What 15 years of business analysis taught me?

The top 5 lessons that I learnt as a business analyst.

Data is the new oil.

Data is a gold-mine.

One who has information has all the power.

Data has the power to turn ambition into reality.

Data Science is the sexiest job of the century.

All of us have come across many similar statements in the last ten years or so. And it is very much true.

Look at any indicator that you work with or the industry you work in, the companies that are roaring with success have one thing in common. They learnt how to leverage data.

SO it seems obvious that one needs to have a fundamental sense of reading and working with data, whether you are an engineer or a teacher, numbers ca help you optimize the way you work.

Fortunately for me, since 2008, data and I have an inseparable relationship.

I saw my journey from an overly-enthusiastic analyst who employed every fancy tool and technique to derive the result to … now, the analyst who knows at her core that every analysis will be flawed, incomplete and inaccurate with the right conditions.

In other words, the analysis will only be as good as the parameters you have set. Change one thing, and you will bring in unexplainable noise.

While there are several ways to learn the the best techniques to extract analyze the data, I am sharing the top 5 learnings from my 15 years of career in the field of data and analysis.

1. Understanding the question RIGHT is much more important than finding the answer.

2. The UNKNOWNS will play a crucial role in shaping your analysis.

3. Analysis isn’t complete unless the recommendation/ conclusion is explained in ONE SIMPLE statement.

4. The data will produce DIFFERENT OUTCOMES for different (functions) teams. And, that’s expected.

5. An EXECUTABLE ROADMAP is the deliverable that your stakeholders are looking for.

Know that any analysis work that you will ever do is either an exploratory exercise to discover something or a proving exercise to validate something. It is always executed with an end-goal in mind, it is not a process but a tactic.

Looking back at the last 15 years, the parts that I have enjoyed the most are centered around identifying interesting challenges to solve and the areas I have failed the most are the ways I have tried to implement solutions that I wasn’t able to explain properly.

You can read more on the framework of conducting a thorough business analysis here.

Learn more on the nuances of data and storytelling.

• The fine nuances of data storytelling.
• What every analyst needs to understand about data and analytics.
• How data is misinterpreted?
• Challenges faced by every data person.
• The 8 stages of an analysis lifecycle that drives results.
• 10 ways to make your data tell a compelling story.
• 5 ways to make an impact with your analysis.
• 3 most common types of data analysis