Business analysts career advice!!! Help

[totallylost]

Dear All,
I am a Btech(Biotechnology) and MBA(Maketing) currently working as a Market Research

Analyst(Last 3 years).I have good working knowledge of Excel(no SAS, SPSS).
I have following doubts which i would like to be addressed:

1. I am not sure about the career progression as an analyst, i find that even senior analysts and managers are doing almost the same work as we are doing.Is there a growth in the career? Can one diversify his career options to other fields like branding, consultancy etc.? Is market research a good field to earn good money such as consultancy?

2. I hate doing primary research but love data analysis and presentations, is there any specialized field that DOES NOT involve primary but only Data analysis, report writing, presenting etc.

3.I wish to pursue a higher specilized degree in a related field, but i am not sure which one.I think that fields like consulting, strategy or branding may be good but at the same time i am confused if i should choose a masters in fuctional domains like IT etc as currently i am not working in any core fucnctional area my work is related with industries like automobiles, chemicals, heavy engineering, pharma etc.). I am almost 30 years old and am not sure if age would be an issue for any degree or further employment.

3. I want to move abroad, am not sure if BA is on the skilled occupation lists of any countries, what could be the best way to move out of India with such a profile.

4. Please suggest some good universities and courses abroad which i can pursue.

5. Some people advice me to do SAP-CRM or any other module but i do not have any functional base in IT, will it be a wise option to go for it.

6. I am interested in a profile which involves more of brain storming,thinking, strategizing etc. which career will be best suited for me.

7. Although Management consultancy seems to be a bright career but i have read that working hours are way too long and tiring and there is no work life balance but it is not so with branding. Is it so?

8. I want a peaceful life with decent money and free weekends,outside India, what should i do, which country should i look for?

Thanks a lot!!!

[devang]

Originally Posted by totallylost

Dear All,
I am a Btech(Biotechnology) and MBA(Maketing) currently working as a Market Research




Analyst(Last 3 years).I have good working knowledge of Excel(no SAS, SPSS).
I have following doubts which i would like to be addressed:

1. I am not sure about the career progression as an analyst, i find that even senior analysts and managers are doing almost the same work as we are doing.Is there a growth in the career? Can one diversify his career options to other fields like branding, consultancy etc.? Is market research a good field to earn good money such as consultancy?

Yes that happens in fact post primary work - which is data analysis and using analytics has a very large scope. All depends as how good are you with SPSS / Excel and other analytics tools. There are companies like Mu sigma which specializes in that domain.

Originally Posted by totallylost

3.I wish to pursue a higher specilized degree in a related field, but i am not sure which one.I think that fields like consulting, strategy or branding may be good but at the same time i am confused if i should choose a masters in fuctional domains like IT etc as currently i am not working in any core fucnctional area my work is related with industries like automobiles, chemicals, heavy engineering, pharma etc.). I am almost 30 years old and am not sure if age would be an issue for any degree or further employment.

30 is very young . for advance degree, its fine uptp 40. Will advise you to look at US universties and go for a course / MS in analytics

Originally Posted by totallylost

3. I want to move abroad, am not sure if BA is on the skilled occupation lists of any countries, what could be the best way to move out of India with such a profile.

Its very much possible going to US for BA role as this role is quite in demand

[/quote]

[totallylost]

Thanks a ton Devang.
As you suggested that MS in Analytics would be a good option, can you give me some idea of the any particular domains/industries/functions which uses data analytics to a large extent(which i may try to get into). Also, is choosing 'analytics' as a career a good option( as most companies demand a BA in IT context rather than pure business research), if you can throw some light on what kind of roles and growth a BA would have during his progression and how is the earning potential.

Please throw some light on career in analytics, skills/softwares needed and demand drivers for the field and suggest some more companies like Mu Sigma.

Regards

[jamine perry]

The opportunity for companies and variety of business employers of company experts is as large as the company itself. It is possible to perform for both separate companies who are requested to perform on particular tasks and offer a viewpoint from an outside viewpoint, or within a particular company or industry

[totallylost]

Thanks Jamine,

I was also wondering if i can make a career in datawarehousing (which is a field of my interest). But, i donno which are the good programs to pursue which does not require a previous IT degree or experience.
I am still confused between certain fields to pursue a career:
1. Business Analytics (which seems good but donno how the career growth will be). NCSU- too high fees, UConn- seems okay,but not sure.
2. Datawarehousing/BI- Donno where to start( some one year specialized course will be great)
3. Strategy and Consulting - Searched for sm Msc courses and EDHEC, France looks good , but donno if it will be a specialized area to pursue a career.

I guess i need to specialize into a particular skill/field (which should be slightly technical(more of management though)), so that i ll' have an area of expertise to grow further.

Please suggest.

Regards.