfaces between business managers and IT developers. In writing for BPTrends, I tend to use the term "business
process practitioners." It isn't very elegant, but it is broad enough to
encompass business analysts, business managers and Black Belts, and it
doesn't carry a lot of baggage from any one of the disciplines. In the June 30th BPTrends Advisor on Business Process Problems I
tried to describe the range of variables that one needs to consider when one
is tackling major process problems in today's organizations. They are
pictured in Figure 1.
Some of the variables included in Figure 1 involve:
Think about the list I have just provided. How many of these
concerns are concerns of yours, if you are a Business Analyst, or a Black
Belt? If you can say "yes" to most of them then you are a
"business process practitioner," as I use the term, and you have
the range of competencies that individuals need to really change the ways
organizations operate. If you are a "Business Analyst" and only focus on
variables that relate to defining processes and specifying requirements for
automation, then you play a valuable role, but you are not working with what
I would regard as a complete tool kit. Similarly, if you are a Black Belt and
don't think about the issues involved in defining processes and specifying
requirements for automation, then you are probably a skilled Six Sigma
project manager, but you are not working with what I would regard as a
complete process practitioner tool set. Increasingly, we are going to see Business Process Management
groups established outside IT and Six Sigma, and reporting to senior
executives. The individuals heading and working within these BPM Centers of
Excellence are going to require a range of knowledge and skills that
encompass more than the knowledge and skills commonly associated with either
Business Analysts or Black Belts. I've suggested we call them Business
Process Practitioners for lack of a more acceptable name. Maybe we should
call them BPM experts. Geary Rummler would have called them Performance
Consultants, the title he preferred for himself. I'd be interested in hearing from BPTrends readers on this
subject. What is your preferred job title? Do you think a title like Business
Analyst or Business Process Expert should be promoted to serve as a job title
for those involved in today's business process efforts, or do we need a new
term? Till next time, Paul Harmon |