Twenty first century ba leadership from the tactical to the strategic
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What does it mean to be a business analyst in a world of ever growing complexity? How does the business analyst provide lasting value
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Twenty first century ba leadership from the tactical to the strategic
- 1. 1 By Christian D. Kobsa 21st Century Business Analysis Leadership – An Introduction From the Tactical to the Strategic
- 2. Table of Content The Global Status Quo IBM’s Global CEO Study Organizational Realities Unprecedented Changes IBM Report on Winning CEO Approaches The 21st Century Business Model Creative Leadership Model for Innovation Business Analyst Capability Model Strategic / Innovative Business Analysis Qualities of A Strategic / Innovative BA Identify Complexity Dimensions Project Cycle Models Project Complexity / Cycle Map Diplomacy in Business Analysis 2By Christian D. Kobsa
- 3. The Global Status Quo 3By Christian D. Kobsa Environmental Pressures Economic Turbulence Stubborn Recession Intractable Societal Changes High Unemployment Increased Poverty Uncompromising Complexity Fierce Competition Changing Business Ecosystem
- 4. IBM’s Global CEO Study “The biggest challenge CEOs are facing is the network of complexities brought about by the Internet and the global economy. The CEOs further stated that their organizations are not equipped to effectively manage this uncompromising complexity, because they do not have the creative leaders that are needed.” - Samuel J. Palmisano, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Offices, IBM Corporation 4By Christian D. Kobsa
- 5. Organizational Realities 5By Christian D. Kobsa Emergence of a global economic and information network. Transition to information based organizations. Marginalization of traditional hierarchical structures. Development of virtual sets of connections and partnerships. Creation of complex relationships based on: alliances with strategic suppliers; networks of customers; partnerships with key political groups; regulatory entities; etc… Increased performance pressure. Business processes and supporting technology is becoming more interconnected, interdependent, and interrelated than ever before.
- 6. Unprecedented Changes 6By Christian D. Kobsa Increasing global competition. Continuous time-to-market compression. Ongoing and rapidly changing technologies. Uncompromising organizational and technological complexity. Corporate inertia. Significantly more complex business systems and consumer products.
- 7. IBM Report on Winning CEO Approaches 7By Christian D. Kobsa Embody Creative Leadership: “CEOs now realize that creativity trumps other leadership characteristics. Creative leaders are comfortable with ambiguity and experimentation. To connect with and inspire a new generation, they lead and interact in entirely new ways.” Reinvent Customer Relationship: “Customers have never had so much information or so many options. CEOs are making "getting connected" to customers their highest priority to better predict and provide customers with what they really want.” Build Operational Dexterity: “CEOs are mastering complexity in countless ways. They are redesigning operating strategies for ultimate speed and flexibility. They embed complexity that creates value in elegantly simple products, services and customer interactions.”
- 8. The 21st Century Business Model 8By Christian D. Kobsa More leadership, less management. More collaboration, less hierarchy. More team efforts versus individual efforts. More cross-pollination; less organizational silos. More agility; quickly adjusting to market developments. More flexibility; adjusting to market development w/o loosing customers and profits. Efficient and effective resource allocations to new opportunities.
- 9. Creative Leadership Model for Innovation 9By Christian D. Kobsa Complex Project Managers Business Architects and Visionaries Enterprise Business Analyst Solutions Architect
- 10. Business Analyst Capability Model 10By Christian D. Kobsa From Tactical to Strategic Business Analysis Goal Enhanced Business Operation Meeting Business Objectives Executing Business Strategy Creating New Business Strategy Focus Operations / Support Project Enterprise Competitive Project Type Complexity low; continues process, product, and/or technology improvements Complexity moderate; new development, improving process, product, and/or technology Complexity high; dealing with programs and portfolios improving multiple processes, products, and/or technologies Complexity high; innovation projects to improve competitive advantage and translation of strategy into new, even paradigm changing processes and/or technologies Leadership Type Generalist; Business / System Specialist; Product Manager Entry Level / Senior PMs / BAs Business Domain Experts; IT System Experts; Entry Level / Senior PMs / BAs Enterprise Change Experts; Program and Portfolio Managers; Senior and Enterprise PMs Strategists; Business / Technology Optimization Experts; Innovation, Cultural Change, R&D Experts Results Operational business process and system continually improved adding value Creation of new solutions that meet project level business objectives Investments into the most valuable initiatives realizing the business benefits forecasted New strategy formulated; optimized business / technology; competitive position improved
- 11. Strategic / Innovative Business Analysis 11By Christian D. Kobsa Strategic / innovative business analysis focuses on: Enterprise business analysis. Emphasizing Business and technology optimization. Creation of innovative solutions. Creation of a competitive advantage. Being an emotionally intelligent leader.
- 12. Qualities of A Strategic / Innovative BA Share the project leadership role with the project manager. Create and lead innovative requirements integration teams. Influence, sway, and persuade groups and individuals to focus on creativity. Embrace uncertainty and ambiguity. Take risks that disrupt legacy models. Reject traditional project management styles. Get close to customers; bring them into the process. Use cost-benefits tradeoffs based on customer value. Insist on innovation; be unsatisfied with “business as usual”. 12By Christian D. Kobsa
- 13. Identify Complexity Dimensions Project Complexity Dimensions: Size / Cost / Time Team Composition and Past Performance Urgency and Flexibility of Cost, Time and Scope Clarity of Problem, Opportunity, Solution Requirements Volatility and Risk Strategic Importance, Political Implications, Stakeholders Level of Change Risks, Dependencies, and External Constraints Level of IT Complexity 13By Christian D. Kobsa
- 14. Project Cycle Models Three basic category types exist: Linear The business problem or opportunity, and the solution are clearly understood. No major changes are anticipated. The effort is viewed as routine. Adaptive The business problem, opportunity, and solution are unclear. The schedule is aggressive. Extreme Not just the business problem, but the overall business objectives are unclear. The solution is undefined. 14By Christian D. Kobsa
- 15. Project Complexity / Cycle Map 15By Christian D. Kobsa Independent Highly Complex Moderately Complex Predictability Uncertainty Linear Iterative Adaptive Extreme Few Pieces Complete Unambiguous Explainable Order Routine Low Tech Unhurried Low Skills Continuity Knowledge Assumptions Newness Pace Understanding Probability Messiness Behavior Integration Choices Inexplicable Uncontrollable Unknown unknowns Discontinuous Uncertainty Disorder Novel High Tech Intricate High Skill
- 16. Diplomacy in Business Analysis Learn to Flex Your Communication Style Choose Your Words Carefully Listen, Think, and Be Open Relax Your Body and Your Face Be Persuasive Show Appreciation See the Other’s Persons Point of View 16By Christian D. Kobsa
- 17. References 17By Christian D. Kobsa White Papers: The Business Capability Map: The “Rosetta Stone” of Business / IT Alignment (William Ulrich, Michael Rosen) Business Capability Modeling: Building the Hierarchy (Len Greski) Business Capability Management: Your Key to The Boardroom (Ulrich Kalex) Business Capability Modeling: Theory & Practice Academic Papers: TBD Professional Magazines: TBD Books: Enterprise Architecture As Strategy – Creating a Foundation for Business Execution (Jeanne W. Ross, Peter Weill, David C. Robertson) Emotional Intelligence and Projects (Nicholas Clarke, Ranse Howell) Enterprise Business Architecture – The Formal Link between Strategy and Results (Ralph Whittle, Conrad B. Myrick) Websites: http://www.beyondrequirements.com/business-value-models/ http://www.projecttimes.com/
- 18. Appendix 18By Christian D. Kobsa A1 – Project Complexity Model
- 19. A1 – Project Complexity Model 19By Christian D. Kobsa …model diagram goes here…
Notas del editor
- What you see on this slide are the very real issues that are being faced by organizations large and small across the globe today. What does have to do with business analysis? Everything! Business analysis is all about understanding organizational needs. It is about helping a business to remain competitive, by identifying creative solutions to complex business problems. It is about taking abstract creative solutions and turning them into innovations that work. The goal of all this must be to constantly add value for the customer and revenue to the organizations. After all: “No margin, no mission!”. This can only happen successfully, if the business analyst moves from being a strictly tactical, project focused resource, to one that understands the big global picture in which organizations operate, and take these global constraints, risk factors, etc. into consideration in the analysis of a business project, in order that the above generically stated goals, can be specifically met for any given organization. So what is a strategic business analyst? How do you become one?
- The statement on this slide is from an IBM Global CEO Study. Mr. Palmisano pointed out that what they found from the study that organizations are dealing with events, threats and opportunities that come at them faster then ever before, but also emerge with less predictability. What is more, they converge and influence each other. This creates entirely unique situations. The antidote to such daunting complexity, is creativity. Not just average creativity, but unprecedented degrees of it. This has now become a key leadership quality! So what does this have to do with business analysis? A whole lot, because: If we are indeed faced with a competitive and economic landscape unlike any before, and If today’s organizations are not equipped to cope with this complexity in a global environment effectively, and Since business analysis is the profession that analysis business with the objective of keeping organizations effective, efficient, competitive, and profitable, then: business analysis is the discipline to help find appropriate solutions to these challenges. However, this requires a change in thinking on the part of most business analyst. The old approach of thinking “only” in terms of a project at hand, is not sufficient anymore. Rather, the analyst must think much more holistically, taking a larger view, considering interdependencies, redundancies, etc….
- Considering the facts shown on the last few slides, it is clear that in addition to the “traditional” business analyst, there must emerge the enterprise level business analyst! A person fulfilling that role, must have the ability to effectively react to changes, and pre-empt risk factors in the marketplace. The role requires skillfully being able to capitalize on complexity, through the creation of innovative, even paradigm changing solutions. A business analyst in this role still must have the traditional skills, but in this role, even more importantly is the ability to see the big picture and tie it all together creating solutions that benefit customers, and profits the organization.
- One of the key questions to ask is, why is this happening the way it is? The answer lies in the development of technologies and business philosophies we’ve created ourselves. The key cause of why we have this unprecedented changes is the acceleration of the flow of information and the exponential increase in the number of connections within and between organizations.
- The message in the IBM report is loud and clear: the effects of rising local and global business and technology complexity demands bold creativity. This means in part, connecting with customers in imaginative ways that addresses their needs and the organizations needs. It also means to re-design the organizational operations for speed and flexibility, without compromising quality. All this is required to position their organization for twenty-first century success. To do this successfully, the old business models will not work. New models are required that embrace the realities highlighted so far.
- Make no mistake. This is a significant shift from operation as usual! To accomplish what is mentioned under these seven bullet points, requires a restructuring of how an enterprise does things; what information it collects; and whom it seeks to build long-term relationships with. So we are talking about creating a better business capability map, better and/or new value streams, and related processes. We are talking about better, more meaningful data to the right people, at the right time. We are talking about relationships were everybody benefits, because these are the only relationships that bring long term rewards, in which we are building a better working world. This requires a change in habits across all levels of the organization...! And this is where strategic business analysis becomes paramount! To be a strategic business analyst, the analyst must understand the creative leadership model of innovation.
- As this slide shows, enterprise focused business analysis should be part of any creative leadership model for innovation. More than that; by definition and nature the business analyst asks the tough questions searching for the root causes of problems. In addition, having the necessary experience and tools the senior analyst can create new models that address the core issues. He does that through focused workshops directing the participants to creating the most ideal solution.
- The point of this slide is to show that, obviously, business analyst come with different levels of experience, educational backgrounds, BA related skillsets and knowledge, the ability to think in and effectively formulate and communicate abstract concepts, emotional intelligence, etc. BTW: that last personality trait, “emotional intelligence”, is probably the main differentiating metric that qualifies a person as analyst on strategic projects.
- These are the things a strategic and innovative business analyst must pay particular attention to in order to be successful in that role. But how do you develop that single-mindedness in the midst of varying demands? How does one defy complexity with creativity?
- A business analyst must possess special traits and characteristics to become a strategically thinking and innovative leader. For one, he must be action and outcome oriented. The BA must have the ability to maintain focus on the actions that must be taken to achieve the strategic outcome envisioned. If the focus is lost under pressure, the desired outcome will not be reached. Maintaining that focus also requires being courageous.
- So we know what the worlds business environment continues to evolve into. We know what that means for business analysts with regards to what there focus needs to be. And we also know what characteristics an enterprise level, strategic business analyst must bring to the table to be successful. But: how do we turn these insights into action? To clearly, unambiguously, identify a projects complexity level, the BA must look at the complexity dimensions applicable to that project. This is not a one person exercise. Rather, the BA should facilitate a session with the various project team leads, in which these complexity dimensions are discussed, and quantitative agreement is reached for each one of these attributes. Based on that information a complexity formula can be applied to determine the project complexity profile. Note that this is highly valuable information! It sets the tone of what to expect, and how to approach the project. Without it, you’re guessing….
- A linear cycle is typically used for maintenance, enhancement, and continuous process improvement projects. It is also used for development projects when requirements are well understood and stable, as in shrink-wrap software development projects. An adaptive cycle is typically used for new technology development, new product development, or complex business transformation projects. An extreme cycle is typically used for research and development, new technology, and innovation projects. The BA must clearly understand what type of project category he is dealing with. The reason for that is, that the role of the analyst changes depending in which category type the project falls under. To understand this more quantitatively lets look at a mapping or project complexity to project cycle approaches.
- It should be intuitively clear from looking at this slide, that as the project type moves from a straight forward linear type project with high predictability to one of high complexity and uncertainty, the role and skill sets of the business analyst must change as well. The more complex a project becomes, the more important it is to have a business analyst that can take a leadership role on the project. The more complex the project becomes, the more important it is that the business analyst can assertively, yet professionally keep the team focused on achieving strategic goals, meeting the needs of the stated business case, and achieving the business value expected from the project outcome. The business analyst must guide the team always in the direction that will fulfill these points. This requires at times considerable leadership and diplomacy skills. Leadership and diplomacy skills are becoming increasingly important assets in view of the increasing complexity of the world we live in. It is my opinion, that the ability to exercise diplomatic skills is the number 1 differentiator between a good, even very good senior business analyst, and an exceptional, excellent one. To understand why, consider this: what comes first? The ability to lead people, or the ability to navigate tough organizational situations by exercising diplomatic skills? It is the latter. Why? Because having the ability to get an important message across that is not necessarily popular, and in the process getting people to change or adapt to it without damaging relationships, is at the very core of diplomacy. Individuals that can do that, almost be definition, become leaders.
- What is meant by the first bullet point is, that a senior or facilitative business analyst must know how to identify the communication styles of the stakeholders he is dealing with. Recognizing that in other persons, understanding your own preferred style, and understanding the importance modifying once own style in interaction with stakeholders will lead to better results. It is a key diplomatic skill. Always remember that just as important as what you say, is what people hear. What this basically means is that word choice is extremely important to people’s perception. Consider some examples from speeches by politicians: Some say “drilling for oil” whereas others say “exploring for energy.” Some say “not giving emergency care to illegal aliens” whereas others say “denying healthcare to undocumented workers.” Communicating diplomatically requires that one avoids blurting out something, one might later regret. You must consciously choose if, when, how, why, and where to disagree. Remember, that most conflicts in a project don’t just suddenly crop up. On projects with a high level of uncertainty, a high degree of complexity, and high visibility, stakeholders situations between stakeholders can get tense. The business analyst serves as a liaison. By definition of this word, it is your job to keep the communication going, open and honest, and yet constructive. This also means, that at times you become the verbal lightning rod…! This can be offensive and anger rousing. It is in situations like these, that it is vitally important to take a step back. Do not react! Take time to calm down emotionally, and then, objectively assess the situation. It may be necessary to cut the discussion short, and calmly with great honesty, displaying good intentions in the process, pointing out that due to the fact that emotions are running high and rationality is being lost it is advisable to reconvene at a better time. The fourth bullet point may seem a little strange. However, we all know how important body language is. It communicates a tremendous amount about us. And guess what: if there is a discrepancy between what we feel and think and what we say and the way we appear – appear visually to others, that is – people in the room will sense that. You instantly loose credibility! Why? Because the folks you’re working with recognize – either consciously or sub-consciously, that you are not telling the truth, you’re keeping something from them. Trust is lost! And NOTHING, slows a project down more than a lack of trust! So does this mean that you need to put on a show of relaxedness and confidence, even if the wheels are coming of the project? Absolutely not! Your body language should reflect reality; at least to some extend. I.e.: if the wheels are coming of the project, it makes little sense for the BA to act panicky, confused, dejected, etc. and impregnate everybody else with that same destructive attitude. However, if you stay on top of the project – whatever that means differs from project to project – you can communicate with confidence, stay relaxed emotionally and mentally, regardless of the situation, because you know, and can demonstrate, that you have done everything expected of you in your role in being leader that liaises and facilitates strategic projects. The ability to be persuasive is very powerful, because it appeals to reason, logic, and understanding based on facts. Think about what this means to a business analyst acting as a liaison between various stakeholder groups with differing opinions. To persuade or convince in a credible manner any one or all stakeholders about a particular project related matter, you must clearly understand all aspects of the project; from strategic goals and objectives, business case, project scope, risk factors, dependencies, to requirements, etc. Only then can you really create a persuasive argument based on facts, logic and reason, that is ironclad. Note however, that this still does not guarantee that it will be accepted! No, I don’t mean false flattery! That will only backfire on you, since it is a form of dishonesty, that people see right through. And if you act that way, it tells them something about you, namely that they can BS their way through assignments. It also tells them that you are not to be taken seriously. However, if someone does good work, expressing it to that person privately or in front of others is always a good thing to do. It motivates. It shows the individual that you recognize their effort, and value their contribution. It fuels confidence. Do it whenever the opportunity arises. The dividends will come in may different ways; better team work, willingness to go the extra mile, increased trust, increased confidence in your ability to lead and manage complex analysis efforts, etc. You may wonder why the last bullet point is an important diplomatic ability. The reason is, that every stakeholder that’s involved on this project, has a particular and unique vantage point, which is the reason they do what they do, say what they say, think in a certain way, etc. Understanding that “why” can be crucially important to the project, because it helps you as the analyst to gain perspective. In doing this, you also begin to understand the entire picture of what is involved in the project much better. Remember: seeing the other persons point of view does not necessarily mean you agree with it. You may, or you may not. It doesn’t matter. What matters is that you understand where they are coming from and why. And, whether it affects the project, and if yes, how.