Position Overview

The Business Analyst, Budget Planning & Financial Operations supports budgeting, forecasting, reporting, and analysis activities that help business leaders effectively manage approved budgets and financial commitments throughout the year.

This role partners with budget owners and business leaders to maintain accurate forecasts, monitor spending, identify risks and opportunities, and keep assumptions aligned with current business needs. The analyst helps stakeholders avoid unexpected overspend while also identifying available funding and planned activities that may need action so approved resources are used effectively.

The ideal candidate is analytical, highly organized, and comfortable working directly with stakeholders. As the individual develops knowledge of the business and its planning processes, they will take an increasingly active role in recurring forecast discussions, budget reviews, and follow-up with assigned budget owners.

Essential Job Functions

Budget Planning & Forecast Management

• Support annual budget planning and recurring forecast cycles, including non-labor operating expense and capital expenditure planning.
• Maintain and update forecast workbooks, planning files, assumptions, and supporting documentation throughout the year.
• Work with budget owners to understand spending plans, project timing, contract obligations, purchase commitments, and changing business priorities.
• Help budget owners maintain realistic forecasts that reduce the risk of overspending and highlight opportunities to use approved funding before year-end.
• Track forecast changes, open actions, and decisions to ensure planning information remains current and explainable.
• Identify potential overages, unused funding, timing shifts, and other risks or opportunities, and raise them for timely discussion and action.
• Support capital planning, project cost tracking, and workforce or position planning activities as assigned.

Budget Owner & Business Leader Partnership

• Build productive working relationships with budget owners and business leaders.
• Prepare for and participate in recurring budget and forecast review meetings.
• Ask thoughtful questions, clarify assumptions, document decisions, and follow up on required updates.
• Explain budget, forecast, actual, and committed-spend information in clear business terms.
• Provide budget owners with timely information that supports prioritization and spending decisions.
• With appropriate training and experience, independently lead routine forecast conversations and serve as a primary point of contact for assigned budget owners.
• Coordinate with Finance and other stakeholders to resolve discrepancies and keep planning data aligned.

Financial Analysis & Reporting

• Analyze budget, forecast, actual, committed, and planned spend information.
• Perform variance analysis and identify the operational drivers behind changes in financial performance.
• Review spending trends and summarize relevant risks, opportunities, and recommended follow-up actions.
• Prepare recurring reports, dashboards, meeting materials, and concise leadership summaries.
• Support ad hoc analysis, project financial reviews, business cases, and return-on-investment analysis as needed.
• Contribute to budget planning scenarios and longer-range analysis using documented assumptions.

Data Management, Controls & Process Improvement

• Reconcile financial and operational information across systems, reports, and source files.
• Validate data, investigate discrepancies, and document assumptions, methods, and exceptions.
• Maintain accurate, audit-ready records of forecast updates, commitments, decisions, and supporting information.
• Create and maintain reports, dashboards, process documentation, and user guidance.
• Identify practical improvements that increase forecast accuracy, strengthen controls, and reduce manual effort.
• Support small-scale reporting, process, or tool improvement initiatives.
• Handle additional duties as assigned by management.

Job Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, Analytics,or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Approximately 2 to 5 years of experience in business analysis, budgeting, forecasting, financial analysis, operations, project controls, portfolio administration, or a related role.
• Experience supporting budget planning, forecast maintenance, financial reporting, or variance analysis.
• Working knowledge of operating expense and capital expenditure concepts.
• Strong Microsoft Excel skills and comfort working with detailed financial and operational data.
• Ability to organize information, manage multiple priorities, and follow through on open actions.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, written, and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to build trusted relationships and communicate financial information to non-financial stakeholders.
• Attention to detail and commitment to data quality, documentation, and confidentiality.
• Ability to work collaboratively across teams and adapt to changing priorities.

Preferred Experience

• Budget owner or business-partner support.
• Non-labor forecast management, project portfolio support, or contract and vendor spend analysis.
• Capital planning, project cost tracking, or multi-year planning.
• Executive-ready reporting, dashboards, KPI reporting, or data visualization.
• Experience with Power BI, Workday, ERP or financial planning systems, procurement systems, or similar business tools.
• Process improvement, requirements gathering, or small-scale project coordination.

Physical Demands and Special Requirements

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this role. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Final language should be reviewed with HR and Talent Acquisition for the approved work location and role classification.

Additional Details

Compensation range, job classification, approved work location, and location-specific benefits language will be added by HR and Talent Acquisition, as applicable.