Position Overview

The Business Intelligence Analyst (BIA) will work closely with James Cook University’s (JCU) existing Cognos community to gather new business requirements, develop new report and dashboard content (using Report Studio), refine existing deliverables and assist in the ongoing publicity and training with Cognos Business Intelligence. The BIA will work within an agile development team and be supported by a Solutions Architect, ETL Developers, Business Analysts and Subject Matter Experts from varying business systems.

The BIA position will be involved in end to end processes through gathering business requirements, assisting with sourcing data, testing the ETL, modelling, and finally in building and delivering the final Cognos report or dashboard solution. The BIA will also be able to provide best practice in the use of Cognos and perform knowledge transfer to support existing Cognos report developers already working within JCU.

The aim of JCU’s Business Intelligence Project is to support and enlighten staff with business information and analytics thereby leading to better decisions.

Division of Services and Resources

The Division of Services and Resources is responsible for the overall strategy in relation to the management of financial, human, ICT & estate resources, commercial activities and quality, planning & analytics and which foster and promote innovation and best practice in the delivery of services to enable the core business of learning and teaching, research and engagement.

The Division includes the Directorates of Financial & Business Services, Estates, Human Resources, ICT, Quality, Planning & Analytics and Commercial Services and other activities including the provision of student accommodation and bookshop services for students and the Discovery Rise development of the Townsville campus.

Through these Directorates the Division provides: Financial, strategic procurement, purchasing and commercial and contractual services; management of the planning, performance and budgeting framework and processes; legislative compliance; human resource and ICT management; business intelligence; management of the quality enhancement framework; provision of services to students via the University Bookshop; capital infrastructure planning; delivery of capital projects, minor works and facilities maintenance programs; provision of campus services including cleaning, grounds maintenance, security and student accommodation.

Quality, Planning and Analytics Directorate

The University operates in an increasingly complex internal and external environment. The Quality, Planning and Analytics Directorate (QPA) is a key resource to the senior management of the University, providing accurate and timely management information, business insight and analytics to support evidence-based decision making. QPA is regarded as the single source of truth for statistical and strategic reporting.

The Directorate is also responsible for: managing the University’s planning and performance framework and processes; developing and maintaining the University’s policy framework and records; compliance with standards, requirements of regulatory bodies, and relevant legislation; quality enhancement; business process review and improvement; statistical analysis and reporting; environmental scanning; and for the development, implementation and support of the University’s enterprise-wide data- warehouse and business intelligence solution.

Organisational Charts

James Cook University

Division of Services and Resources

Quality, Planning and Analytics Directorate

Principal Accountabilities

1. Transform accepted business requirements into tangible Cognos Business Intelligence reporting and dashboards using primarily Cognos (v10.2) Report Studio and Framework Manager.
2. Consult with a variety of stakeholders throughout all levels of the University to effectively capture and document their business requirements for business intelligence reporting, analytics and training.
3. Translate business requirements into loose specifications, develop prototypes from those specifications using agile methodologies and tools, and refine and agree the final solution.
4. Contribute to the ongoing development of the Cognos Business Analytics platform by contributing to modelling, security, upgrades, refinements, support and maintenance and documentation.
5. Promote by a variety of means JCU’s Business Intelligence environment to ensure that the business is aware of its capabilities thereby assisting further in the Project’s benefit realisation.
6. Proactively identify issues and provide recommendations for refining existing or developing new content to ensure that the University is best leveraging its Business Intelligence asset.
7. Keep current with the direction of the University and its ongoing and changing needs for Business Intelligence and Analytics.
8. Support the University’s commitment to the principles of reconciliation, which exemplify respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage and the valuing of justice and equity for all Australians.
9. Demonstrate a commitment to the University values and Divisional attributes.
10. Support the principles of the TropEco program and engage in commitment to JCU sustainability goals and objectives.

Descriptors

There are generic responsibilities that apply to all James Cook University staff.

Your specific level descriptor can be found at the following link:

Professional and Technical

Level 8

Generic Accountabilities

There are generic responsibilities that apply to all James Cook University staff.

1. The Business Intelligence Analyst is required to observe the lawful and reasonable directions, policies and decisions of the University Council, understand and comply with the Enterprise Agreement, the Statutes and Rules of the University, the policies and decisions of the University Council and other appropriate University authorities, as in force from time to time.
2. The Business Intelligence Analyst is required to demonstrate a personal commitment to ensure personal safety and the safety of others and contribute to the continuous improvement of our WHS performance. This includes the effective implementation and compliance with James Cook University WHS policies, procedures and safe systems of work, together with all relevant legislation, duties and obligations. Contribute to the continuous improvement of our WHS performance.
3. The Business Intelligence Analyst is required to exercise proper discretion in all matters affecting the well-being of the University which involve public writing or speaking in accordance with the University’s Code of Conduct.

Selection Criteria

Selection and appointments will be assessed against selection criteria.

Essential

1. Progress towards a postgraduate degree and extensive relevant work experience, or an equivalent level of knowledge gained through a combination of ongoing professional development education, training and/or experience.
2. Documented experience in working within agile Projects e.g. capturing business requirements, developing report content, dealing with iterations, agreeing and delivering final solutions.
3. A high level of analytical and problem-solving capability and capacity for innovation in dealing with sometimes complex business requirements and/or processes.
4. Experience working with IBM’s Cognos Business Intelligence system (or equivalent) including report development, modelling, administration, support and maintenance.
5. Demonstrated excellence in interpersonal communication, knowledge sharing, training and presentation, including an ability to communicate with both expert and non-expert audiences.
6. Proven ability to work autonomously under broad direction, effective management of time, understanding of priorities and deadlines and how to work collaboratively as a team to achieve a collective result and successful outcome.

Desirable

1. Knowledge of, or experience in the Australia Higher Education sector.
2. Knowledge of any of the following; IBM’s TM1 or InfoSphere (DataStage and Business Glossary) software, Tableau software, dimensional modelling, relational databases, extract, transform and load (ETL) processes, database level queries e.g. Oracle PL/SQL, statistical analysis and/or predictive modelling e.g. SPSS or R.