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Ascension is seeking a Senior Data Analyst (Financial & Cost Analytics / Tableau) to support a federal client’s activity-based costing, financial analytics, cost modeling, reporting, and business intelligence needs. This role is designed for a data-driven professional who can translate cost, financial, workforce, and operational data into clear insights, dashboards, reports, and recommendations that support leadership decision-making.

The ideal candidate will bring hands-on experience with financial or cost analytics, Tableau dashboard development, data quality review, data modeling, and stakeholder-facing reporting. This position is important because the client needs contractor support to maintain and improve its activity-based costing structure, update cost models, support cost allocation and ABC coding processes, develop reporting tools, and help staff understand and use ABC-related data and systems. The RFI specifically identifies needs tied to activity-based costing, cost modeling, financial/business analytics, Tableau or similar reporting tools, training, and reporting support.

This is a strong fit for a candidate who enjoys working at the intersection of data analytics, financial management, business process improvement, and federal mission support.

Summary of the Contractor Role

The Senior Data Analyst will support financial and operational decision-making by analyzing cost, workforce, position, timekeeping, coding, and financial data; developing and maintaining dashboards; reviewing ABC code usage; supporting cost model updates; and helping users understand how to apply ABC-related processes and tools. The analyst will work with client stakeholders to identify reporting needs, validate data, develop cost and business analytics products, and recommend improvements to coding, reporting, and cost-allocation practices.

The successful candidate should be detail-oriented, organized, analytical, and comfortable working with imperfect or evolving data sets. The candidate must be able to operate with limited supervision, ask thoughtful questions, identify data issues, recommend practical solutions, and communicate findings to both technical and non-technical audiences. The role requires the ability to manage multiple priorities, support recurring reporting cycles, develop clear visualizations, and help the client improve the tools and processes used to manage activity-based costing and financial analytics.

Tools and processes expected to support this work may include Tableau, Excel, CostPerform or similar cost-modeling tools, Microsoft 365, SharePoint, Power BI or similar BI tools, federal financial/timekeeping data sources, data quality review processes, ABC coding structures, cost allocation models, dashboard development, requirements gathering, stakeholder interviews, data validation, and user support/training materials. Ascension’s Business Data Analyst III LCAT aligns with this role because it requires a bachelor’s degree, six years of experience, data analysis, aggregation, reporting, dashboard development, business workflow improvement, client interaction, and development of data-informed recommendations.

Position’s Expected Day-to-Day Activities

• Analyze activity-based costing, financial, workforce, position-costing, coding, and operational data to identify trends, gaps, inconsistencies, and improvement opportunities.
• Develop Tableau dashboards, reports, data visualizations, and executive-ready analytics products that support cost transparency and decision-making.
• Maintain and update cost models, data tables, coding structures, and related financial analytics tools as directed by the client.
• Review ABC code usage and cost-allocation practices to identify errors, inconsistencies, underused codes, duplicate structures, or opportunities for simplification.
• Validate data from financial, timekeeping, workforce, or business systems to support accurate reporting and analysis.
• Translate business and financial requirements into analytic use cases, reporting specifications, dashboards, and decision-support tools.
• Collaborate with client stakeholders, program staff, financial analysts, and technical users to understand reporting needs and improve usability of analytics products.
• Prepare recurring and ad hoc reports, briefings, and data summaries for leadership review.
• Support workforce and position-costing analysis by connecting staffing, labor, organizational, and financial data.
• Document data sources, assumptions, business rules, calculations, dashboard logic, and reporting procedures.
• Recommend improvements to ABC coding, cost allocation, dashboard design, reporting workflows, and user-facing guidance.
• Support end users by answering ABC-related data and reporting questions and helping staff understand how to use dashboards, reports, and tools.
• Assist in developing training materials, job aids, standard operating procedures, and user guides for ABC, reporting, and analytics processes.
• Identify data risks, reporting gaps, and process issues and propose practical mitigation steps.
• Participate in meetings, working sessions, and reviews with client stakeholders to confirm requirements, review findings, and refine deliverables.