Business Analyst

Business Analyst

ABC Supply inc. has embarked on a multi-year business transformation initiative principally in the form of two major ERP / point-of-sale migration projects. Ultimately, the Agility Program will impact the day-to-day activities of approximately 16,000 employees at 850 branch locations across the U.S., re-envision the accounting and finance function of an $18 billion company, and help mature the infrastructure, processes, and internal procedures for the ABC Supply IT department.

As of the end of 2022, the Agility Program has deployed the integrated Agility eco-system to more than 220 locations (and 4,000 employees) at a division of ABC Supply called L&W Supply and is now focused on enhancing and extending the solution in preparation for deployment to the remaining 650 branches of ABC Supply (the parent company).

The Agility Program is comprised of five major components: 1) business process definition (Order To Cash, Procure To Pay, Inventory, Record To Report) and related ERP configuration, 2) data conversion and migration, 3) technical integration with 40 external applications (the “eco-system”), 4) change management, training, and deployment activities (to the branches and back office), and 5) adherence to the Agility Program Governance Methodology and Project Management Toolkit.

The Business Analyst captures business requirements and performs analysis following a defined methodology and using an existing toolkit. They also communicate those requirements to implementation and testing teams. Reporting to one or more Project Managers, this role has a wide variety of responsibilities and creates different artifacts depending on the nature of the assigned projects.

The successful candidate will ideally live in the Chicagoland area. However, exceptionally qualified candidates will be considered who live outside of Chicagoland, but they must be willing to travel into ABC Supply’s office in Beloit and/or Chicago occasionally.

Responsibilities

1. Work with business leaders and subject matter experts to define business problems
2. Work with business leaders and subject matter experts to document and validate business rules, business requirements, process flows, user stories, and other artifacts using the provided methodology, toolkits, and templates
3. Work with enterprise architects, Business Relationship Managers, and/or solution architects to understand, define, document, and validate requirements
4. Identify gaps between “as-is” and ‘to-be” processes
5. Assist the Quality Assurance and Testing team with development of test scenarios and expected results
6. Assist with the development and validation of training materials
7. Prepare for and deliver business process workshops and design sessions
8. Complete committed activities and deliverables in the committed timeframes
9. Recommend solutions to the business in the capacity of a trusted advisor
10. Understand dependencies with other systems and how to document them

Required Skill Set

1. Ideally, business analysis experience on more than one ERP project; general understanding of how ERP eco-systems function
2. Strong knowledge and experience in at least one business process area related to ERPs, i.e., order to cash, procure to pay, inventory, record to report; alternatively,
3. Ability to facilitate and/or lead meetings with large groups of people; experience with meeting preparation, agenda definition, note taking, and follow-up management
4. Ability to gather and document business, functional, and/or data conversion requirements
5. Ability to create process flow diagrams using Visio
6. Ability to support the development of test cases and training material
7. Six to ten years of experience as a business analyst at a Fortune 500 company (ideally)
8. A “hands-on”, “can-do” attitude
9. Experience using JIRA and Confluence is a significant plus
10. Advanced to expert skill with Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, and Microsoft Project
11. Ability to communicate effectively with IT and business management
12. Excellent overall written/verbal communication and facilitation skills for communicating at all levels; strong presentation skills
13. General knowledge of waterfall, Agile, and hybrid methodologies
14. Ability to effectively prioritize and execute tasks in a high-pressure environment
15. Ability to conform to shifting priorities, demands and timelines through analytical and problem-solving capabilities
16. Strong organizational, analytical, communication, planning, presentation, and customer service skills
17. Ability to effectively work independently and across teams, functions, and departments
18. Ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously
19. Business acumen, conflict resolution skills, and critical thinking

Nice To Have Skills

1. Experience working as a business analyst at a wholesale distribution company