Business analysis activities across the implementation lifecycle
Key Takeaway
A business analyst belongs in the project from the start. A stakeholder analysis shows who to talk with. When the current process isn't well understood, document the current state before you scope the project.
Business analysis is the work of understanding what a customer's business needs, writing it down, and guiding a Salesforce solution that delivers it. A Salesforce business analyst (BA) runs this work from the first discovery conversations through implementation, testing, and the next round of requirements. On an Agentforce Financial Services project, business analysis is how the customer's needs and desired outcomes get captured and carried into the solution.
The Salesforce business analyst role
The Salesforce business analyst holds a project-based, business-improvement role. The BA elicits, documents, and analyzes requirements around business challenges. From those requirements, the BA then produces data-driven solutions that improve business processes and efficiency in Salesforce.
A BA does not need to be highly technical, because the Salesforce admin does the technical work. A basic understanding of the platform is enough, along with keeping up with platform changes and knowing the platform's capabilities and limitations. Whether a BA also does configuration is up to each person or company.