PM and BA

Hello Steven,

i do completly agree with you!
I just did PMP this august and i am planning to do PBA next year, cause i wanna excel in either role (and do a really good job in the combo role if necessary).
In fact i believe that there is often just one person for both roles (and mostly without any specific education about) may be a main reason that projects often runs in trouble while project progress.

One of my goals for next year is working to convince my company management that a split of both roles would be great beenfit for each project.

Regards,

Markus

One of the big factors in this discussion (which seems to generate a lot of ongoing discussion) is the size of the enterprise. It would be very interesting to have some data on the number of PM's working in SMB's vs. large corporations. Small and medium sized businesses have legitimate projects, but often lack project management sophistication and/or resources. Many of them are just dipping their toes into the PM ocean to see if formalizing the process will provide benefits. In this situation any BA will likely be done by the PM. In larger organizations with PMO's, the jobs will have become specialized and formalized.

One happy benefit for both PM's and BA's: as this process of "trying out" formalized PM increasingly takes place among SMB's all over the world, the demand for both positions will increase dramatically.

One of the big factors in this discussion (which seems to generate a lot of ongoing discussion) is the size of the enterprise. It would be very interesting to have some data on the number of PM's working in SMB's vs. large corporations. Small and medium sized businesses have legitimate projects, but often lack project management sophistication and/or resources. Many of them are just dipping their toes into the PM ocean to see if formalizing the process will provide benefits. In this situation any BA will likely be done by the PM. In larger organizations with PMO's, the jobs will have become specialized and formalized.

One happy benefit for both PM's and BA's: as this process of "trying out" formalized PM increasingly takes place among SMB's all over the world, the demand for both positions will increase dramatically.

Steven,

Besides what Bruce mentioned, it also somehow depends on the person himself. Some people can and will do, some people canxbut won't do, other can't at all. I mean can't play two in one.

Please sorry because I will talk about myself. I have the oportunity to work with the IIBA (first organization about business analysis) and the PMI about all related to define the standards and role definition. From 2010 I have performed conferences about how both roles must interact. Thank God the PMI´s Practitioners Guide for Business Analysis has an item named "Collaboration Point" where you can find the right description (in my opinion) about how both roles work together which is critical into each initiative. Most of us has performed both roles at the same time. I have helping organizations in implementing business analysis role form 1995 up to date. If you ask me, in my personal experience around the world, and when I have mentioned both roles could be performed by the same person (just my case lot of times) I firmly believe it is not good UNLESS the person have the necessary skills to do that. For example, I ever said, if you ask to me as project manager what I need to assure the project success I will say: a business analyst.

I think so as well, it's a unique combination of both skill sets that leads to the ability to success in a hybrid role. I have seen exceptional PMs and exceptional BAs try there hand at the dual role. I've also seen them do mediocre jobs at both. It's not practical for someone to do both, however, in a small organization its not a matter of practicality its a matter of economics.