Lead Business Analyst

Summary

A lead business analyst has a good understanding of the enterprise arena and works in highly complex problem spaces, typically spanning multiple products or services. At this role level, you will:

be a leader in the business analysis community (across government and externally)

have functional management or people management accountabilities, or a combination of both

actively share knowledge and be seen as a go-to person in the field

mentor others

own the main stakeholder relationships

Work Activity Components

Title	Details
Advice and guidance (Level 5)	Provides advice, guidance and expertise to promote the adoption of methods and tools, their effective use and adherence to policies and standards. Ensures that new methods and tools migrate to effective operation by promoting understanding of the effects of new methods and tools among non-users, delivering education and training for those using, or affected by, methods and tools.
Policies and standards (Level 5)	Contributes to organisational policies, standards and guidelines for methods and tools providing advice, guidance and expertise in the promotion and adoption of methods and tools in adherence to policies and standards.
Strategic context (Level 5)	Understands the strategic context for the entire organisation or business domain and influences the delivery of strategically-aligned change.
Requirements baselines (Level 5)	Establishes requirements baselines. Ensures changes to requirements are investigated and managed.
Development needs (Level 4)	Supports the identification and prioritisation of development needs for a professional practice area. Identifies development activities that align with organisational priorities, learning and development strategies and career pathways.
Communities of practice (Level 4)	Provides advice, guidance and, where appropriate, support for the establishment and organisation of communities of practice.
Problem definition (Level 5)	Uses an extensive range of techniques to diagnose the root cause of a highly complex business problem, and composes a statement setting out a clear definition of the problem.
Scope definition (Level 5)	Defines the objectives, boundaries and deliverables of extensive changes to a value stream, service or an entire business area or organisation.

Behavioural Skills

Title	Details
Analytical Thinking	Acquiring a proper understanding of a problem or situation by breaking it down systematically into its component parts and identifying the relationships between these parts. Selecting the appropriate method/tool to resolve the problem and reflecting critically on the result, so that what is learnt is identified and assimilated.
Conceptual Thinking	Acquiring understanding and insights regarding the underlying issues in complex problems or situations through the development of abstract representations, the identification of patterns and the analysis of hypotheses.
Strategic Perspective	Keeping organisational objectives and strategies in mind, and ensuring courses of action are aligned with the strategic context.
Commercial Orientation	Understanding commercial considerations and ensuring alignment with them when making decisions or recommending actions.
Customer Focus	Understanding the needs of the internal or external customer and keeping these in mind when taking actions or making decisions.
Organisational Awareness	Understanding the hierarchy and culture of own, customer, supplier and partner organisations and being able to identify the decision makers and influencers.
Interacting with People	Establishing relationships, contributing to an open culture and maintaining contacts with people from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines. Effective, approachable and sensitive communicator in different communities and cultures. Ability to adapt style and approach to meet the needs of different audiences.
Influence, Persuasion and Personal Impact	Conveying a level of confidence and professionalism when engaging with stakeholders, influencing positively and persuading others to take a specific course of action when not in a position of authority.
Critical Thinking	The ability to think clearly and rationally; review and evaluation of processes and outputs; the ability to engage in reflective and independent thinking; reasoned thinking involving critique.

Technical Skills

Title	Details	Depth
Corporate, Industry and Professional Standards	Applying relevant standards, practices, codes, and assessment and certification programmes to the specific organisation or business domain.	Proficient in

Other Skills

Title	Details	Depth
Value Chain Concepts	Identification and representation of the primary and support activities required to deliver a product or service in order to analyse aspects such as inefficiencies and costs.	Proficient in
Information Elicitation Techniques	The selection and application of information elicitation methods, tools and techniques that are appropriate to the information required and the sources available.	Expert in
Function or Department Operations	The activities, structure, and position in the organisation of the functions or departments for which services are provided.	Proficient in
Techniques for Effective Meetings	Methods and techniques for running effective meetings and for understanding and influencing the roles played by participants.	Familiar with
Coaching Techniques	Methods and techniques for coaching individuals or groups by a balanced combination of support and direction, which could include use of virtual learning environments plus add-ons to augment feedback specific to work items, workflow or career plans.	Familiar with
Standards Writing Techniques	Principles, methods and techniques for establishing, documenting, and maintaining standards.	Familiar with

Training

Title	Details
Own Organisation's Systems, Products and Services	Understanding of the organisation's systems, products and services to enable selling, support and development activities.
Facilitation	Methods and techniques for managing (or facilitating) a meeting or group session (both face-to-face and online) and then through a series of planned activities the creation, by consensus, of products (e.g. lists of business issues, requirements, technical options, etc.).
Coaching	Concepts, methods and techniques for providing coaching in subject specialisms to individuals or groups (e.g. GROW model).
Information and Data Modelling	Tools and techniques used to investigate, analyse and model the structure, relationships and use of data and information within an organisation.
Mentoring	Methods and techniques for providing mentoring support to less experienced individuals.
Benefits Management	The process and technique applied to identify, quantify, monitor and review benefits in order that they are realised from a business or IT change initiative.
Security Awareness	Tools and techniques to help users and employees understand the role they play in helping to combat information security breaches and for IT and security professionals to prevent and mitigate risk.

Professional Development Activity (PDA)

Title	Details	PDA Group
Deputising	Standing in for supervisor or manager on a temporary basis during periods of absence.	Broadening Activities
Job Shadowing and Special Assignments	Undertaking temporary periods or secondments in other roles, particularly those that offer a new perspective on own function or exposure to other environments and cultures.	Broadening Activities
Mentoring	Acting as a mentor, advising those for whom there is no direct responsibility, on matters to do with their job role, career and professional development.	Broadening Activities
Gaining Knowledge of Broader IT Issues	Increasing and maintaining currency of knowledge of broader IT issues through reading, attending and participating in seminars or conferences, special studies, temporary assignments etc.	Increasing Knowledge
Gaining Strategic Knowledge of Employing Organisation	Developing a comprehensive understanding of the business environment in which the employing organisation operates and its position, policies and direction in relation to health and care, country and global issues.	Increasing Knowledge
Participation in Professional Body Affairs	Taking an active part in professional body affairs at branch, specialist group, committee or board level.	Participation in Professional Activities
Negotiating and Influencing	Undertaking learning and practice of negotiating with and influencing others.	Developing Professional Skills
Team Leadership	Undertaking learning and practice of the skills required to lead teams, including motivation, direction, coaching, delegation, appraisal, counselling and developing others.	Developing Professional Skills

Organisational Skill Name and Description

Framework	Skill	Level
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Agile working Agile delivery involves encouraging teams to build incrementally, test and iterate their work based on regular feedback and other useful data.	Expert Agile working You can: coach and lead teams in Agile and Lean practices, determining the right approach for the team to take and evaluating this through the life of a project think of new and innovative ways of working to achieve the right outcomes act as a recognised expert and advocate for the approaches, continuously reflecting and challenging the team
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Business analysis Availability and capacity management involves ensuring services are available with as little down-time or disruption as possible, whilst making sure we have sufficient resources to support emerging business needs.	Expert Business analysis You can: set the direction for business analysis within a programme of work, enterprise or wider sector guide tactical decision making and influence the formulation of longer-term strategic plans in an evolving, complex and unpredictable environment give colleagues the means and authority to make decisions about their approach to business analysis activities ensure that the proposed solutions align with the organisational strategy and vision
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Business modelling Business architecture involves using industry standards to develop integrated views of an organisation that help implement organisational strategy and solve complex problems	Expert Business modelling You can: set the direction of scope and methodology for the representation of real world complex situations across a programme or organisation document conceptual models to support strategic planning and decision making
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Business process improvement Business modelling involves documenting how your business operates and intends to achieve its goals.	Expert Business process improvement You can: set the direction within a programme or enterprise to identify opportunities to perform business activities in alternative ways lead the exploration of ways to improve process efficiency and enhance business outcomes enable others to recognise the potential for change in potentially ambiguous and complex settings oversee the implementation of proposed improvements
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Business process testing Business process improvement involves analysing and modifying existing and new processes to make them more efficient.	Expert Business process testing You can: direct the application of business analysis and evaluation skills to support the design, execution and assessment of business process tests and usability evaluations, at an organisational level or within a programme of work
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Consultancy (business analysis) Consultancy involves providing specialist advice to address stakeholder and business needs.	Working Consultancy (business analysis) You can: provide advice, guidance and recommendations based on your specialist knowledge and experience propose methodologies to follow and approaches to implementation frame problems so they can easily be understood, and troubleshoot where required, to support the business in operating more effectively
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Enterprise and business architecture (business analyst) Enterprise architecture involves analysing how to achieve an organisation's objectives by designing and aligning its IT applications and technologies. Business architecture involves defining the business strategy, governance and most important processes of the organisation.	Working Enterprise and business architecture (business analyst) You can: work with limited direction to translate business drivers, goals and constraints into business objectives help to define required capabilities and support organisational changes to create operating models that meet business objectives
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Methods and tools Metadata management involves establishing policies and processes that ensure data can be accessed across an organisation.	Expert Methods and tools You can: set direction and give others the means and authority to advise on the best methodologies and tools for the work, ensuring they are adopted consistently assess the effectiveness of different approaches (such as Agile or plan-driven) and recommend tools to support organisational collaboration and build capability
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Requirements definition and management Prototyping a service or product involves exploring, testing and sharing different concepts before committing to the final design.	Expert Requirements definition and management You can: direct the approach to requirements management enable others to select and apply appropriate life cycle methods influence the prioritisation of complex requirement sets, enabling long-term strategic decision making and short-term tactical fixes ensure the proposed solutions align with the organisational strategy and vision
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Stakeholder relationship management (business analysis) Stakeholder relationship management involves managing stakeholder requirements and communications throughout a project, while remaining focused on the user needs.	Expert Stakeholder relationship management (business analysis) You can: develop engagement strategies and lead on communication with stakeholders at all levels actively establish relationships and apply the benefits of professional networks act as a point of consultation and escalation to resolve conflict in complex situations
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Systems analysis Strategy involves creating a plan to achieve a team or organisation's objectives.	Expert Systems analysis You can: set the direction for the identification and analysis of IT system capabilities identify gaps in functionality and enable others to explore and assess the effect of software changes demonstrate a strong understanding of business perspectives and technical concepts, and can bring them together to form recommendations and a common understanding communicate this effectively between users, development teams and external suppliers
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	Testing (business analysis) Testing involves ensuring that requirements have been fully met by using appropriate tools and techniques to verify that a product or service works.	Practitioner Testing (business analysis) You can: recommend the value of testing and apply the relevant tools and techniques to ensure test validity advise on business scenarios and develop acceptance criteria to ensure requirements can be traced to develop functionality review prototypes, test plans and test outcome reporting
Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework	User experience analysis	Practitioner User experience analysis You can: advise on the approach to analysis, prioritisation and validation of user experience needs recommend a range of techniques to analyse the user experience and ensure that it meets business and user needs articulate and communicate how user experience needs affect the design of a system in a project or programme of work

Framework

Skill

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