Date: 2 Mar 2023
Where: Bristol

Business Analysts face a well documented set of challenges common to most organisations and industries. Whether you're a practicing BA, or leading a team of BAs, you've probably been asked at some point in your career to explain exactly what it is you do (or don't do!), or what value it is that you bring. You might have struggled to get engaged early enough on projects, or to feel part of the decision making process. Perhaps you are failing to recruit and develop the right talent, or even how to take the next step in your own career as a passionate BA. Most of us have views or experience of tackling these challenges, yet they often remain a constant source of discussion and frustration amongst the BA community, with little visible innovation in the thinking around these topics. 

Creative thinking is a great way to explore new ideas, renew motivation, and help develop new solutions to long-standing challenges. Many creative thinking methods also work best when they're done in a group, as we open ourselves up to different points of view, experiences, and can start to challenge our own assumptions and perspectives. 

This will be an interactive session with the aim of bringing people together to tackle a number of different problem areas common to the BA community, harnessing our creative juices to think outside of the box and create ideas that break the mould. 

We'll be exploring the following topics:

  • The 'Left-Shift' - How might we encourage organisations to engage BAs earlier on in the project inception process (i.e move the role of the BA further up the 'food chain')
  • BA Brand Value - How might we better promote what we do so that our stakeholders truly understand and appreciate the role of business analysis within a team. 
  • Requirement success - How can we improve quality in our requirements definition and ensure validation by stakeholders is meaningful to better reduce risk and failure of projects?
  • Performance measurement - How might we make performance measurement of BA's more tangible, whether you're leading a team, or recruiting for team. 
  • BA as a Career - How might we attract the best talent into the BA profession (including early-careers) and create a natural development path into leadership roles. 

This face-to-face event at BT's new Bristol offices will include refreshments and pizza - please email stu.mullinger@iibauk.org if you have any special dietary requirements! 

 

James Read has worked in both Business Analysis and Service Design roles for the last 12 years, working across the Consumer and Business divisions at BT, delivering services from TV to IoT.

James is currently a Principal BA within the Experience Design team, determined to overcome the challenges faced by BAs trying to do great work, whilst building out a professional and valued BA practice.

Outside of work, James is a keen cyclist and badminton player. 

 

 

 

 

 

Colin Parfitt has been a Business Analyst since 2015, but has had a variety of Change and Process Improvement job titles over the last twenty years. Before coming to BT he worked predominantly in the insurance industry, and is passionate that Business Analysts feel supported.

When he's not in work he spends a lot of time walking his dogs.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

Matt Madigan has been delivering change in various guises for the last 15 years, and predominately been working across Business Analysis for the last 8. He has worked across a number of industries including, Finance, Insurance and FMCG and has seen the good, bad and the ugly of how businesses see and utilise Business Analysts. 

Matt currently leads a team of BAs within BT's Wholesale division and in his spare time is a keen golfer and fitness enthusiast.

 

 

 

 

BT are one of the world’s leading communications services companies. The solutions we sell are integral to modern life. Our purpose is as simple as it is ambitious: we connect for good. There are no limits to what people can do when they connect. And as technology changes our world, connections are becoming even more important to everyday life.



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