Business analysis as an industry is immature as a result the standards that have been presented by industry bodies are slightly inconsistent. Many of the industry’s which interface or have need of a BA have become the proxy industry leaders. The Project Management Institute (PMI), which was founded in 1969 has released a standard for business analysis. As has the Software Engineering Institute (SEI), founded in 1984. The IIBA, prepubescent in comparison, founded in 2004, takes from all industry documentation and attempts to provide a wholistic and generally applicable look at business analysis.

Hans Jonasson suggested that each of the above standards focuses on a specific element of delivery. The PMI on project needs, SEI on development process needs and the IIBA on product needs. ¹

See also: Project, Process, and Development are three domains which help understand IT and software delivery