Senior Associate - Forward Deployed Analyst

New York Life; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 124,000 - 177,000; Full time

Job summary

New York Life is seeking a Senior Forward Deployed Analyst within the TDAV organization in New York. The role is highly autonomous, embedding with strategic transformation teams to convert complex business intent into implementation-grade specifications for AI-enabled outcomes.

You will work with senior stakeholders, Product Owners, domain and data specialists, and engineers to structure ambiguity, drive decisions, and accelerate specification development using AI tools while maintaining

Qualifications

• 8+ years of progressively responsible experience in business analysis or related fields.
• Ability to translate ambiguous problems into implementation-ready specifications.
• Experience facilitating senior stakeholders and driving decisions.

Responsibilities

• Own specification and solution clarity from discovery through implementation and validation.
• Translate strategy into detailed workflows, data needs, and acceptance criteria.
• Lead senior leader sessions to resolve ambiguity and unblock engineering.
• Collaborate with Product Owners on prioritization while ensuring specification depth and consistency.
• Lead rapid prototype feedback cycles and reflect learnings in specifications.
• Use AI tools to generate and test specifications and accelerate analysis.
• Define AI behavior, tool use, human checkpoints, and evaluation criteria.
• Work with engineers and architects to resolve feasibility questions.
• Create reusable specification patterns and coach other analysts.

Skills

Business analysis

Stakeholder facilitation

AI-assisted analysis

Requirements engineering

Data-driven decision making

Cross-functional leadership

Systems thinking

Problem solving

Product analysis

Technical collaboration

Tools

Generative AI tools

Job description

Location Designation: Hybrid - 3 days per week

Technology, Data, AI and Ventures:

Within the Tech, Data, AI, Ventures (TDAV) organization, our work is guided by a shared vision: deploying the power of technology, data, AI and ventures to accelerate sustainable competitive advantage for New York Life's businesses. We build solutions that power how we serve policy owners, agents, advisors and employees while delivering measurable business outcomes.

Across technology, data, AI, cyber, product, digital experience, architecture and infrastructure, TDAV combines the scale and investment of an industry leader, access to leading-edge technologies and the opportunity to help shape how a world-class financial services company competes in the AI era - all backed by the stability and purpose of a mutual company built to last.

Business Overview

New York Life is advancing strategic transformations designed to reimagine critical enterprise capabilities through business process redesign, modern technology, data, analytics, automation, and AI. Delivery is organized around small, outcome-focused teams that bring together Product Owners, forward deployed talent, domain and data specialists, control partners, and strategic engineering partners.

The delivery model is intentionally designed for an AI-enabled software development lifecycle. Teams use rapid prototyping, precise specifications, AI-assisted analysis and engineering, continuous user feedback, and strong production disciplines to shorten the path from business problem to measurable value.

Role Overview

The Senior Forward Deployed Analyst is a highly autonomous problem solver embedded with strategic transformation teams, accountable for converting complex business and solution intent into implementation‑grade specifications for high‑value, ambiguous outcome areas. The role works directly with senior business stakeholders, Product Owners, Business Discovery & Solution Strategy leaders, Domain Technology Leads, architects, data specialists, and engineers.

The Senior Forward Deployed Analyst goes beyond traditional business analysis. The role independently structures ambiguity, challenges incomplete requirements, drives prototype‑based clarification, and creates the detailed workflow, decision logic, data requirements, agent behavior, exception handling, controls, and acceptance criteria required for rapid AI‑assisted engineering. The analyst is expected to use AI extensively to accelerate specification development while applying strong judgment to ensure completeness, consistency, and business fidelity.

How the Role Fits in the Outcome Team

Product Owner: What should we prioritize and why? Owns business value, prioritization, tradeoffs, and acceptance.

Forward Deployed Analyst: What exactly does the solution need to do? Owns implementation‑grade clarity, specifications, workflows, rules, data needs, exceptions, and acceptance criteria.

Forward Deployed Engineer: How do we engineer it correctly? Owns technical realization, system design, integration, quality, and production readiness.

AI is not a separate role in the pod. It is expected to accelerate discovery, specification, engineering, testing, and delivery across the team.

What You'll Do

• Independently own specification and solution clarity for complex outcome areas or multiple related pods from early discovery through implementation and validation.
• Translate future‑state strategy and product intent into detailed workflows, decision logic, business rules, data requirements, interaction models, exception paths, controls, and measurable acceptance criteria.
• Facilitate senior business and SME working sessions, challenge ambiguity and conflicting requirements, and drive decisions needed to unblock engineering.
• Partner with Product Owners on prioritization while owning the depth, completeness, and internal consistency of the implementation specification.
• Lead rapid prototype feedback cycles and ensure learnings are reflected continuously in the PRD or equivalent specification.
• Use AI tools to synthesize complex inputs, generate and test specifications, identify missing scenarios, maintain traceability, and accelerate analysis without lowering the quality bar.
• Define expected behavior for AI and agentic capabilities, including deterministic boundaries, tool use, human checkpoints, escalation logic, controls, and evaluation criteria.
• Work directly with Forward Deployed Engineers and architecture/data teams to resolve complex feasibility and dependency questions without prematurely constraining the future state.
• Establish reusable specification patterns, templates, and practices that improve quality and speed across outcome teams.
• Coach other analysts and contribute to the evolution of a modern, specification‑driven delivery model.

What You'll Bring

• 8+ years of progressively responsible experience in business analysis, product analysis, technology strategy, consulting, engineering, data/analytics, or related disciplines, including leadership of complex cross‑functional initiatives.
• Demonstrated success translating ambiguous, high‑value business problems into implementation‑ready specifications and executable solutions.
• Strong experience facilitating senior stakeholders and driving clarity and decisions across competing perspectives.
• Excellent systems thinking and ability to connect business workflows, data, technology, controls, and user behavior.
• Strong understanding of modern software delivery, data and analytics, APIs/integration, and AI‑enabled or agentic solutions.
• Experience working directly with engineering and architecture teams through build, validation, and production readiness.
• Advanced ability to use generative AI and AI‑assisted tools for analysis, specification development, scenario generation, and quality improvement.
• Exceptional written, verbal, facilitation, and problem‑solving skills.

Preferred Experience

• Experience with product discovery, product strategy, design thinking, service design, or management consulting.
• Experience in financial services, insurance, finance, investments, or another regulated enterprise environment.
• Technical or engineering background enabling deep collaboration with software, data, and AI engineers.
• Experience establishing business analysis, specification engineering, or product operations practices across teams.

Why This Role

The Senior Forward Deployed Analyst owns implementation‑level clarity for complex transformation outcomes. The role enables small, senior engineering teams to move faster by reducing ambiguity before and during the build, while ensuring that prototypes, specifications, AI behavior, data requirements, and business outcomes remain tightly connected.

Company Overview

At New York Life, our 180-year legacy of purpose and integrity fuels our future. As we evolve into a more technology, data, and AI‑enabled organization, we remain grounded in the values that drive lasting impact.

Our diverse business portfolio creates opportunities to make a difference across industries and communities, inviting bold thinking, collaborative problem‑solving, and purpose‑driven innovation. As a Fortune 100 mutual company, we offer a place to grow your skills, contribute to meaningful work, and deliver solutions that matter.

Our diverse business portfolio creates opportunities to make a difference across industries and communities—inviting bold thinking, collaborative problem‑solving, and purpose‑driven innovation. Here, you’ll find the rare balance of long‑standing stability and forward momentum, supported by an inclusive team that honors tradition while embracing progress.

As a Fortune 100 mutual company, we offer a place to grow your skills, contribute to meaningful work, and deliver solutions that matter. Your ideas drive what’s next, and your growth powers it.

Job Level

LEVELPF4

Pay Transparency

Salary Range: $124,000-$177,000

Overtime eligible: Exempt

Discretionary bonus eligible: Yes

Sales bonus eligible: No

Actual base salary will be determined based on several factors but not limited to individual’s experience, skills, qualifications, and job location. Additionally, employees are eligible for an annual discretionary bonus. In addition to base salary, employees may also be eligible to participate in an incentive program.

Company Overview

At New York Life, our 180-year legacy of purpose and integrity fuels our future. As we evolve into a more technology-, data-, and AI-enabled organization, we remain grounded in the values that drive lasting impact.

Our diverse business portfolio creates opportunities to make a difference across industries and communities—inviting bold thinking, collaborative problem‑solving, and purpose‑driven innovation. Here, you’ll find the rare balance of long‑standing stability and forward momentum, supported by an inclusive team that honors tradition while embracing progress.

As a Fortune 100 mutual company, we offer a place to grow your skills, contribute to meaningful work, and deliver solutions that matter.

Our Benefits

We provide a full package of benefits for employees – and have unique offerings for a modern workforce, including leave programs, adoption assistance, and student loan repayment programs. Based on feedback from our employees, we continue to refine and add benefits to our offering, so that you can flourish both inside and outside of work.

Our Commitment to Inclusion

At New York Life, fostering an inclusive workplace is fundamental to who we are and how we serve our communities. We have a longstanding commitment to creating an environment where individuals can contribute their best and succeed together. This foundation is rooted in our core values of humanity and integrity, ensuring that every employee feels valued and supported. By embracing a broad range of perspectives and experiences, we achieve greater success and fulfill our promise of providing financial security and peace of mind to families across all communities.

Recognized as one of Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies, New York Life is committed to improving local communities through a culture of employee giving and volunteerism, supported by the Foundation. We're proud that due to our mutuality, we operate in the best interests of our policy owners. To learn more about career opportunities at New York Life, please visit the Careers page of www.NewYorkLife.com.