Lead Business Analyst

Employment Type: Contract to Hire W2
Work setup: 100% Remote, but occasional onsite expected (e.g., town halls, team events, etc.)
Return to Office (if converted to full-time): 4 days in the office weekly - hybrid)
Contract Term: 12 months initially with potential for extensions beyond 12 months and an opportunity for Full-time conversion
Interview Rounds: 2 (Hiring Manager + Peer)

Position Summary:

• The Lead Business Analyst is responsible for driving strategic operations, focusing on the continuous improvement of key processes and identifying efficiencies. This role involves creating and maintaining organizational Airtables, Smartsheets, and Google Docs to support our operations. Additionally, the Lead Business Analyst will develop and manage organizational OKRs, ensuring alignment of resources and financials with priorities. This includes identifying and executing cost synergy opportunities and participating in the overarching business planning process for the pillar. This role will partner closely with stakeholders in Product, Finance, Portfolio, GPM, and HR to consolidate the Media Engineering pillar s resource management, informing inputs into the centralized planning process, including AOP/LRP, quarterly forecasts, and actuals.
• This role will provide operational support to individuals in the region, working with others to support well-being, escalations, and opportunities. Develop strong relationships with key partners, including peers in Media Engineering and other engineering teams, product and program management, HR, legal, finance, and business stakeholders.
• This role will blend quantitative analysis to provide guidance on key business and operational decisions while coordinating cross-functional groups to drive operational efficiencies and hands-on management of high-priority, strategic initiatives.

Job Responsibilities:

• Develop and implement efficient processes to streamline operations.
• Create and maintain Airtables to track and manage various operational tasks.
• Utilize Google Docs to document processes, procedures, and other important information.
• Analyze data to identify areas for improvement and recommend solutions.
• Collaborate with team members to ensure smooth execution of operational tasks.
• Monitor and report on key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the effectiveness of processes.
• Provide support and training to team members on new processes and tools.
• Continuously improve OKR processes and tools to enhance efficiency and effectiveness.
• Partner with Engineering, Product, and Finance stakeholders to provide financial analysis and strategic recommendations during the evaluation of build vs lease across the pillar s product portfolio.
• Identify and execute opportunities to drive organizational cost efficiencies.
• Align with Engineering, Product, and Finance stakeholders to drive ongoing analysis of launched product ROI.
• Deliver ad-hoc reports to support business needs, investigate, triage, and resolve metrics-based issues.
• Enhance business intelligence and support data-driven decision-making, providing key trends and insights.
• Support Director, Strategic Operations, in partnership with HR, on headcount and resourcing prioritization across the Media Engineering pillar.
• Support strategic initiatives and team operations (e.g., organizing executive presentations, contractor and FTE onboarding, cross-organizational communication).
• Drive change management and integration, providing documentation, training, and guidance to onboard teams on new processes.
• Identify opportunities to improve employee efficiency, morale, and overall experience.
• Define, launch, and drive structural improvements, organizational goals, and a variety of strategic efforts, relying on technical and data analytic skills and expertise.
• Drive continuous improvement by helping communicate strategy across and within teams, providing clarity around operational frameworks, and fostering cohesion for initiatives, including measurement, management, and communication of work.
• Provide business-critical insights, ensure cross-functional alignment of goals and execution, and help teams successfully implement and move strategic initiatives forward.

Skills Required:

• Bring specialized skills and/or notable breadth of technical expertise to financial management, strategic reporting, and/or departmental operational execution.
• Work not just within the department but across departments to drive business value.
• Command expert understanding of organizational operations, stakeholders, and processes within the department.
• Strong analytical skills and a passion for answering questions with data.
• Proficiency in Airtable and Google Docs.
• Strong proficiency in data analysis and visualization tools (e.g., Excel, Tableau, Power BI).
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Strong planning, scheduling, and organization skills; Excellent attention to detail.
• Familiarity with OKR software and tools is a plus.
• Fosters positive relationships with partners and stakeholders across the organization.
• Explains difficult or sensitive information; works to build consensus.

Experience Required:

• 7+ years of relevant working experience in operations, strategy, business planning, project management, or the technology sector.
• Proven experience in process improvement and operations analysis.
• Proven experience in a similar analytical role, preferably with a focus on OKR development or performance management.
• May lead functional teams or projects with moderate resource requirements, risk, and/or complexity.
• Solves complex problems; takes a new perspective on existing solutions; exercises judgment based on the analysis of multiple sources of information.
• Work is performed with minimal direction.
• Participates in determining the objectives of assignments.

Education Required: A Bachelor s degree (BA/BS) is required.

Additional Information:

• The candidates must be located near Glendale, CA, Santa Monica, CA, San Francisco, CA, New York City, NY, Morrisville, NC, or Seattle, WA offices.
• 70% - financial, including modeling, analytics, budgeting, identifying cost savings, and working on quarterly close.
• 30% - Operations, including assisting with town halls.
• Experience with Google Docs, Airtable, and Excel.