Product Analyst(Payments)
Company: S3
Location: Charlotte
Posted on: April 5, 2026
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Job Description:
Job Description Strategic Staffing Solutions is currently
looking for a Product Analyst (Payments) for a W2 contract
opportunity with one of our largest clients! This is a W2 contract
opportunity, and the candidates should be willing to work on our W2
ONLY, NO C2C. Product Analyst (Payments) Location: Charlotte,
NC/West Des Moines, IA Type: W2 Contract Work Schedule:
Onsite-Hybrid Schedule: 3 days in office Intended 24-month
engagement (approved for the full 2 years)—Potential for conversion
to FTE based on performance, business need, and headcount
availability. Required Qualifications 3 years as a Product Analyst/
Business Analyst in Agile software delivery (Scrum or SAFe). Proven
user story writing and acceptance criteria definition; strong
backlog refinement facilitation. Ability to translate
ambiguous/abstract concepts into concrete, testable requirements
and excellent written and verbal communication. Experience with
defect analysis, root cause thinking, and working with
engineering/QA to drive resolution. Hands-on with Agile tooling
(e.g., Jira or Azure Boards) and documentation (e.g., Confluence,
process maps, data mapping). We are re- scaling a portfolio of
merchant-facing payment applications. Product Managers own the
product vision; Product Owners lead delivery for a given
application or capability; and Product Analysts are the POs trusted
partner, turning abstract ideas into clear, testable work that
teams can ship confidently. Your primary mission is story
refinement and backlog health, so the team is consistently two
sprints ahead with high-quality, well-defined work. What you'll do
Backlog & Story Excellence (Primary Focus) Partner closely with the
Product Owner to build and maintain a high-quality backlog with at
least two sprints of DoR-ready items. Refine epics/features into
user stories with clear, testable acceptance criteria; balance
functional and non-functional needs. Facilitate/participate in
refinement sessions, uncover dependencies, and ensure scope, value,
and risks are understood. Raise and flag unplanned work (sprint
disruptions) and propose trade-offs to keep delivery on track.
Product Analysis & Current State Understanding Document
app/platform current state, business processes, and data
flows/mapping. Identify known gaps (tech or process), existing
defects, and recommend pragmatic paths to resolution. Apply
critical thinking to shape problem statements and solution design
options for PO consideration. Stakeholder Engagement &
Collaboration Engage product, technology, and business
stakeholders; translate abstract concepts into concrete
requirements. Collaborate with SMEs to validate use cases and
acceptance criteria; drive alignment when responsibilities overlap
(e.g., acceptance-criteria ownership among PO, PA, Tech Leads).
Support control/audit requests by assembling clear, traceable
evidence across requirements and delivery artifacts. Quality,
Testing & Production Readiness Document use cases/scenarios that
inform design and business testing. Partner with UAT leads to shape
the testing strategy/approach, share use cases, and engage end
users; perform lightweight UAT when needed. Represent the scrum
team in production triage; research issues/defects and act as the
point of contact for defect intake and analysis. Sprint Planning &
Delivery Rhythm Assist with Sprint Planning by reviewing current
sprint outcomes, identifying carryover, and prioritizing upcoming
work. Proactively surface risks, assumptions, and dependencies;
keep the PO informed and decisions well-documented. Preferred
Qualifications Financial Services background ideally in Payments /
Merchant Services (merchant onboarding, payment processing flows,
gateways/terminals, authorization/clearing/settlement, chargebacks,
reconciliation, BAU servicing). Familiarity with controls, audit
readiness, and data governance in a regulated environment (e.g.,
PCI-DSS awareness is a plus). Comfort navigating multiple
stakeholders and resolving gray areas (e.g., who owns acceptance
criteria) through influence and clarity. Exposure to basic data
analysis (e.g., SQL or equivalent) to validate scenarios and
support defect triage. Relevant certifications (nice to have):
CSPO/PSPO, SAFe POPM, ICP-BA or similar. Tools you’ll likely use
Jira or Azure DevOps, Confluence, and diagramming tools (e.g.,
Visio, Miro/Mural). Productivity: Excel/Sheets for data mapping,
Postman/logs for lightweight validation (as applicable).
Nice-to-have background Experience working in merchant acquiring or
payment processors; exposure to merchant onboarding and BAU
servicing. Prior experience at a large financial institution and
comfort with regulated delivery and audit needs. “ Beware of scams.
S3 never asks for money during its onboarding process .”
Keywords: S3, Hickory , Product Analyst(Payments), IT / Software / Systems , Charlotte, North Carolina
