Events

Every great business analysis career has a turning point — usually a conversation with someone who's already been where you're trying to go. The Bluegrass IIBA Chapter is launching a new Mentoring Program to make that conversation possible for our entire business analysis community, whether you're an IIBA member or not, whether you live in Kentucky or not. If you are looking to advance your career, this program is for you. Join Program Coordinator Cathy Krist as she introduces the program and shows you exactly how it works: how mentees get matched with experienced BA professionals for career advice, skills building, career transitions, and IIBA certification guidance — and how mentors can give back to the profession that shaped their own careers. Whether you're looking to grow, or ready to help someone else grow, this is where it starts. Come hear the vision, meet the team behind it, and sign up on the spot as a mentee or a mentor. Presented by: Cathy Krist, CBAP (Retired) | Wednesday, September 9, 2026; 6:00 PM EDT | Virtual presentation | | Hosted by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter

You may be asked to review processes that no longer deliver value, remove processes after departmental mergers, or fix workflows that no longer work as intended. These tasks require a clear approach to business process analysis. The Bluegrass IIBA Chapter is hosting a full-day workshop on Saturday, September 12, 2026. The session will focus on assessing existing processes, understanding their link to strategy, and using BPM techniques to analyze, improve, and document business processes. This course qualifies for 6 PDHs/CDUs for all IIBA® certifications. This workshop is Sponsored by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter This Workshop is Delivered by David Vrbanek

BAs on the Street is a live event and video series in which we will have conversations with business analysis professionals in our community to see what is going on in the business analysis community. We will talk with business analyst all along the experience spectrum from those new to the profession to those with decades of business analysis experience. We will talk about the thrills and challenges of being a BA; and discuss the daily work of business analysts and where they may see the profession going in the future. We will then take questions from the audience. The BA on the Street: Nelly Ruiz, Business Analyst, Carnival Cruise Lines | Hosted by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter

GUARANTEED TO RUN | SEATS ARE LIMITED, ONLY 6 LEFT | Most AI courses promise you'll learn "prompting" in an afternoon. This one is different. The AI Career Accelerator is a six-week evening program that takes you from AI-curious to AI-competent across 15 discrete, portfolio-ready skills in five categories. You will build real, documented proof — not just a completion badge — that you can use AI at a professional level. Every skill includes a hands-on exercise and a portfolio deliverable, so by the end you walk away with 15 employer-ready work samples. 27 hours of course work and instruction over 6 weeks. Course includes one-on-one office hours with your instructor. Limited space, Only 20 seats available — first come, first served. This course qualifies for 27 PDHs/CDUs for all IIBA® certifications. Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, September 15 - October 22, 2026; 6:30 - 8:30 PM EDT | Virtual training class | This course is sponsored by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter This course is delivered by SoftEd

Organizations often try to improve results by pushing teams to move faster through existing processes. But in many cases, the real problem is not effort nor speed. It is workflow design. This session shares a practical business analysis case study on transforming a fragmented, delay-prone workflow into a more streamlined and scalable process. What initially appeared to be a turnaround-time issue was actually a structural problem shaped by hidden dependencies, system sync delays, manual handoffs, duplicated handling, and limited operational visibility. By stepping back to analyze the workflow end-to-end, the team reframed the problem, redesigned the operating path, and then applied automation more intentionally. The result was a centralized workflow with direct intake, automated routing, improved visibility, and significantly faster processing. The redesigned process reduced readiness time from 7–10 days to 1–3 days and eliminated major non-value-added steps. Attendees will leave with a practical framework for identifying hidden dependencies, diagnosing structural workflow problems, and applying redesign-first thinking before automation. While the case is specific, the approach is transferable across service delivery and other operational environments. Presented by: Adwoa Arhin, CBAP, PMP, Business Analyst | Wednesday, September 16, 2026; 6:00 PM EDT | Virtual presentation | | Hosted by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter

This is a free online chat session with some of our CPOA certified mentor(s). Whether you just want to learn more about the agile business analyst role, you are interested in obtaining the IIBA®-CPOA Certificate, or you just wish to learn the IIBA Guide to Product Ownership Analysis, this session is for you. Our certified mentors will tell you of their journey to become IIBA Certified, provide tips & tricks related to the IIBA Certification from the application process to re-certification. Whatever you wish to discuss, come let’s talk and ask questions of our certified mentors. CPOA Mentor: Aaron Whittenberger, CBAP, AAC, CPOA, A-CSPO, Senior Business Analyst | Hosted by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter

Join the Bluegrass IIBA Chapter for an engaging lunch hour focused on enhancing your business analysis toolkit! Our expert-led session will feature a hands-on demonstration of a practical BA technique you can apply to your work immediately. The Art of Negotiation for Business Analysts: Building Strong Foundations and Amplifying with AI A Bluegrass IIBA Chapter Lunch 'n Learn with Misael Castro Rosas September 22 | 12:00 PM EDT Negotiation isn't just for contract talks and salary discussions—it's a skill business analysts use every single day. Whether you're aligning stakeholders with competing priorities, negotiating scope with a project sponsor, or pushing back on an unrealistic deadline, your ability to negotiate effectively can make or break a project's success. In this session, Misael Castro Reyes will break down the core negotiation principles every BA needs in their toolkit: reading the room, finding common ground among stakeholders, balancing scope against limited time and resources, and knowing when to hold firm versus when to flex. But this isn't just a negotiation 101 session—we'll also explore how AI tools can give you an edge in preparation and strategy, helping you anticipate objections, structure your talking points, and walk into tough conversations more confident and better prepared. Whether you're a seasoned BA looking to sharpen your influence or newer to the role and want to build these skills early, you'll walk away with practical techniques you can apply in your very next stakeholder meeting. Presented by: Misael Castro Rosas, PMP, ITIL | Tuesday, September 22, 2026; 12:00 PM EDT | Virtual presentation | Hosted by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter

Early Bird Pricing ends September 4th | Design Thinking has emerged as a major trend for how innovative organizations and teams are approaching problem-solving. This hands-on, interactive workshop explores the intersection between Design Thinking and project teams and will provide participants with a high-level overview of Design Thinking methods and tools. Participants will work in small teams and will learn about useful tools to use in a more agile, discovery-driven world. Case studies are used to show concretely how to integrate design methods into projects with lessons learned and unique outcomes. The workshop includes a warm-up rapid-fire sketching exercise and several individual and group hands-on exercises to expose participants to various design methods for user research, idea generation, visualization and prototyping. At the conclusion of the workshop, participants should be able to describe the benefits of incorporating design methodologies on projects for increased customer alignment and business impact and be able to illustrate multiple design-thinking tools that could benefit current or future projects. This course qualifies for 4 PDHs/CDUs for all IIBA® certifications. This course will contribute 4 PMI® PDUs towards your chosen certification. Tuesday, September 22 and Wednesday, September 23, 2026 | 6PM - 8PM EDT | Virtual training class | This workshop is Sponsored by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter This Workshop is Delivered by Astrevo

GUARANTEED TO RUN | Early Bird Pricing Ends September 18th | Are you looking to expand your skills in using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to transform your business analysis and become a leader in leveraging emerging technologies? The future of business analysis lies at the intersection of human creativity and technological leverage. Our AI for Business Analysis course is an immersive and interactive journey to prepare experienced BA professionals for the AI-empowered future. Through real-world exercises with leading AI agents and tools, gain first-hand experience planning initiatives, analyzing requirements and devising solutions. You will learn methods of “prompt engineering” for using generative AI agents to produce key BA artifacts, research new subject matters, evaluate work, and conduct interviews with subject matter experts. Whilst balancing AI’s power to create content with human judgment, you will discover AI dialog techniques that will enable iterative and incremental analysis and development. This course qualifies for 14 PDHs/CDUs for all IIBA® certifications. This course will contribute 14 PMI® PDUs (12 Ways of Working and 2 Business Acumen) towards your chosen certification. | Get EEP level training at IIBA Chapter pricing! | Monday, October 5 - Wednesday, October 7, 2026; 12:00 PM - 4:30 PM EDT | Virtual training course | 3 sessions | 14 PD Hours/CDUs | This course is sponsored by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter This course is delivered by SoftEd US

Early Bird Pricing Ends September 25th | Quickly empower your executive teams and senior leaders to harness generative AI for strategic advantage, innovation, and deft navigation of this rapidly emerging technology. Equip yourself with the leadership skills necessary to effectively manage and integrate generative AI within your teams. This workshop focuses on practical strategies for fostering innovation, leading tech-driven change, and leveraging AI for enhanced team performance and decision-making. You will learn how to align AI initiatives with organizational goals, manage cross-functional AI projects, and cultivate a culture that supports continuous learning and adaptation. This course qualifies for 8 PDHs/CDUs for all IIBA® certifications. This course will contribute 8 PMI® PDUs (2 Ways of Working, 3 Power Skills and 3 Business Acumen) towards your chosen certification. | Get EEP level training at IIBA Chapter pricing! | Monday, October 12 - Tuesday, October 13, 2026; 12:00 PM - 4:30 PM EDT | Virtual training course | 2 sessions | 8 PD Hours/CDUs | This course is sponsored by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter This course is delivered by SoftEd US

Early Bird Pricing Ends September 25th | Are you interested in Product Ownership Analysis (IIBA®-CPOA) certificate, or just would like to do a deep dive into business analysis for product ownership, then this agile product ownership analysis training opportunity is for you! Bluegrass IIBA Chapter will host a virtual Product Ownership Analysis Study Group for those individuals interested in IIBA®-CPOA certification or learning the IIBA® Guide to Product Ownership Analysis to elevate their career. Bluegrass IIBA Chapter will run the study group for five (5) sessions on Monday evenings beginning on September 12, 2026. This study group will provide 15 Professional Development (PD) Hours for those students seeking IIBA® core certification, and provide a practice exam opportunity for all students. We ask students to begin studying early so it is a good idea to be registered at least one week prior to the first session. Register two weeks prior to the first session to take advantage of Early Bird pricing. Students will be provided with course material. This study group is an instructor-led course by instructors from the Bluegrass IIBA Chapter.

Join the IIBA Bluegrass, Ottawa-Outaouais, Palmetto, Nova Scotia, and DC Metro Chapters for our Lunch & Learn session as we explore a practical, technique-driven approach to navigating complexity as a Business Analyst. Whether you work in agile, hybrid, or traditional environments, this session gives Business Analysts a tool to improve decision-making, professional growth, stakeholder decision-making, and alignment.

Early Bird Pricing Ends September 25th | In an increasingly complex and interconnected world, understanding and addressing the root causes of issues requires a holistic approach. The "Systems Thinking Workshop" is designed to empower professionals with the skills and insights needed to analyze and solve complex problems through the lens of systems thinking. This interactive and engaging workshop introduces participants to the principles and methodologies of systems thinking, enabling them to view challenges from a broader perspective and identify leverage points for effective intervention. Through a combination of theoretical discussions and practical exercises, attendees will learn how to map systems, identify interdependencies, and develop strategies for sustainable solutions. By the end of the workshop, participants will have a robust toolkit for addressing complex problems. Whether you are a business analyst, project manager, business architect, manager, consultant, or engineer, this workshop will enhance your ability to think critically, make informed decisions, and drive meaningful change. Join us to cultivate a systems thinking mindset and transform the way you approach challenges. This course qualifies for 4 PDHs/CDUs for all IIBA® certifications. This course will contribute 4 PMI® PDUs towards your chosen certification. Tuesday, September 13 and Wednesday, September 14, 2026 | 6PM - 8PM EDT | Virtual training class | This workshop is Sponsored by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter This Workshop is Delivered by Astrevo

Most Business Analysts learn to build a stakeholder register. Fewer learn how the register is intended to be used — or the value it can bring throughout the initiative. We’re not building your traditional stakeholder register. The AI³ stakeholder decision support model introduces questions that rarely make it into the usual templates — and unlike the traditional register, which is largely a BA research exercise, what we’ll be doing here is an elicitation process. We’ll start with what the project brief gives us, then practice the decisions that only emerge through conversation: what does this stakeholder actually care about, how much influence do they really have, and what do I need to find out next? Using the Ohio Valley Vineyards (OVV) virtual stakeholder ecosystem, participants will observe and conduct live elicitation with AI stakeholder bots, then make sense of what they heard — turning the conversation into analysis. By the end of the session, you’ll be able to walk into a stakeholder conversation with a clearer sense of what you’re listening for — and what to do with what you hear. This course is sponsored by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter This course is delivered by Tom Tomasovic (BABetterBA)

Most job search advice arrives as a pile of tips. This session does something different. It treats the search the way a Business Analyst would treat any broken business process: as a level 1 value stream, mapped end to end, with the value leaks hunted down at every transition. Across seven stages, from job trigger through to outcome, we will unpack where good candidates lose roles for reasons that have nothing to do with their capability. At every stage we will name the leak, and work out how to seal it. Part one reframes the search itself. A job description is not a posting, it is a requirements document describing a problem someone wants solved. That single shift changes your resume, your networking and every interview answer that follows. Part two moves into the room, going beyond STAR to the fifth letter that changes every response, and the hidden test sitting behind each question theme. We will also look at how AI can carry the heavy lifting in your search, so your time goes into preparing properly for the roles that actually matter. Drawing on twenty years across banking, auto finance, telecom, insurance and financial crime in India, the UK and Australia, and on time spent on both sides of the hiring table, this is a toolkit you adapt, not a template you copy. Presented by: Kiranpreet Kaur, CBAP, Founder of The BA Gym | Wednesday, October 21, 2026; 6:00 PM EDT | Virtual presentation | | Hosted by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter

Put multiple stakeholders in the same room at the same time to define a problem and you get mush — a lowest-common-denominator statement that everyone can live with and nobody actually owns. Writing a problem statement is easy when you only have one stakeholder. Getting multiple stakeholders to actually agree on what the problem is — that’s the work. The conversations have to happen one stakeholder at a time, and the BA’s job is to keep track of what each stakeholder said — and didn’t say — long enough to synthesize something real that they can all grab on to and own. Using the Ohio Valley Vineyards (OVV) virtual stakeholder ecosystem, participants will conduct live elicitation focused on problem framing, then work through the synthesis that turns individual perspectives into a problem definition stakeholders can actually own. This course is sponsored by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter This course is delivered by Tom Tomasovic (BABetterBA)

Join us for a delightfully themed evening as the Bluegrass, Southeast Michigan and Chicagoland IIBA Chapters come together to celebrate what makes both life and agile work special. This month, we're stacking three celebrations into one unmissable event — because why sprint through one theme when you can triple-track it? Business analysts are impact-makers by trade — we untangle the messy middle, connect the dots nobody else sees, and turn "it depends" into "here's the path forward." This month, we're celebrating exactly that with 'Be the Impact Day', honoring the everyday ways BAs drive meaningful change — one requirement, one root cause, one well-facilitated meeting at a time. And because great impact deserves great fuel and a little fun, we're pairing it with 'National Sandwich Day' (and every good sprint deserves a good spread). And to round it out, we're embracing 'Cliché Day' — the one day a year we can say "let's circle back" without any guilt whatsoever. All for a night that's equal parts inspiring and ridiculous. This promises to be a fun and interactive event, one You Won't Want to Miss! Hosted by Bluegrass, Southeast Michigan and Chicagoland IIBA Chapters

Join the Bluegrass IIBA Chapter for an engaging lunch hour focused on enhancing your business analysis toolkit! Our expert-led session will feature a hands-on demonstration of a practical BA technique you can apply to your work immediately. Does your team struggle to get everyone on the same page about how work actually gets done? You're not alone. Unclear business modeling practices are one of the leading causes of miscommunication, costly rework, and project failures — and they don't have to be. Join us for an engaging Lunch 'n' Learn session where experienced BA practitioner David Vrbanek will demystify Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) — one of the most powerful tools in a Business Analyst's toolkit. Whether you're new to process modeling or looking to sharpen your skills, this session will meet you where you are and leave you with practical techniques you can apply immediately. Presented by: David Vrbanek, CSPO, Senior Agile Business Analyst | Thursday, November 12, 2026; 2:00 PM EST | Virtual presentation | Hosted by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter

You didn't see the gorilla. Neither did most people in the famous experiment — and that's the point. Our brains are remarkable, but they're far less reliable than we think. Join Thea Soehren for an eye-opening look at classic attention and perception experiments that reveal just how easily we miss the obvious, misremember the past, and confidently believe things that simply aren't true. For business analysts, this isn't just fascinating trivia — it's essential. Once you understand how fallible human perception really is, you start to rethink everything: how you capture requirements, how you validate stakeholder input, and how you protect projects from the hidden risk of "I'm sure I remember it correctly." Come find out why our minds overlook, distort, and forget — and leave with practical ways to become a sharper listener, a more careful note-taker, and a more trustworthy analyst. Presented by: Thea Soehren, CBAP, CSPO, ICP-APO | Wednesday, November 18, 2026; 6:00 PM EST | Virtual presentation | | Hosted by Bluegrass IIBA Chapter