Business Systems Analyst | PSU Human Resources

Summary

Job Category:

Applications

Job Title:

Business Systems Analyst

Job Category Definition:

This specialty covers the design, development, installation, implementation, modification, support, and decommission of new or existing applications software. Functions may include analyzing functional and systems requirements, developing application architecture and design, writing code, validating data acquisition and output media/formats, designing user interfaces, developing and maintaining websites, interactive applications, simulations, video/audio streaming, working with users to test, debug, and troubleshoot applications, assuring software and systems quality and functionality, integrating hardware and software components, writing and maintaining program documentation, evaluating new and improved software applications and programming technologies, and ensuring the rigorous application of information security/information assurance policies, principles, and practices. 

Job Title Definition:

Business Systems Analysts perform duties related to the implementation, management, maintenance, enhancement, support, and decommission of critical software systems, whether purchased through a vendor or developed internally. Business Systems Analysts consult with stakeholders to gather and define requirements; configure and implement new systems and/or enhance existing systems; write and execute test plans; troubleshoot and resolve complex system issues; deliver training and guidance to end users and system/service owners; develop and maintain system documentation; prepare robust reports to enhance strategic business decisions. Duties are performed at various levels within the defined title.

Working Conditions:

Specific physical requirements and effort are outlined in Job Responsibilities Worksheet (list of essential job duties and responsibilities specific to a particular job at the unit level) in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA).

Other Requirements:

 

Levels

Level 1  

Level Details
Job Code
Salary Band
FLSA Status
ITSU0701
H
Non-Exempt

Level 1 positions typically demonstrate baseline working knowledge of routine work applications; follow standard principles and systems and use appropriate terminology associated with a particular field of specialization; participate as a team member in a collaborative environment within a diverse workforce; actively contribute to completion of team goals and assigned tasks; clearly communicate information, ideas, or instructions verbally and in writing; follow recommended approach to assigned work to facilitate achievement of desired results; ensure safe practices and environmental consciousness are exhibited in decisions; typically work under direct and frequent supervision while performing routine duties using established procedures with detailed instructions.

Typical Education & Experience

2+ years related experience

Associate’s Degree or higher

Or an equivalent combination of education and experience

Typical Work Duties

• Serve as the first point of contact for business applications 
• Provide Tier I and Tier II customer service and functional support to end-users in area of expertise
• Work with customers to diagnose, review, and resolve incidents
• Identify and refer unresolved problems for resolution
• Maintain records of system incidents 
• Assist in preparing reports and documentation
• Assist in developing and documenting standards
• Update user accounts and grant permissions based on approved requests
• Perform data validation using various reports generated from systems 
• Participate in the execution of test plans to ensure desired results are achieved
• May work as part of a project support team
• May collaborate with various subject-matter experts to assess solution needs and identify desired outcomes
• Participate in activities and research to maintain knowledge of industry developments 

This profile is intended to indicate the kinds of tasks and levels of work difficulty that will be required of positions in this job title and should not be construed as declaring what the specific duties and responsibilities of any particular position shall be. It is not intended to limit or in any way modify the right of any supervisor to assign, direct, and control the work of employees under his/her supervision. The use of a particular expression or illustration describing duties should not be held to exclude other duties not mentioned that are of a similar kind or level of difficulty.

Level 2  

Level Details
Job Code
Salary Band
FLSA Status
ITSU0702
I
Non-Exempt

Level 2 positions typically demonstrate intermediate knowledge of the concepts, practices and procedures of a particular field of specialization; perform intermediate tasks in defined skill areas/applications by continuously building on current job knowledge; maintain effective relationships with peers, vendors, and others in a diverse environment; support team decisions and follow through with team responsibilities; interpret information, ideas and instructions and communicate clearly and accurately both verbally and in writing including materials intended for distribution; determine causes of unusual occurrences and apply standard principles and practices to determine and implement solutions; ensure safe practices and environmental consciousness are exhibited in decisions; typically work under general supervision, while performing assignments that are varied and that may be somewhat difficult in character, but usually involve limited responsibility.

Typical Education & Experience

4+ years related experience

Associate’s Degree or higher

Or an equivalent combination of education and experience

Typical Work Duties

• Collaborate as part of a team to ensure the stability, integrity, and efficient operation of business systems
• Administer, monitor, and maintain applications in accordance with area standards
• Provide Tier I and Tier II customer service and functional support to end-users in area of expertise; work with customers to diagnose, review, and resolve incidents
• Serve as a liaison between technical staff and user groups
• Consult with users to identify business needs and requirements
• Execute developed test plans to ensure desired results are achieved; support testing such as user acceptance, performance, security, and usability
• Perform regular maintenance and testing along with software upgrades to verify effect on existing features and functions
• Contribute to the modification and configuration of systems to meet business needs and stakeholder requirements
• May design and edit application workflows to enhance business processes
• May update and maintain user accounts and manage various permissions
• Collaborate with vendor partners as needed; work with vendors on bug fixes
• Provide user training and demonstration of systems
• Collaborate in the preparation of technical reports, diagrams, workflow maps, or other visuals to facilitate enhanced system understanding 
• Create and manage documentation; maintain records of system changes and incidents
• May develop, produce, and optimize customized reports in response to user requirements 
• Maintain familiarity with installed software standards and procedures and evaluate other tools to determine appropriate fit

This profile is intended to indicate the kinds of tasks and levels of work difficulty that will be required of positions in this job title and should not be construed as declaring what the specific duties and responsibilities of any particular position shall be. It is not intended to limit or in any way modify the right of any supervisor to assign, direct, and control the work of employees under his/her supervision. The use of a particular expression or illustration describing duties should not be held to exclude other duties not mentioned that are of a similar kind or level of difficulty.

Level 3  

Level Details
Job Code
Salary Band
FLSA Status
ITSU0703
K
Exempt

Level 3 positions typically demonstrate proficient and comprehensive knowledge of defined skill areas/applications to integrate fundamental elements from other specialties into work assignments; apply knowledge of principles, practices, and procedures of a particular field of specialization to complete difficult assignments; promote a culture that is conducive to effective relationships among diverse team members; ensure safe practices and environmental consciousness are exhibited in decisions; may lead a project team involved in completion of difficult assignments, requiring proficient knowledge of field of specialization; interpret and communicate information, ideas and instructions clearly, accurately and persuasively both verbally and in writing including materials intended for distribution; incorporate new facts and ideas into group processes and apply creative thinking to develop new solutions; typically work with minimal supervision on difficult assignments, conferring with manager on unusual matters.

Typical Education & Experience

4+ years related experience

Bachelor’s Degree or higher

Or an equivalent combination of education and experience

Typical Work Duties

• Serve as a subject matter expert for a complex business system
• Ensure the stability, integrity, and efficient operation of business systems
• Consult with various stakeholders to gather requirements 
• Identify and analyze requirements to define scope, objectives, and feasibility
• Modify and configure systems to meet business needs and stakeholder requirements
• Develop, analyze, and maintain new or current system processes and workflows 
• Compile data from various databases and/or sources; display and analyze data
• Prepare robust technical reports and create diagrams, workflow maps, or other visuals to facilitate enhanced system understanding
• Identify, evaluate, and implement new systems and solutions, or identify enhancements to existing systems; define requirements and specifications
• Develop and execute test plans and scripts, as well as other quality assurance measures; lead testing such as user acceptance, performance, security, usability, etc. 
• Collect user feedback regarding system performance and work with team to prioritize configuration requests 
• Collaborate with cross-functional IT staff to streamline solution implementations
• Provide advanced customer service and functional support to end-users in area of expertise  
• Monitor, troubleshoot, and resolve complex system issues
• Maintain relationships with vendors; work with vendors on bug fixes, new features, and proper use of products
• Establish baseline key performance indicators (KPI) / metrics for systems monitoring 
• Assist with implementing “workarounds” when system issues affect operations or when resources are limited
• Assist in writing specifications used by developers for automation of business processes
• Participate in the implementation of system patches, updates, and maintenance 
• Develop and provide trainings, demonstrations, and regular communication to end-users
• Maintain records of system integrations, changes, and incidents
• Lead portions of large tasks or projects; build and maintain project management skills
• May lead and mentor other Business Systems Analysts and technical staff 
• Maintain awareness of accessibility, compliance, and security polices and guidelines 

This profile is intended to indicate the kinds of tasks and levels of work difficulty that will be required of positions in this job title and should not be construed as declaring what the specific duties and responsibilities of any particular position shall be. It is not intended to limit or in any way modify the right of any supervisor to assign, direct, and control the work of employees under his/her supervision. The use of a particular expression or illustration describing duties should not be held to exclude other duties not mentioned that are of a similar kind or level of difficulty.

Level 4  

Level Details
Job Code
Salary Band
FLSA Status
ITSU0704
L
Exempt

Level 4 positions typically demonstrate advanced knowledge of principles, practices, and procedures of a particular field of specialization and complete complex assignments; integrate complex elements from other specialties into work assignments; demonstrate a strong commitment to inclusionary practices which support diversity throughout the University; establish a shared vision and take responsibility for the achievement of team goals, and provide direction for appropriate implementation of plans; present ideas, concepts and instructions in a clear manner, and use persuasion and negotiation to build consensus and cooperation; ensure safe practices and environmental consciousness are exhibited in decisions; develop new techniques, concepts, theories, programs or solutions and apply them to complex strategic operating issues; typically work independently on complex work assignments, review progress and evaluate results and update management as appropriate; may direct and delegate work to lower-level staff.

Typical Education & Experience

6+ years related experience

Bachelor’s Degree or higher

Or an equivalent combination of education and experience

Typical Work Duties

• Serve as a Senior/Lead Business Systems Analyst for a large scope solution 
• Provide expertise to stakeholders to identify and analyze business needs to develop system requirements and translate into technical specifications
• Provide advanced knowledge of systems to ensure functionality meets stakeholder requirements and serve as a resource for complex issues and solutions
• Lead the evaluation, design, and implementation new business systems; identify enhancements to existing systems; measure user adoption for system changes 
• Lead and mentor team members, to include lower level Business Systems Analysts and other technical staff 
• Analyze, develop, and recommend business processes or plans to improve system efficiencies and increase customer satisfaction
• Collect user feedback regarding system performance; take a lead role in the prioritization of configuration requests
• Provide direction to implement new requirements and plans; provide input to system strategic planning; establish best practices  
• May lead the review of vendor software upgrades and assess impact to existing systems 
• Propose and implement configurations for new or existing software systems to meet business requirements
• Troubleshoot and resolve complex system issues and/or escalations
• Lead the development and execution of various test plans, as well as overall system quality assurance; establish testing standards  
• Lead communication plans; provide timely dissemination of communications for system changes; determine support and resource requirements associated with each change 
• Develop and maintain business requirements and system documentation
• Develop and provide training to team members and end-users
• Lead unit and/or university projects or teams; demonstrate proficiency in project management 
• May supervise staff members, including hiring, development, and performance management 

This profile is intended to indicate the kinds of tasks and levels of work difficulty that will be required of positions in this job title and should not be construed as declaring what the specific duties and responsibilities of any particular position shall be. It is not intended to limit or in any way modify the right of any supervisor to assign, direct, and control the work of employees under his/her supervision. The use of a particular expression or illustration describing duties should not be held to exclude other duties not mentioned that are of a similar kind or level of difficulty.

Level 5  

Level Details
Job Code
Salary Band
FLSA Status
ITSU0705
M
Exempt

Level 5 positions typically extend mastery of job knowledge to the principles, theories and practices of related specialties; expand knowledge of best practices and incorporate into all work assignments and procedures; evaluate and enhance current practices and efforts to ensure optimal support of diversity; oversee leadership of teams and projects that involve extensive cooperation and coordination between multiple departments across the University or with external customers; prepare written and/or verbal presentations or proposals on highly complex issues and deliver to a broad variety of audiences; identify and implement innovative solutions to important, highly complex strategic and/or operational issues which may involve unusual circumstances and incomplete or conflicting data; ensure safe practices and environmental consciousness are exhibited in decisions; work independently on highly complex or strategic assignments; may direct and supervise lower-level staff.

Typical Education & Experience

10+ years of related experience

Bachelor’s Degree or higher

Or an equivalent combination of education and experience

Typical Work Duties

• Serve as the senior consultant for one or more large scope business systems 
• Incorporate the goals and mission of both the unit and the University in all work assignments and procedures
• Develop long-term strategic plans
• Evaluate and initiate the change processes necessary to enhance integrated business processes and services for University-wide, national, and/or international use
• Serve as consultant for new technical business solution advances, particularly those using integrated technologies and services; perform cost/benefit analysis to align technology with business strategies
• Meet with various personnel, including senior leadership, to analyze needs, design and develop technical solutions; implement, review progress, and evaluate results on complex and/or strategic work assignments
• Establish and maintain best practices for business/functional analysis 
• Examine processes to understand impact to people, strategy, systems, and general business operations and recommend actions or provide information to stakeholders to manage change; support issue resolution to ensure project success
• Track performance and feedback on business processes to serve as the basis of future process improvements and monitor and measure the effectiveness of business processes to ensure consistent value delivery
• Prioritize requests for configuration changes and enhancements and lead the solution execution strategy 
• Serve as a mentor to large teams that may include one or more Senior/Lead Business Systems Analysts; may supervise staff members, including hiring, development, and performance management
• Lead the development of policies and procedures
• Develop and deliver communications related to critical system updates and process changes 
• Lead large tasks or projects; demonstrate advanced project management knowledge and skills 
• Utilize change management strategies and methodology in the development of communication and implementation plans
• May be responsible for various administrative and budget tasks

This profile is intended to indicate the kinds of tasks and levels of work difficulty that will be required of positions in this job title and should not be construed as declaring what the specific duties and responsibilities of any particular position shall be. It is not intended to limit or in any way modify the right of any supervisor to assign, direct, and control the work of employees under his/her supervision. The use of a particular expression or illustration describing duties should not be held to exclude other duties not mentioned that are of a similar kind or level of difficulty.