Senior Business Analyst

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Department: Advancement and Alumni Relations

Classification: Info Technology Spec 2

Job Category: Classified Staff

Job Type: Part-Time

Work Schedule: Part-time

Location: Fairfax, VA

Workplace Type: Hybrid Eligible

Sponsorship Eligibility: Not eligible for visa sponsorship

Pay Band: 05

Salary: Salary commensurate with education and experience

Criminal Background Check: Yes

About the Department:

The Office of Advancement and Alumni Relations division is a comprehensive development and alumni relations enterprise with a staff complement of approximately 135 FTE. Functional units within Advancement include development/fundraising, alumni relations, stewardship and donor relations, advancement communications, special events, gift processing, research, prospect management, gift planning, corporate and foundation relations, information systems and management, and infrastructure services.

Advancement's mission is to build strong, lifelong relationships with George Mason University's alumni and constituents, while matching their philanthropic interests with the university aspirations and priorities. The division is committed to serving the needs of the university, our alumni, and the greater community by providing access to quality education and lifelong learning. Respect, service, integrity, collaboration, diversity, transparency, and creativity are the values that guide our work and culture.

About the Position:

The Senior Business Analyst position is responsible for managing projects, which consists of: gathering requirements, aligning requirements with business processes, communicating with all levels of personnel, and establishing solutions that work for the stakeholders. This position is also heavily involved in reporting, using MicroStrategy, Salesforce reports, and SQL/SOQL to support business requirements. Finally, this position is responsible for Salesforce System Administration tasks, such as assisting with new application releases, building out sophisticated workflows, page layouts, validation rules, user management, and troubleshooting.

Responsibilities:

Strategic Planning/Process Improvement

• Manage projects that support department goals, including: coordination of stakeholders, building timelines, requirements gathering, user acceptance testing, and launching;
• Projects include working with all levels of personnel to determine needs and gather requirements. I.e.: development of process automations, complex data integration, researching and implementing new system tools, and building out extensive workflows in Salesforce;
• Collaborate with technical and non-technical personnel in all aspects of projects;
• Identify gaps in current workflows, research and recommend solutions;
• Develop solutions using available tools, or research/implement potential new tools;
• Stay abreast of systems in use, as well as new offerings that may aid in the efficiency of our operation, including: Salesforce, Affinaquest, Digital Engagement platforms and MicroStrategy Reporting; and
• Provide training and documentation on all projects and customizations.

Reporting & Analytics

• Design, enhance, and maintain MicroStrategy and Salesforce reports and dashboards to support fundraising, engagement, and operational functions across Advancement. This includes building schema objects, and application objects with minimal guidance;
• Conduct advanced data analysis and validation to support decision-making;
• Organize and collaborate with stakeholders, at all levels, to gather, document, and prioritize business requirements and reporting needs;
• Translate complex business requirements into functional and technical specifications and Business Intelligence solutions;
• Build schema objects (attributes, facts) and application objects (reports, metrics, filters, prompts) in collaboration with Director of Business Intelligence and Reporting;
• Provide analysis of data sources and validate report outputs for accuracy;
• Maintain data quality and perform sufficient unit and system testing of reports and dashboards;
• Identify any performance or efficiency issues and suggest appropriate enhancements;
• Stay current with MicroStrategy tools and best practices; and
• Create and maintain clear documentation and change logs, for reports and dashboards.

System Administration

• Design and implement advanced solutions and automations to streamline processes and improve user efficiency, including: building intricate workflows, custom objects/fields, and dashboards, in support of optimizing work within the CRM;
• Direct the management of Salesforce Cases;
• Troubleshoot and resolve high-level Salesforce and Affinaquest issues;
• Manage the Initium Clean Address application, work directly with vendor regarding issues and upgrades;
• Maintain the configuration for the application within Salesforce, and use the application for data being uploaded into the CRM;
• Perform quarterly NCOA updates;
• Serve as a senior technical resource for the Director of Salesforce administration, managing complex user setups, permissions, and security protocols;
• Identify gaps and provide analysis and solutions for overcoming them; and
• Build teams with appropriate users to ascertain needs, recommend, and develop solutions.

Training and User Enablement

• Lead the design and delivery of comprehensive training programs for all new Advancement and Alumni Relations staff using Salesforce and MicroStrategy;
• Develop advanced training plans, including videos and written guides;
• Provide specialized training tailored to specific units or processes, as needed;
• Design comprehensive training plans for users at all levels; and
• Serve as Subject Matter Expert while providing training to end-users in navigation and use of Salesforce CRM with Affinaquest application, and MicroStrategy (reporting system).

Other duties as assigned

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in related field or equivalent combination of education and experience;
• Advanced experience troubleshooting Salesforce;
• Significant experience (5+ years) training others in Salesforce;
• Demonstrated experience leading business requirements sessions and developing comprehensive documentation;
• Expertise using cases, and process flows;
• Experience supporting and coordinating user testing;
• Working knowledge of MicroStrategy, (application object development);
• Advanced skill in writing queries to extract and analyze data;
• Strong report development and data interpretation skills;
• Excellent problem-solving skills and attention to detail;
• Ability to work independently, lead projects, and collaborate as part of a team;
• Ability to interpret data, identify trends, and recommend data-driven strategies;
• Ability to communicate complex information clearly to both technical teams and non-technical stakeholders;
• Strong presentation, training, and documentation skills;
• Exceptional customer service skills; and
• Salesforce Certified Administrator.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working within a higher education fundraising environment;
• Experience preparing reports and dashboards in Salesforce, or MicroStrategy;
• Experience with Oracle SQL or similar tools; and
• Knowledge of MicroStrategy schema development.

Instructions to Applicants:

For full consideration, applicants must apply for Senior Business Analyst at https://jobs.gmu.edu/. Complete and submit the online application to include three professional references (one must be a current supervisor) with contact information, and provide a Cover Letter/Letter of Intent with Resume for review.

Posting Open Date: January 13, 2026

Posting Close Date: January 27, 2026

Open Until Filled: No