Senior Business Analyst

Job Summary

Business analysis is central to the delivery of digital systems within the Health Research Authority (HRA). We are looking for a qualified senior business analyst who has experience of working in the full business analysis lifecycle, ideally in Scrum or SAFe on large digital developments.

As a senior business analyst you will have expertise in business analysis, including requirement gathering and analysis, process mapping, gap analyses and the creation of detailed documentation, user stories and acceptance criteria.

• Apply structured approaches to identify, investigate, analyse and communicate complex business problems and opportunities, within a defined project.
• Analyse business goals, objectives, functions and processes, using relevant information and data to support the definition of requirement.
• Identify, analyse, challenge and validate business and user requirements.
• Use appropriate requirements management life cycle methods to complete tasks and outputs related to the project.
• Ensure proposed solutions meet business and user needs.
• Work with limited direction to complete tasks and defined outputs linked to the project.
• Understand the impact of potential changes and how business processes, systems, data, roles and responsibilities interact.
• Develop models and system requirements for bespoke IT systems or software packages.
• Identify business scenarios and develop acceptance criteria to ensure requirements can be traced to develop functionality.
• Work collaboratively with Subject Matter Experts in the business, User Centred Design, Product and Development/Test teams to capture and articulate user requirements.

Working at the HRA, we are reminded daily of how important life is. As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for you, not just us and the work we do.

We are committed to creating an inclusive workplace that promotes and values diversity. We know from experience that different ideas, perspectives and backgrounds create a stronger, more creative workplace that helps us to deliver the best services. We welcome applications which represent the rich diversity of our community: age, disability, gender identity and expression, ethnicity, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation and other diverse characteristics, and we have policies in place to ensure that all applicants are treated fairly and consistently at every stage of the recruitment process.

When applying to work here, speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement – if it works for us, we will do our best to make it work for you.

Please note, if applying to our Manchester, Nottingham or Bristol locations, we are only able to offer the role as home based.

Date posted: 17 February 2026

Pay scheme: Agenda for change

Band: Band 7

Salary: £47,810 to £54,710 a year

Contract: Fixed term

Duration: 15 months

Working pattern: Full-time, Flexible working, Home or remote working, Compressed hours

Job locations: Temple Quay House, 2 The Square, Temple Quay, Bristol, BS1 6PN

Reference number: 980-HRA
7803133

This role sits within HRA Digital. The digital directorate is responsible for developing, delivering and supporting complex solutions within the HRA’s portfolio of UK-wide information systems for health and care research. This includes a major programme to build new systems, and to achieve the successful migration and eventual closure of current systems.

The HRA Digital team is a collaborative, supportive team consisting of HRA employees, secondees, contractors and vendors.

We currently do not accept applications via recruitment agencies.

We do not hold a sponsorship licence and are unable to offer employment under any sponsorship arrangement.

Where applicants fail to demonstrate how they meet any one of the essential criteria of the person specification, the application will not be shortlisted. You will be considered based only on the information in your application form. CVs will not be considered.

The HRA reserves the right to close this vacancy early should it receive a sufficient number of applications.

Essential qualifications:

• Recognised business analyst certification (BCS Foundation / Practitioner or IIBA CCBA/CBAP).
• Evidence of commitment to ongoing personal and professional development and training.

Desirable qualifications:

• Educated to master's degree or equivalent experience showing capability to work at this level.
• Recognised certification in Agile (for example Scrum Alliance).

Essential knowledge, skills and expertise:

• Working effectively with a diverse group of internal and external senior business and IT stakeholders along with management of relationships across different levels of seniority.
• Deep understanding of elicitation, documentation and management of high-level and detailed business requirements, working collaboratively with design and technical teams to ensure…