Are you adept with computers and the information networks they are part of? If you are looking for a job with good pay and a bright future, you may want to consider becoming a computer systems analyst. According to the Bureau of Labour Statistics* the United States will need 118,600 new computer systems analysts between 2014 and 2024. The pay is excellent as well, at typically over $85,000 per year. So what do computer systems analysts do?
The main role of a computer systems analyst is to help an organization operate effectively using computer systems, procedures and software. He or she works with both the business side of the organization to determine their needs, and the IT side to help create the solutions. Getting from determining the need to creating the solution takes a number of steps.
Step One: Work With Business Managers to Understand Their Needs
Whether a business sells products online, keeps client records or tracks the movement of equipment, a computer systems analyst is the person who designs the IT system that makes it all work. By consulting with the business leaders, systems analysts create diagrams that show how information should move be accessed and stored throughout the organization. This is an investigative step, where the systems analyst has to ask open-ended questions like “Who, What, When, Where and Why?”
Step Two: Research Potential Solutions
If the current IT system isn’t providing all the solutions that the business leaders need, then the systems analyst starts his or her research. Their goal is to find out what new software, hardware or networks might work.
Step Three: Create a Cost/Benefit Analysis
Usually, a number of solutions will present themselves. When this happens, the systems analyst has to determine the pros and cons of each. A systems analyst might present a variety of recommendations, from “basic and inexpensive” to “powerful but costly”. They then work with the business leaders to find the right balance between the cost of the system and the benefits to the organization.
Step Four: Improve existing systems /Design new systems
Depending on what decisions the business leaders reached, it’s the systems analyst’s job to manage any changes and upgrades. Systems analysts choose the hardware and software, and make sure that IT staff install and configure it correctly. They test the system thoroughly to make sure it works as expected once it’s installed.
Step Five: Document and Train
The computer systems analyst knows the new system like no other employee – at first. The final task in a project is to bring all the users up to speed. The analyst does this through training and providing documentation of how to use the system. Until recently this documentation would be provided in the form of instruction manuals. Now, that instruction can also take the form of video tutorials or guided online instruction and support. The systems analyst can to this job, or can act as the subject matter expert to an instructional designer who prepares the training materials.
Interested? Learn more
A computer systems analyst combines deep knowledge of computer systems with excellent communications and managerial skills. If you think this work is right for you, consider the hands-on, focused training at ABCO Technology in Los Angeles. Our Network Administrator and Systems Engineer program will help prepare you with the technical knowledge for success in this high-growth field.
*Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2016-17 Edition, Computer Systems Analysts,
on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-systems-analysts.htm (visited July 13, 2016).