Product Analyst
Data Freelance Hub, Charlotte, NC, United States
Opportunity
This role is a 12‑month W2 contract for a Product Analyst in Charlotte, NC or West Des Moines, IA. The position is part of a large client’s merchant‑facing payment applications portfolio and requires 3+ years of experience as a Product Analyst/Business Analyst in Agile software delivery (Scrum or SAFe). Candidates should be comfortable working in a hybrid environment (three days in office) and be willing to work exclusively on a W2 basis – no C2C or 1099.
Responsibilities
Partner closely with the Product Owner to build and maintain a high‑quality backlog with at least two sprints of Definition of Ready (DoR)‑ready items.
Refine epics/features into user stories with clear, testable acceptance criteria, balancing functional and non‑functional needs.
Facilitate and participate in refinement sessions, uncover dependencies, and ensure scope, value, and risks are understood.
Raise and flag unplanned work (sprint disruptions) and propose trade‑offs to keep delivery on track.
Document current state of the app/platform, business processes, and data flows/mapping; identify gaps, defects, and recommend pragmatic resolution paths.
Apply critical thinking to shape problem statements and solution design options for PO consideration.
Engage product, technology, and business stakeholders; translate abstract concepts into concrete requirements.
Collaborate with SMEs to validate use cases and acceptance criteria; drive alignment when responsibilities overlap.
Support control/audit requests by assembling clear, traceable evidence across requirements and delivery artifacts.
Document use cases/scenarios that inform design and business testing.
Partner with UAT leads to shape the testing strategy, share use cases, and engage end users; perform lightweight UAT when needed.
Represent the Scrum team in production triage; research issues/defects and act as the point of contact for defect intake and analysis.
Assist with Sprint Planning by reviewing current sprint outcomes, identifying carryovers, and prioritizing upcoming work.
Proactively surface risks, assumptions, and dependencies; keep the PO informed and decisions well‑documented.
Required Qualifications
3+ years as a Product Analyst or Business Analyst in Agile software delivery (Scrum or SAFe).
Proven user story writing and acceptance criteria definition; strong backlog refinement facilitation.
Ability to translate ambiguous or abstract concepts into concrete, testable requirements.
Experienced with defect analysis, root cause thinking, and working with engineering/QA to drive resolution.
Hands‑on with Agile tooling (Jira or Azure Boards) and documentation (Confluence, process maps, data mapping).
Strong written and verbal communication.
Preferred Qualifications
Financial Services background in payments or merchant services, including merchant onboarding, payment processing flows, gateways/terminals, authorization/clearing/settlement, chargebacks, reconciliation, and BAU servicing.
Familiarity with controls, audit readiness, and data governance in a regulated environment (PCI‑DSS awareness is a plus).
Skilled in navigating multiple stakeholders and resolving gray areas through influence and clarity.
Basic data analysis experience (SQL or equivalent) to validate scenarios and support defect triage.
Relevant certifications (CSPO/PSPO, SAFe POPM, ICP‑BA or similar) are a plus.
Background in merchant acquiring or payment processors, and experience at a large financial institution with regulated delivery and audit needs.
Success in the First 90 Days
Establish clear current‑state documentation (flows, data, known gaps).
Improve story quality, measurable by a reduction in rework/defects and faster acceptance.
Achieve and sustain a two‑sprint backlog depth.
Build strong rapport with the PO, Tech Lead, QA, and stakeholders; become the go‑to for story clarity and defect triage.
Tools & Technologies Jira or Azure DevOps, Confluence, diagramming tools (Visio, Miro, Mural), Excel/Sheets for data mapping, Postman/logs for lightweight validation, and general productivity tools.
Benefits
Health insurance.
Hybrid remote work schedule – 3 days in office in Charlotte, NC 28270.
Clear path toward Product Owner/Manager roles for high‑performing candidates.
Optional: exposure to regulated audit and compliance work in the payments space.
Beware of scams: S3 never asks for money during its onboarding process. #J-18808-Ljbffr
Responsibilities
Partner closely with the Product Owner to build and maintain a high‑quality backlog with at least two sprints of Definition of Ready (DoR)‑ready items.
Refine epics/features into user stories with clear, testable acceptance criteria, balancing functional and non‑functional needs.
Facilitate and participate in refinement sessions, uncover dependencies, and ensure scope, value, and risks are understood.
Raise and flag unplanned work (sprint disruptions) and propose trade‑offs to keep delivery on track.
Document current state of the app/platform, business processes, and data flows/mapping; identify gaps, defects, and recommend pragmatic resolution paths.
Apply critical thinking to shape problem statements and solution design options for PO consideration.
Engage product, technology, and business stakeholders; translate abstract concepts into concrete requirements.
Collaborate with SMEs to validate use cases and acceptance criteria; drive alignment when responsibilities overlap.
Support control/audit requests by assembling clear, traceable evidence across requirements and delivery artifacts.
Document use cases/scenarios that inform design and business testing.
Partner with UAT leads to shape the testing strategy, share use cases, and engage end users; perform lightweight UAT when needed.
Represent the Scrum team in production triage; research issues/defects and act as the point of contact for defect intake and analysis.
Assist with Sprint Planning by reviewing current sprint outcomes, identifying carryovers, and prioritizing upcoming work.
Proactively surface risks, assumptions, and dependencies; keep the PO informed and decisions well‑documented.
Required Qualifications
3+ years as a Product Analyst or Business Analyst in Agile software delivery (Scrum or SAFe).
Proven user story writing and acceptance criteria definition; strong backlog refinement facilitation.
Ability to translate ambiguous or abstract concepts into concrete, testable requirements.
Experienced with defect analysis, root cause thinking, and working with engineering/QA to drive resolution.
Hands‑on with Agile tooling (Jira or Azure Boards) and documentation (Confluence, process maps, data mapping).
Strong written and verbal communication.
Preferred Qualifications
Financial Services background in payments or merchant services, including merchant onboarding, payment processing flows, gateways/terminals, authorization/clearing/settlement, chargebacks, reconciliation, and BAU servicing.
Familiarity with controls, audit readiness, and data governance in a regulated environment (PCI‑DSS awareness is a plus).
Skilled in navigating multiple stakeholders and resolving gray areas through influence and clarity.
Basic data analysis experience (SQL or equivalent) to validate scenarios and support defect triage.
Relevant certifications (CSPO/PSPO, SAFe POPM, ICP‑BA or similar) are a plus.
Background in merchant acquiring or payment processors, and experience at a large financial institution with regulated delivery and audit needs.
Success in the First 90 Days
Establish clear current‑state documentation (flows, data, known gaps).
Improve story quality, measurable by a reduction in rework/defects and faster acceptance.
Achieve and sustain a two‑sprint backlog depth.
Build strong rapport with the PO, Tech Lead, QA, and stakeholders; become the go‑to for story clarity and defect triage.
Tools & Technologies Jira or Azure DevOps, Confluence, diagramming tools (Visio, Miro, Mural), Excel/Sheets for data mapping, Postman/logs for lightweight validation, and general productivity tools.
Benefits
Health insurance.
Hybrid remote work schedule – 3 days in office in Charlotte, NC 28270.
Clear path toward Product Owner/Manager roles for high‑performing candidates.
Optional: exposure to regulated audit and compliance work in the payments space.
Beware of scams: S3 never asks for money during its onboarding process. #J-18808-Ljbffr