BA Applied Capability: Is Your Organization Consistent or Inconsistent?

by Kitty Hass

When I conduct a BA workforce Assessment, because of the integrated format of my organizational and individual assessment models, I am able to evaluate BA Applied Capability (BAC). BAC is the collective application of BA Technical Competencies by an organization’s BAs. It is an indicator of skills application consistency (variance) across an organization’s BAs.

Participant skills application levels are aggregated and reanalyzed using a calculation similar to that used for a BA Practice Maturity Assessment; however, BA Applied Capability is not a measure of BA Practice Maturity. See my February 6^th posting for more information about the full BA Practice Maturity Model.

The figure below presents an example of an organization’s BAC. The BA Applied Capability of 2.05 in the exhibit reflects skills application inconsistency in Level 2 BA Practices and incomplete application of Level 3 BA Practices created by the variance in skills application across individuals and BAs groups.

Scores over 2.0 indicate that a number of more mature BA skills are being applied. Requirements Analysis, however, is fully applied at the Project Level (2.0). When full application of Project-Level practices is not achieved, upper level practices may be less effective. These less effective practices may impact an organization’s ability to achieve success on more complex projects. In prior assessments and ongoing research, I have found that there is a strong correlation between project complexity and BA Applied Capability. This means that as projects become more complex, organizations need more consistent application of BA practices and complexity management practices across the organization to achieve success on these highly complex projects.

The current level of BA Applied Capability depicted in the exhibit provides a strong foundation for more consistent success on highly complex projects and innovation programs. Basic practices are being performed by BAs on projects and the limited use of higher-level practices may be related to the lack of formal BA training and inconsistent and multiple roles on projects. However, for a more targeted long-term improvement roadmap, one that leads to true BA performance improvement and practice consistency, try out a full BA Practice and Workforce Capability Assessment. You will be glad you did!