Hi everyone,

January, to me, is usually one of the longest months of the year for me. Yes, I do realize it is the same 31 days as several months in the year, but with the short daylight days, plus missing the holiday lights on many of the homes and working to get back in the rhythm of the day after a season of indulgences, I definitely am happy to see January in the rear view mirror.

February brings us both our regular monthly meeting and study group as well as a quarterly Lunch and Learn collaboration with three other chapters in Canada and the US. While the regular program activities are fantastic each and every month, the Lunch and Learn “Technique Boutique” is a chance to not only hear a great speaker on a specific business analysis technique, but it’s a chance to network with more BA colleagues from the Nova Scotia, the Palmetto and DC Metro chapters of IIBA!

I was fortunate to attend an event for IIBA volunteers of the Ottawa-Outaouais Chapter recently where we had some wonderful discussions on a wide range of topics. It never fails to amaze me how diverse and interesting our IIBA community is.

I also wanted to draw your attention to IIBA’s global website and the recently released Part 1 of the IIBA’s Global State of Business Analysis Report (www.iiba.org). It is always interesting to see how we are growing as an organization and as a profession.

I hope to see you at one of our February events.

Helen Racette, PEng, CBAP®, P2P

President, IIBA Ottawa-Outaouais Chapter