A new book by Erivan de Sena Ramos
Why AI Still Needs Business Analysis
AI can make weak analysis look complete before anyone notices the thinking is missing. Requirements can be drafted, workshops summarised and decision papers prepared in minutes — polished is not the same as proven. This book gives that risk a name, a measure and a method.
"AI can accelerate the work. But it cannot own the judgement."
The Idea
Analysis Debt names the hidden cost of moving forward with incomplete, weak or insufficiently validated analysis. It appears when assumptions become requirements, summaries become decisions, and artefacts look ready before the problem is fully understood.
Written for Business Analysts, Product Owners, AI transformation leaders and digital change professionals, this book explores why AI-assisted work still needs context, evidence, stakeholder validation and judgement. It offers practical ways to ask better questions, expose hidden assumptions, review AI outputs critically and stop weak analysis before it becomes expensive.
Turns a vague professional worry into something teams can name, measure and manage — plus a structured conversation for balancing speed against understanding.
The eight-element model for framing AI conversations before they produce anything — outcome, audience, source, output, limits, iteration, evidence, evaluation.
The five-part review that decides whether an AI output deserves trust: Truth, Relevance, Assumptions, Consequences, Evidence.
The rhythm that ties it all together: Frame, Generate or Challenge, Review, Validate, Decide.
Interactive Tool
The ADI is not a scientific measurement, maturity model or audit score — it's a conversation tool from Chapter 9 that helps teams ask one question: are we producing artefacts faster than we are producing understanding? Move the sliders to reflect an honest team discussion, not a guess.
Your ADI Score
Do not rely on AI-assisted artefacts as decision-ready until problem understanding, validation and critical thinking improve.
Ask the team
Conceptual tool from Analysis Debt, Chapter 9. Not a scientific measurement, audit score or performance metric — its value is in the conversation it starts, not the number it produces.
The Frameworks
Three practical models from the book for framing AI conversations, reviewing what comes back, and keeping the rhythm of judgement intact.
| Element | Meaning | Prompt question |
|---|
| Element | Review question | Why it matters |
|---|
The rhythm that ties BASELINE, TRACE and the ADI together across a piece of work.
More from the author
Erivan writes regularly on AI, business analysis and the future of the profession at erivanramos.medium.com. A few recent posts:
BA must understand the intelligent systems that increasingly shape the decisions that people make.
Read on Medium → July 11On accountability when AI systems take autonomous action, and the BA's role in defining behavioural guardrails.
Read on Medium → July 7Why the most valuable AI skill may have nothing to do with AI.
Read on Medium → June 30On the gap between professional recognition and organisational understanding of Business Analysis.
Read on Medium → June 15Being a BA means speaking uncomfortable truths, and staying ethical in a world that would rather not hear them.
Read on Medium → All postsMore essays on AI, stakeholder engagement and digital transformation.
Visit erivanramos.medium.com →About the Author
Erivan de Sena Ramos is a Business Analysis Lead, Requirements Engineer, author and AI transformation practitioner with nearly two decades of experience helping organisations turn strategy into outcomes across Brazil and Australia. He is a Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP®), Project Management Professional (PMP®) and Certified ScrumMaster (CSM®), and holds ITIL® and COBIT® certifications.
An active contributor to the profession, he has repeatedly participated in BA mentor programs and served as a judge for the IIBA Annual Business Analysis Awards. He shares his work through magazine articles, conference presentations, published research and professional essays on Requirements Engineering, Business Analysis, AI, stakeholder engagement and digital transformation.
He is the author of Analysis Debt: Why AI Still Needs Business Analysis and The BA Renaissance: Elevate Your Impact as a Business Analyst. He has also written two books in Brazilian Portuguese: Dealing with Stakeholders: Best Practices for Business Analysis and Requirements Engineering, and Software Patterns for Systems Reengineering.
He writes regularly on Requirements Engineering, Business Analysis and AI at erivanramos.medium.com, where you can find more of his articles, essays and practical guidance for the profession.
Available in eBook and Print
Why AI Still Needs Business Analysis — for Business Analysts, Product Owners, AI transformation leaders and digital change professionals who want to keep judgement in the loop.
Get in touch
For interviews, conference talks, corporate workshops on Analysis Debt / BASELINE / TRACE, or bulk book orders, reach out directly.
bookanalysisdebt@gmail.com