Director of Business Systems & Applications

Position Summary The Director of Business Systems and Applications is a strategic, operational and technical leader responsible for the performance, integration, and evolution of Busey's applications, ensuring alignment with business objectives. This role oversees all core banking systems, digital platforms, and other integrated third‑party platforms and applications to ensure seamless integration, operational stability, regulatory compliance, and scalability to support continued growth. The Director will also work closely with senior stakeholders to identify, recommend, develop and implement cost‑effective technology solutions. Duties & Responsibilities Lead, mentor, and develop the Business Systems and Applications team. Define and execute a forward‑looking application and integration strategy aligned with Busey's business growth and digital transformation initiatives. Partner with executive and key business stakeholders to identify, recommend, develop, prioritize, and implement cost‑effective technology solutions. Partner with senior leadership to identify technology needs and plan activities related to the procurement, development and implementation of applications to enhance and optimize technology solutions and processes. Ensure performance, resiliency, and optimization of core processing and related downstream systems. Serve as primary relationship owner for key strategic partners including core system, digital banking, and ancillary systems. Manage service delivery, SLAs, contract negotiations, and issue resolution with key strategic vendors. Lead vendor selection and onboarding for new business application solutions. Develop and implement key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the effectiveness of business applications. Monitor KPIs to track progress and identify areas for improvement. Ensure applications meet regulatory requirements; partner with Audit, Risk and Compliance teams on audits, exams, vendor risk assessment, and business continuity and disaster recovery planning. Implement best practices for incident management, change and release management, and system monitoring and alerting. Communicate effectively with technical and non‑technical audiences. Partner with the EPMO and other technology teams to plan, execute, and complete projects on time and within budget. Manage projects directly as needed. Remain current on Fintech trends and changing regulatory standards. Identify and mitigate risks to applications, data and projects. Implement a framework to monitor and report on business application utilization and effectiveness. Education & Experience Knowledge Of Extensive business application and financial operations process experience; demonstrated leadership, management and decision‑making skills. A strategic, long‑term thinker. Strong understanding of bank policies and regulations related to project management, system administration and change management. Proven track record of effectively working with cross‑functional teams to align strategies and implement efficiencies to enhance Busey's user experience. Strong understanding of core banking systems and data flows, integrations, payments processing, and vendor management within a complex, multi‑platform environment. Proficiently operate in a dynamic, fast‑paced and collaborative environment, exhibiting a strong work ethic, organizational agility and a consistently positive attitude. Demonstrated interpersonal and problem‑solving skills, focusing on accountability, time management, prioritization, negotiation, and issue resolution. Team‑oriented with high curiosity and strong organizational & collaboration skills, ability to interface and foster relationships throughout all levels of the business. Proven ability to communicate complex information clearly and concisely that is tailored to the audience. Expertise in strategically framing problems as opportunities. Passionate about continuous improvement. Expertise in analyzing and enhancing current processes to achieve measurable results. Excellent interpersonal skills, including active listening, empathy and conflict resolution. Proven ability to communicate effectively with people from all levels and backgrounds, both verbally and in writing. Expertise in identifying and analyzing industry trends, and recommending best practices and emerging technology solutions to management. Demonstrated experience in a regulated financial institution environment. Education And Training Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Business Administration, Management Information Systems, Finance, or related area or equivalent experience. A minimum of 5 years of experience in people or team management with a proven dedication to service‑oriented leadership. A minimum of 10 years of hands‑on experience in managing, implementing and enhancing business processes, applications and integrations within the banking industry. A minimum of 10 years of experience in project management, including planning, execution and successful delivery of complex projects within the banking industry. Demonstrated expertise in enabling high‑performing teams, incorporating industry best practices, fostering a learning culture and promoting continuous improvement. Proven track record of strategically utilizing technology to translate complex business requirements into innovative and effective technology solutions. Compensation And Benefits Salary offered is based on factors, including but not limited to, the job duties, required qualifications and relevant experience, and local market trends. The role may be eligible for bonus or incentives based on company and individual performance. (Base Pay Range: $120,000 - $165,000/year) Busey provides a competitive Total Rewards package in return for your time, talents, efforts and ultimately, results. Your personal and professional well‑being—now and in the years to come—are important to us. Busey's Total Rewards include a competitive benefits package offering 401(k) match, profit sharing, employee stock purchase plan, paid time off, medical, dental, vision, company‑paid life insurance and long‑term disability, supplemental voluntary life insurance, short‑term and long‑term disability, wellness incentives and an employee assistance program. In addition, eligible associates may take advantage of pre‑tax health savings accounts and flexible spending accounts. Visit Busey Total Rewards for more information. Equal Opportunity Busey values a diverse and inclusive workplace and strives to recruit, develop and retain individuals with exceptional talent. A team with diverse talent, working together, is essential to Busey's commitment of delivering service excellence. Busey is an Equal Opportunity Employer including Disability/Vets. Visit Busey.com/Careers to learn more about Busey's Equal Opportunity Employment. Unsolicited Resumes Busey Bank, and its subsidiaries, does not accept any liability for fees for resumes from recruiters or employment agencies (“Agency”), without a binding, written recruitment agreement between Busey and Agency describing the services and specific job openings (“Agreement”). Busey may consider any candidate for whom an Agency has submitted an unsolicited resume and explicitly reserves the right to hire those candidate(s) without any financial obligation to the Agency, unless an Agreement is in place. Any email or verbal contact with any Busey associate is inadequate to create a binding agreement. Agencies without an Agreement are requested not to contact any associates of Busey with recruiting inquiries or resumes. Busey respectfully requests no phone calls or emails. #J-18808-Ljbffr Busey