The Optimistic BA
Business is Fun Again!
Managing a business can be stressful, but communicating with clients and stakeholders doesn’t have to be.
Judy Alter, also known as The Optimistic BA™, loves helping businesses take the stress out of team management by coaching leaders and teams to engage their work with optimism, purpose, and serious fun.
The Goal
The Optimistic BA™ was created from Judy Alter’s passion for implementing a “Glass Half Full” mindset into the business analysis world. Judy’s sixteen years of experience as a Senior Business Systems Analyst makes her a communication expert who takes the stress out of team management by coaching leaders and teams to engage their work with optimism, purpose, and serious fun.
Judy obtained her CBAP® designation in 2015, has experience in IIBA at all levels, and currently teaches Business Analysis through a training company called, “Your Clear Next Step LLC”. Her background highly qualifies her to do what she loves most, which is training and coaching individuals. Judy’s excellent reputation in the business analysis world makes her an ideal candidate for public speaking on the issues of Leadership, BA Soft Skills, Agile, Motivational Speaking, and any other topic that addresses the specific needs your company has.
What is a “BA”?
The acronym, “BA” might make you think of a certain word used for someone who is a confident go-getter, and you’d be right about that! But a BA is also a type of person in the business industry that you may not have heard of before now: a business analyst. According to Judy,
“85% of what a BA does is about soft skills and how to relate to people when asking them questions, especially eliciting requirements. I feel that is one of my best talents, and I can help businesses as I describe experiences I’ve had in business and also how to approach this. I also can teach the BA's how to be leaders, as I don't feel most of them understand this.”
At the start of 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic took the world by storm, Judy retired from her successful career at Mutual of Omaha. She chose to take a leap of faith and pursue her dream of owning her own company. Judy decided to invest in her future by partnering with Biaka Works to bring her brand to life. The world coming to a halt in March 2020 could’ve been a massive setback, but Judy, the optimist that she is, didn’t let it stop her for a minute. When asked what makes The Optimistic BA™ unique, Judy said,
“I have a good reputation in the business analysis world. I am known as a person who leads with her heart and teaches people how to stay calm and not stress out so much. I always make people laugh and have fun. A great day is if I make several people do that every day. But they also know by my reputation that I know what I am talking about in the world of business analysis, leadership, and motivational speaking.”
The Discovery
Every brand design with Biaka Works begins with the crucial Discovery Phase. We walk you through our Brand Discovery Questionnaire to unearth the heart of your brand, clarifying how you meet your customer’s most basic need and stand out from your competitors.
Our team ended our first meeting with Judy with sore cheeks from laughing, and full hearts from being in the presence of someone who is pursuing her passion with her whole heart. Judy truly embodies her brand’s name in every conversation.
When asked how she is different from her competitors in the BA world, Judy said,
“While I know the hardcore business analysis skills, I am known for my soft skills. If you don't relate to the people as persons and get to know them, they will not help you with what you need from them. For leadership, I am known as leading from the heart. I get to know the people, and I treat everyone as if they are the only person in the world at that moment. I also use humor and make people laugh. When you can do that, and you are coaching them, they don't even realize they are doing work.”
The Design
Our Lead Designer, Avery, was instantly inspired after meeting Judy and understanding her brand’s needs. Avery knew that The Optimistic BA™’s branding would need to live up to Judy’s bubbly and fun personality.
“Judy is a bright light in our lives now, and I know she is a blessing to all of her colleagues and clients. I want to design a brand that supports and reflects her one-of-a-kind personality. We’re going to use cheerful colors, fun patterns, and lighthearted elements to bring a serious dose of fun to an industry that could easily be stuffy.”
the cutting room floor
Below, you’ll see a few first attempts at capturing the lighthearted, cheerful personality in graphic form. Avery started by exploring a flag/banner concept with a “glass half full” icon.
Biaka and Avery agreed that these designs were heading in the right direction, but something special was lacking. Avery went back to the drawing board and sought inspiration from The Optimistic BA™ herself, Judy.
After reflecting on her first meeting with Judy, Avery was inspired by something beautiful and authentic: Judy’s smile.
Avery left her computer and began sketching with trusty her pencil and paper, free to imagine all of the creative ways to incorporate Judy’s smiling face into her brand name. When she remembered that Judy also wears glasses, the stars aligned.
The first iteration of this concept was strong, but with a few small tweaks it became an even stronger brand foundation for The Optimistic BA™.
The Finished Brand Identity
The color palette for this brand is anchored by Judy’s favorite color, Aqua. This peaceful hue provided a calming foundation for the rest of the brand’s cheerful palette (which Avery named after classic “optimistic” phrases”).
Avery developed two custom patterns for the brand. The first, pictured above, was inspired by confetti. But after sharing with Judy, we couldn’t decide if it more resembled confetti or sprinkles! Either way, you can’t be pessimistic while eating ice cream, so we called this pattern a win.
“Judymojis”
The smiling face embedded in Judy’s logo provided an unexpected opportunity to customize her brand even further. While creating social media graphics with the portrait, Avery had an idea: “Why not create variations of Judy’s portrait that represent a range of emotions? Like emojis, but for Judy… Judymojis!”
Judy adored the first round of Judymojis, and began implementing them in her social media and slide presentations. Throughout 2020, Biaka Works developed seasonal and holiday themed Judymojis. Here are a few of our favorites.
St.Patrick’s Day Judymojis celebrate Judy’s Irish heritage.
The Website
After completing The Optimistic BA™’s custom brand identity, we continued working with Judy to develop her website. Her website needs were basic. She needed a home base to attract and book clients, a calendar of speaking engagements, and a place to host her blog where she posts multiple times a week.
The Feedback
“All of Biaka Works feels like a new family. Biaka is the best graphic designer and UX designer in the business. His staff are caring, detailed oriented, and so excited the first time we met. I thought they were going to jump through the computer. Biaka focuses on my entire business, not just my website. They have added to their team in recent months, and no, it isn’t because I am hard to handle. They have helped to transform my business in a direction I could not have imagined. I can hardly wait to see the 2021 plan. If you need to hire a website designer, consider Biaka Works. There is no one else that I would trust with my company with.”
As of June 2021 (roughly a year since beginning to work with Judy), Biaka Works is continuing to partner with The Optimistic BA™ to provide monthly design support for her blog and social media presence. A custom brand identity with Biaka Works sets you up with everything you need to succeed and create brand assets on your own, but we’re always happy to continue partnering with clients who prefer hands-on monthly support.
MEET JUDY
Though she’s always worn glasses, Judy was inspired to bring her brand to life by swapping her normal frames for a bright yellow pair that matched her logo. It brings us joy to create a brand that is one-of-a-kind, just like you!
Thank you, Judy, for being a dream client and our biggest cheerleader at Biaka Works. Working with clients like you is why we do what we do, and we’re grateful to be part of your new chapter of life as The Optimistic BA. You help us remember to “keep our glasses half full”!
-With so much Love, the Biaka Works team
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