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What is a business operations analyst and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
5 min read
Quoted expert
Erik Johnson Ph.D.
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A business operations analyst helps organizations improve efficiency and profitability. They analyze businesses to identify improvements, streamline operations, and implement solutions that increase productivity and reduce costs. Business operations analysts work with finance, sales, and production departments to optimize business processes. They also monitor industry trends and competitors. Overall, a business operations analyst aims to impact businesses by improving their operational performance.

What general advice would you give to a business operations analyst?

Erik Johnson Ph.D.Erik Johnson Ph.D. LinkedIn profile

Assistant Professor of Economics, Carthage College

Economics gives you a set of tools to analyze a variety of policy and business problems. However, determining which tools to apply in which situation requires that you learn the industry, you are working from top to bottom. When you begin a new job in a new field, be sure to do everything you can to understand how the organization and the industry work to understand the primary incentives that everyone faces. One right way to do this is to make as many connections within the company you are working for as possible, and always be on the lookout for new opportunities within the company and how they can help you learn more. Moreover, do your best to ensure that a significant portion of your job involves some creative endeavors, such as economic modeling or building tools for yourself or others to use. As computing power continues to become cheaper, and artificial intelligence becomes more advanced, relatively repetitive tasks become more comfortable and easier to automate. Therefore, you will have less job security. Creative tasks, such as modeling and tool building, are difficult to automate and are more likely to provide you with more satisfaction.
ScoreBusiness Operations AnalystUS Average
Salary
5.0

Avg. Salary $63,423

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
6.8

Growth rate 11%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
5.9
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.16%

Asian 14.39%

Black or African American 7.47%

Hispanic or Latino 8.47%

Unknown 4.44%

White 65.06%

Gender

female 49.29%

male 50.71%

Age - 43
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43
Stress level
6.8

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
8.7

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance
2.2

Work life balance is very poor

6.4 - fair

What are the pros and cons of being a business operations analyst?

Pros

  • Possibility of career advancement within the field

  • High demand for skilled analysts in the job market

  • Competitive salary and benefits packages

  • Opportunity to work remotely or with flexible schedules

  • Collaboration with cross-functional teams

Cons

  • High-pressure work environment with tight deadlines

  • Need for strong communication and interpersonal skills

  • Potential for long work hours or overtime during critical projects

  • Responsibility for managing multiple projects simultaneously

  • Limited direct interaction with customers or end-users of products/services being analyzed

Business operations analyst career paths

Key steps to become a business operations analyst

  1. Explore business operations analyst education requirements

    Most common business operations analyst degrees

    Bachelor's

    72.8 %

    Master's

    14.7 %

    Associate

    8.0 %
  2. Start to develop specific business operations analyst skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Provide Management15.03%
    Analyze Data13.72%
    Shared Services12.45%
    HR9.20%
    Business Operations8.66%
  3. Complete relevant business operations analyst training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New business operations analysts learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a business operations analyst based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real business operations analyst resumes.
  4. Research business operations analyst duties and responsibilities

    • Manage data migration from mainframe to cloud base systems.
    • Used VBA to create tools which automate common human processes and increase productivity across multiple departments.
    • Set up and manage all customer EDI connections and testing across multiple systems for the enterprise.
    • Manage development of core file, transaction audit and process tracking systems align with SLA contracts and performance goals.
  5. Prepare your business operations analyst resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your business operations analyst resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a business operations analyst resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable business operations analyst resume templates

    Build a professional business operations analyst resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your business operations analyst resume.
    Business Operations Analyst Resume
    Business Operations Analyst Resume
    Business Operations Analyst Resume
    Business Operations Analyst Resume
    Business Operations Analyst Resume
    Business Operations Analyst Resume
    Business Operations Analyst Resume
    Business Operations Analyst Resume
    Business Operations Analyst Resume
  6. Apply for business operations analyst jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a business operations analyst job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first business operations analyst job

Zippi

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Average business operations analyst salary

The average business operations analyst salary in the United States is $63,423 per year or $30 per hour. Business operations analyst salaries range between $44,000 and $89,000 per year.

Average business operations analyst salary
$63,423 Yearly
$30.49 hourly

What am I worth?

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How do business operations analysts rate their job?

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Business operations analyst reviews

profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Feb 2022
Pros

-interacting with end users or customers - delivering successful products or services


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Jan 2021
Pros

Flexibility of schedule and type of work in Organizational Development. Telecommute options are also superb.


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2020
Pros

Challenges, problem-solving,communicating with differnet individuals

Cons

some daily monotonous aspects of job.


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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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