Business Analyst

Howden is a collective – a group of talented and passionate people all around the world. Together, we have pushed the boundaries of insurance. We are united by a shared passion and no-limits mindset, and our strength lies in our ability to collaborate as a powerful international team comprised of 18,000 employees spanning over 100 countries.

People join Howden for many different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. It’s what sets us apart, and the reason our employees have been turning down headhunters for years. Whatever your priorities – work / life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering – you’ll find like-minded people driving change at Howden.

Howden is a collective – a group of talented and passionate people all around the world. Together, we have pushed the boundaries of insurance. We are united by a shared passion and no-limits mindset, and our strength lies in our ability to collaborate as a powerful international team comprised of 22,000 employees spanning over 100 countries.

Our people are our biggest asset as well as our largest shareholder group and are everything that makes us unique; our inclusive culture, the quality service we offer our clients, and our continued growth, all come from our people-first approach. There’s no such thing as individual success. We all need to play our part, contributing our skills and experience to make a true difference. That’s Howden.

Howden are embarking on a number of strategic systems and technology transformation initiatives for its Specialty Business unit and regions across the globe.

ROLE PURPOSE:

To work as a bridge between business, technology and solution providers to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of services, products, and processes.

To help leverage data insight and identify opportunities for improvement, as well as recognize potential issues and offer solutions.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

Planning and Strategy:

• Helps to shape business strategy through the understanding of how BI/data and business process reengineering can be used to address current and emerging business and IT solution needs

• Deliver assigned projects and contributes to other projects and initiatives as required

Technology:

• Identifies, gathers and documents data/business requirementss 

• Share identified requirements with the stakeholders

• Outline possible solutions and makes recommendations to the stakeholders 

• Perform analysis for projects, using Agile methodology: (e.g. user stories and backlog priority management) 

• Support the provision of training and the production of reference documentation for systems 

• Follows the appropriate delivery methodology to produce high quality work 

• Participate in retrospective reviews and help to adjust strategy and delivery methodology going forward, taking lessons learnt into account 

• Review and validate data to ensure it meets the business requirements

• Develop and help maintain products

• Perform data analysis to identify and understand anomalies when required

Policy, Process and Procedures:

• Ensures up-to-date records are maintained at all times on the Group systems

• Keep informed of legal and regulatory developments relevant to the Group

• Follow company processes and procedures

Environment, Customer Focus and Relationships:

Clients

• Develop strong relationships with the Business Units within the Group

• Acts as a point of contact for business requirements, project issues and queries

• Facilitate smooth communication between various parties within the Group

• Resolve business issues relating to assigned projects and escalates them to Lead Business Analyst if needed

Suppliers/Markets

• Maintain relationships with third party solution providers

Other

• Ensure that the technical team’s understanding of the project is aligned with client requirements

• Consistently deliver an excellent and comprehensive service

• Promote company values and contributes to a positive culture

People Management/Personal Development:

• Act as a role model by demonstrating a positive attitude and promoting continuous improvement

• Display and instill a positive, highly collaborative and business-centric culture 

• Actively undertake personal development to ensure up-to-date knowledge and understanding of best practices

• Collaborate with a team of BAs across multiple projects

• Remain aware of external, industry, legal and regulatory developments to ensure practices and outputs are of a sufficiently high standard

KNOWLEDGE/EXPERIENCE

SKILLS/BEHAVIOURS

QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience working in broking or underwriting systems related projects

• Experience working as Business Analyst (preferably at least 2 years)

• Proven experience of the full lifecycle of a project

• Experience working in Agile project environment

• Experience participating in or running workshops, managing discussions with confidence and leadership

• Experience working in the Insurance industry would be an advantage, particularly in the London Market

• Able to perform detailed business analysis in a small, fast-moving team with shifting priorities

• Demonstrated ability to deliver high quality business analysis to meet deadlines

• Skilled in conveying information using various artifacts such as: conceptual architecture, mock-up screens and wireframes

• Skilled in creating accurate technical documentation that is easily understood by target audience

• Proficient use of Agile project management tools (Confluence, Jira, Azure DevOps boards, Trello, Basecamp)

• Proficient user of office productivity tools (e.g. Microsoft Office products)

• Knowledge of MoSCoW, SWOT, PESTLE, RACI charts, stakeholder mapping and other methodologies

• Understanding of data tools (e.g. SQL, Python etc.)

• Excellent listening and communication skills

• Advanced presentation skills

• Able to build productive working relationships across the team and with key stakeholders

• GCSEs or equivalent including English and Maths, are essential

• Technically relevant qualifications

• Optional: BCS Diploma in Business Analysis, CII Certified

A career that you define. At Howden, we value diversity – there is no one Howden type. Instead, we’re looking for individuals who share the same values as us:

• Our successes have all come from someone brave enough to try something new

• We support each other in the small everyday moments and the bigger challenges

• We are determined to make a positive difference at work and beyond

We're committed to providing reasonable accommodations at Howden to ensure that our positions align well with your needs.  Besides the usual adjustments such as software, IT, and office setups, we can also accommodate other changes such as flexible hours* or hybrid working*.

If you're excited by this role but have some doubts about whether it’s the right fit for you, send us your application – if your profile fits the role’s criteria, we will be in touch to assist in helping to get you set up with any reasonable adjustments you may require.

*Not all positions can accommodate changes to working hours or locations. Reach out to your Recruitment Partner if you want to know more.