Business analysis glossary
Business Analyst
What it is
A business analyst is a person who investigates business problems, gathers needs from the people involved, and turns them into clear requirements that a delivery team can build and test. The role sits between the business and the technical team, and the exact job title varies by company.
Why it matters
Without someone who owns clarity, requirements stay vague, stakeholders disagree quietly and developers fill the gaps with assumptions. A good analyst reduces rework by asking better questions early and writing down what was agreed.The role also protects the budget, because a misunderstanding found in a meeting costs far less than one found in production.
Example
At Cedar Credit Union, the loans team asks for a faster approval screen. The analyst, Priya, talks to loan officers, reads the current process, finds that approvals wait for a manual document check, and writes three testable requirements the developers can estimate.