Chief technical officers — often abbreviated as CTOs — play an important role in an organization’s ability to stay relevant and put resources toward profitable avenues of research and development. In order to perform their duties at a high level, CTOs need to have a deep and thorough understanding of what is going on in their industry and the types of data that they can glean useful insights from analyzing.

A way for CTOs to ensure that they are collecting and analyzing pertinent data that can have a significant and positive impact on their business is through the utilization of business analysts and their skills of sorting through data and organizing it into manageable groups.

This being the case, business analysts can be a powerful and useful asset for CTOs. Understanding what business analysts do — and how their work can positively impact an organization — can help put into perspective why these professionals are becoming increasingly valuable to CTOs.

What Is a Business Analyst? 

Business analysts are professionals who utilize data to help inform business decisions and implement new business processes. They do this in a number of ways, and their work can help organizations increase profits, boost production, and maximize efficiency. These professionals can work in full-time capacities for specific organizations, or as consultants.

The field of business analytics is rapidly growing, and business analysts are branching out to step into more roles related to the field, such as becoming business intelligence engineers and machine learning scientists. The growing nature of this field makes it an attractive career option for students with an interest in business, and as a result, more and more individuals are pursuing MBA programs that can prepare them for a career in the field.

There are typically two distinct routes that business analysts will take to improve an organization’s business processes. The first is by identifying problems and going about devising ways to fix them. The second is by searching for new opportunities for an organization to improve in some form or another.

Identifying and Solving Problems

Business analysts utilize several methods to identify problem areas in a business. These methods include:

• Utilizing key performance indicators
• Forecasting trends
• Developing plans of action

Because business analysts are adept at collecting, organizing, and analyzing data, they are easily able to identify where an organization is underperforming. After detecting which areas an organization is underperforming in, business analysts can devise plans to improve an organization’s processes in a way that solves the specific problem.

Searching for Opportunities to Improve

Much like identifying problems, business analysts will utilize data to detect areas in which there are opportunities for an organization to improve its business processes. In recent years, business analysts have been drawing upon new forms of technology — such as AI technology — to increase their ability to do quick, accurate, and impactful analyses.

Why Business Analysts Have Become More Valuable to CTOs 

As a CTO, one has an immense responsibility to ensure that one’s organization is constantly improving its business processes and staying ahead of the competition. As such, CTOs see value in employees who can help them do this efficiently and effectively. Business analysts have become more adept at helping CTOs fulfill their duties for a number of compelling reasons.

As new forms of technology — such as AI technology and business intelligence technology — are making it both easier and quicker to collect and analyze data, it makes sense that CTOs want to take advantage of these channels as much as they can. Business analysts are the professionals who have the necessary training and expertise to utilize these technologies and get the most out of them.

As one would imagine, this makes business analysts extremely valuable in the eyes of CTOs. As the field of business analytics continues to grow, business analysts will likely become an even more integral part of every organization’s research and development department.

Ushering Organizations Into the Future 

Business analysts are helping organizations improve the ways that they do business and keep up with competitors. As such, CTOs are eager to recruit more talented business analysts onto their teams to keep up with demand and improve their organizations at a faster pace.

The field of business analytics will likely continue to grow until it becomes synonymous with  successful business across every industry.

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