Senior Business Analyst (Contract)

Blue Star Partners LLC; Columbus (OH); Hybrid; USD 162,557,000 - 191,486,000; Full time

Job summary

Blue Star Partners LLC in Columbus, OH seeks a Senior Business Analyst to support IT projects, gather requirements, and coordinate with service providers and IT teams. The role reports to the Manager of Applications and requires experience across the SDLC, workshops, and stakeholder engagement. Hybrid schedule with remote Mon/Fri and onsite Tue–Thu, rate $57–$67/hour on W-2 terms.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in a related field.
• 4+ years of experience in business analysis or IT project delivery.
• Experience with SDLC, Waterfall, Agile, or hybrid delivery.
• Ability to lead workshops and coach junior analysts.
• Onsite availability Tue–Thu in Columbus, OH.

Responsibilities

• Identify, define, document, and validate business requirements and functional specifications for IT projects.
• Lead, design, and facilitate business engagements to establish scope, needs, objectives, and outcomes.
• Ensure end-to-end requirements traceability using standard templates and processes.
• Translate business needs into clear requirements, use cases, and acceptance criteria.
• Support testing, deployment readiness, and post-implementation activities.

Skills

Requirements Elicitation

Stakeholder Facilitation

SDLC

Analytical Skills

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Tools

Jira

qTest

HP ALM

Job description

Job Title: Senior Business Analyst
Location: Columbus, OH
Work Model: Hybrid — Tuesday through Thursday onsite, Monday and Friday remote
Rate: $57–$67/hour
Contract Term: September 28, 2026 – June 25, 2027
Contract Extension: Yes, strong possibility of extension
Employment Type: W-2 Only
Work Authorization: U.S. Citizens Only | Green Card holders also eligible; no visa sponsorship available
Work Schedule: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM, with 1-hour lunch

Position Overview

We are seeking an experienced Senior Business Analyst to support IT projects, application initiatives, business requirements, functional specifications, service provider coordination, and solution delivery activities. This role will report to the Manager of Applications and will work closely with business partners, stakeholders, service providers, IT teams, and project teams to ensure business needs are clearly defined, documented, validated, and delivered.

The Senior Business Analyst will be responsible for identifying, defining, and documenting business requirements and functional specifications across assigned projects and applications. This individual will support all phases of the Systems Development Lifecycle, including demand assessment, business planning, requirements elicitation, process modeling, solution assessment, testing support, deployment, and post-implementation activities.

The ideal candidate is a strong, independent Business Analyst who can manage their own work with limited supervision, lead requirements discussions, facilitate workshops, coach less experienced analysts, and partner effectively with both business and technical stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

Business Analysis & Requirements Management

• Identify, define, document, and validate business requirements and functional specifications for IT projects and initiatives.

• Lead, design, and facilitate business engagements to establish scope, business needs, project objectives, outcomes, and expectations.

• Oversee end-to-end requirements traceability using standard tools, templates, and internal processes.

• Translate business needs into clear requirements, use cases, process documentation, business rules, and acceptance criteria.

• Ensure requirements are aligned to business goals, project scope, solution design, and expected outcomes.

Demand Assessment & Business Planning

• Assist Business Relationship Managers with demand assessment activities.

• Review business strategies and provide input into business cases, high‑level goals, expected outcomes, and project feasibility.

• Begin eliciting business requirements during early planning and discovery phases.

• Model current‑state and future‑state processes using business process mapping, value stream mapping, and other appropriate techniques.

• Socialize project needs and requirements with IT teams, including Architecture, Applications, Infrastructure, and Services.

Definition, Design & Solution Validation

• Facilitate workshops to evolve scope, gather detailed requirements, develop use cases, and help visualize the desired end state.

• Engage with key stakeholders to influence solution design and ensure it supports business goals, scope, and strategy.

• Review proposed designs and solutions for usability and alignment with approved requirements.

• Provide input into the identification and delivery of project benefits.

• Assess solution impacts across business areas, service users, applications, processes, and stakeholders.

SDLC, Testing & Deployment Support

• Support all phases of the Systems Development Lifecycle using Waterfall, Agile, or hybrid delivery methodologies.

• Provide clarification on project vision, scope, requirements, business rules, and expected functionality throughout delivery and deployment.

• Support change request assessment and management through standard processes.

• Develop or support acceptance test plans and assist testing teams in creating appropriate test scripts.

• Support testing, implementation, deployment readiness, and user acceptance activities.

• Help ensure delivered solutions meet documented business requirements and stakeholder expectations.

Application & Service Provider Support

• Work with service providers to become knowledgeable about assigned applications, products, systems, and operational processes.

• Collaborate with service providers to support resolution of operational service‑based issues.

• Review, analyze, and report progress on service incidents and requests.

• Prepare materials and facilitate regular performance review meetings.

• Prepare performance and status information for IT and business leaders as requested.

• Partner with vendors to review and discuss products, proposed designs, and solution options.

Vendor, Product & Procurement Support

• Work with vendors to review products, capabilities, designs, and proposed solutions.

• Write or participate in the writing of RFIs, RFPs, and related procurement documentation.

• Support procurement of new products or systems by conducting product research and preparing written recommendations.

• Become a domain and product expert through research, testing, and hands‑on familiarization with assigned applications, products, or systems.

• Prepare detailed reports and recommendations for management review.

Process Improvement, Documentation & Training

• Observe business processes and identify opportunities for improvement.

• Recommend process improvements that enhance efficiency, usability, service delivery, or business outcomes.

• Prepare detailed, organized, and user‑friendly written procedures for product or system end users.

• Develop and support end‑user training materials and may conduct training using a variety of delivery methods.

• Use templates, tools, and internal processes consistently, while helping evolve standards and practices as needed.

Team Leadership & Coaching

• Coach and provide daily guidance, leadership, and direction to other Business Analysts or team members.

• Guide less experienced analysts on business analysis practices, tools, templates, requirements documentation, and stakeholder engagement.

• Support consistent use of internal BA processes, project documentation standards, and delivery methods.

• Promote collaboration, teamwork, and effective communication across business, IT, service provider, and vendor teams.

Day-to-Day Responsibilities

• Manage assigned work independently with limited supervision.

• Meet with stakeholders, subject matter experts, service providers, and IT teams to gather and clarify requirements.

• Facilitate workshops, interviews, process discussions, and requirements review sessions.

• Document business requirements, functional specifications, process flows, use cases, business rules, and acceptance criteria.

• Track requirements, decisions, risks, issues, action items, and change requests.

• Review proposed solutions to confirm requirements are satisfied.

• Support test planning, test script development, user acceptance testing, and implementation readiness.

• Analyze service incidents and requests related to assigned applications.

• Prepare materials for performance reviews, project updates, and leadership reporting.

• Coach other Business Analysts and support consistent use of tools, templates, and processes.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience.

• 4+ years of experience with business modeling concepts, business application development, business analysis, or related IT project delivery work.

• Experience serving as a practicing Business Analyst on 2–3 medium or large projects.

• Experience with all phases of the Systems Development Lifecycle.

• Experience with one or more delivery methodologies, including Waterfall, Agile, or hybrid approaches.

• Demonstrated knowledge of project management practices, process interviewing, process mapping, and project scope documentation techniques.

• Ability to use appropriate modeling techniques and build business cases.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.

• Strong teaming, collaboration, negotiation, communication, organizational, people management, and conflict resolution skills.

• Experience working closely with service providers.

• Evidence of ability to lead, guide, and coach less experienced Business Analysts.

• Ability to work independently, manage priorities, and deliver quality work with limited supervision.

• Ability to work onsite Tuesday through Thursday in Columbus, OH.

Preferred Qualifications

• Certification of Competency in Business Analysis (CCBA) or Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP).

• Experience with hybrid Agile or iterative development methodologies.

• Experience using testing tools such as qTest or HP ALM.

• Experience using Agile development tools such as Jira.

• Experience supporting application development, business application delivery, or enterprise IT initiatives.

• Experience preparing RFIs, RFPs, vendor evaluations, product research, or management recommendations.

• Experience developing end‑user procedures, job aids, training materials, or user‑facing documentation.

• Experience supporting service provider performance reviews, incident analysis, or operational reporting.

Core Competencies

• Business Analysis

• Requirements Elicitation

• Requirements Management

• Functional Specifications

• Business Process Modeling

• Value Stream Mapping

• Use Case Development

• Business Case Support

• SDLC

• Waterfall / Agile / Hybrid Delivery

• Solution Assessment

• User Acceptance Testing

• Change Request Support

• Application Support

• Service Provider Coordination

• Vendor Management

• RFI / RFP Support

• Process Improvement

• Documentation

• Training Support

• Stakeholder Facilitation

• BA Coaching

Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate is a seasoned Business Analyst with strong requirements management, process modeling, stakeholder facilitation, application delivery, and SDLC experience. They should be comfortable working independently, partnering with business and IT stakeholders, coordinating with service providers, supporting testing and implementation, and coaching less experienced Business Analysts. The strongest candidates will bring strong communication skills, analytical discipline, process improvement experience, and the ability to operate effectively across business, technical, and vendor teams.