Lorna Mylett, Business Analyst at DWP, explains how a change of career via the apprenticeship route led to a BCS award, enhanced skills and new opportunities.
Beginning her career as a police constable, Lorna Mylett began to develop an interest in the processes and systems behind her day to day work. A growing fascination with tech led to the decision to make a career change, signing up for an apprenticeship in business analysis. Here Lorna explains why an apprenticeship and career in BA with The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) was absolutely the right choice.
What can you tell us about your role as a business analyst at DWP?
I work in a department called Hybrid Cloud Services (HCS) at DWP Digital which is responsible for managing and maintaining DWP Digital’s cloud estate. Identifying automation opportunities, understanding the feasibility of implementing new metrics to improve our DevOps capability, and migrating between source code management products are just some aspects of this exciting role and the many projects that I have been working on. The very nature of HCS is technical and so having a business analyst to bridge the gap between the business world and technical world is key. It ensures our stakeholders and users understand the work we do and how it impacts on them. As HCS is responsible for so much of DWP Digital’s infrastructure, the BA role also plays a crucial part in ensuring that we are doing the right thing, solving the right problems, and meeting user requirements. Without business analysts being involved in digital transformation projects, I would argue that any organisation runs the risk of not truly understanding their problems, and therefore developing solutions that are not fit for purpose.
Why did you decide to change career, and what attracted to you to a BA role?
I joined the police force when I was 22. During my time with the police, I found myself asking a lot of questions about their processes and their systems, and why they do things the way they do. A lot of the answers I got were ‘this is how we’ve always done it’ or, ‘it’s too much work to change it’, which I found frustrating. I knew briefly about business analysis before joining the force, but I hadn’t made the connection yet between business analysis and the investigation side of policing. Business analysis as a career was attractive to me because it is all about asking questions and getting to the root cause of a problem, but without the pressure, stresses, and unsociable hours that came with my previous role. In between my police and business analysis roles I also had an interim job as an executive assistant in a project support role. During this time I learned more about the business analysis role and finally decided to make the change.
Why did you choose the apprenticeship route?
When I realised that business analysis was something I wanted to pursue, I started looking for entry level roles. I had no idea that apprenticeships in business analysis were a thing, until someone pointed me to the Civil Service website. I read about their apprenticeship route, and it felt like a no brainer. I liked the fact that I could learn on the job with dedicated development time, earn a good full-time wage, and that I didn’t necessarily need any previous experience. After some initial searching I found the Business Analyst Apprenticeship at DWP. It was an easy transition and the apprenticeship experience was well explained in the job advert, so I knew what to expect.
What support did you receive from your employer and provider?
The support I received from both DWP, and my apprenticeship provider exceeded my expectations. I had a DWP mentor who I could discuss my day-to-day work with, as well as my apprenticeship provider mentor who I could basically go to with anything. The support they provided in terms of making sure I was exposed to the right projects, reviewing my apprenticeship write-ups and letting me bounce ideas off them was hugely beneficial, and paramount to successfully completing my apprenticeship. I’m really grateful for it. Had I started a BA role outside the apprenticeship route, I question whether I would have received the dedicated learning time and mentor guidance.
Which transferable skills did you further enhance in your BA role?
During my time with the police I was interested in criminology and investigation. I gained a lot of people skills as a police constable. Whether communicating with members of the public in confrontational and/or sensitive situations, or meeting with senior policing staff like inspectors and superintendents, I learned how to tailor my communication style well and consider different perspectives. I also learned a lot about myself as a person, which helped me to consider what I liked and disliked about the role. I recognised that the people skills I developed were transferrable to the stakeholder engagement part of business analysis. I also think my investigation skills - asking the right questions - were really important. In an interview with a subject, my questions had to be direct and appropriate, with no room for misinterpretation, and this relates to BA when trying to identify the root cause of a problem. If you have a naturally inquisitive mindset and enjoy problem solving, then you can really excel as a business analyst.
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What advice would you give to someone who might be considering an apprenticeship?
An apprenticeship is a great option for anyone who wants to change career to a role where they have little to no experience. You are treated like a full-time employee, earning a full-time wage, but you get to learn how to do the job with lots of support. I personally learnt so much in a far shorter period of time than if I had waited and hoped to gain all the relevant experience through my previous roles. My advice to anyone moving into an apprenticeship role would be not to worry about not knowing everything. It’s a strange situation, to start a job you don’t know exactly how to do yet, but that’s the purpose of it, to learn while you work.
You recently became BCS IT & Digital Business Analyst Apprentice of the Year 2024. What does this mean to you?
This was an achievement I genuinely didn’t see coming. I was pleased to even have been nominated, been really didn’t expect to win. I’m a pretty reserved and modest person and I find it difficult to speak highly of myself, so to be recognised and acknowledged by someone else for my hard work was really nice and I’m grateful to my line manager for nominating me. It was a fantastic experience.
What are your future plans?
I want to progress as a business analyst, building confidence so that I can work towards a more senior role. I’ve said yes to a few opportunities that are completely out of my comfort zone, like being a panellist at an upcoming BA Conference in September, where I will be speaking about ‘building your own BA’s’. I will also be taking part in a podcast where I will discuss my apprenticeship experience. Even this interview for BCS is something that I couldn’t have imagined doing, but I see it as an opportunity to share the benefits of the apprenticeship route and to help others move towards an exciting, challenging and rewarding career change.
