Senior Systems Analyst/Business Analyst with mainframe expertise - REMOTE

Job Description:

***Crop to Crop resumes are accepted

Major responsibilities include conducting detailed sessions with business stakeholders to understand reporting needs, data extract requirements, and downstream data consumption patterns. Document current state reporting logic, data sources, extract schedules, and dependencies within the mainframe IMS environment. Analyze gaps between current state mainframe processes and future state cloud or data lake architecture. Translate business requirements into clear functional and technical specifications for development teams. Validate requirements with stakeholders to ensure accuracy and alignment with business objectives.

Other responsibilities may include coordination and overseeing the analysis, designs, plans, diagrams, and verifying procedures for existing and proposed applications. Provides technical advice, assistance, and recommendations in matters related to reports development.

Essential Job Duties

• Review and interpret mainframe IMS data structures, file layouts, and extract processes.
• Collaborate with data engineers and architects to map legacy data elements to cloud based data models.
• Support the design of new reporting and extract workflows that leverage cloud capabilities.
• Assist in defining data transformation rules, metadata, and data lineage documentation.
• Ensure reporting and extract requirements align with enterprise data governance standards.
• Work closely with project managers, developers, QA teams, and business units to ensure requirements are understood and implemented correctly.
• Provide subject matter expertise on reporting logic, data dependencies, and extract processes throughout the project lifecycle.
• Facilitate Joint Application Development (JAD) sessions and stakeholder interviews, and document both business and technical requirements in a clear, comprehensive, and actionable format.
• Elicit and document data & reporting requirements (KPIs, filters, delivery cadence) and translate into functional/data specifications.
• Communicate progress, risks, and issues clearly to project leadership.
• Produce and maintain mappings, business rules, data dictionaries, and lineage/data flow diagrams spanning staging, integration, and presentation/reporting layers.
• Develop test cases and acceptance criteria for reporting and extract functionality.
• Support user acceptance testing (UAT) by validating data accuracy, report outputs, and extract completeness.
• Troubleshoot defects and work with technical teams to resolve issues.

Required Skills:

• Experience working in a medium to large information technology environment as a System Analyst, Business Analyst, or similar role.
• Strong experience gathering and documenting requirements for reporting, data extracts, or data driven applications
• Familiarity with mainframe systems (IMS, COBOL files, JCL, batch processes)
• Skill with Microsoft Office tools, particularly with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio, and SharePoint
• Understanding of cloud data platforms (Azure, AWS, Databricks, Snowflake, or similar).
• Ability to interpret data models, data dictionaries, and technical documentation.
• Knowledge of database structures and theories
• Knowledge of enterprise information management processes and methodologies, relational database management systems, and metadata management
• Knowledge of local, state, and federal laws and regulations (PII) relevant to data management and data governance
• Experience in working in fast-paced and ever-changing environments; achieving project s deliverables and deadlines; exercising sound judgment in making critical decisions; analyzing complex information and developing plans to address identified issues.
• Skill in interpersonal relationships, including the ability to work with people under pressure, negotiate among multiple parties, resolve conflicts, and establish and maintain effective working relationships with various levels of personnel.

Desired Skills:

• Knowledge of master data, metadata, reference data, data warehousing, and business intelligence principles and process, including technical architecture
• Experience in data focused projects, like moving from Legacy to newer systems.
• Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with major coursework in data processing, computer science, business administration, or a related field.