Business Analyst (Retail Merchandising Systems exp)

Our client is currently searching for a Business Information Analyst for their New York Buying Office, located in the heart of Times Square.  The Business Analyst serves as functional systems analyst and internal consultant.  This person plays a key interface role between Merchant and Planning users and IT groups supporting operations and the implementation of process and system improvements.  He/she is responsible for:- partnering with the business to analyze and/or define system needs- gathering and creating functional requirements- assisting or leading implementations - ensuring the systems meet the required specifications- training the business users - providing strong troubleshooting and support skills on current and future software applications (i.e, Retek’s RMS, RDW, TopPlan applications as well as MicroStrategy, and Arthur Planning).  The Business Analyst should demonstrate strong business acumen and have a solid understanding of Merchandising and Merchandise Planning processes based on previous retail experience or our clients Merchandising or Planning experience.  Finally, the Business Analyst will have strong analytical skills and is capable of leveraging existing data to help answer user questions  ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:     · Perform business analysis activities at the strategic, operational, and organizational level including:­ Work with key business users to realize business process and system functionality improvements ­ Provide detailed operational and systematic problem solving, including root cause analysis­ Provide training support on new and existing system capabilities­ Help in the development of detailed project plans covering the entire systems development life cycle and associated project budgets­ Lead small to medium sized projects through the entire systems development life cycle (including creating timely/thorough status reports and leading status meetings)· Provide end-user support for existing merchandising and planning systems including:­ Help lead and coordinate the resolution of production issues  ­ Communicate between the application team and user community­ Prioritize team efforts based on business demand and technical capacity­ Ensure the quality of changes made to applications ­ Provide training support on new and existing system capabilities­ and ensure documentation is updated accurately           QUALIFICATIONS AND SPECIAL SKILLS REQUIRED: REQUIRED:· A solid understanding of industry best practices in retail; specific demonstrated experience mapping business processes and comparing those processes to industry best practices· 3-5 years experience supporting retail systems or as a business user of retail systems.  · Demonstrated project management experience· Demonstrated experience managing both internal company people and external consultants· Strong analytical, problem solving, and root cause analysis skills· Technically competent; not a programmer, but able to understand basic to intermediate-level technical concepts · Undergraduate degree in information systems / computer science or a degree in business with hands-on experience with retail applications · Some travel may be required· Characteristics/Motivators:o  Motivated by the desire to make a difference in the business, to work with a highly talented set of peers, and to work on interesting projectso  Ability to maintain appropriate balance between work responsibilities and personal lifeo  Display positive and constructive attitudeo  Display business and organizational maturityo  Demonstrates an outstanding work ethic and a sense of urgency to resolve issues quickly and efficientlyo  A high sense of responsibility – to our customers, our users, our colleagues, and to the quality and timeliness of one’s own work; a willingness and desire to “do what it takesâ€� to support our company’s systems – sometimes during non-standard work hourso  Highly organized and detail orientedo  Strong verbal and written communication skillso  Professional presence and appearanceo  Team oriented, yet able to work independentlyo  A continual desire and capability to learn PREFERRED BUT NOT REQUIRED: · Merchandising work experience· Working experience with the Retek Merchandising System (RMS), Micro-Strategy, Retek Data  System (RDM),  Retek Distribution System (RDM), JDA Application Suite Object-oriented development experience· Management Consulting experience · MBA or similar graduate degree MRINetwork is the largest and most successful search organization in the world. Each MRINetwork office is a single point of contact to over 1,100 offices in more than 37 countries, our candidates have access to the right jobs virtually anywhere in the world. LOCATION: New York, NY JOB CATEGORY: IT/Software Development TYPE: Full Time, Employee SALARY: Competitive Salary and bonus JOB REFCODE: adny1 COMPANY: The Dentz Group, Inc. CONTACT NAME: Aaron Dentz PHONE: 262-695-1040 EMAIL: Apply by Email