Sandra Leek

What makes Women Better BAs

What makes an excellent BA and are women more suited to the role?


“Whatever women do they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good. Luckily, this is not difficult.” (Charlotte Whitton, Canadian feminist and mayor of Ottawa)

What makes an excellent BA and are women more suited to the role?

Having originally written about this subject two years ago, I’ve found time to revisit the classic conundrum, “Do women make better business analysts?”

The response to my original blog was mixed as you’d expect. Comments ranged from “I can't accept such gender-specific suggestions”, to “Speaking as a female BA, I am probably slightly biased, however I feel that my attention to detail and good interpersonal skills definitely help projects run smoother.”

So has anything changed since I wrote the original article?

Well, let’s consider your organisation, specifically your BAs.

Think about how your organisation aligns with the above? Do you have more women in BA roles, if so why?

Here are a few of the areas to consider:

What scientific evidence is available to support the “Women are better BAs” debate? Definitive data is scarce, although a recent study showed that on average, men are more likely better at learning and performing a single task, whereas women have superior memory and social cognition skills, making them more equipped for multitasking. Unfortunately other surveys are divided in opinion.

If we look outside the boundaries of cognitive surveys, what else is there to support the theory? Well, IQ isn’t a factor there appears to be little difference between the genders.

Although it’s clear that although men and women’s brains may be wired differently there must be other factors that influence our abilities to analyse. Could this be due to social conditioning, such as parental expectations? Ask yourself “Do I expect different things from my son and daughter?” If the answer is “Yes”, ask yourself why.

So are women more suited to offering BA skills – from my experience I would have to say “Yes”. Recent evidence suggests that this could be the case, given that our two BAs of the Year 2015, BA of the Year 2014 and the first two successful Expert BA candidates are women. A straightforward conclusion or not? Over to you to decide.

My original blog provoked many interesting responses but for me, one comment sums it up... “It's an obviously inflammatory question and of course there is no single answer that will be satisfactory”.

Doesn’t that just sum up the work life of a BA?



Sandra Leek

Sandra Leek is currently working as a Senior Lead Business Analyst for Lloyds Banking Group. She has been with the organisation for nearly 18 years during which she has taken on a number of roles including Programming and Project Management. She currently works across a number of business areas championing a One Team culture and pragmatic delivery.
In 2014 she was made BA of the Year and has formed part of the IIBA BA Conference committee for the last two years.
In her spare time she enjoys scuba diving, and although being based in Wales, prefers swimming in warmer climates. She also helps run her local scuba dive club and is actively involved in promoting live music, via a local blues club.
Sandra is also involved in her local community via her role as a magistrate.