In this blog, we take a look at the AAC Certification Journey by Laks Vadavalli, who is a seasoned Business Analyst with 10+ years experience and overall 18 years of experience in the IT sector.
Organizations around the world are adopting the agile approach and framework for executing their projects. International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA) reports Agile to be a growing domain with a lot of space for more and more organizations to adopt it. According to a salary survey 2020 by IIBA, about 71% of business analyst professionals who practice and implement the agile approach and or those who are certified in the agile analysis domain earn 16% more than non-certified professionals or professionals working with different approaches or frameworks.
Laks is currently working on a regulatory reporting project for the US Federal Reserve System. We will talk about how Laks was able to get IIBA-AAC (Agile Analysis Certification) certified and his entire preparation journey.
Laks Vadavalli Certification Journey
Professional background
Laks Vadavalli is a seasoned Business Analyst with 10+ years of experience and overall 18 years of experience in the IT sector. Laks is currently working on a regulatory reporting project for the US Federal Reserve System.
What motivated him to take up AAC Certification?
Laks Vadavalli knew that the industry has undergone a change, with the growing demand for business analysts and the continuous adoption of agile frameworks by organizations, Laks was determined to gain the necessary skills and knowledge that provide a natural blend of his current business analysis profession and the agile concepts. This is when Laks decided to take up the AAC certification to understand the Agile concepts and see its application in his day-to-day tasks.
How did he prepare for the AAC Certification exam?
Laks took about 1 month for the entire preparation for the AAC certification exam. When asked about his preparation plan, Laks mentioned studying through the IIBA AAC study guide and going through several YouTube videos on Agile concepts to better understand and grasp the agile framework in business analysis. However, Laks was somewhat familiar with the agile process to some extent, which somewhat supported him in preparing for the exam.
Challenges faced by him
The most challenging part of Lak’s preparation journey was to look for real-world examples for each of the concepts provided in the IIBA AAC guide. Nevertheless, Laks Vadavalli took the AAC certification exam on December 20th’2021 and successfully earned his certification.
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After the exam
After gaining the AAC certification, Laks feels more confident in approaching several agile projects as an agile business analyst and believes that he has better-developed skills and knowledge. Moreover, his employers appreciate his efforts in taking up the certification and adding more value to the organization and any project that he takes up.
Tips to Clear IIBA-AAC Certificate
Laks provides us with his insights about some tips for preparing for the AAC certification exam and how you can easily crack it on your first attempt. He suggests the AAC aspirants should be familiar with Scrum, JIRA tools, and other important business analysis concepts if they are new to the agile world. Similarly, here are some tips that you can keep in mind for your exam preparation.
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Checkout the IIBA Whitepapers
IIBA’s global thought leadership program has published and edited several whitepapers, which can be helpful if you wish to gain some guidance and best practices about the agile frameworks and get more insights into the domain.
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Go through the BABOK Guide
The BABOK Guide is a good resource for preparing for the AAC certification exam as it contains knowledge areas that are necessary for the IIBA-AAC certification. These knowledge areas are as follows:
- Business analysis planning and monitoring
- Elicitation and collaboration
- Requirements life-cycle management
- Strategy
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Create study tables
Creating study tables is a good way to prepare for your AAC certification exam. With the help of a study table, you can map out all the horizons and important concepts and navigate your progress over your preparation journey. Your study table can act as your checklist, where you can tick off the domains of study as you complete them.
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Take simulation practice exams and practice mock questions
It is important to practice AAC simulation exams and mock questions to do a self-assessment of everything you have prepared so far. It will allow you to focus on your weak areas, and then you can practice them more before sitting for the main exam.
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Take AAC Exam Preparation Training Course
To increase your chances of clearing the AAC exam on your first attempt, it is always a good idea to opt for an online or offline AAC exam preparation training course. The exam may not be challenging, but a training course allows you to delve deeper into all the concepts that you might miss out on if you are doing self-study. One of the recommended course options is the IIBA Agile Analysis Certification course offered by Techcanvass.
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Know and Understand the AAC Exam pattern and Blueprint
Before you start preparing for the exam, it is important that you map the exam pattern and blueprint in your mind. The exam is a multiple-choice question with about 85 scenario-based questions that come from the 4 crucial domains, namely- Agile mindset, strategy horizon, initiative horizon, and delivery horizon.
Know More – What is AAC Exam Pattern?
Conclusion
So this was the success story of Laks Vadavalli, a business analyst with over 10+ experience and now AAC certified, which will add more value to his profession. The AAC certification will help Laks earn a higher pay scale, get better job opportunities, and allow him to network with other AAC-certified professionals. You can also follow in the footsteps of Laks and become AAC certified with a little determination, effort, and a fair amount of time investment for the exam preparation. You can go through the above-listed tips as given by Laks to assist and guide you for efficient preparation for cracking the AAC exam on your first attempt.
