The business analyst needs to understand how a business is structured and
how that structure contributes (or hinders) the attainment of the business
goals and objectives. In addition to analyzing the organizational
hierarchy, it is important to assess the business culture and the
"sub-cultures" in each organizational "silo".
That are many different organizational models used. Some businesses
adopt a very flat structure while others have many organizational levels.
Some organizations are centralized and are modeled around key business
functions. Others are organized geographically. Matrix
organizations are also popular.
The business analyst needs to be sensitive to the people assigned to each
role in the organization. An organization is its people and each
person has different motivations. Sometimes a person's motivation is
well aligned with the goals and objectives or the businesses. In other
cases, the two can be at odds.
The education, skills and experience of each individual will also
determine how well a person contributes to the organization's goals
and objectives. In a perfect world, all people are well suited to
their jobs and contribute more than they receive in benefit. In the
real world, however, some individuals manage to rise to the level of their
incompetence and become "weak links".
The business analyst is in a unique position to find the "stars" and
"weak links" in an organization. The stars are frequently often the
ones most supportive of business analysis initiatives, the ones most willing
to share information and the ones most willing to accept change.
