PMI’s Entry into Business Analysis
Dear Mark,
You may have heard some industry rumblings that Project Management Institute (PMI) is moving into the Business Analysis space for the first time by introducing a certification for business analysis within a project environment.
As you are a valued member of International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA), we wanted you to know that we are aware of this and have been monitoring the situation for a while now. We are not surprised by this. With research showing that business analysis remains one of the fastest growing professions and appreciation increasing for the value that business analysis creates for companies, we expected some might see opportunity.
We do not take PMI’s entry into this market lightly. Over the last week we have met with key stakeholders to get their input into PMI’s trademark application and determine how to best keep all members informed on a timely basis.
Here is what we know right now.
PMI has registered a new certification called “PMI-PBA” – the PBA stands for Professional in Business Analysis. We don’t yet know the extent of the certification although its December trademark application suggests it will focus on business analysis solely within the confines of projects, and position business analysis as a specialization of project management.
In addition, we believe PMI is building some form of a guide in requirements management/business analysis but not a standard to the extent of A Guide to the Business Analysis Body of Knowledge® (BABOK® Guide).
Certainly, we know that business analysis is a critical component of project success; a decade of experience has also shown us that business analysis professionals create value beyond the boundaries of projects including, business case development, software requirements analysis, business architecture, business process analysis and business intelligence. Today, our members are more focused on business success and contributing to it through innovation, organizational change and collaborative strategy development.
It is important that we collectively protect the progress we’ve made over the last decade demonstrating the contributions of all business analysis professionals globally.
That’s why we remain fully committed to developing international consensus-based standards for business analysis, our certification program, our competency model and other products and services that support our members and the broader Business Analysis community, and to advancing the profession of business analysis.
We want to ensure that business analysis professionals are best served with quality products and a range of services over the long term. We remain committed to using your feedback to continuously improve our products and services so they support you and remain in the best interests of our members, the industry and the profession.
As a not-for-profit organization built for business analysis by business analysis professionals, we will continue to tap into professionals around the world to develop version 3 of the BABOK® Guideto ensure it reflects and supports the continued growth and evolution of the profession so it remains the internationally recognized standard for business analysis. We are also committed to responding to the global feedback to our year-long practice assessment survey and implementing key findings to refresh our certification program and business analysis competency model.
We expect PMI to announce this new certification in the near future. As it has not been formally announced, we do not have any further information we can provide you about its content or requirements. Once we know the details about this new certification, IIBA® will be in a better position to provide more insight into how this aligns with our collective view of the profession. At this time we welcome any feedback you may have, please address your comments to [email protected]
On behalf of the IIBA team, we appreciate your continued commitment and support. We remain fully committed to you, our members, the business analysis community, and to the advancement of the profession today and into the future.
Alain Arseneault
Acting President and CEO, IIBA