Working for a business analysis consulting company I often come across clients who are looking for BAs with specific industry or solution knowledge. Whether it be Superannuation, Insurance, or software specific such as a certain type of CRM. Each time a filter is applied in the search for the ‘perfect skill set’, the search results decrease. This isn’t a bad thing, so long as the priority of those filters is applied effectively. If the first filter is the industry or system knowledge, followed by the business analysis skill set, are you really seeking an SME as opposed to seeking Business Analysis services?

The specific industry/solution knowledge may be simple to define. It might be as broad as finance knowledge, or as specific as banking experience focusing on term deposit management using a specific software type. This specificity may be well known by the business – you will have people who are using this solution or working in this domain now (fyi – they are called SMEs).  Business Analysis is a defined skill set, however it is not always well understood by the business, or those enlisting this service.  There are a number of standards, set by governing bodies, that define the knowledge and techniques required to be capable of objective delivering business analysis services.  For a BA to be effective they need to have the right breadth and depth of BA capability and be able to apply this in any context. The IIBA defines 6 key knowledge areas and a multitude of techniques that are applicable to each of them.  Many, if not all of these knowledge areas are applied to each initiative. Secondly, underlying competencies, also IIBA defined: cultural fitment including teamwork, collaboration, transparency, integrity etc.

When businesses look to engage BA services, all too often they place priority of the industry/solution knowledge over BA capability, with the mind-set that it will take this particular “BA” less time to get up to speed with the business/solution and therefore be returning ‘value’ sooner, with less disruption to the people around them. However, in reality, unless you have hired someone with exceptional BA capability as well as the specific knowledge you seek, you have just hired yourself another SME. This person will apply only what they know to your business, rather than working with existing embedded SMEs (who understand your business) to implement validated and verified solutions. This will cost you more, it will take more time, and it will be more disruptive to your overall business. I guarantee it.

The Business Analyst and the Subject Matter Expert(s) have long had a collaborative and essential relationship.  The SME is of course an expert in a particular area. They hold deep knowledge of the how’s and why’s of the part of the enterprise they work in. They learn this from completing their role day in and day out.  The Business Analysts “enable an enterprise to articulate needs and the rationale for change, and design and describe solutions that can deliver value” (International Institute of Business Analysis 2015, Business Analysis Body of Knowledge v3). I have always believed the BA to be the least ‘knowledgeable’ person in the room in terms of the subject matter, but the one with the most capability of eliciting the required information from SMEs, aligned with organisational goals and success measures to deliver well thought out, objective improvements to solve problems or take advantage of opportunities.

So, if an enterprise has placed industry knowledge ahead of BA capability, what’s the risk? Initiative success – and that is often in the multiple millions. If your “BA” does not have the capability to work across all levels of the business, collaborating with stakeholders to elicit the business needs, root causes of problems, alignment to business strategy, understand where you are, where you aim to be, and how to address those gaps – in a way that an appropriate solution can be reused, bought, or built –  then the purpose of your initiative is at risk. Your initiative success is at risk!

So, the next time your enterprise requires BA services, partner with an expert Business Analyst or business analysis service provider, and let them use their skill set to work collaboratively with your SME(s).