Dealing with Reluctant Business Users

Dealing with Reluctant Business users

Business Analysis is not about working in your cubicle (if you are lucky you can get way with a seat and a soft board on one side in the name of cubicle)

Business analysis is about working with business on business. By nature of the job it calls for working with business users. Anyone having worked with users will be clenching his fist at this point, well I am gritting my teeth

Talk about taking horse to the pond, what do you do when the horse if not thirsty? Can you still make him drink water?

This is the situation I regularly face, Imagine a situation where the CEO has asked business to work with a new supplier for new product range. The merchandiser who is responsible for that range is not convinced that the product is right for business, but the CEO is!!

In this situation the business analyst is caught between the devil and the deep sea, we have to work with CEO who sits on the clouds, also deal with the reluctant merchandise who believes and half hopes the initiative fails so he is proven correct

A business analyst is called upon to work out the process as per the business requirements, deal with business partner (who is surprised why no one in business is speaking with him regarding the new initiative’s success) and also make the reluctant merchandiser follow the process

Has any found himself in this situation? I have outlined brief steps on how to approach the situation

• First Step is to remember that actions are not important but intentions are and it’s not personal

• The first stage is to put an organisation structure in place, ( structure after strategy)

• The project will need to have a business sponsor who will be responsible for all decisions , the buck stops with him

• Under the business sponsor there needs to be an IT team lead and one business Team lead

• The next step is to get all stake holders in a room and make sure every one shares the understanding of the strategy in the same way and business objectives are defined and roles established

• There will be situations where all may not agree on the desired outcome , it is important to bring these to the table and document them

• This will lend more reason to follow the trials through so that the issues can be proved to be real or hypothetical

• Once the objective and issues are documented the next step is get the cross functional team and map the business process required to support the initiatives

• Define measures of success and put the system in place. The process may need automation of tasks, this will lead to parcels of development work that can be done in house or outsourced

• Share the process with business partner and with all involved in working with it , refine the process using their concerns

• The final process is then blessed by all and can be easy to implement

The result of the process will then prove the financial benefits of the project, the result will not be affected by lack of process or attitude in implementation but on pure business climate and judgement of decision. The results will be a fair basis for GO or NO go on the Pilot