Dear Nicola, interesting debate and discussion. Just the other day, this topic came up in the context of BA requisite skill sets, job levels, salaries. The prevailing thought at the table was that all BAs should have a broad requisite process and analytic skill set relative to their roles and responsibilities (see IIBA) as a BA. Hence, "short and fat" as you put it is a position requirement and management expectation. I offered a different point of view stating that there is institutional value in being very broad, like a Jack of all trades, especially from a process improvement perspective and that the organization doesn't need every BA to be specialized like an SAP BA, or Siebel BA, etc. The others at the table, much wiser than I, suggested that specialization isn't limited to technical or application skill and that I had made their point. And all discussions and evidence pointed to specialization being a key part of the BA job leveling and salary structure. And this does seem to carry over into such realms as Monster.com where of the positions that show a salary, it is significantly higher for the specialized BA positions. The anecdotal evidence and thinking tends to suggest that the "tall and thin" guys might bring more value to an organization. Below are a few useful and interesting BA links:
International Institute of Business Analysis - IIBA
IIBA White Paper, "Why does a project need a Project Manager and a Business Analyst", by Barbara Carkenord, President, B2T Training.
Nonetheless, in the context of your debate it would be interesting to debate this with respect to of the past benefits brought to your organization, who brought them..? The "tall and skinny" guys or the "short and fat" guys. Sometimes, a look at the taillights can help you go forward. Cheers..!
Mark Perry
VP of Customer Care
BOT International
