Business Analysis is...

In version 2 of the BABOK, we're doing a minor update to the definition of business analysis. In the current draft, it says:

Business analysis is the set of tasks and techniques used to work as a liaison among stakeholders in order to understand the structure, policies, and operations of an organization, and recommend solutions that enable the organization to achieve its goals.

We put a lot of time and energy into crafting this definition, and while the phrasing may still be a little awkward, it carries a lot of meaning.

…the set of tasks and techniques…
This is intended to refer back to the content of the BABOK. The definition can't capture all that content, and it doesn't make a lot of sense to try.

…used to work as a liaison among stakeholders…
Business analysis always involves making tradeoffs between the needs of different stakeholders and groups within an organization. If you have only one stakeholder, there isn't a lot of need for analysis...you just have to help that stakeholder articulate their real needs. With several stakeholders, and complex decisions, business analysis becomes an absolute necessity.

…in order to understand the structure, policies, and operations of an organization…
These are the subject matter of business analysis. The BABOK covers the development of requirements for software applications, but it is focused on applications that find a use within the enterprise (as opposed to home use or marketed to consumers, for instance).

I did consider the use of the term "business architecture" here but I didn't want the definition to include terms that would need definitions of their own.

It also makes clear that understanding the current state of an enterprise is business analysis, just as much as understanding the future state is.

…and recommend solutions…
It's not enough to be able to identify people's needs. We also have to be able to find solutions that will meet those needs and evaluate

For those wondering, this is where IT comes into play. You may have noticed that this definition makes no direct mention of it--the reason for that is that IT is not what business analysis is about. IT is a way of solving a business problem, and if it's the right solution for a particular situation, then it's what the BA should recommend.

Even when a BA works in an IT environment (as about half of us do), we end up spending a lot of our time understanding exactly which things to support in systems and which things should be done by people.

…that enable the organization to achieve its goals.
Business analysis is necessary because it helps link the stakehiolder needs to the overall strategy of the organization and ensures that requirements actually bring a concrete benefit when implemented.

There were other definitions we could have used, but many of the simpler definitions weren't specific enough. For instance, one I like is "Business analysis determines how an organization's strategy is implemented." However, I think that's too short.

Kevin Brennan, CBAP
VP, Body of Knowledge