Job Description: Senior Data Analyst / Business Data Analyst (Azure Data Platform)
Role Overview
We are seeking a highly consultative Senior Data Analyst / Business Data Analyst who combines strong business acumen with deep analytical and Azure data platform expertise. The ideal candidate will work directly with business stakeholders, report owners, and customers to understand business challenges, challenge requirements constructively, and translate them into actionable analytics solutions.
This role requires a hands-on professional who can perform rapid data investigations, build proof-of-concept analyses, and bridge the gap between business needs and technical data solutions.
Key Responsibilities
- Engage directly with business stakeholders, report owners, and customers to gather, analyze, and refine business requirements.
- Translate business requirements into SQL-based data analysis, reports, dashboards, and actionable insights.
- Perform root cause analysis and investigate data quality, reporting, and operational issues.
- Develop ad hoc analyses, prototypes, mock-ups, and proof-of-concepts to validate business ideas and requirements.
- Challenge business requirements constructively and recommend data-driven solutions that align with strategic objectives.
- Collaborate with data engineering, BI, and product teams to define data models, metrics, and reporting standards.
- Interpret complex datasets and present clear findings and recommendations to technical and non-technical audiences.
- Support analytics initiatives on Azure Data Platform technologies, ensuring alignment with business objectives.
- Drive continuous improvement in reporting, analytics processes, and data governance practices.
Required Skills & Experience
Technical Skills
- Strong expertise in SQL with the ability to write complex queries, troubleshoot issues, and perform advanced data analysis.
- Proficiency in Python for data analysis, data profiling, exploratory analysis, and rapid prototyping.
- Solid understanding of data modeling concepts, relational databases, and analytical data structures.
- Experience working with Azure Data Platform technologies such as:
- Azure Data Factory (ADF)
- Azure Synapse Analytics
- Azure Databricks
- Azure Data Lake
- Power BI
Business & Consulting Skills
- Strong business analysis and stakeholder management capabilities.
- Ability to work directly with customers and business users.
- Experience translating business problems into analytical and technical solutions.
- Excellent communication and presentation skills.
- Strong consulting mindset with the ability to challenge assumptions and influence decision-making.
- Ability to independently investigate issues, identify root causes, and recommend solutions.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in enterprise analytics, business intelligence, or data consulting engagements.
- Exposure to Agile delivery methodologies.
- Experience working in customer-facing roles within data and analytics programs.
- Familiarity with KPI frameworks, reporting governance, and business performance management.