Here are my top 7 reasons why I became a Business Analyst and why you should too.

#1 - One title, many varying responsibilities

After going through college to get into Law Enforcement, only to find out later that it was not a good fit for me, I made the decision to find a career path that was flexible. What I found was while the title of Business Analyst is commonly utilized, the roles and responsibilities of that title can change drastically from company to company.

Some Business Analysts are in very technical roles, while others are strictly working on the business side. Some are heavy into defining and adjusting process flows, while others are designing technical solutions to solve business needs. The sweeping range of possibilities intrigued me and made me feel comfortable that regardless of my future interests, I could find a Business Analyst role to keep me enthused. Looking back years later, I was right!

#2 - Job market is set to explode

Each year, more and more organizations are realizing the benefits dedicated Business Analysts provide and are creating new positions. Because of this, the Business Analyst job market is expected to grow at a rate of 19% over the next 10 years! That means the current 740,000 or so Business Analyst jobs will become approximately 880,000 jobs by 2026!

With that type of growth, companies around the world are already competing for every Business Analyst they can find. There will be no better time to get into the Business Analyst career than right now!

#3 - Great pay

It was a shock to my senses when I first found out that the average Business Analyst makes over $78,000 per year! Then when hearing that the top 10% of Business Analysts make nearly $150,000 per year, I almost fell over!

Business Analysts definitely are compensated well for their work and with the job market demand outpacing the entry level candidates, the salary for the Business Analyst should continue to rise.

#4 - Independence and flexibility

In my life, I have never met anyone, who told me they wished they were micromanaged more. Having someone constantly looking over your shoulder and checking your work demotivates employees.

The great news for Business Analysts, since their work often involves working with all levels of management and with no set in stone repeatable process, they need to be given the trust and flexibility to accomplish their tasks independently. This allows employees greater freedom and creativity to meet and exceed their customers' expectations.

#5 - Different each day

I, like many people, tend to get a bit bored when set to do the same tasks repeatedly day after day. I learned this when I was younger and I spent my summer working at a local factory. The job of putting stuff on and taking stuff off of a paint line was one of the easiest jobs I ever had, and it paid pretty well, but I couldn't do it.

Each day I felt like my brain was melting from the inactivity of doing the same monotonous tasks over and over. I lasted a whole two months before I hung up my factory steel toes and took a different job that paid considerably less, but was more unique each shift.

Being a Business Analyst is incredibly different. Not only do you get to schedule your own tasks for a given day, the way you carry them out are entirely up to you. If you feel like being a social butterfly eliciting requirements one day and a hermit completing busy work tasks the next, the flexibility is yours. It is your puzzle to put together and every day, as well as every project, is different.

#6 - Utilize your past experiences and knowledge

The most successful Business Analysts have a wide range of knowledge and experience gained from various odd jobs, previous careers, and their education. Whether you were a teacher, worked in finance, sold door-to-door, owned your own business, are just graduating from college, or virtually any other background, your experiences and knowledge gained can and will be utilized as a Business Analyst.

Your experiences may help you to identify a problem the business is facing, gain rapport with business team members, design a solution to solve a problem, reconfigure a process, conduct user training, etc. The possibilities are endless!

Regardless of where you worked or what degree you received in college, it can all aid you in being a successful Business Analyst.

#7 - Help others

Much of what a Business Analyst does is solving complex business problems. At a high level Business Analysts are understanding the pain points, getting the full picture of the current "as-is" state, breaking down the problem into solvable pieces, designing the solution, and helping to test and implement the solution, which in the end, should solve the initial pain.

While getting through this full process can have its difficulties, in the end, hearing how you were able to help a person, a business unit, or the company save money or do things easier, it makes is all worth it.

Besides looking at the final product and realizing what you have helped to achieve, my all-time favorite moment is when users say, with a huge smile, "You can really do that? That will save me so much time!" Being able to help others by solving problems and making their jobs easier makes me extremely proud to call myself a Business Analyst.

The Business Analyst career has what I like to call the Perfect Career Trifecta; financial stability, professional growth, and is personally rewarding. Whether you are graduating from college, are professionally lost on what to do, or are bored in your career, you need to give a serious look at becoming a Business Analyst.

To get started, take a look at my recommended learning tools. Here you will find a list of learning resources I have personally created or vetted out. Here you can build the foundation of Business Analysis knowledge or expand your knowledge into new and exciting areas!

The best preparation for tomorrow is to learn something today!

Written by Jeremy Aschenbrenner - The BA Guide