Overcoming the Challenge of Hiring Business Analysts
Posted October 30th, 2017
As more companies focus on strategic planning to handle their increasingly complex missions, demand for business analysts is increasing. These professionals play a key role in optimizing workflows and identifying the organization’s ideal market approach. But finding the right person for the job isn’t always easy, and there are various challenges that may need to be overcome along the way. To help you cross these hurdles, here’s what you need to know.
Be Prepared to Pay a Premium
Business analysts are commanding substantial salaries regardless of the city in which they work. In the Bay Area, professionals with five years of experience in the field can achieve reaching over the $94,000 mark, and that’s no small investment. And, if special skills are required, the pay rate only goes up.
In most cases, if you’re intent on hiring a business analyst, you need to be prepared to offer a salary that is suitable for the area based on the amount of experience required and whether any specialized skills are necessities. Typically, lowballing candidates isn’t an effective approach as they’ll simply look elsewhere for a position.
Soft Skills Matter
A business analyst must often act as a central point of contact between tech professionals and management, including leaders who aren’t as well-versed in technology as their IT teams. Additionally, they may have to mediate negotiations between both parties, especially when desired features and technical feasibility don’t directly align. To be successful in this role, communication skills are vital, so finding the right candidate can be trickier than just assessing their hard skills.
Substantial Business Knowledge
Business analysts must be capable of learning and retaining a lot of information about how the company operates including the overall methodologies, internal standards, various tools, and preferred techniques. Additionally, they must monitor the progress of other professionals as everything moves forward toward the larger goal. When interviewing candidates, you’ll want to find professionals who have prior experience breaking down workflows, designing systems, and developing the appropriate test plans to ensure everything fits together properly in the end.
Since a business analyst needs to possess the right combination of hard and soft skills as well as an appropriate amount of experience based on the role, companies need to understand that a strong salary and comprehensive benefits package is going to be a necessity for securing top talent. Often, competition for these professionals is fierce, so trying to come in under what is available elsewhere isn’t a wise move as, even if the candidate initially accepts, they won’t likely stay long-term once they discover the disparity.
Luckily, you can make it easier to find the right business analyst for your vacant position. If you are interested in finding leading professionals in the field, the team at Bayside Solutions can connect you with top talent in the area. Contact us today to see how our services can help you locate the right person for your vacancy.
