The value of business analysts in customer centric programs

Principal Product Owner, Richard Pateman and Business Analysts, Sow Behl and Natasha George talk about how they use their skills and know-how to achieve this on the OneCX program.

The role of a Business Analyst and value to the OneCX program

BA’s on the OneCX program convene among the technical and business teams to understand the scope of work, why we need it, and how we will achieve it. We do this to clarify and mediate communication lines between what the business needs and what is achievable. This requires us to have a combination of technical and business expertise to ensure that when we liaise with these teams, everyone is clear on what the changes are, and why they are important. That way, we can explain how we will achieve the project goals. This in turn builds confidence in the teams to deliver aligned outcomes.

How a Business Analyst places the customers’ needs first

The OneCX program’s BA’s place customer needs first by engaging with the business about their needs, and understanding how it relates to the customer. Business stakeholders hold a wealth of information on what the customer's needs are from their own analysis, which is what we rely on. 

We can also do our own data driven investigation of our products by understanding user behaviour and user statistics, while also reviewing customer feedback. Depending on time and funding limits, we can hold workshops with our end customers to understand user behaviour. Or, we engage with end user research agencies, including UX researchers, when specific features or applications need reviewing.
 

Business Analysts working in collaboration with the OneCX delivery teams

There are many key activities performed by the BA team that the OneCX delivery, technology and operation teams have in common. The teams: 

• place an emphasis on external stakeholder engagement as opposed to internal stakeholder engagement
• see a need for deeper understanding of technical aspects of the content platform, to support the technology and operations team
• spend a great deal of time understanding and defining customer requirements. They work alongside the developers and quality assurance testing resources to ensure we deliver key tasks. 

How the OneCX program differs to other programs from a Business Analyst’s perspective

Our BA team provides significant support to enhance the agile ways of working across the technology, operations and delivery teams. 

By following agile methods, we iterate and adapt to our business needs. At the same time, we ensure consistent delivery. 

We place a particular focus on creating a community of practice across the business analysis space within the NSW Government Digital Channels team. Often, there are silos in business analysis resources within single teams. We want to make sure this does not happen. We aim to enable knowledge sharing, learn together, and solve common problems as a professional group. This benefits the entire NSW Government Digital Channels team and the OneCX program.

Want to know more about business analysis on the OneCX program?

Does your project or program of work use BA’s to help your teams’ progress? You might want to ask our OneCX program BA’s for any tips on how they get things done, or a progress update on their current stream of work. Or you may like to share some of your knowledge on BA best practices. Please feel free to write these in the comments sections below.

Stay in touch

Want to know more about the OneCX program? Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news and updates.