Services
Business Analysis
I create transparency on requirements, processes and dependencies.
This creates a transparent basis for well-founded decisions before time, budget and resources are committed.
- 1Understand the situationNeeds and perspectives of business units and IT.
- 2Structure optionsOrganise requirements, processes and solution paths.
- 3Prepare decisionsProceed, adjust, defer, stop or hand over.
Together with business and technical teams, I clarify requirements, processes and solution options so that you can decide on a transparent basis. For me, business analysis is the clarification before an important decision: when an option is on the table, those involved see the situation differently and the decision keeps being postponed. This applies to a new system as much as to a location, a business field or an investment.
Analysis that enables decisions
Good analysis is not a documentation exercise. It's about understanding the right thing – before building begins. I gather requirements in a structured way, identify contradictions early and translate business needs into technically feasible solutions.
From requirement to solution
I work in roles as business analyst, proxy product owner or solution architect. This includes requirements engineering, process modelling, utility analyses and the preparation of decision documents for C-level. Whether SharePoint, Power Platform, ERP or custom developments – I speak both languages.
"Whoever perfectly implements the wrong requirements has still built the wrong product."
When business analysis creates clarity
Many IT and change initiatives start with a solution before the actual problem is sufficiently understood. Requirements are not yet clear, business and IT view the situation from different perspectives, or several solution paths are under discussion.
Business analysis creates the foundation for well-informed decisions. I structure requirements, processes and relationships, make dependencies visible and help evaluate business and technical options transparently.
The goal is enough clarity for the next good decision before time, budget and resources are invested in a solution.
In my experience, an additional business analysis adds little value when the objective, the solution and the requirements have already been clarified and decided.
What you may have at the end
Which results emerge depends on the decision at hand. Examples from the case studies below:
- IT analysis for a municipality: a shared, structured view of the existing situation and the needs of the areas involved, a shared target state, prioritised fields of action and a high-level implementation plan with concrete next steps.
- ICT and system strategy for schools (ongoing): existing solutions, requirements and arguments captured in a structured way; pedagogical and operational advantages and disadvantages; costs, service life and reuse as part of the decision-making basis.
- Hospitality locations: a more concrete basis for decision-making, an operating concept, and concept and application documents for a new location.
- Connected services: structured end-to-end processes and requirements for future systems and activation channels.
Not every engagement delivers all of these results.
How the collaboration works
It starts with a free fit conversation of 20 to 30 minutes. Its purpose is to establish whether we are a good fit; it is not an assessment and not a fully developed solution. If a professional clarification is needed, it follows as a clarification before an important decision. The first paid step is billed on a time-and-materials basis, up to a cost cap agreed in advance.
If business analysis is commissioned as a clarification in its own right, this corresponds to the form of collaboration “Clarification before an important decision”, as I describe it under “My approach”. We clarify the framework for the collaboration at the start. In previous engagements this included, for example, conversations and workshops with the areas involved. The decision is yours.
From analysis to implementation
When analysis leads to a complex initiative, responsibility can seamlessly transition into project management or digital transformation. The result may equally be to adjust an initiative, put it on hold or not pursue it further.
Business analysis and related roles
For you as the client, the difference matters because different tasks and responsibilities are attached to each role.
- Business analysis creates clarity about needs, requirements and the solution space – objectives, interests and dependencies, before a solution is defined.
- Requirements engineering is the work on the requirements themselves: eliciting, documenting, validating and managing them. In my services, it is part of business analysis.
- In agile initiatives, the product owner is responsible for the requirements. HERMES equates the user representative with the product owner.
- Project management creates the organisational framework, plans and steers implementation, and ensures that decisions, risks and dependencies are dealt with. Goals, strategic decisions and business responsibility remain with the client.
In practice, the roles work together rather than staying strictly separate. Which role I take on and which responsibility comes with it is agreed for the engagement.
Analysis in practice
The following examples show different situations in which structured analysis was used, in completed and ongoing initiatives.
IT analysis and target state for a municipality in the Canton of Bern
From diverging IT needs to a shared target state: analysis, workshops and a prioritised implementation plan for administration and schools.
Read the storyPedagogical ICT and system strategy for a municipality in the Canton of Bern
Devices, platforms and pedagogy considered together: decision-making foundations for a digital school strategy that is viable in the long term.
Read the storyPreparing new hospitality locations systematically
Recurring advisory on growth and location decisions: from vague ideas to a structured basis for decision-making, operating concepts and application documents.
Read the storyConnected services from customer need to scalable solution
Validating demand, user behaviour, processes and technology together through real-world application testing.
Read the storyNon-commercial engagementWhite Water
Analyse, start small, learn, and scale only when there is genuine need.
Read the storySelected references
2021
Governance platform & QMS – Proxy Product Owner
Group-wide in-house platform development. Multiple sprints, large corporate environment with multiple units.
2019
Co-Founder of the IoT Business Hub together with Dr. Schekeb Fateh
Cross-industry IoT ecosystem launched. Multiple partner companies and experts. Hypotheses validated.
Frequently asked questions
The software has already been chosen. Is business analysis still needed?
Not necessarily. If processes and requirements for the introduction have already been clarified, an additional analysis adds little. If they are still open, it can make sense to clarify them before configuration and introduction. This can be assessed in the free fit conversation.
Does a clarification before a decision commit me to a follow-up engagement?
No. The result is a basis for decision: go ahead, adjust, put on hold, stop or hand over to an internal team. It does not commit you to a follow-up engagement.
Do you need to decide before the solution is clear?
If requirements, processes or solution options need to be structured first, we clarify together which information is actually needed for a robust decision.
Often combined with other services
In my experience, many engagements start with one question and grow into adjacent topics. These services are particularly often combined:
Project Management
A clean analysis is half the battle – the other half is delivery. Requirements and project control from one source avoid friction at handover.
Learn more about Project ManagementBusiness Development
Requirements without business value are expensive. A business development perspective helps check whether the solution supports a viable model.
Learn more about Business DevelopmentImage at the top: AI-generated illustration.