Computer Programmer / Analyst (GIS Analyst)

Main Purpose and Function

The Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Analyst is responsible for investigation, analysis and development of GIS solutions. They may be involved in all stages of the logical, conceptual, and physical design, testing, and implementation and support of the final product. The GIS Analyst is required to perform advanced spatial data analysis using standard industry tools to generate statistics, metrics, and visual output to drive strategic and operational decisions.

Specific Duties/Responsibilities
• Elicits and analyzes business requirements working closely with clients
• Evaluates existing and proposed processes and systems to drive design and development of enhancements and new GIS solutions of varying complexity
• Configures out-of-the-box and develops custom GIS solutions leveraging the City’s ESRI platform
• Facilitates discussions with GIS users in Urban Forestry and Park Operations to identify challenges and develop procedures and standards to address the same
• Develops and implements strategies for encouraging data governance best practices and adoption of standards leveraging change management techniques
• Serves as a technical and educational resource around GIS solution products, data visualization and GIS analysis, geospatial data creation and management
• Provides technical assistance as required as part of the GIS hybrid support team to deliver on agreed priorities
• Plans, documents and executes GIS solution implementation, including rollback strategies, coordinating activities with other Urban Forestry and Park Operations teams and allied departments, following best practices for project management, application deployment and communication
• Estimates time and cost of research, analysis and development activities and reports progress against estimates to management, project managers, and team members
• Prepares and maintains detailed user and operations documentation to ensure service levels can be measured and achieved, and to meet audit requirements for safeguarding software, data and business continuity
• Prepares test data, test scripts and test environments, conducts testing (logic, usability, integration, security, and acceptance), debugs programs, and supports user acceptance testing as part of GIS hybrid support team
• Stays current with developments in GIS, spatial analysis, programming languages, data modeling, integration tools, database technologies and data visualization tools, techniques and best design practices
• Ensures cybersecurity and privacy compliance requirements are met
• Other duties/responsibilities, as assigned

Minimum Position Requirements
Education and Experience:
• Completion of a Computer Systems Technologies two-year diploma course at a technical institute plus sound experience in programming; OR an equivalent combination of training and experience
• Completion of GIS professional designation or ESRI certification is an asset.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
• Excellent oral, written and presentation skills with ability to communicate complex ideas to all levels of the organization
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships both internally and externally with technical and non-technical staff
• Advanced skills in ESRI ArcGIS Pro including extensions such as Spatial or Network Analyst
• Advanced skills configuring web-based GIS solutions using Story Maps, Experience Builder and Dashboards in ArcGIS Enterprise and ArcGIS Online environments
• Considerable knowledge (preferably in a municipal environment) with implementation and maintenance of ESRI GIS solutions leveraging ArcGIS Enterprise platform and ArcGIS Pro
• Considerable knowledge of SQL, Python and FME scripting
• Considerable knowledge of user engagement, requirements gathering and change management
• Experience configuring mobile GIS data collection tools including Field Maps, Survey123 and Workforce
• Strong skills with ESRI geodatabases, geodatabase modelling and data warehouses
• Strong SQL skills in a Microsoft SQL Server environment
• Strong knowledge of ArcGIS Python API, Jupyter Notebooks and Safe Software FME
• Ability to strategically answer complex business questions through data analysis, scenario modeling, data visualizations, and creative thinking
• Ability to leverage strong analytical, technical and troubleshooting skills to solve complex problems and perform root cause analysis
• Ability to analyze and synthesize data from multiple data sources and formats
• Ability to customize GIS applications leveraging the ESRI platform when an out-of-the-box solution does not meet all business requirements
• Experience managing GIS projects using standard project management methodologies including Agile, Kanban and waterfall
• Working knowledge of source control tools
• Experience with GIS in a municipal environment and understanding of its relationship with other business systems
• Experience developing solutions with ArcGIS REST APIs, .Net, C#, JavaScript and HTML
• Some knowledge of user experience, design and accessibility principles
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office, Visio and Project
• Experience with ITIL enterprise service management preferably with ServiceNow
• Familiarity with CAD, BIM, Power BI, imagery analysis, machine learning and data science
• Ability to handle business critical and sensitive information
• Ability to work under pressure, manage multiple projects, changing priorities and respond to requests in a timely manner
• Ability to work both independently and as a member of a team
• Naturally curious and actively seeks opportunities for continuous improvement

Business Unit/Department: Board of Parks & Recreation