Business Analyst

Business Analyst Golden Valley – Minnesota. Hybrid, 3 days/week. Local candidates only. Candidate must be working in Minnesota based client currently. DESCRIPTION Candidates with Life and Annuity experience are preferred . . . Digital, workflow, and CRM (SalesForce) experiences are wins. As a Business Analyst, you'll play a pivotal role in connecting business stakeholders with IT teams to bring strategic initiatives to life. In this role, you'll guide cross‑functional teams through the entire lifecycle of change—from uncovering business needs and documenting requirements to validating solutions and ensuring readiness for launch. Facilitate engaging sessions with stakeholders, craft clear and actionable user stories, and lead user acceptance testing to ensure every solution delivers real value. This is an opportunity to showcase completed features, advocate for process improvements in our development lifecycle, and help shape the future of how we deliver. Types of projects to be analyzed can include legacy system decommissions, so technical expertise is deeply appreciated. Key Responsibilities & Skills Requirements gathering, analysis, and documentation for business and technical needs Data analysis and SQL querying capabilities System architecture understanding and solution assessment Software testing methodologies, including UAT execution and validation API knowledge and integration planning with vendor systems Data visualization and reporting for business readiness User story creation, refinement, and acceptance criteria definition (Jira, Polarion) Backlog prioritization and sprint planning participation Facilitation of agile ceremonies (standups, reviews, retrospectives) Story mapping and working in sprints/iterations Collaboration with Product Owners, Scrum Masters, and cross-functional teams Data visualization and reporting for business readiness SLA management and vendor performance monitoring Preferred Skills 2 5 years of life insurance experience (with 6 7 years as a Business Analyst in financial services) Strong facilitation and leadership skills; experience coaching other analysts Communication across technical and business teams; stakeholder management Problem-solving, critical thinking, and adaptability Meeting and workshop facilitation, negotiation, and conflict resolution Presentation skills, time management, and prioritization Qualifications 6 7 years Business Analyst experience (preferred: 8 10 years) In-depth knowledge of the financial services industry Experience with external vendors and agile frameworks (SAFe, Scrum, Kanban) Strong analytical, project management, and leadership abilities Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills Business Analyst certification (CBAP, BABOK) a plus #J-18808-Ljbffr