Business Analyst

Description

 The Business Analyst will support leadership of the Harvard Library by identifying operational data needs, mining information systems, and providing analysis to inform business performance assessment and decisions.  Reporting to the Director, Financial Planning and Analysis, the Business Analyst will:

• Maintain and develop the library’s information and organizational performance systems 
• Provide reporting and supporting assessment advice and analysis to inform strategic decisions
• Enhance the library’s information and assessment systems and ability to collect and report useful data
• Support librarians in finding and using data in their daily work

This role will collaborate with staff across a wide range of functions and disciplines in order to better coordinate the collection and creation of data as it relates to the performance goals of the Harvard Library.


Duties and Responsibilities:

The Business Analyst works closely with the Harvard Library leadership and with librarians across the broader library system.  Specific components of the role include:

Maintain and develop the library’s information and organizational performance systems

• In consultation with Harvard Library leadership, design, develop and maintain systems to measure library progress as it relates to library strategic initiatives and operational efficiency 
• Improve methods used to measure key metrics 
• Develop and monitor annual baselines for key metrics and monitor progress 
• Lead the preparation of organizational performance updates and associated reporting 
• Communicate and explain findings to library senior leadership

Provide reporting and supporting assessment advice and analysis to inform strategic decisions

• Work collaboratively with Harvard Library leadership to discover information needs and to identify, prioritize, design and implement new reporting tools and solutions 
• Analyze information (e.g., bibliographic, financial, usage) in support of evolving needs 
• Provide consultation and technical assistance to Harvard Library leadership with use and interpretation of data 
• Respond to requests for data and/or reports on a variety of issues related to the library collections reporting and statistics, including ad hoc analyses and special requests   
• Lead in data collection and aggregation across partnerships with other institutions (including Borrow Direct Partners) to aggregate data and business intelligence to help improve and expand alliances 
• Lead the data collection efforts for national surveys (ARL statistics) and the preparation of data for annual HL reports

Enhance the Library’s assessment systems and ability to collect and report useful data

• Develop structures for collecting, storing and presenting or sharing data in consultation with appropriate IT and Library colleagues 
• Design, develop, troubleshoot, document, and analyze reports for Harvard Library 
• Maintain internal sites to house data, distribute reports, associated documentation and explanatory materials 
• Provide consultation to Harvard Library leadership on developing assessment surveys and user studies

Support librarians in finding and using data in their daily work

• Facilitate data-driven decision making throughout the Harvard Library by committing to make data as accessible and transparent as possible; teaching/mentoring librarians how to access, query, manipulate, and visualize data
• Develop reporting mechanisms to enable managers and staff to run and analyze data in support of data driven decision making

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent education or work experience required
• Seven plus years of experience working in IT, business intelligence, library assessment, financial or statistical analysis, financial reporting and/or libraries
• Strong knowledge of Excel and of database tools (e.g., Microsoft Access)

Additional Qualifications

• MLS, MBA, and/or advanced degree in statistics, information sciences, or engineering
• Experience building reports and queries with Business Intelligence/Analytics tools (Cognos BI, Microsoft)
• Working knowledge of libraries, both within Harvard and more general industry trends
• Knowledge of Integrated Library Systems, such as Aleph
• Knowledge of statistical software packages (e.g. SPSS, R, STATA)
• Knowledge of database tools such as Quickbase and content management systems
• Proven ability to deliver quality analysis in a fast-paced environment
• Excellent analytic, written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to process and distill complex information, present complicated information in easily comprehensible formats
• Ability to work in ambiguous environment: to define objectives, set tasks, build relationships, and achieve outcomes
• Exceptional numeric skills: able to use numbers to explore issues and express logic, able to translate numeric results into underlying issues and organizational implications
• Self-organized, flexible and able to manage multiple challenging projects simultaneously in a fast-paced work setting
• Excellent interpersonal skills: ability to work well within a large and complex organization; ability to build strong relationships with people at all different levels
• Collaborative working style with excellent consultative, project management, problem solving and presentation skills