… And it is, actually.
It is not us alone saying that, but the large number of young and brilliant engineers looking for a career that combines a passion for data with the ability to positively influence and support an organization.
Of the ‘young’ jobs that have been opened in the past decade for the talented engineers, business intelligence analyst is one. A very trendy one.
What does a business intelligence analyst (BIA) do?
He or she analyzes complex sets of data within a company to determine recommendations for business growth and improvement. Knowing how to properly collect and interpret data can have a significant impact on the future success of a business.
The practitioner who finds this job suited for the talent and knowledge accumulated is generally an engineer by education and a businessperson by formation and experience. Not only does such a person review data to produce finance and market intelligence reports, but also detects patterns and trends in a given market that may influence a company’s operations.
While the business intelligence analyst position is just one of many roles related to BI and analytics in large organizations, the number of such positions and their titles and responsibilities vary based mainly on the maturity level of the company’s data management programs and, mostly, on the essential need of BI that the respective industry requires.
Some multinational companies acting in tech might have BI architects, BI developers, BI analysts and other internally-derived titles.
Generally, a BIA works between IT and business operations; sometimes with finance division, as well. It comes without saying that a BIA works with a variety of people – both within the company and outside it – and with key stakeholders. Such an analyst monitors permanently the essential sources of information, the strategic technological conferences and international events, to remain aware of the business trends and industry at large. A BIA professional might need socializing skills, good communication skills and could have a large network that he or she can access and interact with.
When we recruit for BIA positions, we look for practitioners and consultants who have proficiency in understanding data and doing data modeling, profiling and validation and who gained significant expertise in using data mining, query, analysis, visualization and reporting tools.
Familiarity with database management systems and data warehouse technologies is also required, as well as critical thinking and problem-solving abilities.
The beauty of such a position lay with the fact that the person becomes a key provider of strategic information that the entire business relies. An engineer as well as a business professional; a statistician as well as an analyst.
To the always-frequent question whether a BIA needs to know how to code, our experience in recruiting for such positions showed us that a BI analyst’s familiarity with coding languages like Python, Java or R is often required.