In a recent research report published by Forrester, Sharyn Leaver identifies Five Business Process and Application Trends for 2008.

One of the five is "The Evolving Business Analyst Role".  As the role of the business analyst becomes ever more strategic for all organizations, expect that CIO's will pay more attention and resources to defining and solidifying the role of the business analyst.

Also note a couple of more related trends: Dynamic Business Applications” and “business process centers of excellence (COEs).”

Here is more information on the Forrester report:

Executive Summary: "Many business process and applications professionals rightfully focus their attention on the immediate project at hand, like an application upgrade or specific process improvement project. Yet many point to a lack of insight into future trends as an inhibitor to their effectiveness and development. Numerous trends will affect the business process and applications professional in 2008, but pay close attention to five in particular — three concern next-generation applications and architectures, and two center around becoming a more business-process-oriented organization. These trends are: Dynamic Business Applications; Web 2.0 and tech populism; software-as-a-service (SaaS); business process centers of excellence (COEs); and the evolving business analyst role. "

Get the report ($$): Five Trends That Will Shape The Business Process And Applications Profession In 2008

Abridged version from CIO.com: Five Business Process and Application Trends for 2008