It's Good to be a Business Analyst

The Business Analyst role is a good one – if you’re interested in

climbing the rungs of the organizational ladder. At least that’s the tack that Barbara over at the Business Analyst Blog has taken:

In the next few years I think we are going to see more and more Business Analysts move into executive level positions in both business and IT organizations. Many individuals holding these positions currently have strong business analysis backgrounds (whether or not they ever had that job title). The progression of a Business Analyst into executive management is very logical and smart from a CEO’s perspective. BAs understand the core business and understand how to solve business problems. We are very good at looking at business areas from a strategic perspective and recommending forward thinking solutions. Because we understand what technology can do, we can see possibilities for future growth in our organizations and can see a path to get there.

I agree that Business Analyst is logically a good growth position. Analysts often find themselves working with senior-level stakeholders which doesn’t hurt for visibility – for better or for worse. BA’s often get a unique, cross divisional/departmental view of how the business works, and how technology ties in to the core business.

In addition to the technical and business aptitudes, Business Analysts are well-positioned for growth within an organization due to the fact that their calling card is the ability to communicate effectively and establish relationships of trust.

Time will tell if this is true in my case, but here’s hoping.

What are your thoughts on whether the Business Analyst role is a good preparatory role for executive leadership? Does a BA have any advantages over other business roles? Technology roles?