Ecor Group Consulting Opportunities

Ecor Group Consulting, an Ecor Systems group, is a business technology consulting and contract services organization.

[ecorgroup-blog]

BI Application Lead - Austin, TX (Perm/1099)

We're looking to directly hire a BI Application Lead to work on a long term project with our direct client in Austin. This is a rare opportunity for a self-driven BI professional to create and carry out creation of unique BI-centric applications.

The chosen candidate will be a part of our client team, reporting directly to our Chief Consultant. The initial role with this particular client is scheduled to last 3+yrs.

This position serves as the primary development contact and support person for the Cognos Business Intelligence tools, SAS IT needs and mainframe legacy database support in the group. The person will act as the technical consultant for the Cognos team within the Information Technology Services Division. The ITS division’s mission is to design, implement, and support software applications for the agency. This position is responsible for supporting the deployment, maintenance support and creation of new systems using the Cognos suite. 

Work assignments are typically self-generated based on knowledge, experience, and personal recognition of matters requiring attention. 

Research available technology for reporting and make recommendations for agency use. 

Determine the operational, technical, and support requirements for production reporting software. 

Provide user administration and technical support for production reporting tools. Assist in troubleshooting system errors. 

Research new releases of reporting software and assess the impact on existing systems. 

Develop and document best practices for production reporting. Mentor other development staff in their use. 

Analyze user and application requirements for new reports and service requests. 

Develop and test new reports and enhancements as requested.     

Analyze performance reports and make recommendations for improvement. 

Design, develop and tune cubes and frameworks for use in reporting. 

Participate in code reviews, technical reviews, and audits. 

Consults with and directs outsourced service providers on capacity planning, resource utilization, upgrade planning, testing, troubleshooting. 

Assist in the development of disaster recovery plans and participate in disaster recovery testing and execution. 

Provide after hours support as needed. 

Knowledge of Cognos tools for the creation of Power Cubes and Frameworks 

Knowledge of relational database design. 

Knowledge of SQL 

Skill in creating complex Cognos reports, analyzing performance and resource utilization of reports and optimizing performance, eliciting and analyzing requirements, analyzing use cases for requirements and developing and executing test plans. 

Ability to communicate complex technical information clearly, verbally and in writing. Ability to work with software vendors, outsourced service providers, and application developers to analyze and resolve system errors. 

Perform other related duties as assigned.

Minimum Requirements: 

Years/Experience

 7 Analytical, problem-identification and process analysis skills with the ability to envision a solution from requirements 

 5 Developing and executing test plans for Cognos Reports 

 5 Troubleshooting and fixing Cognos problems 

 5 Cognos tools for the creation of  Power Cubes and Frameworks.

 5 Must have a strong analytical, problem-identification and process analysis skills with the ability to envision a solution from requirements 

 5 OO and UML development 

 5 Must be capable of translating business plans and requirements into information systems concepts and produce and update supporting documentation. 

 5 Work experience and understanding of software development lifecycle methodologies, thorough knowledge of the software specification process and software development processes, and software architecture. 

 4 Analyzing use cases for requirements. 

 4 Work experience with Software as a Service (SaaS) 

 4 Work experience and knowledge in defining and modeling functional business requirements using Unified Modeling Language (UML). 

 4 Analyzing performance and resource utilization of reports and optimizing performance 

 2 Prefer experience with agile/scrum projects and creating and maintaining product backlog 

Additional:

Professional who works well independently or as part of a team 

Strong interviewing, facilitation, problem resolution, consensus building, and negotiating skills 

Must have excellent communication skills both orally and in writing

Preferences: 

Years/Experience 

5 Prefer experience but not required with the following tools:  requirements management tools like Optimal Trace and UML modeling tools like Enterprise Architect 

3 Prefer experience with defining business workflow.

[ecorgroup-blog]

URGENT DB2 + LDAP Short Project (Austin, TX)

A local client here in Austin, TX needs immediate help with a portal environment that's crashing (based on distributed DB2 and LDAP platform). It's a critical system that needs to be managed ASAP. We can bring people in from out of state.

Project is anticipated to last a few days (2-14). Obviously the faster it can be completed, the better.

[ecorgroup-blog]

Enterprise Architect (Austin, TX)

We're looking for a FT or long-term contract Enterprise Architecture consultant to work with a client onsite in Austin, TX. 

Enterprise architecture broadly based on SOA/BPM.

Evaluate aspects of Enterprise Architecture blueprint with main vendors such as IBM & Oracle that are market leaders in BPM/SOA. This will include evaluation of their tools e.g. IBM Websphere platform, WPS/WID & Lombardi, Datapower, TIM/TAM and Oracle Fusion 11g, OIM/OAM, OES, SOA suite, Webcenter and Weblogic platform.

Evaluate platforms, tools, technologies and prototyping at program and solution level that include client Application needs. Selection of app/web servers, search technologies, both relational and XML databases, enterprise architecture tools and patterns that implement SAAS.

Provide Technology Direction to various programs at client in the areas of business architecture/BPM, security integration, service orchestration, webservices implementation, design patterns, data access and transactionality, object/data modeling, SDLC processes & environments, infrastructure (server topology) and capacity planning by emphasizing scalability, maintainability (including reusability/extensibility), performance tuning, reliability and availability

Provide leadership to both vendor based solutions and in house development by managing both full time and consulting resources.

Provide technology direction to Program Managers and conceptualize business initiatives into projects by analyzing ROI and operational efficiencies and proposing business process re-engineering.

Provide Technology direction to Project Managers in Work Breakdown structure, budgeting/resource management and vendor based solutions that require RFPs.

[ecorgroup-blog]

SAS BI Developer (Austin, TX)

This position is responsible for data analysis and developing web reports using SAS BI business intelligence tool.  Designs and develops reports in an iterative development environment from requirement specifications. Responsible for developing, testing, and implementation of SAS reports into a custom non-SAS web application.  Developer is required to create technical documentation of development work. Secondary responsibilities may include quality assurance testing and data analysis using SQL and SAS. Worker may also write SAS programs to extract data from DB2 database tables.  Worker will perform under minimal supervision with considerable latitude for the use of initiative and independent judgment.

Minimum Requirements:

Years

Skills/Experience

8+

Experience in data analysis, databases, report development, coding in SAS and SQL. 

Strong

Skill in analysis of data for the purpose of profiling and documenting data and designing and developing reports.

Strong

Skill in writing complex SQL queries to extract data from relational databases, data warehouses and SAS files.

Strong

Experience building cubes using SAS OLAP Cube Studio 4.2.

Strong

Proficiency using SAS Enterprise 4.3, SAS Web Report Studio and SAS Information Delivery Portal for report development and delivery.   Experience must include but is not limited to: Creating parameter driven reports in SAS Enterprise 4.3 using process flows, Creating parameter driven reports in SAS Web Report Studio involving templates, different data sources, multiple sections, table of contents and importing reports created in SAS Enterprise 4.3, Integrating parameter driven reports created using either SAS Enterprise 4.3 or SAS Web Report Studio into a custom non-SAS web application, Publishing reports using the SAS Information Delivery Portal and enabling unchallenged access.

Strong

Verbal and written communication skills.

                Preferences:

Years

Skills/Experience

1+

Familiarity with educational data.

[ecorgroup-blog]

Netezza Consultant (FT/LT Contract) - Austin, TX

We're looking for a FT or long term contractor to join us in implementing a Netezza/Cognos project in Austin, TX. Come join a highly talented company in serving a prominent Austin client.

[ecorgroup-blog]

Short Ruby on Rails Contract (~30hrs)

We're looking for a Mid-Sr level Ruby on Rails person to help implement Amazon Payments on a merchant website. The work will take approximately 30 hours, to be completed in a week. Independent consultants, freelancers, and agencies will be considered.

[ecorgroup-blog]

Sr. Data Warehouse/BI Consultant in Austin, TX

We have several full time and contract opportunities in Austin, TX for data warehouse architects and BI professionals. The following is an initial list:

Full Time: Sr. Data Warehouse Architect

We're looking for someone to work with us on a state project in Austin, TX.

Qualifications Work experience as a Data Warehouse Architect working with the following languages, tools, and methodologies:

Data Warehouse design, implementation and tuning

Data Modeling

Multi-tenant, distributed database design and implementation

Data Profiling and  Data validation

Metadata Management

High volume system and data architecture design

Hardware and software load balancing technologies

Data replication / ETL technologies

System stress testing / performance testing framework

Business process / rules modeling

Business Intelligence tools

    Responsibilities 

Collaborate with technical leads and architects designing and prototyping data architecture, Data Warehouse and business intelligence solutions.

Create and review technical designs and architecture documents.

Create well-designed data models to support large scale Data Warehouse solutions.

Communicate and enforce best practice Data Warehouse design, architecture and implementation processes.

Consistently deliver high-quality products and services to clients on schedule.

Communicate difficult/sensitive information appropriately.

Communicate with customers technical concepts in easy to understand language.

Communicate effectively with stakeholders to identify needs and evaluate alternative business solutions with project management.

Develop an understanding of clients' business and suggest effective technical solutions.

Personal Attributes

Creativity and strong attention to detail

Ability to work effectively on tight deadlines as necessary

Effective oral and written communication skills

Exceptional customer service skills, including the ability to interact professionally with a diverse group of customers

Desire to learn new skills and improve

Education/Training Bachelors or Associate degree in IT discipline. 10+ years in data related software development, data modeling, reporting, ETL, and Data Warehouse experience desired. Equivalent combination of education and experience will be considered.

Full Time: Data Architect

We're looking for someone to work with us on a client account in Austin, TX.

Responsibilities:

Define overall data architecture/integration strategy for large custom business applications.

Review requirements and evaluate risks/benefits for a large impact project.

Select capabilities and systems to meet business information needs.

Desired Qualifications

 Thorough knowledge of design and integration principles for databases.

Extensive experience with ETL, EAI & SOA, hands-on experience with current data integration tools and strategies.

Experience in building of operational data stores (ods), data marts, enterprise data warehouses.

Excellent SQL skills and demonstrated ability to write complex SQL for purposes of analyzing data and/or evaluating how information needs might be translated into back end database structures.

Understanding of conceptual, logical, and physical data modeling

Proven ability to successfully design and implement large integrated solutions.

Familiarity with emerging technologies and software development best practices particularly related to enterprise data integration.

Experience in Object Modeling as it applies to moving from relational databases into enterprise object models.  At least familiar with ORM and the basic problem space of moving between relational and OO.

Contract: Position Filled

[ecorgroup-blog]

CFAmazon Now Supports MWS

The CFAmazon library designed to simplify Amazon integration for ColdFusion supported Checkout By Amazon, and now it supports Marketplace Web Services. This is really just a beta release since it is a large library with a lot of functionality. I'd really appreciate feedback so we know which direction to take this. Questions are welcome too as I'd like to make the upcoming documentation as useful to as many people as possible.

The updated library can be found on GitHub and RIAForge.

[ecorgroup-blog]

9mos+ Data Warehouse Architect (Austin, TX) C2H

We're looking for a data warehouse architect with SQL Server background (8yrs+ overall). The role requires at least some experience with SQL Server 2008. SSIS experience is critical (5yrs+) and SASS familiarity is also necessary (2yrs+). The person will report to the lead DW Architect. This is a contract position with option to hire in Austin, TX. Experience in the education sector is preferred but not required. We have a growing client base here in Austin, so preference will be given to someone local or someone interested in relocating for longer term opportunities.

[ecorgroup-blog]

Data Architect (Austin, TX)

We are looking for a data architect with SQL Server background to join us on a contract-to-hire basis in our Austin, TX location.

Initially, the data architect will work on a year long project with a premiere technology company located in Austin. As a member of our consulting practice, you will be responsible for partnering with the requirements analyst to translate analytic requirements into a HIG. You'll follow up by designing database architectures and data models for the first iteration of an enterprise data warehouse based on SQL Server. You'll be part of a client team of data analysts & modelers focusing on revenue analysis, cost analysis, demand forecast, sales forecast, and market development funds sourced primarily from an ERP (SAP). 

Additional duties include:

Run daily scrum meetings for the entire DW team (data analysts, modelers, source system developers, ETL, and reporting team(.

Captured requirements, conduct source system analysis, design data models/ETL logic, and write development specifications. 

Create project plans/scopes and manage integration of 3rd party market data. Enable sales planning teams to do interactive reporting. Design reporting solution in conjunction with reporting team.

Upon completion of the initial contract phase, conversion to full time is likely. You will continue to support customer engagements. Some travel may be necessary, but we try to keep it to a minimum and telecommute whenever possible.

Please send resumes to [email protected].

[ecorgroup-blog]

Sr. Cognos 8 BI Consultant (Telecommute Contract)

We're looking for a Sr. Cognos BI Consultant to fill in for someone. It's a telecommuting role starting ASAP and running through completion of Phase I in mid-April. There is a strong chance for extension into phase II of the project. The details are below:The job will require the successful candidate to deliver consulting services involving Cognos8 Business Intelligence solutions to the client.  The position will require the ability to architect solutions, develop reports, dashboards, scorecards, cubes and facilitate project efforts. Specific Responsibilities will include:

Utilize application expertise, business knowledge and technical skills to successfully deliver Cognos 8 BI initiatives to client.

Work with business and/or IT staff to define reporting requirements, build complex business intelligence reports, dashboards, cubes and or scorecards.

Lead interview sessions with subject matter experts in an effort to formulate the Business Intelligence solution architecture.

Develop SQL or MDX queries.

Perform metadata modeling and development in Cognos Framework Manager.

Develop technical architecture designs which support robust solutions, taking into account the user requirements, technical requirements, etc.

Lead interview sessions with subject matter experts in an effort to formulate dimensional modeling design requirements. This will be considered “useful” but not necessary as candidate should be familiar with querying dimensional models but they will not be designing them.

Apply relational and dimensional modeling best practices to solve business function challenges.  Again, considered “useful” but not required.

Job Requirements:  The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the following:

5-10+yrs of overall experience implementing multiple BI Reporting Solutions.

3-4 years of hands on Business Intelligence development experience using the Cognos 8 toolsets.

Experience developing complex BI reports for large user communities.

Experience with data warehouse / data mart definition to support business analysis and reporting.

SQL programming expertise.

Knowledge of relational/DW/BI/ETL design and best practices, including logical and physical modeling, DFD and data architecture This will be considered “useful” but not necessary as candidate should be familiar with querying dimensional models but they will not be architecting them.

Previous consulting experience (Big Five experience a plus).

Experience with the following databases (SQL Server, Teradata, Oracle, DB2 - Oracle preferred).

Required Skills: (in order of importance are)

Cognos 8 Report Studio

Cognos 8 PowerPlay Studio

Cognos 8 Analysis Studio

[ecorgroup-blog]

Cognos Financial Analyst (Chicago, FTE)

This position is responsible for the IBM Cognos Reporting environment and support in a complex environment with the ability to communicate with end-users of all levels.  This position requires advanced Cognos Reporting, specifically TM1, administration knowledge and experience supporting a financial organization with their reporting requirements.

Duties and Responsibilities

Provide end-to-end support for IBM TM1 reporting application.

Design, develop, configure and maintain Cognos Suite of reporting applications (TM1 models, Cognos PowerCube, Cognos Analysis Studio,  Cognos Query Studio, Cognos Reportnet)

Data management and relationship with ERP system (Oracle Peoplesoft), Hyperion Financial Management (HFM) and Cognos Planning.

Security management for Cognos Reporting environment

Leads and assists with global Cognos Reporting projects

Assist with Cognos Reporting model development and on-going maintenance for monthly, quarterly and annual close cycles

Assist project team with system enhancements, version up-grades and TM1 model and reporting package re-design projects

Prepare the Cognos Reporting development environments to simulate the production environment  

Provide end-to-end testing of design changes

Supports Cognos Reporting user group network

Understands the business processes and close cycles in order to effectively fulfill end-user requirements

Provide users with end-to-end training of Cognos Reporting functionality and how it meets their reporting requirements.

Create training documentation to assist end-users with Cognos Reporting 

Build exceptional relationships with global end users and gains their trust

Key configuration resource for Cognos reporting production environment

Architect TM1 models and SQL materialized views 

Develop and design Cognos Reportnet reports and Cognos query studio queries

Build Cognos Café (Cognos Access for Excel) reports

Manage intricate automated job schedule and understand the connection and relationship with external systems 

Configure security for new/existing end users in Cognos Reporting

Ongoing Production Support and key training contact for Cognos Reporting

Maintain TM1 production models including, but not limited to the following:

Maintain automated process to update dimensions within models (daily meta-data and weekly hierarchy updates)

Construct and update TM1 business rules and chores

Manage and understand the data sources and materialized views

Manage the automated cube build process (incremental and full builds)

Trouble shoot and research issues between Cognos Reporting and external systems.  

In-depth understanding of database structures of Cognos reporting environment

Query analysis of data

Data reconciliation between systems (Oracle Peoplesoft, HFM, and Cognos Planning) 

Resolve production issues and manage help-desk tickets raised by end-users

Implements best practices in system usage and maintenance

Work effectively with finance and systems personnel at a corporate level.

Provide assistance to end users to ensure their Cognos Reporting experience is efficient and effortless. 

Education/Certification

A Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting, Finance or MIS is required and the equivalent financial systems integration and project management experience.  A minimum of 3 to 5 years of experience working in a variety of Financial roles but most recently in the realm of  financial systems support.

Thorough knowledge and experience with systems, configuration, and IT project management.

Expert knowledge and hands-on experience wtih IBM Cognos TM1 9.x and Business Intelligence 8.x (Cognos analysis studio, query studio, Cognos Powercubes, Cognos Reportnet).

Intermediate SQL experience and understating of materialized views and SQL scripts (Oracle 11.x)

Hands-on experience with reporting tools such as Hyperion System 9 (BI+ reporting studio, Smart View and Web Analysis) and Cognos Data Warehouse Experience participating in budgeting and forecasting cycles either in a systems support or financial analyst capacity.

Current computer modeling skills including outstanding knowledge of spreadsheet applications and databases.

Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to interface with all levels within the corporation as well as with outside vendors.

Self-starter and self – motivated, yet has the ability to understand when it is necessary to inform management of critical path issues

Demonstrated excellent verbal and written communication skills.

Ability to identify and analyze organizational needs with solid problem-solving abilities.

Proven effective leadership skills in being flexible, creative, team-oriented and process-driven.  

Thorough knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles and financial reporting requirements.

Proven skills in financial statement preparation/analysis and account analysis.

Strong troubleshooting skills.

Working knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite, Excel and Access. 

Professional, detail oriented, and articulate.

Strong organizational skills.

Comfortable working in a fast-paced environment. 

[ecorgroup-blog]

N. Chicago Suburbs - Sr. Cognos Developer

We're looking for a Sr. Cognos Developer for a northern suburbs client. The project starts ASAP and goes through the end of the year. Extension is very likely (3-6mos+).

Candidate must be strong with all of the reporting studios as well as Framework Manager. The candidate will join a team of 12.

[ecorgroup-blog]

Milwaukee - MS Access, Crystal, SQL

We need a Jr-mid level contractor for 6 months in Milwaukee, WI. Ideally, the candidate will start work on 11/22. Rates are DOE.

[ecorgroup-blog]

Project Manager 6mo+ Danville, PA (Expenses Paid)

We're looking for a Sr. BI Project Manager for 6mo+ (extension likely) with experience in the healthcare industry. The candidate will assist a Sr. IT executive, who needs a strong Project Manager to take over a number of on-going tactical projects and help sort through what needs to be done to bring the IT/DW/BI environment up to date.  The individual will have a strong technical understanding of infrastructure, data warehousing and business intelligence.  He or she will have acted as a Project Manager on multiple DW or BI projects and can speak directly to this experience.  He or she will also have the depth and experience to talk to the business and IT to gain consensus on project goals.

Work on site M-Th, remote on Fridays.  This is an immediate need covering two project teams. Starts ASAP.

    Role:

Oversee multiple critical projects including capacity planning, setting up new servers, installing new version of Business Objects, upgrading ETL processes

Participate in strategic planning for upgrading and modernizing data warehouse and BI environments

Provide input for creating job descriptions

Support a vendor selection process

Required Qualifications:

Solid technical understanding of ETL processes and data warehousing

Solid experience with Business Intelligence and data warehouse project management

Strong understanding of BI environments

Strong understanding and experience with data quality and auditing

Excellent communication skills

Healthcare industry experience, preferably in insurance or medical center environments

Proven ability to interface with senior IT and business management

[ecorgroup-blog]

ETL Developer (5-6mo Contract - Alabama)

We have a need for an ETL developer for 5-6 months (expenses paid) in Alabama. The ETL Developer is responsible for utilizing his/her technical expertise to design and develop extraction, transformation and load workflows in Informatica.

Other responsibilities of the ETL Developer include: ·        Review and analyze business requirements

·        Review and analyze report data requirements

·        Interpret report data requirements into data mapping specifications

·        Perform data mapping analysis, document mapping specifications and update the data mart scope documentation with detailed specifications

·        Build the ETL logical design for the staging, transformation and presentation layers

·        Build the ETL physical models for the staging, transformation and presentation layers

·        Utilize technical expertise to design ETL processes that accommodate Type 1 and Type 2 changes

·        Utilize technical expertise to design test cases for all ETL workflows

·        Perform unit, integration, functional and system testing

·        Work with Data Architect to identify and implement measures to validate and audit data

·        Works with the Project Manager to proactively identify technical barriers and plans to overcome them

·        Responsible for submitting a weekly status report to the Project Manager.

[ecorgroup-blog]

Data Architect (Contract 5-6mo - Alabama)

We have an immediate need for a Data Architect in Alabama for 5-6 months, expenses paid. The Data Architect is responsible for the design, development, implementation, and support of source data, data modeling and transformation to support project objectives.

Other responsibilities of the Data Architect include: ·        Review and analyze business requirements

·        Review and analyze report data requirements

·        Review and analyze interface requirements

·        Review and analyze data mapping specifications

·        Works with the Project Manager to identify and document project scope

·        Build the logical design for the data mart (Star schema)

·        Continuously updates the project scope document with details of the design specifications for the data mart

·        Develops and maintains Naming Standards

·        Develops and maintains the Data Dictionary

·        Utilizes technical expertise to design and build processes to validate and audit data

·        Communicates changes to the data mart schema to the project team

·        Establishes a process for error handling and utilizes technical expertise to automate notifications (when applicable)

·        Works with the Project Manager to establish milestone dates, provide updates on project plan activities, and plans for production support

·        Responsible for submitting EUA requests for new database schemas

·        Serves as a liaison to the Medtronic Database Administrator located in Minneapolis, MN

·        Escalates issues to the Project Manager when necessary

·        Responsible for developing the data mart Test Plan and processes required to perform data validation/auditing

·        Finalize and document Data Mart Scope, Naming Standards, Data Dictionary and delivers final specifications to the project team

·        Responsible for submitting a weekly status report to the Project Manager.  Information on the status report will be used to report details of recent achievements, key issues/challenges, and updates to critical project documentation. (Data Mart Scope, Project Plan, Action Item list, Issues, etc.)