I never planned to become a business analyst. In fact, I avoided it. I imagined endless meetings, unclear requirements, and conversations that had nothing to do with “real” technical work. I wanted to stay hands-on as a developer and data scientist.

But reality proved something important: you can't escape the business side if you want to build meaningful solutions. And once I learned how to talk to business stakeholders, everything changed: my impact, my influence, and the outcomes of the projects I worked on.

In this talk, we’ll explore the practical business skills every developer needs but is rarely taught: • How to identify key stakeholders and understand what they really want • How to navigate communication in international, cross-functional teams • How to uncover business pain points before they become blockers • How to fix broken communication loops • How to become the go-to technical partner the business trusts

By the end, you won’t just see yourself as a strong technical contributor: you’ll see how to position yourself as an essential part of the broader business ecosystem, shaping better decisions and delivering solutions that truly matter.