What does a Business Analyst do?

“I was born and raised in Suriname,” Rachel begins. “After elementary school and high school, I went to study tourism,” he said. That study gave her the opportunity to gain overseas experience while working on new skills. “For the Sandals and Beaches hotel chains, I got to do an internship in Jamaica and then in the Bahamas. As a hotel management trainee, I worked in the front office and in butler service. That was a lot of fun!”

After a year, Rachel returned to Suriname. “I was homesick anyway,” she admits. The question was whether she wanted to continue in the hotel business. “The direct contact with hotel guests is fun, but it can also be challenging. Ideally, I wanted to work a little more on my communication skills.”

She saw that opportunity in the contact center world, where she could work at another company. “My idea was to work in a call center for about four months and then look for a job in a hotel.” In the call center, she noticed many similarities to the hotel industry: “You have to listen carefully to a customer, handle the occasional complaint, and actively seek a solution.”

Four months turned into a year and by then Rachel was allowed to become a Senior Agent. “The interfaces with my studies did bring me an advantage. They allowed me to grow quickly.” Moments later, she was promoted to Supervisor.

In 2019, the call center where Rachel worked was acquired by another company. At that time, Rachel was approached by Teleperformance. “An enthusiastic recruiter asked me if I wanted to become a Supervisor at Teleperformance Suriname. My previous Business Unit Manager was already on the project I was going to, and she encouraged me too. I decided to choose this adventure.”

At Teleperformance, Rachel was able to use her experience as a Calls Supervisor and later as a Messaging Supervisor. And when a vacancy arose for a Business Analyst, she immediately applied for it. This is how she became Teleperformance Suriname’s first Business Analyst.

“This position is right up my alley,” Rachel smiles. “I am part of the Quality Team and create all kinds of reports. For example, a customer may want to know what kind of questions there are about a new product. I then gather the numbers from that and present them to the customer.”

Rachel also produces reports for internal use. “We also want to know how well we are doing. The surveys at the end of each call allow the caller to give the Agent a grade. For example, for his or her intelligibility.” If there are problems with that, the Agent will get feedback. “With the goal of all of us getting a little bit better all the time.”

When we ask Rachel what she thinks of working at Teleperformance, she doesn’t have to think long. “You have all kinds of opportunities for advancement here. Many Supervisors, thanks in part to Teleperformance’s rapid growth, have already moved up within a year.”

And by the way,” Rachel adds, “if you’re an Agent, Supervisor is by no means the only step up. You can also become a Product Specialist or Quality Analyst,” Rachel explains. “And if you’re doing some study, for example HR, you have the opportunity to work in Human Resources later.”

For many Surinamese, the government remains the ideal employer – the maximum achievable. “But you don’t get a dynamic work environment there. You don’t go to work there out of passion, but because you want security. The pay is relatively low.”

So certainty is important. But what about at a young company like Teleperformance? “Here, as an Agent, you get a permanent contract after only two years. At most contact centers that is not the case,” Rachel knows from experience. “Staff members are just as likely to be given indefinite contracts.”

During the pandemic, many businesses had to close. Sometimes even for good. But Teleperformance actually got busier as companies invested in their telephone and online services. “Many people can no longer work and have no income. For some positions at Teleperformance, we can just work from home and we do get paid.