Reply to: Business Analysts

[Gonzo]

A good BA is worth their weight in gold. Unfortunately they are few and far between. In my experience BAs are BAs because they're not smart enough technically to hack the "harder" technical work. However, one or two I've met used to be programmers and really understood the particular industry they were in and those were excellent.

I am a BA but I can sympathise. Some of us have taken the care to train for this but many are simply people that have worked in their particular field for a while and see it as a dossy job that they can coast with a bit of business knowledge.

A few years ago I worked with a bloke who told me that it was his ambition to be a Business Analyst because he had a couple of mates that were BAs and they got paid a load of money and didn't do any work. Pretty much sums a lot of them up.

[sasguru]

A good BA is worth their weight in gold. Unfortunately they are few and far between. In my experience BAs are BAs because they're not smart enough technically to hack the "harder" technical work. However, one or two I've met used to be programmers and really understood the particular industry they were in and those were excellent.

[Spartacus]

I put the 'anal' into 'analyst'.

[wonderwaif]

I must apologise, I was too busy seeing red and ranting to finish reading your post correctly

Not at all dear boy, quite understandable. I know exactly where you are coming from.
Makes my blood boil when clients want to cut my rate because they have acquired some cheap labour who haven't got a fecking clue.

[Ardesco]

Not sure I said there were lots of respectable Test Analysts, just that no self respecting one would want to call himself a BA.
Agree with the rest though.

I must apologise, I was too busy seeing red and ranting to finish reading your post correctly

[wonderwaif]

You seem to be under the impression that there are lots of respectible test analysts in the contract market.....

Unfortunatly from my experiance there are some good testers out there (of course i am one of these ) and a load of crap ones who haven't a clue, can't adapt to new environments quickley and generally know nothing about IT (a fair few seem to be foreign) These are the people that like to call themselves BA's because they think that is the way to getting a better rate, unfortunatly they are mostly underqualified for flipping burgers, however they always get hired because they will work for £8-10/hour

</rant>

Not sure I said there were lots of respectable Test Analysts, just that no self respecting one would want to call himself a BA.
Agree with the rest though.

[Sockpuppet]

Is it just me or are most BA's a bunch of t*ts?

Well I'm a BA and a lot of people think i' a ***** so i'd say yes.

Bear in mind I do work in Logistics and BAs are different as we are more floor based and tend to stay away from the offices. Also the management structure in logistics is very small so tulipe people are found out very quickly and usually are the one one in the sector/site so they have no one to hide behind. In large offices that may not be the case.

Needless to say ost warehouse people are not politicans and dont mind telling you when you are doing a rubbish job.

It all depends on the person. I'm failry good at what I do but i have also worked with some analysts that are thick as pig poop, they werent in the logistics trade.

[Ardesco]

I agree they are a t*ts, but no self respecting Test Analyst would want to be mistaken for one.

You seem to be under the impression that there are lots of respectible test analysts in the contract market.....

Unfortunatly from my experiance there are some good testers out there (of course i am one of these ) and a load of crap ones who haven't a clue, can't adapt to new environments quickley and generally know nothing about IT (a fair few seem to be foreign) These are the people that like to call themselves BA's because they think that is the way to getting a better rate, unfortunatly they are mostly underqualified for flipping burgers, however they always get hired because they will work for £8-10/hour

</rant>

[premiere]

* makes mental note to self not to show this thread to the missus (BA/PM) if she's in a bad mood tonight *

Mordy in "rather attached to his testicles, and prefers to keep it that way" Mode

Lots of BA's tend to move into Project Management after a while.

So they were BA and then PM.

I usually term these people "Bloody Awful Project Managers"

[Francko]

Lots of BA's are really testers who think that Business Analyst sounds better and haven't got an effing clue about Business processes....

That would be very generous but I don't think they have any qualification. Most of BAs are people who skipped school, didn't do any job, were on welfare and so on. BA is what marketing used to be in the 90s. The fewer the skills, the fitter for the job. Ideally, no skill at all.

[Mordac]

* makes mental note to self not to show this thread to the missus (BA/PM) if she's in a bad mood tonight *

Mordy in "rather attached to his testicles, and prefers to keep it that way" Mode

[wonderwaif]

Lots of BA's are really testers who think that Business Analyst sounds better and haven't got an effing clue about Business processes....

I agree they are a t*ts, but no self respecting Test Analyst would want to be mistaken for one.

[kramer]

how about not understanding what specs and requirements are?

[Francko]

Is it just me or are most BA's a bunch of t*ts?

You are way above them if you know already how to use a forum. Most of them do not even know hot to follow up an email.

[Ardesco]

Lots of BA's are really testers who think that Business Analyst sounds better and haven't got an effing clue about Business processes....