Project Management & Business Analysis Resources

Project Management and Business Analysis are essential to getting anything done within an organization. Even if your organization doesn't have designated PMs or BAs, you likely have someone(s) doing those jobs. Here are some resources to help you get even better at Project Management & Business Analysis

Featured Blogs

Watermelon Projects

How to find them and how to avoid them

It's been estimated that 20% of projects that report a "green" status are actually in trouble...Here are some tangible and intangible indicators to watch for to tell if your projects are really in the green!

Building a Better Business Case

3 Steps To a Better Business Case

You've got a fantastic idea that'll streamline processes, save money, and improve customer service. Now what? You should probably write a business case.

Project Management Institute

As the world’s leading project management organization, The Project Management Institute (PMI) is committed to advancing careers, improving organizational success, and further maturing the project management profession. With over 600,000 Global Members and over 300 Local Chapters, and having celebrated their 50th anniversary in 2019, PMI offers globally-recognized standards, certifications, communities, resources, tools, academic research, publications, professional development courses, and networking opportunities.
At Your Clear Next Step, we ensure that our training and coaching content in the project management discipline are aligned with the industry gold standard that is the PMI.

If you are an individual accountable for getting work done within an organizational context, the discipline of Project Management and the support of PMI could be exceptionally useful for you.
- Local resources offer chances to learn and network and volunteer.
- Pursuing a PMI-based certification in project management helps demonstrate that you value the discipline.
If your organization is looking to standardize your project management processes and career paths, PMI offers a wealth of resources.
If you’re interested in getting involved in project management locally, the PMI has a directory to help you locate local chapters.
If you’re located in or around Central Iowa, the PMI Central Iowa Chapter is an outstanding organization offering top-tier programing, excellent volunteer opportunities, and great networking. Since our founding, Your Clear Next Step has been a proud supporter of PMI-Central Iowa Chapter.

International Institute of Business Analysis

As a non-profit professional association, the International Institute of Business Analysis™ (IIBA®) is a recognized thought leader and advocate for business analysis, committed to the recognition of the profession and the maintenance of global standards for the discipline. With over 29,000 members worldwide, and over 120 local chapters, the IIBA serves the growing field of business analysis in a variety of ways, including thought leadership, certifications, professional development, community, and networking.
At Your Clear Next Step, we ensure that our training and coaching content in the business analysis discipline are aligned with the industry gold standard that is the IIBA.

If you are an individual working in the field of business analysis, being connected with the global organization could be exceptionally useful for you.
- Local resources offer chances to learn and network and volunteer.
- Pursuing an IIBA-based certification in project management helps demonstrate that you value the discipline.
If your organization is looking to standardize your business analysis skills, processes, and career paths, IIBA offers a wealth of resources.
If you’re interested in getting involved in business analysis locally, the IIBA has a directory to help you locate local chapters.
If you’re located in or around Central Iowa, the IIBA Central Iowa Chapter is an outstanding organization offering excellent programing, wonderful volunteer opportunities, and great networking. Your Clear Next Step has been a proud supporter of the IIBA Central Iowa Chapter since it’s inception.

An Overview of Project Management

Quite simply, project management is the art and science of getting work done. A project could be defined as a unique undertaking, a body of work, organized to accomplish a goal. It is bound by the constraints of time and cost and executed by a team of people managing risks and issues. The Project Management Institute (PMI) is the international authority on project management.

Many of us use project management to accomplish the work in front of us, especially if that work is unique and time-bound. Project management isn’t necessarily the only way to do things, and work that is repetitive and routine may benefit from some of the principles of project management, but project management is at its finest when it is used to give shape to an idea that will, in turn, become a work effort that will accomplish a goal or achieve a specific outcome.

Breakdown project management and find tips and tricks here.

How to Align the Project With Your Organization's Strategic Goals

We’re too busy to waste time on projects that don’t deliver value. Make sure you can describe how your project is in line with your organization’s strategic goals, and save time and energy by getting all stakeholders on the same page about the project’s value.

How to Facilitate a Collaborative Requirements-Gathering Session

Business Analysis requires the ability to elicit requirements, and a requirements-gathering session can be an effective technique for doing just that.