Business Systems Associate/Specialist

About Carlsbad
The City of Carlsbad is ideally situated in north San Diego County with a great climate, beautiful beaches, lagoons and abundant open space. World-class resorts, well planned neighborhoods, a diverse business sector and a charming village atmosphere combine to create the ideal California experience. The city's 115,000 residents enjoy a healthy, outdoor lifestyle, appreciate high-quality community services, and want to protect their excellent quality of life. Carlsbad is known for its strong financial health, with a AAA credit rating and solid cash reserves.

The Position
The City of Carlsbad has an immediate opening for a Business Systems Associate/Specialist in the Information Technology department. This position plays an integral role in helping staff use technology and data to support their business needs. The Business Systems Associate/Specialist performs an internal consultancy role for Library & Cultural Arts and the Community Services Branch (Community Development, Parks & Recreation, and Housing & Homeless Services) with responsibility for gathering requirements for technology, conducting business process reviews, leading change management, providing data and researching options for the use of technology to support business needs. This position oversees and maintains business systems including management of the Integrated Library System (ILS), the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) patron materials management and automation system, along with administration of the grants lifecycle management platform and multiple third-party integrations. The position also serves in a lead role for technology procurement and implementation.

Salary Range
Business Systems Associate: $38.90 - $47.35 /Hourly
Business Systems Specialist: $44.72 - $54.41 /Hourly

You Belong in Carlsbad
The City of Carlsbad embraces and recognizes the vital relationship of an inclusive, engaged work environment and innovative excellence. An equitable and inclusive work climate comprises personal experiences, values, and views shaped from differences of culture and circumstance. Our organization appreciates belonging, creativity, recognition and retention of its employees and is committed to hiring and developing motivated, productive and talented employees who provide services and enhance our quality of life. We work to embrace open and equitable access to opportunities for learning and development as our responsibility and goal.

The following duties are typical for this job series. Incumbents perform some but not all of the listed duties and/or may be required to perform additional duties to meet the city's business needs and changing operating practices. Other duties may be required and assigned.

Business Systems Associate:

Responds to end users requests, runs reports and formulates custom reports.

Supports basic, common business processes and tools.

Carries out assignments under direct supervision.

Identifies and researches specific client requirements for projects and builds a working knowledge of application and/or system workflow, and reporting specifications.

Develops and implements alternatives to address or correct problems of a basic to moderate scope of complexity.

Resolves and supports end users with access and utilization of business-systems; may work with vendors to solve specific issues.

Conducts testing; coordinates software implementation and maintenance.

Writes training materials for system functions; conducts training on the functionality of assigned technology.

Ensures data required by business group is tracked and reported correctly.

Develops and maintains operation manuals for assigned applications or systems.

Business Systems Specialist performs the duties of the Business Systems Associate in addition to:

Contributes to or leads technology projects.

Conducts business process analysis to ensure reporting requirements.

Builds business cases through evaluation and analysis and documents business processes.

Creates quality assurance processes for data entry, utilization and reporting.

Facilitates communication between assigned departments and the Information Technology Department.

Performs application administration functions within assigned business systems.

Utilizes various scripting languages and techniques to enhance workflow automation with assigned application.

Exports application data for report writing and analytical purposes.

Addresses data problems and inconsistencies.

Ensures course correction, timelines, communications and other aspects of project management.

Designs and develops workflow to support assigned department needs for information and/or utilization of software and/or systems.

Collaborates with the city's Information Technology Department and/or outside vendors to resolve integration issues with various data systems.

Ensures compliance with software licensing agreements.

Provides performance input.

Identifies suppliers, obtains request for bids, encumbers funds to acquire goods and services.

Obtains bids, quotes; performs Requests for Proposals; selects vendors for technological services; works with vendors through installation and maintenance.

Specific to area of assignment; maintain various system inventory, including tracking information relating to equipment problems, repair and maintenance and developing methodologies to analyze equipment usage, problems and repairs.

Analyze and implement system optimization strategies designed to improve computer performance.

Develop and implement methodologies to ensure data integrity.

Qualifications may vary depending on assignment.

Business Systems Associate:

• Basic principles, methods and techniques to respond to user requests.
• Ability to troubleshoot hardware and software problems of a basic scope.
• Ability to establish working relationships with department users, the Information Technology Department, vendors or professionals.
• Ability to provide excellent customer service.
• Basic knowledge of assigned department operations.
• Knowledge of report writing concepts and tools.
• Knowledge of basic project management practices.
• Knowledge of standard personal computer software packages, including word processing, spreadsheet, database, desktop publishing.
• Ability to perform analysis and reach sound, logical conclusions regarding user needs and requirements.
• Ability to organize, plan and complete projects.
• Ability to perform connectivity testing and trouble-shooting including use of diagnostic tools and equipment.
• Ability to write basic computer generated reports.
• Ability to develop training materials.
• Ability to support projects or cross-functional teams.
• Knowledge of basic principles and methods of computer configuration and operation.
• Knowledge of basic principles of computer science.
• Ability to troubleshoot basic hardware and software problems.

Business Systems Specialist:

Knowledge and abilities of the Business Systems Associate in addition to:

• Advanced knowledge of assigned department operations and business processes.
• Knowledge of relational databases.
• Knowledge of and the ability to perform project management.
• Ability to generate and write complex reports by extracting data and information.
• Ability to design and develop workflow, custom reports or various custom integration of assigned applications.
• Ability to lead and manage projects.
• Ability to perform process and data analysis, research business problems.
• Ability to set-up, fix errors and change procedures and protocols for utilization of software applications.
• Ability to support multiple business processes.
• Ability to maintain and manage the operations of software applications and achieve optimal technical performance and user support.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.

• Knowledge of integrated systems of area assignment.
• Knowledge of computer operating systems.
• Knowledge of local area and wireless network principles.

Business Systems Associate:

Bachelor of Computer Science or Information Technology, Business Administration or related field or related experience.

Progressively responsible experience, two to three years, in applicable business applications. Basic to moderate knowledge of specific applications and systems may vary depending on the assignment and will be specified.

Business Systems Specialist:

Experience and Education required of the Business Systems Associate in addition to:

Progressively responsible experience, three to five years, providing user support, performing business analysis and providing technology solutions in a medium size. Moderate to advanced knowledge of specific applications, systems and/or scripting languages may vary depending on the assignment and will be specified.