Remote Merchant Risk Analyst Jobs in Chicago, IL

Phone/Skype Hire. Remote

Location: REMOTE

Duration: 6+ months

The Senior Business Analyst (Consultant) supports IT, school operations, and compliance by improving data quality, strengthening risk management, and streamlining districtwide workflows. This role evaluates and redesigns key systems—including school communication tools, medical incident reporting, and implementing a Third-Party Risk Management (TPRM) solution to safeguard student data and ensure compliance. Through current-state assessments, cross-departmental requirements gathering, and clear business cases, the analyst translates complex insights into actionable recommendations that improve system usability, reduce risk, and enable more responsive, data-driven decision-making across the district.

Key Responsibilities:

Project Specific Responsibilities

○ School Leader Information Centralization Project

• Assess existing communication tools and document gaps, risks, and redundancies.
• Define project goals, scope, success metrics, and user requirements for a centralized platform that provides
• All district/network information

Action items

• A collaboration hub for School Leaders
• Produce a full requirements package enabling leadership to refine the project charter.
• Recommend technology, workflows, and governance that streamline information to School Leaders.

○ Third-Party Risk Management (TPRM) Solution Project

• Lead the business analysis effort to implement a TPRM solution that centralizes vendor security, privacy, gaps, and risk data.
• Document current vendor categorization gaps and the impact of lacking population/risk visibility.
• Map existing vendor onboarding, approval, review, and contract workflows across procurement, IT security, legal, and data privacy.
• Define requirements for a single “pane of glass” TPRM system that integrates with: ERP system; ServiceNow; DocuSign; CLM

Value Identification & Quantification:

• Analyze the concrete benefits of cleaner and centralized data for school-level staff, particularly school clerks and School Leaders.
• Quantify the operational and financial impacts of poor data quality and fragmented communication workflows.
• Conduct root-cause analysis and process mapping to identify where data quality and data governance gaps create operational risk.
• Document the value proposition for both data quality and third-party vendor risk management through structured business analysis techniques.
• Evaluate the cost/benefit and risk/benefit of implementing a TPRM solution, including reduced exposure to breaches, improved compliance workflows, and improved vendor onboarding efficiency.

Impact Storytelling & Business Case Development:

• Gather powerful anecdotes from schools, IT, compliance, and vendor management teams; pair them with metrics to build compelling impact stories.
• Develop narratives supporting investments in data quality, centralized School Leader communication tools, and third-party risk reduction
• Create business cases articulating the return on investment for:
  • Data Quality & Master Data Management (MDM)
  • School Leader Communication Centralization
  • Third-Party Risk Management (TPRM) solution implementation
  • Operational risk management
  • Migration & Data Integrity Considerations
  • ○ Translate findings into executive-ready presentations using cost modeling, impact projections, and risk assessments.

Stakeholder Collaboration & Activation:

• Conduct requirements elicitation sessions with school leaders, IT, compliance, vendor management, procurement, and cybersecurity.
• Document user journeys, process flows, risk workflows, and current-to-future-state models for both major projects.
• Serve as a key translator between technical teams, compliance teams, and non-technical school staff to ensure shared understanding.
• Support change management, creating messaging and training materials that clarify:
  • Data quality expectations
  • The purpose and benefits of centralized School Leader communication
  • The reasons for vendor risk assessments and security validation
• Activate stakeholders by demonstrating how these solutions reduce workload, increase accuracy, and protect student data..

Performance Milestones:

• Complete onboarding and training, including any certification requirements, with the goal of achieving business analysis certification if not already achieved.
• Participate in weekly check-ins with the Manager, IT Business Partnership to report on progress, challenges, and accomplishments.
• Provide weekly progress reports on all projects, including time spent, challenges encountered, and status updates.
• Establish strong relationships with business units to enhance collaboration and ensure alignment with CPSspecific tools and practices.

Key Deliverables:

• Data Impact Analysis Report: A detailed report quantifying the operational and financial impacts of the projects citing specific examples from school operations and state-level reporting.
• A Collection of Data-Backed Anecdotes: A portfolio of powerful, vetted stories with supporting metrics that leadership can use in presentations to secure funding and drive engagement.
• Value Management Presentation: A final summary presentation for project leadership that synthesizes all quantitative and qualitative findings into a compelling business case for continued investment in data quality.

Qualifications:

Education:

○ Bachelor’s degree in Business, Information Technology, or related field. Master’s degree preferred.

Experience:

• 5+ years of experience in business analysis, preferably within the public sector or large institutions.
• 5+ years of experience in information technology, preferably within the public sector or large institutions.
• Experience managing complex projects involving multiple stakeholders and cross-functional teams.
• Proficiency in developing business cases, conducting feasibility studies, and facilitating project documentation.
• Previous work experience with Chicago Public Schools is highly preferred.

Skills Needed

• Strong quantitative and qualitative analysis skills, with the ability to synthesize data from various sources.
• Demonstrated ability to translate complex data analysis into clear, compelling narratives and business cases for a non-technical audience.
• Strong communication, meeting facilitation and presentation skills, with the ability to translate technical concepts into clear business terms.
• Very strong writing abilities and presentation creation with quality design.
• Expertise in Excel and Google Sheets.
• Expertise in business analysis tools (e.g., requirements documentation, data flow mapping, process modeling).
• Strong project management and organizational skills.
• Ability to self-manage, handle competing priorities and ensure on-time project delivery.
• Familiarity with IT project management methodologies (e.g., Agile, Waterfall) and project management software to track and report on project status and manage requirements, timelines and deliverables.
• Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP) / PMI Professional in Business Analysis (PMI-PBA)

• Understanding of data governance, vendor risk management, or regulatory frameworks such as SOPPA, COPPA, FERPA, or NIST (preferred).
• Experience documenting requirements for security, privacy, or compliance solutions
• Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP), Project Management Professional (PMP), or equivalent certification.
• Strong understanding of integrations, APIs, and system interoperability between enterprise systems.
• Incident Reporting Current/Future State Analysis: Documentation of existing workflows, system constraints, user roles, and incident categories across departments.
• Experience evaluating operational risk, safety reporting tools, or health-related incident tracking systems