Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP) - CBAP, IIBA

CERTIFIED BUSINESS ANALYSIS PROFESSIONAL - CBAP

About CBAP

CBAP stands for Certified BA Professional, 3rd level certification provided by International Institute of BA (IIBA), Canada (www.IIBA.org).

The following are some of the benefits of becoming a CBAP:  

·       Be recognized for your competency in business analysis.  

·       BA is the fastest growing career opportunity for IT professionals.  

·       People with domain experience can move into IT sector by becoming a business analyst.  

·       Better job prospects.

·       Better salary.

The CBAP exam is designed for experienced business analysts, while the newer CCBA exam targets people who have less experience in the business analysis profession. The CCBA exam provides less experienced business analysts with their first step toward obtaining the CBAP designation. This exam targets individuals who are proficient in some aspects of business analysis, are in the process of developing business analysis skills and expertise, and who apply business analysis to smaller scope projects and less complex tasks. The CCBA certification expires after five years. The expectation is that you will then apply to take the CBAP exam when you have gained more business analysis experience. You can also retake the CCBA exam if you have not yet met the required CBAP exam level of business analysis experience.

IIBA is the non-profit professional association dedicated to the field of business analysis. IIBA acts as the voice of the business analysis community, supporting the recognition of the profession and discipline and works to maintain the global standard for the practices and certification.

IIBA was founded in Toronto, Canada in October of 2003 to support the business analysis community by:

• Creating and developing awareness and recognition of the value and contribution of the business analyst,

• Defining the Business Analysis Body of Knowledge (BABOK),

• Providing a forum for knowledge sharing and contribution to the business analysis profession, and

• Publicly recognising and certifying qualified practitioners through an internationally acknowledged certification program.

IIBA's multi-level competency based certification program recognises the BA professional through their career progression, supporting more opportunities for growth and development. 

Definitions of skill and knowledge levels

Level 1 (ECBA) - Practical Knowledge or General Awareness:

·        Follows rules: Ability to adhere to prescribed ways to work in order to execute activities related to the competency. Generally, needs rules and guidelines to perform tasks.

·   Understands: Recognises the key elements of the competency and why they are important. However, not expected to have the experience nor skill level to act upon the competency.

·        Basic knowledge: Has a fundamental awareness of basic skills and knowledge involved in the competency.

Level 2 (CCBA) - Skilled:

·        Modifies rules: Encounters situations where there is confidence to modify the guidelines that have been provided for addressing the challenge. 

·        Recommends actions: Although generally works independently on smaller, well scoped challenges, still relies on expert help for more complex work. Skills, knowledge and confidence have developed to the level where appropriate actions are identified.

·        Applied knowledge: Has practiced the competency and skills have evolved working on small, less complex challenges or with guidance on large, more complex work.

Level 3 (CBAP) - Expert:

·        Creates rules: Actively provides insight to situations that fall within and outside of his/her domain or sphere of influence. In some cases, this will mean addressing new, unstructured business challenges or opportunities.

·        Guides practice: This is a seasoned practitioner that is sought after for their expertise and guidance in solving or addressing business challenges or opportunities. 

·        Advanced knowledge: Skills and Knowledge have been fully developed through execution of work ranging from small well-scoped work to addressing more complex, unstructured challenges or opportunities. Skills and knowledge required for the competency have become second nature.

How to Become CBAP / CCBA Certified

The CBAP and CCBA certification exams each address all six knowledge areas from the BABOK Guide. The exams also test your knowledge of sources referenced by the BABOK  Guide and your own business analysis experience. The CBAP exam is designed for experienced business analysts, while the newer CCBA exam targets individuals who have less experience in the business analysis profession. You can apply and pay for the exams online using the IIBA ™ website. Most people schedule and take the exams in a testing center and complete the questions on a computer.

The CCBA Exam

The CCBA exam provides newer, less experienced business analysts with their first step toward obtaining the CBAP certification. This exam targets individuals who are proficient in some aspects of business analysis, are in the process of developing business analysis skills and expertise, and who apply business analysis to smaller scope and less complex tasks and projects.

Requirements for candidates taking the CCBA exam include:

·       a minimum of 3,750 hours of BA work, aligned with the BABOK Guide , in the last seven years

·       at least 900 hours in two of the six knowledge areas or 500 hours in four of the six knowledge areas,

·       a minimum of 21 hours of Professional Development, and

·       a high school education or equivalent.

·       You will also be required to provide two references from a career manager, client or CBAP.

The CCBA certification expires after five years. The expectation is that recipients will then apply to take the CBAP exam as a more experienced business analyst. There is also an option to retake the CCBA exam if you have not yet met the required CBAP exam level of experience during that time period.

What ’s on the Exams

The CBAP and CCBA exams each contain 150 questions that must be answered within 3.5 hours. The passing mark for your scored exam is calculated based on psychometric procedures that the IIBA does not disclose to the public. The CBAP and CCBA Exam Blueprints indicate the relative weight of each knowledge area by providing you with the percentage of questions from that knowledge area on your exam.

A Guide to the Business Analysis Body of Knowledge (BABOK Guide) is the globally recognized standard for the practice of business analysis. The BABOK Guide describes business analysis knowledge areas, tasks, underlying competencies, techniques and perspectives on how to approach business analysis.

What is BABOK?

BABOK contains a description of generally accepted practices in the field of business analysis. It gives a guidance on the skills and knowledge that a business analyst must possess. Contents of BABOK have been verified thoroughly by practitioners.

BABOK does not mandate that practices described should be followed under all circumstances. Any set of practices MUST be tailored to the specific BA conditions.

Purpose of the BABOK Guide

The primary purpose of the BABOK Guide is to define the profession of business analysis and provide a set of commonly accepted practices. It helps practitioners discuss and define the skills necessary to effectively perform business analysis work. The BABOK Guide also helps people who work with and employ business analysts to understand the skills and knowledge they should expect from a skilled practitioner.

Business analysis is a broad profession in which business analysts might perform work for many different types of initiatives across an enterprise. Practitioners may employ different competencies, knowledge, skills, terminology, and attitudes that they use when performing business analysis tasks. The BABOK Guide is a common framework for all perspectives, describing business analysis tasks that are performed to properly analyze a change or evaluate the necessity for a change. Tasks may vary in form, order, or importance for individual business analysts or for various initiatives.

The six knowledge areas of the BABOK Guide which are Business Analysis Planning and Monitoring, Elicitation and Collaboration, Requirements Life Cycle Management, Strategy Analysis, Requirements Analysis and Design Definition (RADD), and Solution Evaluation describe the practice of business analysis as it is applied within the boundaries of a project or throughout enterprise evolution and continuous improvement. The following image shows how three of the knowledge areas support the delivery of business value before, during, and after the life cycle of a project.

Target Audience for CBAP

·       CBAP examination targets the following audience:  

·       Seasoned BAs  

·       BA Consultants  

·       Trainers

Eligibility for CBAP  

·    High school (i.e., 12 years of education is required. In other countries, this will be higher secondary school) and above.  

·       Minimum 7500 hours of Business analysis related work in the last 10 years.

·    Professional development: 35 hours of verifiable BABOK coursework in the last 4 years. Adaptive Processes is an authorized EEP of IIBA®, its trainings provide desired PDUs for the CBAP certification examination.

·       References: Two references from a career manager, client (internal or external) or CBAP.  

·       Minimum 900 hours in each of the 4 knowledge areas.  

·       Signed code of conduct is required.

CBAP Question Pattern  

This will be a case study based examination.  

·       Longer cases (1-1.5 pages) of information

·       Multiple questions about the case

·       Multiple choice answers

·       120 questions

·       3.5 hours

Knowledge Areas

Knowledge areas represent areas of specific BA expertise.

There are 6 knowledge area in BABOK:

1. BA planning and monitoring

2. elicitation and collaboration

3. Requirements life cycle management

4. Strategy analysis

5.Requirements analysis and design definition

6. Solution evaluation

Examination Weightage – KA Wise

Domain	% Distribution
Business Analysis Planning and Monitoring	14%
Elicitation and Collaboration	12%
Requirements Life Cycle Management	15%
Strategy Analysis	15%
Requirements Analysis and Design Definition	30%
Solution Evaluation	14%

Additional Information  

Application expires within 1 year from approval  3 exams can be taken within a year without any waiting time in between

Preparing the application  

·       Begin the application some weeks (at least 2 weeks) before you plan to apply.  

·       It can take anywhere from 6-10 hours to complete.  

·       Download and use Adaptive BA experience calculator.  

·       Apply within 6 months of when you plan to write.  

You can download the CBAP handbook for a detailed application process at IIBA website.

Become A Member

Uniting a community of professionals to create better business outcomes.

Choose your membership level below.

Which Membership is Right for You?

Individual Membership

Join thousands of business analysis professionals worldwide enjoying a variety of benefits, including a free online copy of the BABOK Guide and the opportunity to join a local chapter.

Individual membership is for:

·        You are a business analysis practitioner

·        You are a corporate employee with a promo code from your employer

·        You have an interest in building your business analysis practice

·        You are a product manager or product owner

Corporate Program

Businesses and organizations can join the IIBA and enjoy additional corporate benefits:

·        Forge a strong relationship with IIBA to help advance the practice of Business Analysis within your organization

·        Support development of your Business Analysis Professionals

·        Connect with over 300 organizations globally

Endorsed Education Provider

Do you provide educational services? Become a member of the IIBA as an Endorsed Education Provider (EEP):

EEP members include:

·        Training providers of business analysis practices

·        Providers seeking professional endorsement of their offerings

·        Providers looking to expand their market

Academic Program

Join as an Academic member today.

Academic members include:

·        Colleges and universities offering programs that support business analysis

·      Academic institutions looking for promotion among business analysis practitioners and their employers

Recertification

Continue to experience the benefits of core certification.

To recertify for your Level 2 CCBA and Level 3 CBAP designations, you must earn a minimum of 60 Continuing Development Units (CDUs) every three years from your Date of Certification. Log your CDUs earned throughout your three year certification cycle in your profile.

Contact IIBA

International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA) is a Canadian Corporation headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Mailing address:

International Institute of Business Analysis
115 George Street, Suite 509
Oakville, ON  L6J 0A2
Canada

Phone / Email:

Main Number: 1 647-426-3735 Toll Free Number: 1-866-789-4422
General Inquiries info@iiba.org
Membership membership@iiba.org
Certification certification@iiba.org
EEP eep@iiba.org
Finance finance@iiba.org
Corporate Program corporatemembership@iiba.org