What does a principal business analyst do?
A principal business analyst provides analytical services to recommend strategies that will optimize business operations. Among their responsibilities include gathering and analyzing data, understanding the purpose and needs of daily operations, performing market research and analysis to identify trends and opportunities, determine the strengths and weaknesses of current procedures, and develop solutions against problem areas. They must also conduct risk assessments, maintain documentation, and present findings through reports and presentations. Moreover, a principal business analyst must lead and encourage staff to reach goals while implementing and promoting the company's policies and regulations.
Principal business analyst responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real principal business analyst resumes:
- Manage SharePoint for all the technical and correspondence contents.
- Participate in and hold daily scrum meetings to perform iterative and incremental agile software development framework when managing product development.
- Create and maintain Microsoft Sharepoint sites for programs design to enhance the customer experience.
- Participate in and hold daily scrum meetings to perform iterative and incremental agile software development framework when managing product development.
- Maintain and develop enhancements to the customer letter generation system written in Java, C++, RPG and Delphi.
- Develop a solid business case and determine business and technical requirements base on ROI comparison of several vendors.
Principal business analyst skills and personality traits
We calculated that 7% of Principal Business Analysts are proficient in Provide Management, Shared Services, and Project Management. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Problem-solving skills, and Time-management skills.
We break down the percentage of Principal Business Analysts that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Provide Management, 7%
Provide Management Information and summary statements on statistical analysis to Team Leaders and ChangeProject Managers on progress against allocated tasks.
- Shared Services, 6%
Identified country tax & regulatory requirements for the local entity structure and shared services operating model.
- Project Management, 6%
Implemented Project Management Office with key management processes and built aggressive Integrated Master Schedule.
- Business Analysis, 5%
Support initial company start-up as the primary resource on business analysis and quality assurance practices.
- Oversight, 5%
Provided ongoing performance management oversight for all direct reports.
- Business Process, 5%
Worked closely with business process improvement team to cost-effectively implement Lombardi business process management tool throughout broker dealer business unit.
"provide management," "shared services," and "project management" are among the most common skills that principal business analysts use at work. You can find even more principal business analyst responsibilities below, including:
Interpersonal skills. The most essential soft skill for a principal business analyst to carry out their responsibilities is interpersonal skills. This skill is important for the role because "management analysts work with managers and other employees of the organizations for which they provide consulting services." Additionally, a principal business analyst resume shows how their duties depend on interpersonal skills: "focused troubleshooter and a team player with excellent interpersonal and communication skills. "
Problem-solving skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling principal business analyst duties is problem-solving skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "management analysts must be able to think creatively to solve clients’ problems." According to a principal business analyst resume, here's how principal business analysts can utilize problem-solving skills in their job responsibilities: "directed the development of methodologies and frameworks to tie business analysis to technology solutions. "
Time-management skills. This is an important skill for principal business analysts to perform their duties. For an example of how principal 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 principal business analyst: "created efficiencies in the sdlc process to ensure projects are released on time and within budget. ".
Analytical skills. For certain principal business analyst responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "analytical skills." The day-to-day duties of a principal 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 principal business analysts do: "provided performance data to control account managers, as well as program management. "
Communication skills. A commonly-found skill in principal business analyst job descriptions, "communication skills" is essential to what principal business analysts do. Principal business analyst responsibilities rely on this skill because "management analysts must be able to convey information clearly in both writing and speaking." You can also see how principal business analyst duties rely on communication skills in this resume example: "participated as communication liaison with corporate pmo. "
The three companies that hire the most principal business analysts are:
- The PNC Financial Services Group49 principal business analysts jobs
- Bank of the West
39 principal business analysts jobs
- AT&T18 principal business analysts jobs
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Compare different principal business analysts
Principal 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.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between principal business analysts and analyst lead. For instance, principal business analyst responsibilities require skills such as "provide management," "shared services," "business analysis," and "oversight." Whereas a analyst lead is skilled in "analytics," "customer service," "excellent interpersonal," and "powerpoint." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Analyst leads earn the highest salaries when working in the finance industry, with an average yearly salary of $110,488. On the other hand, principal business analysts are paid more in the pharmaceutical industry with an average salary of $126,779.On average, analyst leads reach similar levels of education than principal business analysts. Analyst leads are 3.7% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.2% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Principal 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.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real principal business analyst resumes. While principal business analyst responsibilities can utilize skills like "provide management," "shared services," "oversight," and "sql," senior analysts use skills like "analytics," "tableau," "strong analytical," and "power bi."
Senior analysts earn a lower average salary than principal business analysts. But senior analysts earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $91,818. Additionally, principal business analysts earn the highest salaries in the pharmaceutical with average pay of $126,779 annually.In general, senior analysts achieve similar levels of education than principal business analysts. They're 3.1% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for principal business analysts in the next 3-5 years?
Rebecca Sarver
Lecturer in Human Services Studies, Elmira College
Principal business analyst vs. Business analyst/project manager
A business analyst/project manager is responsible for developing project management procedures, analyzing processes, and ensuring the accuracy and efficiency of project deliverables, following clients' specifications and requirements to meet their highest satisfaction. Business analysts/project managers manage project resources, delegate tasks to project staff, setting deadlines, and coordinating with the clients for regular updates and suggest strategic adjustments as needed. They also mitigate potential risks and manage changes during the project execution, maintaining the quality of the outputs, and balancing costs to meet the clients' budget goals.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from principal business analyst resumes include skills like "provide management," "shared services," "oversight," and "sql," whereas a business analyst/project manager is more likely to list skills in "project scope," "visio," "sdlc," and "sql server. "
Business analyst/project managers make a very good living in the finance industry with an average annual salary of $120,172. On the other hand, principal business analysts are paid the highest salary in the pharmaceutical industry, with average annual pay of $126,779.Most business analyst/project managers achieve a similar degree level compared to principal business analysts. For example, they're 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.8% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Principal business analyst vs. Business analyst/quality analyst
A business analyst/quality analyst is responsible for evaluating business outputs and operational processes to ensure that everything adheres to the quality standards and business regulations. Business analysts/quality analysts support senior management in determining solutions to improve the company's services and provide the highest satisfaction for the customers and clients. They also conduct data and statistical analysis by assessing the market trends to identify opportunities that would generate more revenue resources and increase profitability for the business.
Types of principal business analyst
Updated January 8, 2025
