At long last, Building Business Capability (BBC), my favorite professional conference (and the official conference of the International Institute of Business Analysis®), came back in 2022. The multi-day event took place in Fort Lauderdale, Florida – live, and in person at the fabulous Diplomat Resort! COVID caused a one-year delay, but boy, was it worth the wait!
I learned a ton, as always, but in addition to that, I was also able to reconnect with some old friends, and make some new ones, too.
There are so many knowledgeable and wonderful speakers at BBC that it’s hard to choose which sessions to attend. I ended up picking sessions or speakers that I wasn’t as familiar with so I could take away some fresh insights. Below are some highlights from the keynote session (more blogs to come on other presentations):
2022 BBC Keynote: Our Best Work
The opening keynote was presented by none other than the President and CEO of the IIBA®, Delvin Fletcher. His topic was on how we, as Business Analysts, do our best work. So how will we know?
In our Business Analysis
Task / Quality has become Context / Outcome
People are motivated by delivering quality tasks, and although these are important, alone they are not enough. To succeed, we must lead by focusing on the outcomes, because customers care about outcomes within their context.
In our Organizations
We are ‘nimble’
Being nimble means using our methods with a purpose, and adapting quickly. While we are governed by strategy, we must go beyond profits and profitability and strive toward achieving our vision; analysis is central to this process.
In our Jobs
Role is bigger than Title
Delvin started out by stating that there are hundreds of different job titles for people who perform business analysis, and it doesn’t matter what your title is. However, as we move into the future, we will need to be aware of changes coming our way in both the world (pandemics, politics, climate, wars, etc.) and technology (blockchain, artificial intelligence, machine learning, etc.). That said, our fundamental challenges haven’t changed. And to do our best work, we need to figure out what impact we want to achieve in both the short and long-term.
In our Methodologies
Healthy tension has replaced debate
There’s not a single methodology that works for all contexts. As Business Analysts, we don’t really care what methodology is used – we just get stuff done. But for this to work, we must understand which framework or method to use or adapt, or even use a combination of methods to best fit the situation.
In our Professional Communities
Ecosystems and Partnerships define Us
There are many organizations, industries, disciplines, and even governments that the IIBA® has partnered with to advance the profession of Business Analysis. For this to work, we must use our influence within the ecosystem of our partners.
Closing
Delvin closed with the mission of the International Institute of Business Analysis, which is to:
Lead the global business analysis
community and professional standards
so every person achieves more.
Final Thoughts
This was an inspiring presentation. As the profession continues to evolve, so must we. As a Business Analyst (no matter what your official job title), attending conferences like BBC is a fantastic way to stay abreast of what is happening in the profession and to grow and enhance your career. I hope you enjoyed this brief recap of the opening keynote presentation!