We are pleased to announce the finalists for the BA of the Year Award 2018. This year, the competition was extremely stiff, with entries from a large field of highly-experienced and high-achieving business analysts. Below are the eight finalists, click on their name to find out more.

William GallWilliam Gall is a Lead Business Analyst with Nationwide Building Society. He is enthusiastic and self-driven, and builds and enables collaborative teams to successfully deliver business value through efficient change programmes.

Danielle HarleyDanielle Harley has worked in business analysis in the UK and Australia for over 11 years and is currently a Business Analyst in IT at Allianz Insurance. Having worked on a range of programmes and projects, she has recently led the analysis in IT for implementing GDPR. Her passion in knowledge sharing and lifelong learning has led her to implement a skills hub and a Community of Practice for business analysts.

Guido MarcuccilliGuido Marcuccilli is an experienced manager with a strong operational background. He has a breadth of experience in leading teams and driving change initiatives built up in a 30-year career in roles with Royal Bank of Scotland and latterly as a Business Analyst with Renfrewshire Council. He has a passion for business improvement, people development, change leadership and customer service.

Sarah OtterySarah Ottery is a BCS-certified Business Analyst. With a degree, two further BCS Diplomas, 12 years’ experience and two World Marathon Majors under her belt, she is leading the way at Scottish and Southern Energy. When she isn’t managing, coaching, and mentoring the future generation of analysts, she’s busy leading Health and Wellbeing initiatives and encourages participants to take part.

Linda ParkerLinda Parker has been a successful business analyst for nearly 30 years and, for her, the role never grows old. Her avid interest in other people, and keenness to learn and improve, means she loves being a BA. Currently, she is a Business Analyst working for the Registers of Scotland.

Outside of work, she runs half-marathons, walks her dogs and even has time for her husband! 

Ian PhillipsIan Phillips’ became a Business Analyst at the Royal Society of Chemistry in 2012, investigating problems and helping deliver key business and technology improvements to a 175-year old organisation.  His first job at 17 as Legal Accounts Assistant introduced him to office life. Finance had an appeal, but a skill in relating to people and their problems, and enjoyment in searching for better solutions drove him to become a BA. Ian is a co-founder of the Cambridge Business Analysis Community.

Kei PoonKei Poon is a passionate Business Analyst who finds that working at the Bank of England has given him an amazing opportunity to demonstrate his enthusiasm and skills for business analysis. He has been able to apply new elicitation techniques to improve requirements gathering and thrives in working collaboratively with stakeholders and peers on complex projects. 

Jason WoodJason Wood joined Nationwide in May 2016 as a Senior Business Analyst with 10 years’ business analysis experience across financial services and service environments.  He holds the BCS International Diploma in Business Analysis and is working towards the Advanced Diploma. He is currently working on a large-scale migration project which provides an opportunity to introduce a different, more collaborative way of working.