Business analysts are below average when it comes to happiness.
At CareerExplorer, we conduct an ongoing survey with millions of people and ask them how satisfied they are with their careers. As it turns out, business analysts rate their career happiness 3.0 out of 5 stars which puts them in the bottom 32% of careers.
To put this into perspective, we compared how happy business analysts are to similar careers in the industry. Take a look at the results below:
Salaries and satisfaction ratings in similar careers
| Career | Satisfaction | Avg Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Operations manager | 3.1 | $98k |
| Marketing manager | 3.1 | $135k |
| Human resources manager | 3.1 | $126k |
| Economist | 3.1 | $106k |
| Project manager | 3.1 | $55k |
| Business analyst | 3.0 | $93k |
| Treasurer | 3.0 | $132k |
| Financial manager | 3.0 | $132k |
| Market research analyst | 2.9 | $64k |
| Fraud analyst | 2.9 | $73k |
So what does it mean to be happy in your career? Let’s break it down into different dimensions:
- Salary: Are business analysts happy with their salary?
- Meaning: Do business analysts find their jobs meaningful?
- Personality fit: How well suited are people’s personalities to their everyday tasks as business analysts?
- Work environment: How enjoyable are business analyst’s work environments?
- Skills utilization: Are business analysts making the best use of their abilities?
Are business analysts happy with their salary?
Business analysts rated their satisfaction with their salaries 3.4/5. The majority of business analysts are quite happy with their salaries, with very few having complaints about their income level.
We asked business analysts how fairly compensated they are for their work.
Their response was:
3.4 out of 5 stars
2614 business analysts
17% of business analysts rated their compensation 5 stars
35% of business analysts rated their compensation 4 stars
26% of business analysts rated their compensation 3 stars
15% of business analysts rated their compensation 2 stars
8% of business analysts rated their compensation 1 stars
Do business analysts find their jobs meaningful?
On average, business analysts rate the meaningfulness of their work a 2.6/5. While most business analysts aren’t very fulfilled by their work, some people may still manage to find meaning in it.
We asked business analysts how meaningful they found their work.
Their response was:
2.6 out of 5 stars
2613 business analysts
8% of business analysts rated how meaningful they found their career 5 stars
16% of business analysts rated how meaningful they found their career 4 stars
25% of business analysts rated how meaningful they found their career 3 stars
28% of business analysts rated how meaningful they found their career 2 stars
23% of business analysts rated how meaningful they found their career 1 stars
How well are people’s personalities suited to everyday tasks as business analysts?
Business analysts rated their personality fit with their work an average of 3.7/5. The majority of business analysts find their personalities quite well suited to their work, with relatively few having complaints about their fit.
We asked business analysts how well their personalities fit into their careers.
Their response was:
3.7 out of 5 stars
2924 business analysts
24% of business analysts rated their career fit 5 stars
40% of business analysts rated their career fit 4 stars
25% of business analysts rated their career fit 3 stars
8% of business analysts rated their career fit 2 stars
3% of business analysts rated their career fit 1 stars
How enjoyable is a business analyst’s work environment?
As a whole, business analysts rated their enjoyment of their work environment 3.4/5. A solid majority of business analysts enjoy their work environment, probably contributing to overall higher satisfaction with working as a business analyst.
We asked business analysts how much they enjoyed their work environment.
Their response was:
3.4 out of 5 stars
2905 business analysts
18% of business analysts rated their work environment 5 stars
35% of business analysts rated their work environment 4 stars
25% of business analysts rated their work environment 3 stars
15% of business analysts rated their work environment 2 stars
6% of business analysts rated their work environment 1 stars
Are business analysts making the best use of their abilities?
Former business analysts on CareerExplorer have rated their skills utilization 3.1/5. Most business analysts are satisfied with how well their abilities are skills are made of use.
We asked business analysts how well their abilities were used in their careers.
Their response was:
3.1 out of 5 stars
2923 business analysts
12% of business analysts rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 5 stars
26% of business analysts rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 4 stars
30% of business analysts rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 3 stars
22% of business analysts rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 2 stars
10% of business analysts rated their how well their skills were utilized in their career 1 stars