My official title is “Business Systems Analyst.” I started out as a designer in 1995, moved into development for several years, about a year of project management, 6 months as a system analyst, and eventually into the analyst role around 2006.
I have identified that my passion is working with data. Typically, that means digging into the database, analyzing the problem and coming up with solutions. That’s a wide area, but it may mean resolving an issue in production support, creating custom SQL for a Business Objects report, setting up test cases in SQL, or validating an ETL job between databases (but not performing the ETL job itself). I have personally created complex queries in Oracle, MySQL and SQL Server, and am aware of some of the major differences between each platform.
I am looking to move into a Systems Analyst role, with the emphasis on ‘Systems’. This could mean as a technical business analyst, a systems analyst, or a DBA. I already know that I need to beef up my PL/SQL. Apart from that, what other recommendations could be made to successfully make the transition? I am especially looking for technologies that might be carried across DB platforms. What do employers look for in today’s DBA?