Main Responsibilities and Required Skills for Systems Analyst

A Systems Engineer identifies business needs and create a plan for implementing systems and software that will help to meet those needs. In this blog post we describe the primary responsibilities and the most in-demand hard and soft skills for Systems Analysts.

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Main Responsibilities of Systems Analyst

The following list describes the typical responsibilities of a Systems Analyst:

Adhere to

Adhere to established departmental standards.
Adhere to quality assurance standards as used in each phase of development and maintenance.
Adhere to the roles and responsibilities.

Analyze

Analyze, communicate, and validate business requirements and outcomes.
Analyze customer and account data to identify trends, exceptions and gaps.
Analyze information and situations to build new insights and ideas and develop practical solutions.
Analyze new requirements, identify and document any cross-team dependencies.
Analyze possible solutions using discretion, skills and knowledge of procedures.
Analyze proposed system changes for impact on application, network and architectural environments.

Apply

Apply increasing knowledge in system features, technology standards, and best practice.
Apply industry-best practices for data analysis and share across the teams.
Apply project life cycle methodology across assigned processes and systems.
Apply security patches and maintenance patches.

Assess

Assess necessary changes and communicates to all affected internal departments.
Assess operations, recommend changes, and measure progress toward strategic improvement plans.
Assess web technologies with teammate and business input.
Assist in developing requirement matrices to identify any gaps.

Assist in

Assist in documenting knowledgebase articles for repeating issues and foundational information.
Assist in identifying and implementing defect resolutions.
Assist in providing reporting on KPIs for various business areas.
Assist in scheduling mission critical operations with the project team.
Assist in the development and implementation of analytics reports and tool.
Assist in the discovery phase of various projects to make critical design decisions.
Assist in the management, review, evaluation, and identification of improvements in processes.
Assist in the support and ongoing enhancement of the Oracle E-Business Suite.
Assist learning users with training system troubleshooting, inquiries.
Assist systems administrator with application installation and testing.
Assist the business to translate business requirements to business models and solutions.
Assist Validation team to generate and execute Validation test protocols.
Assist with maintenance of Project deliverable reports.
Assist with periodic review of systems and processes and contribute to improvements.
Assist with production deployments and support.
Assist with projects, initiatives and act as a testing resource as required.
Assist with the facilitation and development of business strategy.
Assist with the prioritization of initial feature development and ongoing change requests.

Build

Build an understanding of engineering calculations with accurate, clear design notes.
Build communication and trust between our business partners and Finance systems.
Build dashboards, reports, and processes for the business needs using Blue Yonder UI tools.
Build effective relationships with internal / external stakeholders.
Build productive internal / external working relationships.
Build stable working relationships internally.
Build strong working relationships with IS teams.
Build system application(s) and business domain knowledge.

Collaborate

Collaborate with appropriate parties to resolve complex change control issues.
Collaborate with Stakeholders.
Collaborate with the QA team in developing.
Collaborate with c-level stakeholders to align our SaaS product road map with our strategic goals.
Collaborate with team members to determine work-arounds, data fixes and resolving application bugs.

Communicate

Communicate in a clear, concise, and timely manner and operates effectively as a team player.
Communicate program vision to project teams and key business stakeholders.

Complete

Complete and follows through on Work Requests.
Complete application system administration requests in a timely and quality manner.
Complete ownership of Salesforce-Service cloud implementation on Lightening framework.

Conduct

Conduct data analytics and report development.
Conduct impact assessment of data and system integrations.
Conduct knowledge transfer / expertise to other City resources, where required.
Conduct Monthly Operating Review analysis and validate with Finance Team.
Conduct reviews on test results based on AAMVA business / technical specifications.
Conduct testing, integration and deployment of the developed.

Configure

Configure , administer and manage declarative enhancements.
Configure and maintain Anaplan lists, modules, dashboards, actions, and other model settings.
Configure Salesforce prototype for the purpose of requirements gathering.
Configure and coordinate the delivery of change within systems.

Contribute to

Contribute to, reviews, and edits the Cost Model.
Contribute to road mapping and mapping of business requirements.
Contribute to training strategies and business implementation planning.

Coordinate

Coordinate and assist with system testing and production validation.
Coordinate and deliver training.
Coordinate and support software releases and post deployment validations.
Coordinate cross-project activities.
Coordinate production deployments and checkout for both software and maintenance releases.
Coordinate the IT executive review of the proposed design & obtain sign off.
Coordinate with offshore development team for critical issues, design analysis and enhancements.
Coordinate with the Program Manager to ensure problem resolution and customer satisfaction.

Create

Create and maintain user guides, manuals, knowledge base articles and other related materials.
Create and maintain various system architectural artifacts.
Create and manage Business Intelligence queries and dashboards.
Create and manage systems infrastructure to support the BCMB's development efforts.
Create and update marketing content on RBC Connect.
Create cards in ADO and get approval.
Create detailed plans for other systems analysts, reviews project activities and evaluates results.
Create informative visualizations that intuitively display large or complex data relationships.
Create JCL and job scheduling documents as needed.
Create / maintain test cases in TestRail.
Create project plans including timelines / milestones and track progress.
Create release strategies, Support business go-live and provide post go live support.
Create Test Plans (1 year of experience is required).
Create test scenarios and scripts.

Define

Define an ongoing systems designs for different technical components.
Define, document and coordinate the functional system specifications.
Define, document, and maintain business processes, requirements, and policies.
Define, documents and coordinates ECR testing requirements.
Define objectives based on user needs, industry requirements, and an understanding of business rules.
Define RFP best practice and standardize on the content of our RFPs.

Design

Design and build analytics tools for our growing and evolving operations.
Design and build high-performance, reusable, and reliable C# .Net solutions with best practices.
Design and create EUC tools by analyzing business, user and regulatory requirements.
Design and develop scripts to automate processes.
Design and document reports required by system stakeholders.
Design and implement a centralized data security and access control using windows active directory.
Design and implement data models for all-source intelligence collection efforts.
Design, configure and develop templates and workflows for contract management using Apttus CLM.
Design data mappings and transformations which will be used to drive ETL procedures.
Design details of automated systems.
Design new computer programs by analyzing requirements.
Design planning solutions using SAAS tools like Anaplan / SAP IBP.

Develop

Develop and document Cloud Engineering Artifacts.
Develop and execute plans for assigned activities.
Develop and implement project plans, risk assessments and contingency plans (5+ yrs.).
Develop and maintains appropriate documentation of key changes.
Develop complex data queries, views, and stored procedures to support technical requirements.
Develop excellent working relationships with stakeholders at all levels to build consensus.
Develop functional & assist with detailed design specifications.
Develop ideas for process improvement and implements the change within their projects / products.
Develop implementation and contingency plans ensuring verification is performed.
Develop in depth knowledge of WFM KPI's.
Develop IT strategies that meet the needs of the business.
Develop, lead, and manage multiple projects, utilizing common project management methodologies.
Develop metrics report for system usage and trending analysis.
Develop project delivery cost estimates as part of planning cycles.
Develop reports and perform ad-hoc analysis using various BI tools.
Develop requirements for new computer programs, constructing workflows and diagrams.
Develop role-based training documents and execute training to end users.
Develop scripting, automation, and orchestration for Service Delivery.
Develop solutions to a variety of complex problems.
Develop technical requirements from business requirements.
Develop test plans and scripts.
Develop test script inventory and test plans.
Develop the Mastermind integrated software platform that is used in our central monitoring stations.
Develop training and support material for new enhancements and initiatives.

Discover

Discover and document the specific business requirement along with potential solutions.
Discover what you can make of this moment.

Document

Document and coordinate audit controls and compliance requirements.
Document and develop according to industry-standard specifications.
Document business processes and gather business and technical requirements.
Document forms, manuals, programs, data files, and procedures in support of the system.
Document requirements, solutions, educational knowledge, and business process workflows.
Document computations and processes.
Document configurations for future use and training.

Drive

Drive CRM road map and enhancements to ensure they meet the strategic goals of the business.
Drive for agreement to adopt updated processes in working groups.
Drive Quarterly Business Report (QBR) updates.
Drive system design analyses, testing, and training.

Ensure

Ensure accurate and timely reporting of compensation information.
Ensure adequate end user documentation and training.
Ensure development objectives are accomplished.
Ensure Epic Claims functionality is maintained at highest level of performance.
Ensure IT deliverables align with business requirements with measurable results.
Ensure methodology compliance.
Ensure projects are completed on time, day-to-day activities occur as scheduled.
Ensure recommended enhancements and new features are seen through the project management stages.
Ensure requirements integrity by managing changes to requirements.
Ensure security, back-up procedures and data integrity is built into all new applications.
Ensure service delivery meets the business requirements (based on defined SLAs).
Ensure that functional designs meet business needs and are in line with the solution design.
Ensure the confidentiality and integrity of the information being accessed.
Ensure the test strategy and test plans adequately cover the requirements.

Escalate

Escalate issues appropriately.
Escalate risks and issues for analysis and drive mitigation / resolution plans.

Facilitate

Facilitate internal communication and effective collaboration.
Facilitate meetings with the project team to review / refine JIRA backlog.
Facilitate requirements gathering workshops to elicit business / user requirements.
Facilitate issue resolution.
Facilitate strategic discussions and brainstorm improvement opportunities with M2M operational teams.
Facilitate technical requirement reviews and joint application design sessions.

Identify

Identify and assist in the implementation of improvements for the department.
Identify and develop use cases based on client requirements.
Identify areas of improvement to increase process efficiencies and data integrity.
Identify areas of to improve quality of service for ITS applications.
Identify Business Rules and Data Elements associated with the user stories.
Identify candidate business processes and / or existing processes to include them in the redesign.
Identify data quality rules to validate and improve data accuracy.
Identify, evaluate and develop systems and procedures that meet user requirements.
Identify issues and risks throughout the project life cycle and implement risk mitigation strategies.
Identify opportunities and alternative methods for resolving outstanding agency concerns and issues.
Identify process and / or functionality improvement opportunities from the support experience.
Identify trends and make recommendations.

Improve

Improve existing application instrumentation and monitoring.
Improve quality and efficiency of current processes.
Improve training and operational procedures to increase productivity.

Interact with

Interact with all departments to understand the corporate workflow.
Interact with Business Analysts during the software build or configuration and testing process.

Lead

Lead and maintain the systems training for the Field.
Lead and manage the development of quality BSA deliverables for medium to large projects.
Lead and train the team of business function leaders for tier-1 system support.
Lead multiple projects from design to delivery.
Lead planning, technical and functional maintenance and support of Workday.
Lead process improvement initiatives.
Lead a systematic process for capturing requirements.
Lead in assigned project-based work to include tracking of all actions and activities.
Lead multi-functional teams in completing program directed or continuous improvement activities.
Lead the analysis, development and documentation of design and architecture of systems solutions.
Lead the data and reporting work with business groups to elicit, and review requirements.
Lead Workday business process configuration, modifications and implementation.

Maintain

Maintain and expand a knowledge of Infor ERP's product suite and its future directions.
Maintain appropriate configuration and support documentation.
Maintain business process documentation and identifies areas for process improvement opportunities.
Maintain client expectation regarding quality and timelines.
Maintain customer support documentation.
Maintain databases, systems, procedures and data integrity.
Maintain data issue logs and reports.
Maintain entries & detailed updates in company Ticketing System.
Maintaining, implementing and configuring software in multiple environments.
Maintain relationship and Collaborate with the Global and Regional Process Owners.
Maintain security and integrity controls.
Maintain SOX compliance, where applicable.
Maintain test results documentation.
Maintain the workflow processes for all reporting requests.

Manage

Manage all fundraising-related Salesforce apps and integrations.
Manage and execute application change using standard change management methodologies.
Manage day-to-day system operations, annual talent cycles, special projects.
Manage Finance Systems team shared mail box.
Manage interface between PDM / PLM systems and MRP / ERP system.
Manage multiple competing priorities through effective organization and communication.
Manage releases of small enhancement requests (OTRs).
Manage the detail aspects of day-to-day operations with 3rd party vendors.
Manage third party vendor (managed services) relationships.
Manage vendor relationships including issue notifications and follow-up until resolution.
Manage the access & setup of tools & systems required by the ever-changing employee landscape.
Manage the SLA's with vendors and service providers to ensure timely resolution of issues.
Manage weekly four-square report that is sent to CIO and CFO.

Mentor

Mentor and coach others on the team and practice peer-programming.
Mentor and guide other team members during all phases of the SDLC.
Mentor less experience business systems analysts to assist in future development and growth.
Mentor less experienced Business System Analysts.

Monitor

Monitor and Identify system data quality issues and work to improve data accuracy.
Monitor and update internal agency tables to reflect current agency deposit and filing requirements.
Monitor & optimize the performance of all infrastructure systems.
Monitor work processes and client satisfaction, recommend changes for continuous improvement.

Participate in

Participate in a rotating schedule of On-Call duties.
Participate in CAB meetings to ensure procedural due-diligence, communications, and risk mitigation.
Participate in code peer reviews.
Participate in cross-functional user story mapping and document all business requirements.
Participate in developing strategies to allow support to manage resultant problems.
Participate in focus groups and workshops, attend vendor training and demonstrations.
Participate in meetings and workshops to achieve the outcomes within the deadline.
Participate in project planning and providing input where necessary.
Participate in projects as a developer or technical resource.
Participate in the evaluation of third party vendors and software as well as due diligence exercises.

Perform

Perform ad-hoc data analyses to provide answers to business questions.
Perform analysis to translate high level business needs into detailed requirements for user stories.
Perform basic systems analysis techniques, testing, debugging, file design and storage.
Perform data extraction for the service organization for the purpose of reporting.
Perform external systems interface development.
Perform functional allocation to identify required tasks and their interrelationships.
Perform functional and regression testing against all configuration changes.
Perform hardware and OS installations, migrations and / or upgrades.
Perform ongoing analysis of current IVR, ACD, and other customer contact telephony features.
Perform other related duties as required.
Perform other related technology duties and projects as assigned.
Perform other system and environment related duties as required.
Perform regular HR data audits within Workday in order to ensure data integrity.
Perform salary recommendations.
Perform systems testing with both IT and business customers.
Perform testing and troubleshooting of systems / applications.
Perform timely, quarterly ‘PBA' project based accounting data collection & analysis.
Perform user acceptance testing and quality documentation, as required.
Perform User Acceptance Tests to ensure accuracy of details and behavior.

Plan

Plan and execute acceptance testing.
Plan, deploy and review changes for critical applications.
Plan, develop and on‑time delivery of effective business solutions.
Plan, perform, support and document QMS compliance audits.

Prepare

Prepare and host monthly informational meetings.
Prepare inventory reconciliations between our ERP, ecommerce platform, warehouses, and retail stores.
Prepare quarterly and annual reporting to government agencies.
Prepare communications and makes presentations on system enhancements and / or alternatives.
Prepare documentation of developed programs and processes.
Prepare or provides input into one or more of the following.
Prepare stakeholders to use systems by conducting training.
Prepare technical reports by collecting, analyzing and summarizing information and trends.

Prioritize

Prioritize and escalate issues efficiently for prompt resolution.
Prioritize and identify cross application / system enhancements.

Provide

Provide accurate and timely information and escalates when there are issues.
Provide ad-hoc support as required including monthly and quarterly close process.
Provide alerts and situation status information to both client and Unisys management.
Provide analysis results and proposal recommendations to stakeholders.
Provide and apply quality assurance best practices.
Provide assistance on vendor analysis, selection and review when necessary.
Provide business and application expertise.
Provide complete and up-to-date documentation on the solution developed.
Provide customization, configuration and troubleshooting support for internal department processes.
Provide day-to-day coordination of support activities, enhancement requests and project tasks.
Provide day-to-day support and configuration for systems.
Provide demo to the process owner and update the requirement based on the suggestion.
Provide direct support of integrated operations functions.
Provide end user support responding professionally to all inquiries.
Provide excellent system support according to the agreed-to processes.
Provide guidance and support to build the capabilities of junior BAs.
Provide guidance and support to build the capabilities of the junior BAs.
Provide implementation support and assist with post implementation support.
Provide in-depth analysis and solutioning for financial market and investments data.
Provide input into cost estimations and project plans.
Provide input to people change management plans and execute associated tactics.
Provide input to the development of policies and procedures.
Provide leadership and direction in the development of short and long range plans.
Provide leadership in development projects.
Provide Level 2 / Level 3 business & system process support for business applications.
Provide master data and PLM integration solutions.
Provide on-call support for applications environments.
Provide on-call support for systems in scope.
Provide orientation and training to end-users for all modified and new systems.
Provide professional and quality client service support.
Provide recommendations to address specific business needs for IT-based solutions.
Provide references for users by writing and maintaining user documentation.
Provide subject matter expertise and participate in L4 support escalations.
Provide subject matter expert technical support to customers using.
Provide support of Digital solutions 24 / 7, especially during upgrades and fixes.
Provide support to all users with functionality, access and troubleshooting issues.
Provide support to other HRIS users by troubleshooting errors, training out new functionality.
Provide support to the development of data migration requirements.
Provide support to the Q&A phase of the project.
Provide system user support.
Provide technical escalations to other members of the operations team.
Provide technical expertise to ensure the quality and accuracy of Master Data.
Provide technical support and ensure compliance with best practice solutions.
Provide the user community with tools needed to make data-based decisions.
Provide world-class Support to Digital Rewards Platform / s.

Represent

Represent company on standards bodies in the related technologies.
Represent development teams at partner and management meetings.
Research, analyze and document reports, batch, and web based processes.

Research

Research and analytics to generate metrics and KPIs for the SOC to pass onto.
Research and analyze all aspects of existing business practices and procedures.
Research, analyze, and coordinate resolution of user issues.

Review

Review and discuss escalated issues related to SharePoint.
Review and monitoring usage reports.
Review ensuring the code satisfies design specifications and complies with project standards.
Review system processes from end to end to identify opportunities which can improve efficiency.
Review test protocols to support QA & User Acceptance testing.
Review the data collected to determine if data is obsolete or importable.
Review vendor designs and technical approaches to provide recommendations and guidance.

Run

Run and distribute monthly reports.
Run books and required changes to user documentation as incidents are resolved. . &#.
Run stability, passivity and robustness analyses on various subsystems and document key insights.

Support

Support and drive change, and confronts difficult circumstances in creative ways.
Support a newly created operations team in building out their technology platforms and processes.
Support conversion and production cutover efforts.
Support customer requests.
Support daily KPI reporting and audits.
Support data configuration and cleansing activities.
Support data driven decision-making.
Support data management initiatives using tools like Data Loader.
Support DataStage, IDP ETL jobs , WebFocus reports and extracts.
Support delivery of initiatives, removal of obstacles, and be the point person for developers.
Support demos, client presentations, and Reporting Services adoption.
Support end-user testing, leading to successful delivery of project.
Support ongoing Power BI enhancements relative to the data and structure requirements.
Support testing activities and validate for test coverage.
Support testing and facilitate communication to stakeholders.
Support the creation of detailed, functional and non-functional requirements documents.
Support the data reconciliation processes between core finance systems.
Support the development of data conversion tools.
Support the full cycle of design, development, and testing (Agile, Waterfall - - be flexible).
Support the global project portfolio management system, Clarizen.
Support the implementation of cloud data migration plans.
Support the organization through the design and implementation of robust training.
Support the Regional New Accounts Project Lead.
Support through the development of documentation as appropriate.
Support user acceptance testing, identify testers, develop test scripts and conduct test execution.

Test

Test databases and applications to ensure their effectiveness.
Test all changes and updates documentation accordingly.
Test systems to validate that functionality meets requirements and works as expected.

Train

Train new staff on the use of all IT software and services mentioned prior.
Train staff where required to ensure lack of knowledge does not hamper the operation.
Train users on reporting and other functions needed within the tool.

Troubleshoot

Troubleshoot ad hoc issues and manage minor system adjustments – page layouts, permission sets, etc..
Troubleshoot, analyze, prioritize, and coordinate the resolution of IS incidents and problems.

Understand

Understand and maintain the existing business / functional requirements.
Understand Apttus CLM Out of the box components versus Custom components capabilities.
Understand concurrency, high-multi threading and low latency interactions.
Understands and can explain to others the core processes involved in their area of support.
Understands legal aspects pertaining to information systems, including HIPAA, SOX, PHI, Medicare FWA.
Understands new technologies related to Cloud integration.
Understand the ethical application of technical work.
Understand the New Product Launch strategy.
Understand the Software Development Life cycle (both waterfall and agile).

Validate

Validate and verify that the deployed solution meets the business need.
Validate the solution meets the business need and verify it conforms to specifications.

Work with

Work as part of a team be able to manage complex relationships with all stake-holders.
Work closely with business and technology partners in identifying process improvement opportunities.
Work closely with business teams to strategize solutions that support long term business objectives.
Work closely with department leadership to fully maximize and enhance the system.
Work closely with external vendors to develop and implement projects / systems for the business.
Work closely with other members of the team to provide a fully flushed out solution.
Work closely with third party vendors.
Workflow, procedures, roles & responsibilities and integration & conversion.
Work independently to complete cost estimates from assignment to completion.
Work involves basic programming , not too complex coding.
Work is closely managed and reviewed regularly.
Work on managing the profile and permissions for the users to maintain their access.
Work with business stakeholders to understand and prioritize field requests.
Work with clients / users in defining acceptance tests.
Work with department leaders in the designs of automated systems.
Work with development teams to rewrite stored procs and cron jobs.
Work with internal / external customers at a consulting level.
Work with IT Security to review and maintain a strong security posture.
Work with IT to identify and scope system changes impacting inventory accuracy.
Work with minimal management direction.
Work with Program Area and IT to present key information for improvements.
Work with source systems to document data requirements.
Work with stakeholders and recommends infrastructure solutions based on engineering requirements.

Write

Write and solve batch scripts or Unix shell scripts for cube build automations.
Write technical design document.

Most In-demand Hard Skills

The following list describes the most required technical skills of a Systems Analyst:

SQL
Project Management
Agile
Excel
Business Analysis
Business
Java
Design
Information Systems
Jira
Oracle
Salesforce
Analysis
Finance
MS Word
Powerpoint
Visio
Business Administration
Documentation
Waterfall
Mathematics
Testing
Tableau
Confluence
Python
ERP
XML
Systems Analysis
Javascript
Data Analysis
Accounting
Operations
Linux
Application Development
Business Systems Analyst
Scrum
SDLX
Agile Methodology
Windows
Computer
Methodologies
BSA
Reporting
Business Analyst
HTML
Implementation
MS Excel
Outlook
Agile Methodologies
Management

Most In-demand Soft Skills

The following list describes the most required soft skills of a Systems Analyst:

Written and oral communication skills
Analytical ability
Problem-solving attitude
Interpersonal skills
Organizational capacity
Attention to detail
Collaborative
Self-starter
Work independently with little direction
Team player
Time-management
Leadership
Presentation
Creative
Critical thinker
Make a difference and lasting impact
Self-motivated
Multi-task
Bilingualism
Organized
Detail-oriented
Flexible
Initiative
Negotiation
Proactive
Take on progressively greater accountabilities
Adaptable to changes
Confident
Work under pressure
Results-oriented
Troubleshooting skills
Facilitation
Planning
Disciplined
Priority management
Capable of working independently
Meet deadlines
Close collaboration
Customer focused
Work ethic
Accurate
Innovative
Teamwork
Curious
Professionalism
Self-driven
Communications
Positive attitude
Conflict resolution
Technical aptitude