Dear Seattle Chapter Members,

Last week I had the distinct pleasure of being elected to the position of President to your IIBA Seattle Chapter. I am excited and honored to take on this role. The chapter has had great leaders in the past with Keith Saddoris and LeAnn Morgan. I hope to carry on providing the quality of leadership that they have so that the chapter can continue to grow and flourish.

 

My personal vision for the chapter  

I have one primary goal in this role and that is to see the chapter become better recognized in the Puget Sound area and across Washington as the go-to place for information, support, and networking for business analysts of all varieties. So little is understood about the IIBA and the profession we support. Some do not know we exist at all. We will need to shout from the rooftops the benefits and value of the IIBA, and specifically the Seattle Chapter. This means making sure that we understand and support benefits that membership and affiliation bring to those involved.

 

This is where I need your help. Please visit https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/IIBA-Sea1 to tell the board one thing the IIBA Seattle Chapter should consider to help increase our value, or promote the value that we bring to our BA community. The goal is to get a brainstorm list of possibilities that the leadership team can look at and determine what, if any, changes we want to take action on over the next year. I do believe in the Kanban concept of limiting "work in progress", meaning, I will not be looking for the chapter to take on more than it can support at any one time.

 

I see the biggest strength of the chapter and its leadership is that we are a group of business analysts. This is exciting! This means that we can look at potential solutions to improve the way we do business and know what to do to determine if it is truly a valuable and desirable change for the chapter to make. As BA's we know that "because that is the way we have always done it" is not a reason to keep the status quo. Not only that, but a fair number of us are also project managers. We can leverage our project management skills in planning and implementing change initiatives as well.

 

To summarize these points:

1. I am looking for ideas from everybody on what we can do to increase the understanding of, or value the IIBA Seattle Chapter provides
2. I will lead the board in reviewing the ideas and use BA tools and techniques to prioritize those items that will bring the biggest benefit for the least cost
3. We will not take on more initiatives than we can effectively support
4. We will need the help of our members to see ideas come to fruition relying on both the business analysis and project management skills available to us

More about me

 

I started working on projects in 1999 as a product manager/business analyst for the state Office of Financial Management. I had become interested in the project management side of things after a few years. I took a 9-month certification course through the University of Washington and followed this by achieving my Project Management Professional (PMP) through the Project Management Institute (PMI) in 2005. I spent the next several years primarily as a project manager, but never quite giving up on business analysis. Business analysis is something that I enjoy and am good at. I mentored business analysts on projects as a project manager and occasionally lent my owns BA skills to the projects I was involved in.

 

I left state service in August 2010 to pursue independent consulting. I knew that I would be more marketable as a consultant if I was actively providing both project management and business analysis services. I also knew I would be more marketable as a business analyst with certification. I received my Certified Business Analyst Professional (CBAP) in 2010. The unforeseen benefit of pursing certification was the knowledge I gained from studying that makes me an even better business analyst. Today I am the principle of Professional Project Services offering consulting, training, presentations, and writing on all things project related.

 

My passion is sharing information, knowledge, and best practices. That is why I am here today. To help this chapter grow interest in the IIBA and our chapter to broaden the audience for the good work that has gone before. We can make a difference for our project peers and the organizations with your help.

 

Social media has become an important part of my professional and network development. I will leverage my social media skills and network to help build our chapter and bring additional value to the organization. I look forward to seeing the skills of our members will also further help us grow.

 

I consider myself a servant leader in that I always want to know what I can do for you. What do you need from me to further the chapter and the professional lives of our members? Never hesitate to let me know.

You may want to know which I enjoy more, business analysis or project management. The answer is business analysis. Business analysis has greater potential to affect positive change when done with expertise and when management, stakeholders, and sponsors respect that expertise.

 

Sincerely,

 

IIBA®, the IIBA® logo, BABOK® and Business Analysis Body of Knowledge® are registered trademarks owned by International Institute of Business Analysis. CBAP® is a registered certification mark owned by International Institute of Business Analysis. Certified Business Analysis Professional, EEP and the EEP logo are trademarks owned by International Institute of Business Analysis.