The importance of business analysts in an organization stems from the need of an organization to implement new changes with the changing times.

Business analysts help companies digitalize their business processes and models, whilst driving the change management and ensuring that all the employees are on the same page.

They primarily act as a liaison between the various departments of the company, including the stakeholders.

Companies need business analysts in their team to decipher the IT-based solutions that can resolve the various business challenges of the modern world.

On the surface, the role of a business analyst and a system analyst may seem similar but it is important to know the difference between the two if you are trying to determine your career path.

The major difference between the two job profiles is that BAs focus more on the development of broader organizational aspects while system analysts focus on the technical aspects of specific systems.

If you are someone who likes the technical side of things, a system analyst may be the job profile that will suit you, and vice versa for an entry level business analyst.

In this blog, we will be discussing the following questions about an entry level business analyst:

• What is the job description for an entry level business analyst?
• What is the salary range for an entry level business analyst?
• How to get entry level business analyst job?
• Which are the best colleges to get a degree for an entry level business analyst job?
• What are the different entry level business analyst positions?

What Does an Entry Level Business Analyst Do?

As mentioned earlier, the responsibilities of a business analyst revolve around implementing changes in the business models based on data-backed information.

BAs also need to make sure that the changes that they formulate and recommend are technologically feasible and achievable within the stipulated budget & time frame.

Although the responsibilities of an entry level business analyst can change depending on the industry and company, here is a general list of duties of an entry level business analyst:

• Assisting senior business developers to analyze and outline problems along with a feasible data-driven solution
• Understanding the primary vision & goals of the company
• Evaluating the solutions for business models and ensuring their efficiency
• Assisting senior team members in risk mitigation
• Evaluating user operation inquiries and gathering data through surveys, interviews, etc.
• Exemplifying design requirements based on the suggested solutions for business challenges
• Documenting the entire life cycle of a new project or business procedure
• Serving as a liaison between different departments of the company
• Running user acceptance tests like detailed test plans and test cases
• Assisting senior business analysts to implement changes in business procedures throughout all the sectors of the company
• Helping senior team members to formulate budgets for new business models
• Ensuring that the new product or implemented procedure is efficiently meeting its purpose
• Maintaining the established user satisfaction and efficiency of the new business models whilst preparing reports based on it

Source: Pinterest

10 Important Documents Prepared by Business Analysts

Another aspect of working as a business analyst is to document projects and prepare report presentations for stakeholders.

Take a look at some of the important documents composed by business analysts:

Business Vision	Business Analysis Plan
BRD (Business Requirement Document)	FSD (Functional Specification Document)
System Requirement Specification	Requirement traceability matrix (RTM)
Use Case Diagrams	Visual Documents (Wireframes, Mockups)
Change Management Document	Test Cases and UAT

Entry Level Business Analyst Salary

An entry level business analyst with less than 1 year of experience can expect to earn an average salary of $59,683 per annum in the US.

Source: Payscale

Your average salary as an entry level business analyst can change based on the location, company, and industry that you choose.

Some of the popular employers of business analysts in the US include J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (JPMCC), Accenture and CGI Federal, Ford Motor Company, and Cisco Systems Inc among others.

These companies are also the highest paying companies for the position of business analysts.

How to Start Your Career as an Entry Level Business Analyst

Starting your career as an entry level business analyst can be quite simple if you know how to go about it and possess the right skills.

As obvious as it is, your first step in the pursuit of a business analyst career is to learn all the fundamental details about the job profile.

Since we’ve already discussed the responsibilities that entail this position, let’s go on to look at entry level business analyst requirements.

Possess the Must-have Business Analyst Skills

Given the responsibilities of BAs, having strong analytical and interpersonal skills is two of the important skills that you must have.

Other than that, the following skills that are listed in this infographic are the top skills that you need to possess:

Apart from these key skills, you must also be familiar with tools and software like SQL, QuickBooks, and MS Office Suite.

Get Certified

To make up for the lack of prior experience in the industry, taking courses and being certified can prove to be of great benefit for getting hired as a business analyst.

Here are some in-demand entry level business analyst certification courses that you can take to hone your skills:

• Certified Analytics Professional (CAP)
• Business Analysis Certification (BAC)
• Entry Certification in Business Analysis (ECBA)
• Certification of Competency in Business Analysis (CCBA)
• Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP)
• Agile Analysis Certification (AAC)
• Foundation-Level Business Analyst Certification (CFLBA)
• Certified Professional of Requirements Engineering Certification (CPRE)
• Professional of Business Analysis Certification (PBA)
• Certification in Business Data Analytics (CBDA)
• Certified Advanced Level Business Analyst (CALBA)

Work on Your Communication Skills

Making brilliant analysis alone will not do you any good if you are incapable of communicating it with others.

Plus business analysts need to document and report every phase of the product life cycle.

They need to present the data that they have analyzed in the form of charts, graphs, and reports.

In some cases, business analysts must also create interactive yet user-friendly dashboards so that the other team members can add their insights or send queries about the compiled data.

Performing these tasks efficiently will be possible only if you have good verbal and written communication skills.

Practice using programs like PowerBI, Infogram, Bokeh, Tableau, or Plotly to build visualizations and engagingly present them.

You can even practice using MS Office and prepare short presentations for your friends to get comfortable with communicating.

Get a Degree in Business Analysis

The minimum education requirement that recruiters seek while hiring an entry level business analyst is a degree in business analysis or any other related field.

If you are someone who is still looking for the best colleges to get a degree in business analysis, consider applying to any one of the following colleges that offer online and offline degrees including certifications.

• Syracuse University
• American University
• Pepperdine University
• University of Dayton
• Harvard Business Analytics Certificate

Also, you don’t need GMAT scores to apply to these colleges.

Consider Taking Data Analytics Course

Given the fact that business analysts have to analyze tons of data to find patterns/information that is crucial for the business, taking a course in data analytics can be a plus point for your candidacy.

Especially when businesses begin to operate a majority of their work online, the amount of data they accumulate increases significantly.

Thus, having a firm grasp of data analytical techniques increases your value as an entry-level business analyst.

Practice Your Data Analytic Skills

Getting a hang of dealing with tons of data will not only hone your skills to derive data-backed business solutions but will also improve your soft skills like decision-making, time management, etc.

Practice working on various projects by researching market opportunities, sourcing data from open sources, identifying patterns, and so on.

The goal here is to become an exceptional candidate for the role of business analyst and get hired.

Entry Level Business Analyst Roles

There are multiple categorizations for titles and roles of a business analyst that can change depending on the industry, project objectives, and so on.

Business Consultant

The key role of a business consultant is to fabricate business processes/models based on a comprehensive insight into the industry.

A business consultant guides the company through various steps that the company must take to mitigate risks and grow the company’s value in the long run.

They ensure that the company is following the best and latest industry practices to stay relevant.

Marketing Specialist

Marketing specialists generally work with the customers/clients to analyze the current market trends to refine the company’s products and organize promotional campaigns.

They are also responsible for compiling customer feedback and expectations to work on the improvement of the company’s products or services.

Product Manager

Product managers visualize the strategy and growth life cycle of a product.

They supervise the product’s practical needs throughout its market lifecycle and work on the improvement of the established product based on the customer/client’s feedback.

System Analyst

The role of a system analyst in a company is technical. They serve as a liaison between the IT team and the other teams working on the same project.

They implement the requirements of a computer system by analyzing system issues and testing potential fixes for the same.

Key Pointers from the Blog

• The importance of business analysts in a company lies in their role of steadily working on the data-driven growth and development of the company
• Business Analysts primarily act as a liaison between the various departments of the company, including the stakeholders
• The main difference between business analysts and system analysts is that BAs focus more on the development of broader organizational aspects while system analysts focus on the technical aspects of specific systems
• Entry level business analysts help senior team members to ensure that the changes that they formulate and recommend are technologically feasible and achievable within the stipulated budget & time frame
• Among many others, Business Requirement Document (BRD) and Functional Specification Document (FSD) are two of the important documents that are formulated by BAs
• The average salary of an entry level business analyst is $59,683 per annum in the US
• Entry level business analysts must possess strong analytical and interpersonal skills
• They must also be familiar with MS Office, QuickBooks, and SQL
• To make up for the lack of experience, entry level business analysts must consider taking certification courses and practicing their communication skills

Now that you have all the information about an entry level business analyst, you can go ahead and start applying for jobs with a starling resume and an entry level business analyst cover letter to support your application.

If you have any queries, you can write to us at team@hiration.com.