Business Analyst

New York, NY (Remote but must work EST hours)

This position pays between $30/hr to $32/hr on W2

Needs someone with strong communication skills, must have strong retail experience. Need someone with retail planning process and be very strong from a functional perspective. Expeirence in Anaplan is desired.

PURPOSE:

• Identify opportunities for process improvements in planning and Allocation business operations utilizing technology that will positively impact cost, operating efficiency, quality, and productivity.
• This role involves understanding business requirements, analyzing data, and collaborating with IT teams to design, implement, and enhance systems that support efficient inventory planning and allocation within the retail sector.
• Prioritize support needs for business, support help desk and first level system/IT support in resolution of high priority issues pertaining to planning and allocation domain.
• Integrate best practices into new solutions and work closely with business users, software vendors and developers to ensure business user requirements are achieved.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Serve as a resource, with both business and industry knowledge, for defining the customer's business requirements and objectives.
• Collaborate with business stakeholders, including merchandising and planning teams, to understand their needs and requirements for effective inventory planning and allocation.
• Work closely with IT development teams to design and implement systems that support retail planning and allocation processes.
• Ensure that systems align with business goals, scalability requirements, and industry best practices.
• Integrate planning and allocation systems with other IT systems such as ERP, POS, and inventory management systems to create a seamless and interconnected IT infrastructure.
• Communicate weekly status in meetings and written form, showing progress against outstanding milestones, status, resource requirements, issues, risks and dependencies.
• Utilize data analysis tools to interpret and model retail data, including sales trends, inventory levels, and product performance.
• Develop and implement algorithms and models to optimize inventory planning and allocation.
• Customize and configure planning and allocation software to meet specific business needs.
• Ensure that system parameters are appropriately set to support accurate demand forecasting and allocation strategies.
• Develop and execute test plans to ensure the accuracy and reliability of planning and allocation systems.
• Collaborate with QA teams to identify and resolve any issues during the testing phase.
• Create and maintain comprehensive documentation of system configurations, customizations, and processes.
• Update documentation as needed to reflect changes and enhancements.
• Provide training to end-users on new systems and functionalities.
• Offer ongoing support to users, addressing any system-related issues and ensuring a smooth operation.
• Day-to-day management of change requests in relation to the project plans to ensure agreed deadlines are met.
• Attend key meetings, both internal and external, and report findings from the meetings
• Resolves requirements and design issues or offer recommendation or solutions.
• Develop a deep understanding of the marketplace and competitive environment.
• Participate in root cause analysis for product performance.
• Follow Agile methodologies.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor s Degree (Management, Business Administration, Computer Science, or a related field) or equivalent experience
• 2-3 years of analytical work in a functional or IT department in a retail environment preferred.
• Strong understanding of retail planning and allocation processes.
• Knowledge of retail-specific software and systems (e.g. Anaplan, Blue yonder Allocation tool). Anaplan model building knowledge is a plus.
• Knowledge of sprint planning systems like JIIRA to follow agile methodology and the software development life cycle.
• Relevant experience should include:
• Research and analysis of data, market needs, and customer issues.
• Writing business requirements and developing business rules.
• International travel may likely be required.
• Ability to work outside of standard U.S. business hours is required.
• Strong analytic skills and ability to synthesize large datasets into meaningful insights, including identifying key trends in data and reconciling data across various sources.
• Blend strong business acumen, technical problem solving and agile execution.
• Champion the needs of the customer and business stakeholders throughout the execution of a project, ensuring that what is delivered meets the business s goals and objectives.
• High degree of proficiency MS Office Suite, Outlook & Internet applications
• Ability to work independently and jointly in unstructured environments.
• Ability to manage multiple projects in various phases of ideation, execution, or delivery.
• Self-starter Solid program development and business process knowledge
• Understanding of how to interpret customer business needs.
• Strong analytical, prioritizing,…