Business Analyst (Michigan Local Only)

Key Responsibilities Business Analysis Leadership • Lead requirements gathering sessions, stakeholder interviews, and workshops to identify business needs and project objectives. • Translate complex business requirements into functional specifications, user stories, and acceptance criteria. • Create and maintain Business Requirement Documents (BRD), Functional Requirement Documents (FRD), process flows, and data mapping documents. • Conduct impact analysis and gap analysis for system enhancements and new initiatives. • Provide guidance and mentorship to junior business analysts. • Serve as the primary liaison between business stakeholders, development teams, and QA teams. Azure DevOps & Agile Delivery • Manage and maintain product backlogs, user stories, tasks, and defects in Azure DevOps. • Collaborate with Product Owners and Scrum Masters to prioritize backlog items and plan sprint deliverables. • Ensure end-to-end requirements traceability using Azure DevOps work items and dashboards. • Track sprint progress, testing status, and defect metrics using Azure DevOps reporting tools. • Actively participate in Agile ceremonies including sprint planning, backlog grooming, daily stand-ups, and retrospectives. Quality Assurance & Testing Oversight • Define and review test strategies, test plans, and test cases aligned with business requirements. • Support and oversee functional, integration, regression, and User Acceptance Testing (UAT). • Manage defect lifecycle in Azure DevOps, ensuring timely resolution and validation. • Collaborate with QA teams to ensure test coverage, data validation, and quality standards are met. • Ensure delivered solutions meet business expectations and compliance requirements. Process Improvement & Strategic Contribution • Identify opportunities to improve business processes, workflows, and system efficiencies. • Recommend technology solutions and automation opportunities. • Contribute to enterprise-level business analysis standards and best practices. • Support change management, training, and adoption strategies for new systems. Documentation & Stakeholder Communication • Develop and maintain comprehensive documentation including workflows, business rules, and system requirements. • Present analysis findings, system recommendations, and project updates to leadership and stakeholders. • Ensure clear communication between technical teams and business stakeholders. Required Qualifications • Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business Administration, or related field. • 7+ years of experience as an IT Business Analyst on enterprise software projects. • Hands-on experience with Azure DevOps for backlog management, user stories, sprint tracking, and defect management. • Strong experience with software testing, QA processes, and UAT coordination. • Deep knowledge of Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) and Agile methodologies (Scrum, Kanban). • Proven experience writing user stories, acceptance criteria, and detailed functional specifications. • Excellent analytical, leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills. Preferred Qualifications • Experience working in enterprise-scale or multi-team Agile environments. • Familiarity with SQL, APIs, data integration, and system architecture concepts. • Experience supporting CI/CD pipelines and release management processes.