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Business Analyst (CICS)

Cynosure Technologies

Job Description & Details

This is a six‑month contract Business Analyst role that lives at the intersection of mainframe CICS and front‑end UI work for a client in McLean, VA. It’s not a vague “process‑doc” gig – you’ll be expected to understand the business, sketch UI screens, and translate those into concrete data models.

What You'll Actually Be Doing

You’ll spend most of your day meeting with subject‑matter experts to capture functional requirements, then turn those notes into UI wireframes and SQL‑backed data specifications. Expect to write a lot of Excel‑based documentation, build simple relational tables, and validate that the CICS transactions you touch actually surface the right data in the UI. Because the job is onsite, you’ll also be the go‑to person for quick clarifications when the team hits a roadblock.

The Core Tech Stack

The must‑know pieces are CICS (you need to speak the language of transaction codes, COMMAREA handling, and basic debugging), relational databases with solid SQL chops, and UI design fundamentals—think mock‑ups, user flows, and the ability to prototype quickly. Excel isn’t optional; it’s the primary tool for requirement traceability and stakeholder presentations. The company wants someone who can bridge the old‑school mainframe world with modern UI expectations.

Interview Expectations

  1. “Walk me through how you would diagnose an intermittent CICS transaction failure.” – They’re looking for a systematic approach: checking logs, examining COMMAREA, reviewing resource limits, and using tools like CEMT or CICS Explorer.
  2. “How would you convert a business process diagram into a relational schema and then into a UI prototype?” – The answer should show you can identify entities, define primary/foreign keys, map them to UI forms, and justify design decisions with usability in mind.

Application Advice

Tailor your resume to hit the exact buzzwords the JD throws at you: Business Analyst, CICS, UI design, SQL, relational database, Excel, requirements documentation, and mainframe. Highlight any project where you linked a UI mock‑up to a back‑end CICS or SQL solution, and quantify the impact (e.g., “Reduced requirement clarification time by 30%”). A concise “Technical Skills” block that lists CICS, SQL, Excel, and UI tools will help you get past the ATS.