Position Summary:
The Senior IT Business Analyst is a senior member of the Process and Solution Implementations (PSI) team at Vanderbilt University and is a key individual contributor responsible for leading information system implementations and providing high-level product support for Academic Affairs. With strategic direction from the Executive Director, PSI, and guidance from the department’s Associate Directors, IT, this position adapts product implementation strategies to suit each project and then independently executes them. The Senior IT Business Analyst manages a portfolio of products for which they are the functional expert and provide high-level production support. This role reports directly to an Associate Director in PSI and is expected to build and maintain collaborative relationships with their assigned Academic Affairs customers and external product vendors. This role requires management of multiple projects in varying complexity and lifecycle stages. This position is also expected to provide knowledge-sharing, guidance, and mentorship to less experienced team members.
About the Work Unit:
The PSI department organizes and leads information system implementations for Academic Affairs. PSI supports dozens of systems including PeopleSoft Campus Solutions, DocFinity, Slate, Brightspace, Interfolio, Destiny One, Blue, and Event Management System (EMS). In addition to these vendored products, PSI partners with Vanderbilt University Information Technology (VUIT) to build applications and system integrations.
The PSI team’s responsibilities include:
• Serving as the Product Owner
• Managing the overall project portfolio
• Leading individual acquisition and implementation projects
• Serving as the campus expert for PSI-managed systems
• Configuring newly acquired information systems.
• Maintaining information systems in production
• Coordinating and executing testing
• Managing security administration
• Providing training during implementation
Key Functions and Expected Performance:
• Serves as a senior member of matrix teams comprised of Academic Affairs leadership and staff to strategically plan and execute projects. Related responsibilities are dependent on the needs of each project and may include establishing and driving timelines, serving as the technical expert, working with ancillary partners in non-Academic Affairs units (e.g., VUIT, Finance, Human Resources, etc.), researching open market software solutions, building workflows, taking ownership of, and reporting on milestones and deliverables, and training system users.
• Meets with stakeholders to build effective relationships and understand and address their technology needs, leveraging knowledge to provide in-depth analysis to define scope and recommend solution strategies.
• Understands and negotiates needs and expectations of multiple stakeholders that may be conflicting at times.
• Collaborates with team members to transform the needs of stakeholders into requirements that can be configured in vendored systems or that can be developed by VUIT.
• Tests newly developed or configured information systems and leads user acceptance testing.
• Troubleshoots, diagnoses, and solves production problems, providing clear updates to customers through resolution.
• Manages process and system documentation, including change requests.
• Triages issues related to PSI-supported systems and data feeds, working efficiently and collaboratively through resolution.
• Uses sound judgment to independently prioritize tasks and projects.
• Meets deadlines, manages project scope, and provides timely updates to management.
• Evaluates the performance of processes/systems to identify improvement opportunities.
• Provides guidance and training to less experienced members of the PSI team.
Supervisory Relationships:
This position does not have supervisory responsibility, this position reports administratively and functionally to an Associate Director, IT.
Education and Certifications:
• A bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution of higher education is required.
• A master’s degree is preferred.
Experience and Skills:
• Five years of experience, OR three years of Vanderbilt University systems experience is required.
• Experience in higher ed or the EdTech industry is strongly preferred.
• Three to five years of experience specifically implementing and/or supporting core Academic Affairs and/or Enrollment Affairs systems (e.g., student information, admissions, learning management, housing, document and workflow management, medical records, and/or faculty information systems) is strongly preferred.
• Project management experience is strongly preferred. This can include leading project teams, overseeing project timelines, managing scope, prioritizing, and triaging work, delegating tasks, presenting results, and effectively collaborating with department and university leaders.
• The ability to analyze and synthesize business requirements is necessary.
• An interest in technology and learning new processes and systems is necessary.
• Ability to work with others in a team setting is necessary.
• Excellent communication skills are necessary.
• Analytical thinking, problem solving and attention to detail are necessary.