Become Certified As Business Analyst Professional (CBAP)

Business Analysis is a practice of identifying business needs and recommending solutions to various business problems. These solutions may include software-system development or may consist of process improvement and organisational change. Business Analysis assists in improving business strategies, business operations, and making clever business decisions. The person performing the Business Analysis is called the Business Analyst (BA). The BA, a mediator between IT and the business stakeholders, understands the policies, structure, and operations of an organisation and proposes solutions, enabling the organisation to achieve its goals. Here’s the reasons to start your career as a Business Analyst, the BA plays a crucial role in an organisation by influencing and controlling strategic planning, processing definition and designs, and providing analysis of information technology, operations, and economic models.

Benefits of Becoming a Certified Business Analyst

1. Provides collaboration and networking opportunities

It is the responsibility of a BA to collaborate with all the stakeholders of the project such as the client team comprising of primary stakeholders and end users; the project team comprising of the development team, testing team, project manager; and the finance team comprising of directors, delivery program managers, and vendors.

2. Enhances growth with a promising career

Gaining substantial years of experience as a Business Analyst places you in a crucial position in your career, where you can become a Functional Analyst either by choosing to specialise in an explicit technology/domain or opt a career as an IT Business Analyst by becoming a mediator in between business and technology. You can also move into the managerial role vertically, with ‘Project Management’ becoming the next obvious choice, as you already have the requisite skills and exposure being a BA.

3. Gains organisational recognition and respect

The Business Analysts have to connect to the functional, technical, financial, and managerial sides of a project. Due to the BA’s documentation skills, technical-domain knowledge, management of project cost estimates and bidding, he/she gains a reputed recognition in the organisation.

4. Gives exposure to multiple domains

The skill sets of BAs are domain independent, which facilitates them to shuffle between the projects belonging to different domains such as Banking, Finance, IT, and Government.

5. Provides financially rewarding career path

Becoming a Business Analyst makes a lucrative career, considering the average pay given to the analysts around the globe. Comparing to the median salary of a Business Analyst, it comes around $70,000 per annum, which is 35% more than the median household income across all jobs in the United States.

Top 3 Certifications for a Business Analyst

Following are the major industry-recognised analysis certifications:

▪ Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP®)

One of the most popular and widely recognised professional certification in Business Analysis, CBAP is offered by the International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA®). IIBA® is an independent, non-profit organisation offering certifications for Business Analysis professionals. The CBAP certification empowers you by developing proficient skills in Business Analysis. It helps you build competency in the six knowledge areas defined in BABOK® Guide Version 3. Following are the knowledge areas:

1. Business Analysis Planning and Monitoring
2. Enterprise Analysis
3. Elicitation
4. Requirements Analysis
5. Solution Assessment and Validation
6. Requirements Management and Communication

Eligibility criteria:

1. Minimum 7,500 hours of BA work experience, of which a minimum of 900 hours spent in at least four of the six knowledge areas
2. Minimum 35 hours of professional development in the past 4 years
3. Two references from CBAP® recipient or client and a career manager
4. Agreement with the CBAP® Code of Conduct

The CBAP® exam consists of 120 multiple-choice questions, which needs to be completed in 3.5 hours.

▪ Certification of Competency in Business Analysis (CCBA®)

The CCBA is a professional certification in Business Analysis offered by IIBA. This certification is meant for individuals who wish to be recognised for their skills and expertise in Business Analysis by gaining a formal recognition.

Eligibility criteria:

1. At least 3,750 hours of BA work experience over the 7 years, of which a 900 hours should have been spent in at least two of the six knowledge areas
2. At least 21 hours of professional development in the past 4 years
3. Two references from CBAP® recipient or client and a career manager
4. Agreement with the CBAP® Code of Conduct

The CCBA exam consists of 130 multiple-choice questions, which needs to be completed in 3 hours.

▪ PMI Professional in Business Analysis (PMI-PBA)®

The PMI Professional in Business Analysis (PMI-PBA) is another Business Analysis certification that proves your expertise in business analysis to improve the overall success of the projects. It carries a high level of professional credibility, as it requires the professionals to have the comprehensive business-analysis training, work experience on projects, and check up on business-analysis principles, tools, and techniques.

Eligibility criteria:

The eligibility criteria for PMI-PBA are different for professionals having a secondary degree compared to those having a 4-year degree.

• Secondary degree with a High School diploma, associate’s degree, or global equivalent
• 7,500 hours of BA work experience of past 8 years
• 2,000 hours spent working on project teams over past 8 years
• 35 hours of BA education gained in the business-analysis practices
OR
• Four-year degree, or a bachelor’s degree, or global equivalent
• 4,500 hours of BA work experience of past 8 years
• 2,000 hours spent working on project teams over past 8 years
• 35 hours of BA education gained in the business-analysis practices

The PMI-PBA exam consists of 200 questions, of which 25 are pre-test questions, and the allotted time for the exam is 4 hours