Yellerdog

Last night  I attended my local IIBA chapter's May meeting. This meeting was formatted as a 'lightning round' information exchange workshop. The room had five tables, each with three discussion questions on a topic relevant to BA work. We each rotated around the room in 10-minute sessions and, during each session, discussed the questions at each table. Ground rules similar to a brainstorming session (safe environment, respect privacy, everyone is allowed to speak, etc.) created an environment encouraging honesty and openness.
 
Topics included scope management, requirements elicitation, managing stakeholders, tools, and career management. Some questions were obvious ("what is your favorite tool for BA work? " ), while some evidenced a good understanding of the challenges of BA work ("how do you manage a stakeholder who dominates a brainstorming session? " ).

I learned a few things about myself and my area.

1. There are a surprising number of BA's in my area. Disney, Wyndham, Marriott, credit unions, banks, they're all employing significant numbers of BAs.
2. With 15 years of consulting experience I am one of the more experienced analysts at the table. I'm not used to that, as most of the team I work with has tons of experience.

I also learned some things about the software marketplace.

1. Just about everyone uses Word, but most users aren't happy with it. The chief complaints seem to be the complexity and, over time, the messed-up file format. There's a real opportunity for Lotus Symphony, this tells me.
2. Just about everyone struggles with document and information management. There's a real need for a lightweight, cost-effective document management system for departments and the SMB space. I can see a stripped-down version of Lotus Domino Document Manager filling this space quite nicely.
3. SharePoint is starting to get to the place that Lotus Notes has been in for years -- if you don't assign plan and resource your deployment adequately, you get a lousy implementation and the product does not perform as advertised. My employer is a big SharePoint shop, so I think I see an opportunity to sell our SharePoint expertise.