Business analytics is a field that has been enjoying a lot of popularity for the last few decades, and it gives us many reasons to believe that this will be an ongoing trend. The various advancements we’ve made on the technological front have proven to be a great catalyst for new developments in that area, and we’re now able to look at business operations and relationships from a much closer, more detailed perspective. We can now spot patterns that were not as obvious before, and this can all be done with relatively less effort. If you’re wondering whether that’s a valid path for your degree, it definitely has a lot to offer to those with the right aptitude. Let’s have a look at some of the prospects you’ll gain with this kind of education.
Important Skills for Success in the Field
There are several sets of skills you should focus on if you want to become a successful business analyst. Working on those can be useful even before you’ve started the actual business analytics degree, as it can give you an edge above your fellow students. You’ll also have an easier time following your classes, giving you more opportunities to explore your skills outside of the academic environment. You should have a good understanding of business fundamentals first and foremost. This includes both the management side, as well as aspects like finances and legal. You should also have strong technical skills. While you don’t need to learn how to program or anything that complicated, knowing your way around an Excel sheet can make a huge difference in how easily you adapt to the materials you have to learn.
Research Market Trends
One of the most important things you’ll be doing as a business analyst is following market trends and figuring out how they can be integrated into the current model of your company. This is not always as easy as it sounds, because it’s a bit of a gambling game if you’re not that familiar with whatever market you’re working in. Even when you are, you’ll still have to take calculated risks from time to time, especially when a major new technological development is on the horizon and you’re not sure if it’s worth investigating its integration into your operations. Having a good overview of the market as a whole is important, and you’ll need to brush up on those skills often.
Improve a Company’s Position
You must also pay attention to how well the company you represent is moving through the market and positioning itself to take advantage of current trends. This is similar to the above, but works on a much bigger scale. Generally, you’ll need a good understanding of the upper-level politics of the organisation in order to make sense of how to proceed here, which in turn means that you’ll need enough experience at the higher levels of that organisation. Having previous experience at another company can help, but it is not the most important factor here.
Predict Future Developments
We mentioned the necessity for some risk-taking above. This can be even more valid for those looking to take advantage of not only current trends, but future ones as well. While it’s perfectly possible to predict certain market shifts and ensure that you’re in a more viable position to take advantage of them, it’s a very risky ordeal and you shouldn’t expect companies to trust you with something like this from an early stage. It requires a good grasp on the general concepts of business analytics, and a good relationship with the company’s leadership that’s built on solid trust.
Get Involved in Modern Tech
One of the cooler aspects of working in business analytics is that you’ll frequently get to take advantage of new technology, integrating it directly into your workflow, and sometimes in the overall workflow of the company as a whole. There are many solutions arriving to the market that have proven to be game-changers in various aspects. Artificial intelligence is at the heart of many of those developments, and you’ll often find yourself playing with solutions from this field and exploring the possibility to integrate them into your current company. Don’t worry though – a deep understanding of AI is not a prerequisite for taking advantage of what the tech has to offer these days, as the market is full of solutions designed to be used by people with practically no experience in the field.
Work as an Employee or Consultant
A great thing about working as a business analyst is the freedom the job provides you with as a whole. You don’t have to be tied to a specific company for the long term to apply your skills in a meaningful manner. Many experts in this field work as consultants, roaming from company to company and improving their situation before moving on to the next one. It’s all up to you – and if you build up your skills the right way, you can expect to be in high demand all over the market. The field is exploding in popularity these days, and many companies are actively looking to take on new specialists to service their needs. If you’ve just recently graduated, you’ll still have lots of options to pick from if you know how to market yourself. And in the end, that’s one of the most fundamental skills you’ll need to learn in order to succeed in the field.
So, if your main concern is having interesting things to do on a regular basis, rest assured that working as a business analyst can keep you busy quite well. It’s not the perfect job for everyone, and some people definitely lack the fundamental aptitude to handle it right. But if you’ve got what it takes, it’s certainly a field that can open up many doors to you, and one that you shouldn’t underestimate if you’re looking for a real challenge and something that will keep you on your toes through your entire career.
