Data Engineering & Analytics Specialist, Development Data, VP Advancement

Position Overview

The Office of Advancement is currently seeking a Full-time Temporary Relief Data Engineering & Analytics Specialist for approximately 13 months.

The Office of Advancement exists for the mutual benefit of the University of Calgary and its stakeholders, and coordinates donations of gifts to the University. The incumbent is a senior leader within the Advancement Data team that supports all technical and data analysis needs of Advancement and its stakeholders. Reporting to the Manager, Analytics & Reporting, the incumbent will work in a high volume, faced paced, and complex role that requires excellent business process, quality assurance, reporting, and customer service skills. Additionally, this role supports data science activities within the department employing machine learning, predictive and prescriptive modelling, forecasting, and statistical analysis. The incumbent requires highly developed analytical abilities to solve complex problems with high impact of error. The work is unstructured and based on priorities, requiring the individual to operate flexibly in a moderate to high pressure work environment.

Position Description

Summary of Key Responsibilities (job functions include but are not limited to):

• Along with the Manager, Analytics & Reporting, work with Advancement teams across campus to identify specific fundraising issues for review and analysis, and develop/create solutions. Generate practical knowledge from existing and new sources of Advancement and external data
• Act as a senior expert on analytics issues
• Identify, prioritize, and execute applied analytics that deliver insights across fundraising goals such as contact acquisition, donation conversions, increasing value of gifts, donor interests, and segmenting potential donors
• Be a vocal Champion and Advocate for better Information delivery across Advancement
• Look for opportunities to communicate and share across Institutional areas with an eye to advance not only Advancement, but Institutional efforts in better Information Delivery and Data Management
• Examine existing reports and strategies, and initiate new functionalities and business processes leading to more robust data and improved operations
• Work directly with the Senior Programming/Database Analyst on the Systems team to ensure that our database/system infrastructure has sufficient capabilities to support our analytical and data science requirements
• Work very closely with other stakeholders within Advancement and elsewhere at the University (e.g., Senate Office, Student Awards)
• Use advanced critical thinking skills to determine the most accurate and efficient way to disseminate information
• When data is required from other University systems (e.g., PeopleSoft), the incumbent must construct a plan for working with other areas to acquire their data, while ensuring data integrity, protection of privacy, and system compatibility

Qualifications / Requirements:

• Post-secondary education with minimum five to seven years of demonstrated competencies in fundraising analytics, data science, predictive modeling, and/or similar fields
• In-depth knowledge of ETL and data management concepts, and experience developing and interpreting highly advanced SQL queries for relational databases
• Must have the ability to convert complex multi-leveled business rules into SQL. Significant experience obtaining and restructuring data directly from source tables, as well as through APIs
• Demonstrated ability to synthesize complex and large datasets, glean actionable insights, and communicate these to business users, both orally and through tools such as Tableau and SSRS. Must be able to impart understanding of complicated ideas and statistics in a clear and simple manner to a wide variety of stakeholders, both technical and non-technical
• Experience in data science, with practical application using advanced statistical tools, big data technologies such as HADOOP, machine learning/AI, and data mining. Highly proficient programming skills with scripting languages (e.g., Python, R, Bash, Perl, etc.)
• Knowledgeable and experienced in complex data structures such as Data Lakes and their place within the enterprise Information Factory
• Advanced knowledge of BI and data warehousing design, concepts, and best practices with several end-to-end implementation projects successfully completed. Well versed in the Kimball Methodology
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written are required, along with strong listening and interpretive abilities. The capacity to remain positive and confident under pressure, and interact in a highly professional manner and build good relationships with clients and team members is essential
• Experience mentoring and training others to increase their own knowledge and abilities in analytics, and a willingness to share skills and techniques with peers and colleagues, and the larger data community through blogs, user groups, presenting at conferences, and other public forums
• The ability to independently handle and prioritize multiple tasks is critical to this role. Must be able to assess deadlines and schedule work appropriately
• This position requires a high degree of critical thinking and problem solving, and the ability to deal with major complex issues

Application Deadline:  February 14, 2023

We would like to thank all applicants in advance for submitting their resumes. Please note, only those candidates chosen to continue on through the selection process will be contacted.

Additional Information

This position is part of the AUPE bargaining unit, and falls under the Technical Job Family, Phase 3

To find out more about management and staff opportunities at the University of Calgary and all we have to offer, view our Management and Staff Careers website. 

The University strongly recommends all faculty and staff are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

About the University of Calgary

The University of Calgary is Canada’s leading next-generation university – a living, growing and youthful institution that embraces change and opportunity with a can-do attitude. Located in the nation’s most enterprising city, the university is making tremendous progress on its Eyes High journey to be recognized as one of Canada’s top five research universities, grounded in innovative learning and teaching and fully integrated with the community it both serves and leads. The University of Calgary inspires and supports discovery, creativity and innovation across all disciplines. For more information, visit ucalgary.ca.

The University of Calgary has launched an institution-wide Indigenous Strategy in line with the foundational goals of Eyes High, committing to creating a rich, vibrant, and culturally competent campus that welcomes and supports Indigenous Peoples, encourages Indigenous community partnerships, is inclusive of Indigenous perspectives in all that we do.

As an equitable and inclusive employer, the University of Calgary recognizes that a diverse staff/faculty benefits and enriches the work, learning and research experiences of the entire campus and greater community. We are committed to removing barriers that have been historically encountered by some people in our society. We strive to recruit individuals who will further enhance our diversity and will support their academic and professional success while they are here. In particular, we encourage members of the designated groups (women, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, members of visible/racialized minorities, and diverse sexual orientation and gender identities) to apply. To ensure a fair and equitable assessment, we offer accommodation at any stage during the recruitment process to applicants with disabilities. Questions regarding [diversity] EDI at UCalgary can be sent to the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion ([email protected]) and requests for accommodations can be sent to Human Resources ([email protected]).

We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, however preference will be given to Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada.