IIBA (International Institute of Business Analysis):

“A business analyst works as a liaison among stakeholders in order to elicit, analyze, communicate and validate requirements for changes to business processes, policies and information systems. The business
analyst understands business problems and opportunities in the context of the requirements and recommends solutions that enable the organization to achieve its goals.”

“Business Analysts are responsible for identifying the business needs of their clients and stakeholders to help determine solutions to business problems.

The Business Analyst is responsible for requirements development and requirements management. Specifically, the Business Analyst elicits, analyzes, validates and documents business, organizational and/or operational requirements. Solutions are not predetermined by the Business Analyst, but are driven solely by the requirements of the business. Solutions often include a systems development component, but may also consist of process improvement or organizational change.

The Business Analyst is a key facilitator within an organization, acting as a bridge between the client, stakeholders and the solution team.

Business analysis is distinct from financial analysis, project management, quality assurance, organizational development, testing, training and documentation development. However, depending on an organization, an individual Business Analyst may perform some or all of these related functions.”

Kevin Brennan:
“A Business Analyst is responsible for acting as a bridge between stakeholders in an organization in order to identify, define, and validate the internal changes, particularly the creation or improvement of processes, policies, and information technology systems, that are required for that organization to achieve its goals.”

TML Consultants:

“Business analysis helps an organization to improve how it conducts its functions and activities in order to reduce overall costs, provide more efficient use of resources, and better support customers. It introduces the notion of process orientation, of concentrating on and rethinking end-to-end activities that create value for customers, while removing unnecessary, non-value added work. The person who carries out this task is called a business analyst or BA.