Management Analyst

Conduct organizational studies and evaluations, design systems and procedures, conduct work simplification and measurement studies, and prepare operations and procedures manuals to assist management in operating more efficiently and effectively. Includes program analysts and management consultants.

On the job, you would:

Gather and organize information on problems or procedures.
Confer with personnel concerned to ensure successful functioning of newly implemented systems or procedures.
Analyze data gathered and develop solutions or alternative methods of proceeding.

Important Qualities

Analytical skills. Management analysts must be able to interpret information and use their findings to make proposals.

Communication skills. Management analysts must be able to convey information clearly in both writing and speaking. Analysts also need good listening skills to understand an organization’s problems and recommend appropriate solutions.

Interpersonal skills. Management analysts work with managers and other employees of the organizations for which they provide consulting services. They should be able to work as a team toward achieving the organization’s goals.

Problem-solving skills. Management analysts must be able to think creatively to solve clients’ problems. Although some aspects of clients’ problems may be similar, each situation is likely to present unique challenges for the analyst to solve.

Time-management skills. Management analysts often work under tight deadlines and must use their time efficiently to complete projects on schedule.

Personality

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Characteristics of this Career
		95%	Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
		93%	Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
		92%	Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
		91%	Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
		91%	Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
		90%	Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
		88%	Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
		87%	Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
		87%	Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
		87%	Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
		83%	Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
		78%	Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
		75%	Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
		74%	Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
		73%	Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.
		73%	Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Strengths
		89%	Investigative - Work involves studying and researching non-living objects, living organisms, disease or other forms of impairment, or human behavior. Investigative occupations are often associated with physical, life, medical, or social sciences, and can be found in the fields of humanities, mathematics/statistics, information technology, or health care service.
		83%	Enterprising - Work involves managing, negotiating, marketing, or selling, typically in a business setting, or leading or advising people in political and legal situations. Enterprising occupations are often associated with business initiatives, sales, marketing/advertising, finance, management/administration, professional advising, public speaking, politics, or law.
		56%	Conventional - Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Values of the Work Environment
		83%	Relationships - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.
		72%	Achievement - Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
		72%	Independence - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
		70%	Working Conditions - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
		67%	Recognition - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status.

Aptitude

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Abilities \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		78%	Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
		78%	Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
		78%	Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
		78%	Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
		75%	Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
		75%	Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
		75%	Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
		72%	Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
		72%	Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
		69%	Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
		66%	Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
		60%	Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
		56%	Category Flexibility - The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
		56%	Originality - The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Skills \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		59%	Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
		59%	Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
		59%	Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
		59%	Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
		59%	Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
		57%	Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
		57%	Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
		57%	Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
		57%	Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
		57%	Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
		55%	Persuasion - Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
		55%	Systems Evaluation - Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
		55%	Operations Analysis - Analyzing needs and product requirements to create a design.
		55%	Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
		55%	Systems Analysis - Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
		54%	Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.

Job Details

Responsibilities

Gather organizational performance information.

Analyze business or financial data.

Confer with personnel to coordinate business operations.

Develop business or financial information systems.

Discuss business strategies, practices, or policies with managers.

Analyze jobs using observation, survey, or interview techniques.

Prepare research reports.

Advise others on business or operational matters.

Develop training materials.

Train personnel in organizational or compliance procedures.

Edit written materials.

Edit documents.

Conduct scientific research of organizational behavior or processes.

Develop procedures to evaluate organizational activities.

Advise others on business or operational matters.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent
		100%	Electronic Mail - How often do you use electronic mail in this job?
		97%	Telephone - How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
		94%	Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
		84%	Work With Work Group or Team - How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
		84%	Structured versus Unstructured Work - To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?
		82%	Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
		81%	Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
		80%	Spend Time Sitting - How much does this job require sitting?
		78%	Freedom to Make Decisions - How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?
		78%	Coordinate or Lead Others - How important is it to coordinate or lead others in accomplishing work activities in this job?
		77%	Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job?
		77%	Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - What results do your decisions usually have on other people or the image or reputation or financial resources of your employer?
		75%	Time Pressure - How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?
		71%	Letters and Memos - How often does the job require written letters and memos?
		69%	Frequency of Decision Making - How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
		66%	Deal With External Customers - How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job?
		65%	Responsibility for Outcomes and Results - How responsible is the worker for work outcomes and results of other workers?
		64%	Level of Competition - To what extent does this job require the worker to compete or to be aware of competitive pressures?
		60%	Duration of Typical Work Week - Number of hours typically worked in one week.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Tasks & Values
		93%	Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
		91%	Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
		91%	Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships - Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
		91%	Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
		86%	Providing Consultation and Advice to Others - Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups on technical, systems-, or process-related topics.
		85%	Analyzing Data or Information - Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts.
		85%	Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others - Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
		85%	Developing Objectives and Strategies - Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.
		83%	Communicating with People Outside the Organization - Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
		82%	Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work - Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
		82%	Working with Computers - Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
		81%	Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
		79%	Processing Information - Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
		78%	Thinking Creatively - Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
		76%	Documenting/Recording Information - Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
		75%	Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
		74%	Selling or Influencing Others - Convincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions.
		74%	Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others - Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
		73%	Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards - Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
		73%	Developing and Building Teams - Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
		72%	Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings - Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
		69%	Training and Teaching Others - Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
		69%	Coaching and Developing Others - Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
		65%	Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others - Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
		65%	Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People - Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
		63%	Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information - Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.
		60%	Scheduling Work and Activities - Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
		55%	Monitoring and Controlling Resources - Monitoring and controlling resources and overseeing the spending of money.
		55%	Performing Administrative Activities - Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.
		54%	Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates - Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.

What Management Analysts Do

Although some management analysts work for the company that they are analyzing, most work as consultants on a contractual basis.

Management analysts, often called management consultants, recommend ways to improve an organization’s efficiency. They advise managers on how to make organizations more profitable through reduced costs and increased revenues.

Duties

Management analysts typically do the following:

Gather and organize information about the problems to be solved or the procedures to be improved
Interview personnel and conduct onsite observations to determine the methods, equipment, and personnel that will be needed
Analyze financial and other data, including revenue, expenditure, and employment reports
Develop solutions or alternative practices
Recommend new systems, procedures, or organizational changes
Make recommendations to management through presentations or written reports
Confer with managers to ensure changes are working

Although some management analysts work for the organization that they analyze, many work as consultants on a contractual basis.

The work of management analysts may vary from project to project. Some projects require a team of analysts, each specializing in one area. On other projects, analysts work independently with the client organization’s managers.

Management analysts often specialize in certain areas, such as inventory control or reorganizing corporate structures for efficiency. Some focus on a specific industry, such as healthcare or telecommunications. In government, management analysts usually specialize by type of agency.

Organizations hire management analysts to develop strategies for entering and remaining competitive in the market.

Management analysts who work on contract may write proposals and bid for jobs. Typically, an organization that needs the help of a management analyst requests proposals from a number of consultants and consulting companies that specialize in the needed work. Interested companies then submit a proposal that explains details such as how the work will be completed, what the schedule will be, and how much it will cost. The organization selects the proposal that best meets its needs and budget.

Work Environment

Management analysts held about 987,600 jobs in 2022. The largest employers of management analysts were as follows:

Professional, scientific, and technical services	35%
Government	17
Self-employed workers	14
Finance and insurance	12
Management of companies and enterprises	4

Management analysts usually divide their time between their offices and the client’s site. Because they must spend a significant amount of time with clients, analysts travel frequently. Analysts may experience stress, especially when trying to meet a client’s demands on a tight schedule.

Work Schedules

Analysts often work many hours under tight deadlines. Some work more than 40 hours per week.

Getting Started

Education:

57%

Bachelor's Degree

24%

Master's Degree

How to Become a Management Analyst

A bachelor’s degree is the typical entry-level requirement for obtaining a management analyst position.

Management analysts typically need at least a bachelor’s degree and several years of related work experience.

Education

A bachelor’s degree is the typical entry-level requirement for management analysts. However, some employers prefer to hire candidates who have a master’s degree in business administration (MBA).

Management analysts address a range of topics, and many fields of study provide a suitable educational background. Fields of bachelor's degree study may include business, social science, and engineering.

Licenses, Certifications, and Registrations

The Institute of Management Consultants USA (IMC USA) offers the Certified Management Consultant (CMC) designation to those who meet minimum levels of education and experience and who complete other requirements. Management analysts are not required to get certification, but having the credential may give jobseekers a competitive advantage.

Work Experience in a Related Occupation

Many analysts enter the occupation with several years of work experience. Organizations that specialize in certain fields typically try to hire candidates who have experience in those areas. For example, tax preparation firms may prefer candidates who have worked as an accountant or auditor, and software companies might seek those with experience as a computer systems analyst.

Advancement

As management analysts gain experience, they often take on more responsibility. Senior-level analysts may supervise teams working on complex projects and may become involved in seeking out new business. Those with exceptional skills may eventually become partners in their organization and focus on attracting new clients and bringing in revenue. Senior analysts may leave consulting and move to management positions at non-consulting organizations.

Job Outlook

Employment of management analysts is projected to grow 10 percent from 2022 to 2032, much faster than the average for all occupations.

About 92,900 openings for management analysts are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.

Employment

Demand for consulting services is expected to increase as organizations seek ways to improve efficiency and control costs. As markets become more competitive, firms will need to use resources more efficiently.

Information technology (IT) consultants are expected to see high demand. Businesses will seek out consulting firms to help them attain a high level of cybersecurity and make sure their IT systems are efficient and up to date.

Growth is expected to be particularly strong in smaller consulting companies that specialize in specific industries or types of business function, such as information technology or human resources. Government agencies also are expected to seek the services of management analysts as they look for ways to reduce spending and improve efficiency.

Contacts for More Information

For more information about the Certified Management Consultant designation, visit

Institute of Management Consultants USA

For more information about other certifications in management consulting, visit

Global Academy of Finance and Management

Similar Occupations

This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of management analysts.

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