Business Analyst - Accounting and Finance

DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES: The Employees Retirement System of Texas requests the services of one Business Analysis Consultant to focus on accounting and finance applications and processes, hereafter referred to as Worker. The Worker must meet the general qualification of Business Analyst 2, and the specifications outlined in this document by the Employees Retirement System of Texas. General Description: Performs senior-level business/systems analysis work. Coordinates gathering, development, and documentation of user requirements; and the review, assessment, and improvement of business processes. Uses best practices in business analysis and process modeling. Must be able to apply analytical skills to various business and technical processes. Works under the direction of the Business Analyst Team Manager. Functional Responsibilities: Essential Functions: • Identify opportunities for improving business processes to be more efficient or effective and assist in the business case vetting and preparation of proposals for information management efforts. • Coordinate the analysis of program policies and procedures to determine their effect on automated systems and system functional areas. • Focus on business value to develop ideas, including awareness of industry trends, risk assessments, business continuity, and business capability requirements. • Coordinate and/or analyze user requirements, procedures, and problems to automate or improve existing systems; and coordinate and/or analyze computer system capabilities, workflow, and scheduling limitations. • Coordinate the service request life cycle through customer-related service request responses, business requirements coordination, technical specifications and related artifacts review, and monitors system integration and user acceptance testing prior to implementation. • Coordinate with outside vendors and contractors to complete projects and service requests; and defines, may assign, and evaluate their work. • Identify potential project risks and difficulties, and designs strategies to mitigate or avoid them. • Review complex project deliverables such as design documentation, test plans, and risk assessment plans, and provides comments and suggestions to document owners. • Leads and coordinates process change requests and manage a project’s scope, acceptance, installation, and deployment. • Correlate business value and priorities to planning activities and goal-setting. Other Duties and Responsibilities: • Develops training curriculum and conduct formal system training. • Leads and coordinates processes change requests; and manages a project’s scope, acceptance, installation, and deployment. • Performs other duties as assigned. Professional Expectations • Attends all meetings, meets delivery deadlines and is available during ERS office hours. • Logs in and remains on agency Jabber during work hours • Attends remote meetings with camera on unless prior arranged for camera off • Coordinates leave and vacations with ERS lead • Must dress appropriately for a business/business casual environment • Communicates respectfully and works harmoniously with all co-workers, customers and vendors. • Provides exceptional customer service. • Is flexible; able to work under pressure and; able to adapt to change; and able to work on multiple problems and tasks. • Takes initiative to prevent and solve problems. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities • Ability to analyze and troubleshoot complex issues and propose solutions. • Ability to analyze systems and procedures. • Ability to write and revise standards and procedures. • Ability to handle multiple projects. • Ability to communicate effectively using excellent written and verbal communication skills. • Ability to communicate at all management levels and to communicate with both technical and non-technical personnel. • Ability to understand each division’s business processes and their dependencies. • Knowledge of business analysis procedures, business process modeling and design, requirements and process modeling tools, and meeting facilitation. • Ability to obtain and sustain the cooperation of others. • Ability to provide excellent customer service. • Ability to present a professional image and demeanor to internal and external contacts. WORKER SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS Minimum Years of Skills/Experience: • Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with major course work in management information systems or business administration • 4 years of Experience planning, eliciting, analyzing, and managing business requirements and monitoring throughout the software development life cycle (SDLC) including regression testing. Validate requirements with Front office / Middle Office / Regulatory stakeholders • 4 years of Experience leading simple and complex business process reengineering and transformation efforts that deliver efficiency improvements in quality and customer experience • 4 years of Experience performing a business relationship manager (liaison) role between functional and technical teams • 4 years of Experience leading project teams and/or operational and strategic organizational efforts that involved managing changes and stakeholder relationships, tracking and communicating performance, ensuring resource availability and allocation, coordinating third parties/vendors and delegating tasks • 4 years of Experience with projects addressing some of the following fields: data management, data quality, data warehousing, data modeling, data migration and integration, secure file transfers, enterprise system analysis, enterprise architecture, information security principles • 4 years Experience working in a scrum master role or in an agile scrum environment • 4 years Considerable knowledge of accounting, finance and/or investment concepts and terminology. • 4 years Experience with accounting, finance and/or investment system implementations and enhancements. • 4 years Experience analyzing and evaluating complex accounting, finance and/or investment technology applications, policies, and issues and enabling creative and workable solutions to complex problems and issues. • 4 years Experience with accounting, finance and/or investment software vendors and internal development teams in continuously improve technology requirements. • 4 years Develop and conduct curriculum and training sessions covering new and enhanced systems Preferred Years of Skills/Experience: • 4 years Experience in a wide range of business environments including business consulting • 4 years Experience with a variety of system implementations and enhancements supporting business areas related to: building operations, finance, benefits processing, procurement, contracts, legal, audit, human resources, vendor relations, project management, communications • 4 years Experience with MS Azure DevOps for requirements management, and project implementation • 4 years Experience with project management software • 4 years Technical expertise and experience in business systems analysis, system configuration, information security, and internal control frameworks • 4 years Technical expertise and experience with reporting databases, database design development, data modeling, mapping • 4 years Technical expertise and experience conducting enterprise business analysis such as problem/opportunity analysis, business case and business architecture development, feasibility studies and comprehensive risk assessments supporting value-based decision- making • 4 years Technical expertise and experience creating comprehensive system- level documentation, system implementation standards, and training materials for users with varied levels of technical understanding • Masters of Business of Administration (MBA), CCBA, CBAP, CSM, CSPO, PMI-PBA, PMP, ITIL, ICGB, or related Professional Expectations: • Attends all meetings, meets delivery deadlines and is available during ERS office hours. • Logs in and remains on agency Jabber during work hours. • Attends remote meetings with camera on unless prior arranged for camera off. • Coordinates leave and vacation with ERS lead. • Must dress appropriately for a business/business casual environment. • Communicates respectfully and works harmoniously with all co-workers, customers and vendors. • Provides exceptional customer service. • Is flexible; able to work under pressure and; able to adapt to change; and able to work on multiple problems and tasks. • Takes initiative to prevent and solve problems. ERS currently operates under a hybrid work model, requiring a minimum of three days per week in the office. The specific in-office days will be determined in coordination with your manager. Fully remote arrangements may be considered for candidates who demonstrate a strong ability to deliver results. However, if ERS determines that remote work is not meeting expectations, a transition to the hybrid on-site model will be required.