Reclaim Your Analysis Niche: Define It, Own It, Thrive
Key Takeaways
Here’s what you need to know to define your professional identity and thrive in your analysis career:
- Role clarity is essential: Analyst titles often overlap—understanding distinctions between roles helps you find the right professional fit
- Ask the right questions: Clarify day-to-day tasks, project expectations, and workflows before accepting or committing to a role
- Maximize where you are: Use downtime to build new skills, apply your strengths, and demonstrate value within your current position
- Invest in growth: Continue learning through certifications, courses, and mentorship to stay aligned with your desired path
- Own your niche: Define your professional identity, communicate your aspirations, and persist until you find the role that truly fits
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect the perspectives of IIBA.
The analyst world is full of opportunities—and confusion. Launching a career as an analyst is exciting at first. But before long, you might encounter blurred lines of responsibility and expectations across organizations, which can be disorienting to say the least.
Titles can blur quickly once you’re on the job. Here’s what I mean.
A professionally trained data analyst may find themselves managing cross-functional projects, tracking risks, and reporting outcomes to the organization’s leadership team. Meanwhile, a skilled business analysis professional may be tasked with analyzing data and focusing on data cleansing and quality, despite being prepared to capture requirements and business needs to support the development of a software product.
An analyst who’s found the perfect business intelligence analyst role might expect to use visualization tools such as Tableau and Power BI. Then, one day, they discover that their role involves extracting data from multiple business systems into Excel and creating pivot tables and charts.
If any of this sounds familiar, you’re not alone! It’s an all-too-common reality in the analysis world, one I’ve personally experienced. Even with years of experience, I’ve found that role boundaries are often unclear, and pressure to maintain the status quo can stifle the very skills the role should highlight.
Finding Clarity and Defining Your Path
Over time, I’ve learned to be creative in navigating these scenarios and to maximize every situation.
I’ve spent nearly twenty years working in various analysis roles, including data analyst, system analyst, business analyst, business intelligence analyst, and analytics advisor. The distinction between these roles wasn’t clear until I earned my Certification in Business Data Analysis (CBDA) through IIBA, which described the unique functions of each. Although these roles share fundamental analysis work, their distinctions are profound.
Many organizations still don’t align their roles with the CBDA standards, making it difficult to navigate them. Further complicating things, many organizations don’t even share the same definition or understanding of international standards. So how do we know what we’re getting into?
It’s disappointing to launch into the wrong analysis role, and it can be even more difficult to change once you’re committed to a specific role. Nonetheless, there is hope!
Here are some basic steps to increase the likelihood of finding the right analysis role.
1. Ask for Clarity
When engaging with a hiring manager, don’t be afraid to ask clarifying questions about the day-to-day tasks of the role. Job descriptions can be vague about these tasks, and the recruiter won’t necessarily be able to give you the necessary level of detail.
If you really want the job, it’s tempting to avoid pestering the interviewer with lots of questions. But it’s crucial to assess whether the job is the right fit for you. We often focus so much on earning the interviewer’s approval that we overlook whether the role truly aligns with our aspirations.
If the hiring manager is annoyed by your questions, then the role may not be the right fit for you.
Also, ask about the projects you’ll support, the goals behind them, and the contributions expected from your role. Clarify how other team members and cross-functional partners fit into the picture. These questions will provide greater insights into the actual analyst role they’re looking to fill.
2. Ask for a View
Ask the hiring manager to walk you through a typical day of the analyst’s role you’re interviewing for. What’s the average amount of time spent on specific tasks? How is work assigned? Who assigns work? How is work prioritized?
Get to know the world you’ll be working in through the lens of the manager. Again, don’t be afraid to ask clarifying questions when feedback is unclear.
Now you may be thinking, “This is great when I’m looking to change roles, but what about the role that I’m currently ‘stuck’ in? It’s too late, and I’ve already trapped myself in the wrong analyst role.”
Do what analysts do best: analyze your current work environment and identify gaps your skills can fill. Seek opportunities to maximize your skill sets until you can successfully transition into your desired role.
3. Continue Learning
Refresh your skills through independent learning activities on LinkedIn or other credible training platforms. Many of the LinkedIn Learning courses have been endorsed by IIBA, so be sure to check the credentials.
Build your knowledge (and your professional brand) for future roles and employers simultaneously. It’s a win-win.
4. Communicate Your Expectations and Aspirations
Talk it over with your manager. Make sure they know your aspirations and seek stretch opportunities to apply more of the skills you want to grow. Most managers are willing to support personal growth and are happy to provide you with these opportunities.
Also, find reputable mentors within your organization who can help you navigate the organization’s structure to a more desired role. In addition, consult with your HR partners to better understand job profile structures and opportunities that may exist within your organization.
Lastly, if you’re not successful in navigating internally within your organization, seek career mentors and networks outside it. IIBA has local chapters and events that help you connect with like-minded professionals.
Don’t Give Up
Don’t become complacent in a role that makes you unhappy. Rejection and being overlooked for opportunities can be extremely discouraging. However, it’s important to remember that every rejection is a redirection leading you to where you’re supposed to be.
Thomas Edison said it best: “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” You are never stuck, and your aspiring role may be just one application submission or conversation away.
In short, don’t allow an organization to define your abilities and skills. Own your skills. Own your niche. Own your path to success. You’ve worked hard for your specialized skills and abilities, so don’t allow them to lie dormant because of a misaligned job title or skewed perspectives.
If you’re currently in a role that isn’t what you expected, keep digging until you dig your way out. Every misstep is part of the journey and helps you gain clarity and direction. Don’t wallow in frustration. Instead, use it as fuel to move forward.
Never give up on your journey to accentuate your gift of analysis. Your perfect opportunity is out there. Persevere until you reach it.
There’s just one day left to save 20% on the CBDA exam. Invest in your data analysis skills today and take a confident step toward new opportunities.
About the Author
Rhunda Armstead is a certified business data analyst with over 15 years of experience transforming data into actionable insights across the healthcare and insurance industries. She specializes in business intelligence, project leadership, and automation—driving efficiency through tools like SSRS, Tableau, Power BI, SQL, and SharePoint.
