What does a lead business analyst do?

A lead business analyst utilizes data and analytical skills to plan, develop, and implement business systems and operations to help a company attain its short and long-term goals. Their duties focus on conducting market research and assessments, gathering and analyzing data, studying consumers and competitors in the industry, and identifying the strengths and weaknesses in existing systems. They also conduct risk assessments, create business models and forecasts, and identify solutions against potential or existing issues. Additionally, through their research findings, they develop recommendations in adherence to company standards and regulations.
Lead business analyst responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real lead business analyst resumes:
- Manage integrated functionality & technology dependencies, usability, reliability, performance and support requirements of legacy CRM and web applications.
- Create business process flows and analysis using Microsoft Visio.
- Assist in devising new defect tracking process, including pilot of new defect tracking tool, JIRA.
- Handle query resolution and bug tracking, used JIRA to communicate and resolve issues and discrepancies in the system.
- Interpret systems specifications to develop, maintain and support automate business processes for WES2009 upgrade in accordance to scrum practices.
- Establish scrum development processes and best practices
- Utilize Visio to identify inefficiencies in mobility inventory processes to initiate improvements.
- Facilitate the UAT team during test script preparation to clarify application functionality.
- Support cross-functional development and QA teams with agile and waterfall projects, ensuring end-to-end processes work successfully.
- Develop UAT test scripts, administer training, and deliver enhancements to improve efficiency and overall user experience.
- Implement Missouri expansion while developing formal requirements gathering process, formal business user sign off process and define SDLC processes.
- Maintain SharePoint repository; ensure that project team utilize SharePoint's version control facility to enable updates to collaborative artifacts.
- Define technical requirements that are used by the development, testing and client organizations including financial analysis and update to SharePoint.
- Train junior analysts on several applications and reporting and data visualization best practices and educate internal clients on various technical questions.
- Research and maintain tools for identifying impact dates and code remediation (which include EDI files).
Lead business analyst skills and personality traits
We calculated that 8% of Lead Business Analysts are proficient in Project Management, Scrum, and Business Analysis. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Problem-solving skills, and Time-management skills.
We break down the percentage of Lead Business Analysts that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Project Management, 8%
Improved 50% error resolution across multiple business lines supporting Financial Policy Administration and leveraged Project Management discipline to chart progress.
- Scrum, 6%
Established scrum development processes and best practices
- Business Analysis, 5%
Conduct stakeholder analysis and plan business analysis communication
- Business Process, 5%
Prepared documentation and diagrams to develop a comprehensive depiction of the existing business processes including Process Flow Diagrams and Interaction Diagrams.
- Business Stakeholders, 5%
Conduct the periodic business review meetings with senior business stakeholders and senior client relationship managers on milestones achieved and milestones planned.
- Data Analysis, 4%
Performed data analysis and created SQL queries to pull interim reports to support senior management decision-making for liquidity coverage ratio implementation.
Most lead business analysts use their skills in "project management," "scrum," and "business analysis" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential lead business analyst responsibilities here:
Interpersonal skills. One of the key soft skills for a lead business analyst to have is interpersonal skills. You can see how this relates to what lead business analysts do because "management analysts work with managers and other employees of the organizations for which they provide consulting services." Additionally, a lead business analyst resume shows how lead business analysts use interpersonal skills: "endowed with excellent interpersonal skills; communicate articulately and honestly with peers, managers, and customers. "
Problem-solving skills. Many lead business analyst duties rely on problem-solving skills. "management analysts must be able to think creatively to solve clients’ problems," so a lead business analyst will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways lead business analyst responsibilities rely on problem-solving skills: "managed multiple scrum teams, facilitated scrum ceremonies, guided the teams and resolved impediments. "
Time-management skills. This is an important skill for lead business analysts to perform their duties. For an example of how lead business analyst responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "management analysts often work under tight deadlines and must use their time efficiently to complete projects on schedule." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a lead business analyst: "compiled objectives and action items and assigned roles to my team of business analysts based on workload and deadlines. ".
Analytical skills. For certain lead business analyst responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "analytical skills." The day-to-day duties of a lead business analyst rely on this skill, as "management analysts must be able to interpret information and use their findings to make proposals." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what lead business analysts do: "authored requirements and test documents for application, database and web testing. "
Communication skills. Another crucial skill for a lead business analyst to carry out their responsibilities is "communication skills." A big part of what lead business analysts relies on this skill, since "management analysts must be able to convey information clearly in both writing and speaking." How this skill relates to lead business analyst duties can be seen in an example from a lead business analyst resume snippet: "review and approve technical specifications for all development objects project status communication to stake holders. "
The three companies that hire the most lead business analysts are:
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Lead business analyst vs. Analyst lead
The duties of an analyst lead depend on one's line of work or industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities revolve around performing research and analysis, coordinating with different departments to gather leads and data, reviewing findings, and producing reports and presentations for the stakeholders and other higher-ranking officials. Through the results, an analyst lead can provide advice, devise strategies for business optimization, spearhead the development of processes, identify strengths and weaknesses, and offer recommendations on areas in need of improvement. All of this is done while in adherence to the company's vision and mission.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a lead business analyst are more likely to require skills like "scrum," "business analysis," "business stakeholders," and "user stories." On the other hand, a job as an analyst lead requires skills like "analytics," "customer service," "excellent interpersonal," and "java." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Analyst leads tend to make the most money working in the finance industry, where they earn an average salary of $110,488. In contrast, lead business analysts make the biggest average salary, $113,483, in the finance industry.On average, analyst leads reach lower levels of education than lead business analysts. Analyst leads are 6.4% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.9% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Lead business analyst vs. Project analyst
A project analyst is responsible for overseeing the development of new projects upon completion of data gathering. A project analyst must provide plans and design the project to its full potential. For this, it is essential to conduct extensive research and coordinate with all staff and departments involved through regular reports and various forms of communication. Furthermore, a project analyst must devise strategies to improve particular projects for it to succeed and achieve better results, all in adherence to the company policies and regulations.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real lead business analyst resumes. While lead business analyst responsibilities can utilize skills like "business analysis," "business stakeholders," "business analysts," and "user stories," project analysts use skills like "customer service," "pmp," "financial analysis," and "infrastructure."
Project analysts may earn a lower salary than lead business analysts, but project analysts earn the most pay in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $76,006. On the other hand, lead business analysts receive higher pay in the finance industry, where they earn an average salary of $113,483.project analysts earn lower levels of education than lead business analysts in general. They're 8.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.9% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for lead business analysts in the next 3-5 years?
Lead business analyst vs. Staff analyst
Staff Analysts are employees who oversee the activities related to the employees. They monitor the performance of the employees and assess whether particular employees suit the role they have. They also assess the current roles in the company to see if those roles are really needed. Staff Analysts ensure that the manpower allocation in the company is efficient. They analyze staff-related data to check whether there are more areas for improvement. Staff Analysts may also be assigned to come up with projects related to improving productivity.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a lead business analyst is likely to be skilled in "scrum," "business analysis," "business process," and "business stakeholders," while a typical staff analyst is skilled in "technical support," "sql," "logistics," and "analyze data."
Staff analysts make a very good living in the technology industry with an average annual salary of $107,444. On the other hand, lead business analysts are paid the highest salary in the finance industry, with average annual pay of $113,483.staff analysts typically earn lower educational levels compared to lead business analysts. Specifically, they're 8.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Lead business analyst vs. Senior analyst
A senior analyst's responsibilities will vary in every organization or industry. However, their primary role is to gain an understanding of a company's strengths and weaknesses. Through this, they can devise strategies and determine new opportunities that would be significant in attaining financial gains and a more substantial client base. Furthermore, it is a senior analyst's responsibility to coordinate with various departments, and even clients, to establish a rapport that will be essential in gaining the needed information to catapult a company to its finest.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between lead business analysts and senior analysts, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a lead business analyst might have more use for skills like "scrum," "business stakeholders," "business analysts," and "user stories." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of senior analysts require skills like "analytics," "tableau," "power bi," and "portfolio. "
Senior analysts enjoy the best pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $91,818. For comparison, lead business analysts earn the highest salary in the finance industry.In general, senior analysts hold lower degree levels compared to lead business analysts. Senior analysts are 5.8% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 1.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of lead business analyst
Updated January 8, 2025











