I find this quite difficult to establish in an interview, but it’s worth asking about the role itself, as well as the structure of the change team. You can then get a level of comfort that you will be gaining experience that is valuable to you. There is no “wrong” or “right” answer to these questions, it will just expose how the organisation views the BA role. You’ll then need to think about how you fit into this!

Here are some examples:

1. “Can you tell me which project phases BAs are involved with?”. If they answer that BAs are only ever involved in requirements, then this suggests that they are looking for a specialist Requirements Analyst. This might not suit a BA who is looking to experience the breadth of the BA role, so it’s best to know this up front.

2. “How is systems analysis handled, do you have dedicated systems analysts?”. Some employers advertise for a BA when they are really looking for a combined BA/Systems Analyst. This suits some people but not others, and asking this question will help to uncover this.

3. “Do BAs in your organisation get involved in business change/process improvement projects? Or just IT change projects”. This question helps to uncover the breadth of the BA remit. Some organisations use BAs only on IT projects, whereas others will utilise their skills on all projects.

4. “Is the BA team part of IT, part of the Business, or part of a separate Change function?”

5. “Is there a central BA team (a centre of excellence) or do all functions have their own BA team?”. Having a central team allows pooling of knowledge, and this can be incredibly beneficial.

Whilst there are no “right” or “wrong” answers to these questions, my personal view is that a BA will get exposure to more varied projects if the breadth of the role is wider. I would be looking for an organisation that utilises it’s BA capability throughout the project lifecycle, for IT and Business projects. I’d also be looking for an organisation that has a central BA function, or a matrix BA function with strong links across the departments to allow sharing of knowledge. However, whether this is right for you will depend on your current career aspirations!

Laura, I don’t know if I’d say I’ve been surprised by any answers to my question about the process and environment. I seem to have a good knack of finding places that don’t have them and want them. 🙂 But at least I knew what I was walking in to and it was an interest I had. If you are looking for an environment that has well-established processes, it’s important to get an idea of that up front.

I will say that I usually have more questions lined up than the interviewer does – which gets them talking as much, if not more, than I do. I’ve actually heard that this gives interviewers the perception that the interview went well (because they felt more engaged in the discussion) which is just a nice benefit.

Of all positions, a BA should have questions. When I interview candidates and they don’t have questions, it actually find that slightly concerning. Our nature is to be inquisitive and to want to know more.

I would also suggest asking a hiring manager and even the team of BAs about where they look for insights to new analysis techniques. If they are not seeking diversity in techniques or tools, then I would wonder about how serious they are about being a strong contributor within their company. Business is always changing – if you aren’t finding new ways of doing analysis, you are likely to be missing something.

Hi Karie, You are very smart to be looking for a fit within the organization. Interviews should definitely be a two-way street and this is a great list of questions to help discover more about the environment without putting anyone on the defensive. Have you ever received any surprising answers that turned you away from a position? For example, I could see how if there was little to no process or information sharing, that might be a strong indicator that BAs are not actually valued within the organization.