Brenda Swanson
Epping
Summary
Strategic data leader with expertise in business intelligence and analytics. Spearheaded initiatives that improved data integration, optimized reporting tools, and fostered a culture of data literacy, driving significant operational efficiencies across departments.
Overview
1
1
Certification
2027
2027
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Manager Business Intelligence & Data Analyt
FIRST
Manchester
09.2023 - 07.2026
- Led strategic planning initiatives to align operational goals with company vision.
- Managed cross-functional teams to drive project success and collaboration.
- Developed and implemented process improvements to enhance team efficiency.
- Led cross-functional teams to streamline project execution and enhance operational processes.
Manager, Business Intelligence & Data Analytics
FIRST
Manchester
12.2021 - 09.2023
- Developed and implemented business intelligence strategies across departments.
- Managed cross-functional teams to drive data-driven initiatives.
- Collaborated with stakeholders to define business requirements for reports and dashboards.
- Created dashboards to provide insights on key performance indicators.
- Led data analysis projects to enhance decision-making processes.
- Analyzed large datasets from multiple sources, including structured and unstructured data.
- Collaborated with IT teams to optimize data integration and reporting tools.
- Conducted regular assessments of business intelligence systems for improvements.
- Trained staff on data visualization techniques and reporting software.
- Streamlined data loading processes in Tableau for improved efficiency.
- Maintained up-to-date documentation on all BI systems, processes, and procedures.
- Provided technical support for existing reports, dashboards or other tools.
- Provided technical expertise on the design, development, implementation, and maintenance of BI tools and applications.
- Performed complex SQL queries against databases to extract relevant information.
- Monitored system performance metrics to ensure optimal operation of BI solutions.
- Assisted in developing strategies to optimize performance of current BI solutions.
- Fostered a culture of data literacy within the organization through workshops.
- Conducted research on new technologies related to Business Intelligence.
- Evaluated customer feedback regarding existing or proposed BI solutions.
- Implemented security measures according to best practices for protecting sensitive business information.
- Created, designed, maintained, updated business intelligence databases, spreadsheets or outputs.
- Supported users with troubleshooting issues related to BI systems or applications.
- Assessed customer needs quickly to ensure timely support.
- Assessed customer needs quickly to ensure timely support.
Business Intelligence Developer
FIRST
Manchester
06.2017 - 12.2021
- Tableau 2019- current implementation, tableau bridge/prep row level security myDBR mySQL central data sources for tableau, myDBR, ad-hoc reports and analysis Sisense 2016-2019 Created ad-hoc reports to support decision-making for the Coin Bill initiative, enhancing financial oversight.
- Business Intelligence Developer will identify business intelligence, reporting, and data analytic needs working closely with internal departments and the IT team to turn data into critical information and knowledge that can be used to make sound business decisions. Through this process the Business Intelligence Developer provides data that is accurate and reliable and ensures the information is easily available to users via dashboards and reports. This position is responsible for working closely with internal departments to determine business requirements, priorities, key performance indicators, and participating in the development of a supporting BI strategy.
- Works with internal and external customers to understand business objectives, translate them into key metrics, design and develop dashboards and reports. Conduct ad hoc analyses and reports.
- Delivered summary statistical data reporting and business intelligence solutions to address strategic questions for the organization.
- Participate in the Design and development of models, metrics, scorecards, and dashboards by gathering various HR data subjects and transforming it into stories/insights that drive recommendations and decision-making
- Works with the organization to prioritize long-term and short-term initiatives that generate or automate data reporting needs.
- Acted as a subject matter expert and administrator of business intelligence and data use.
- Facilitated training sessions on business intelligence tools and assisted users with BI platform for reporting and data extraction, enhancing tool adoption.
- Writes and maintains technical documentation of business intelligence processes.
Business Data Analyst
FIRST
Manchester
03.2008 - 06.2017
- Extracted and prepared statistical data reports, measures, dashboards, and diagrams for senior leadership, steering committee, board of directors, development, marketing, and staff using customized SQL queries.
- Created comprehensive MBF dashboards to enhance senior leadership's insights into team program registration.
- Partnered with Evaluations Manager and business programs to align the cross-program data collection strategy with the strategic plan and key performance measures.
- Work with business partners to identify and resolve data management risks and gaps. Implement improved procedures for business systems and integrated data management processes.
- Ensured confidentiality and security of personal team, sponsor, and financial information during processing, presentation, storage, and sharing.
SENIOR CONTROL ANALYST
Fidelity Investments
01.2008 - 01.2016
- Spearheaded process improvement initiatives that streamlined Cash & Balance Sheet Account reconciliation, leading to more efficient workflows.
- Coordinated research with Exception Processing, Quality Control, & Client Services to identify and resolve exceptions, enhancing accuracy in reconciliation.
- Reconciled and reported on various FESCo HR Payroll Client Balance Sheet accounts, including Employer Receivable, Checks/Direct Deposit to Be Issued, Garnishments, Tax Accounts, 401K, various Third-Party liabilities, multiple client bank accounts, and Client General Ledger.
- Trained Control Analysts on payroll balancing, reconciliation, and exception clearing processes.
- Served as primary contact for new client testing and system upgrades, ensuring robust integrity and controls during process improvements.
- Cross-trained to perform daily Accounts Payable and Treasury bank activities.
- Coordination and preparation of User Procedure Documentation for General Ledger 2002 procedures.
- Worked with Internal Auditing on SAS 70 auditing of Control Operations activities.
Project Manager - Client Data Quality Strategy
Fidelity Investments
Merrimack
06.2007 - 01.2008
- Client Data Quality Strategy Project Team - Integrated Data The Client Data Quality organization is responsible for managing and processing integrated client data feeds for DC, DB, HW and HR Payroll. Client Data Quality ensured timely, accurate, and consistent processing of integrated data across products, as feed data impacted benefits and payroll. The Client Data Quality Strategy Project team focuses on driving straight through processing by working with CDQ Data Feed Analysts to mitigate discrepancies, driving to root cause, fixing issues, and improving processes.
- Achieved Six Sigma Black Belt certification in October 2007; led client data quality efficiency projects for integrated products, including DC, DB, HW, and HR Payroll.
- Led process improvement projects using statistically valid sampling and measurements to eliminate defects, waste, and improve efficiency. Projects used Six Sigma tools and methodology to allow for continuous management by fact, review and improvement of those processes, resulting in the ability to drive to root cause and improve the capability of business processes.
- Performed edits on integrated single client feeds to ensure data integrity and compliance with standards., conducted extended data reconciliation, reduced data maintenance work items, facilitated readiness activities, and led cross-site global voice of business sessions.
Project Manager, HR Payroll
Fidelity Investments
Merrimack
10.2006 - 06.2007
- Certified Six Sigma Green Belt - May 2007, Passed Greenbelt Exam 01/07 3 Six Sigma Projects yielding $2.7 million in savings Q4 2006 and Q1 2007.
- Led W2C lean process improvement project as Green Belt project owner, focusing on reducing W2C cycle time by 50%. Conducted Kaizen event resulting in process flow overhaul, improved procedures and training, and automated W2C tool, achieving $850k in annual cost avoidance.
- Developed HRP tax scrubbing database project targeting reduction of tax and W-2 scrubbing errors. Analyzed, tested, and implemented improvements within 5 weeks, resulting in over $924k in cost avoidance and reducing over 150k errors during Q3 2006 tax season.
- Served as Green Belt and SME for W2C root cause volume reduction project, aiming to decrease non-value-add W-2C work by 50% and reduce internally caused W-2Cs to under 0.5% of total population. Enhanced communication and training with CSS/Operations, achieving $915k in annual cost avoidance.
- Prior Provider Process Improvement Project - Kaizen Event overhauled an inefficient Prior Provider (M&A) process and improved data quality. Project included process changes of loading Prior Provider and M&A data to improve data accuracy and avoid financial tax mis-payment exposure.
Year End Tax Manager, HR Payroll
Fidelity Investments
Merrimack
11.2005 - 10.2006
- Lead the FHRS Payroll Tax Expert Led a team of payroll tax experts to ensure effective collaboration and knowledge sharing. for successful Year End W-2 tax processing year-round. Processes include Multi-State Tax Scrubbing, W-2 Scrubbing, Balance Adjustments, Mergers & Acquisition Files, Year End Client & Third-Party Files, W2 & W2C employee data analysis and preparation for over 450,000 W2s.
- Tax and W-2 Scrubbing Process Owner - Responsible for large volumes of daily Tax/W2 Scrubbing, analyzing employee-level tax data to ensure that W-2s are correct. Employee tax data is analyzed against certain data Federal, State, City & County tax limits, rates, etc. Balance Adjustments are prepared and processed for any corrections needed.
- W2C Process Owner - Analyzed, researched, and prepared large volumes of W2Cs and major volumes of W2C work items for the 2005 tax season. Includes analyzing employee data via SQL scripts, preparing balance adjustments to correct YTD records, and streamlining process to ensure compliance, accuracy, and timeliness.
- Demonstrated thorough understanding of payroll processes and regulations relevant to year-end tax activities. - Thorough knowledge of Year End and End to End Payroll Processes, HRMS, & detailed Payroll tax. Knowledge & Procedures used to provide analysis and resolution of employee data that are consistent with the current Federal, State, and Local payroll laws and regulations.
- Managed FHRS team of 12 payroll tax subject matter experts and 10 temporary staff, fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing across varying levels of tenure.
- Coordinated with business partners and clients to ensure accurate and timely processing of year-end and quarter-end files, enhancing overall compliance and reliability.
Tax Compliance Analyst, HR Payroll
Fidelity Investments
Marlborough
2004 - 11.2005
- Primary responsibilities: Ensure that systems and procedures used in providing administrative services to clients were consistent with the current Federal, State, and Local payroll laws and regulations; to provide HRPR Payroll associates with the information and tools needed to ensure tax compliance; and to foster an overall 'culture of tax compliance' within HR/Payroll. The roles and responsibilities were to coordinate, lead and work with other functional groups on multiple projects, focusing on tax compliance for HR Payroll.
- Audited new and existing HRPR system functionality for tax compliance with applicable laws and regulations; identified enhancements to ensure compliance. Analyzed HRMS applications for all clients, verifying proper configuration for federal, state, and local taxation. Provided tax expertise to ensure accurate pay element mapping for Large Market (LPS) and Emerging Market (ECM) clients. Managed projects for configuring and mapping tax changes, including employee-level adjustments, collaborating with Systems & Technology to resolve issues, conducting system application testing, and developing procedural documentation and SQL queries.
- Monthly HRMS/Vertex Release Notes - Reviewed and validated legislation of monthly Vertex tax release notes with federal, state, and local tax jurisdictions using research tools and contacts. Compiled and communicated changes to FHRS in Tax Compliance Monthly Release Notes. Identified impacted employee populations and communicated to FHRS for any adjustments needed. Worked with vendor management to correct any issues or exceptions.
- Ongoing Tax Consulting with Internal Partners- Provided tax expertise to FHRS on tax issues for both the employee level as well as resolved cross client issues with regards to HRMS functionality, procedures and legislation changes.
- Developed and implemented an automated HRMS tax rule auditing database, enabling comprehensive auditing of over 18,500 federal and state tax rule combinations for all LPS clients.
Senior Tax Technical Analyst, HR Payroll
Fidelity Investments
Marlborough
2003 - 2004
- Implemented the electronic submission of W2s to the state jurisdictions for 2002. 92% of W2s were sent electronically, eliminating the need to send paper copy W2s, reducing the resource time & cost for Tax Services, print and mailing. Increased the accuracy and eliminated tax notices and research.
- Completed the electronic submission of Federal W2s to the SSA, ensuring 100% accuracy in W2 reporting.
- Oversaw the submission of electronic media for State Unemployment Insurance Quarterly Wage Listings (SQWLs), resulting in a 56% electronic submission rate and a 556% increase over 3 quarters.
- Managed web filing of tax returns and SQWLs for SIT & SUI, ensuring compliance with state regulations and accurate FLS setup.
- Ensured timely electronic tax payments through daily EFT processing., cross-trained as back up resource and sign off capabilities.
- MS Access Database Administrator for the following databases: Quarter End Checklist, State Quarterly Wage Listings, Automated State Unemployment Insurance Rates, and Auditing of FLS, tax system of record.
- Resolved auditing query exceptions and developed new queries for FLS tax setup issues, improving accuracy and efficiency in tax processing.
- Automation of any resolution processes to include State Income Tax (SIT) & State Unemployment Insurance (SUI) Vendor Request Interfaces and use of Pure Forms software to automate forms required by the state.
- Developed and maintained user procedure documentation for tax services, enhancing clarity and consistency in operational processes.
- FMR Outstanding Service Award Recipient -Fall 2003- Developed and implemented automated SUI Rate tapes. Allowed Tax Services to obtain client SUI rates electronically, thus eliminating tax notices, penalties and interest exposure.
- Eliminated paying the incorrect tax amount, request of client funding, and tax notice research and resolution time. Currently, receiving 12 states electronically, an additional 10 in process.
Senior Control Analyst, HR Payroll
Fidelity Investments
Boston
08.1998 - 2004
- Ensured the financial integrity of HR payroll activity for multiple large clients.
- Reviewed and tracked financial HR payroll activity to ensure compliance and accuracy.
- Oversaw daily off-cycle balancing and funding requests from the control analyst, and managed weekly, bi-weekly, semi-monthly, and monthly on-cycle balancing and funding requests.
- Prepared payroll estimates for on-cycle files.
- Verified and approved outbound interfaces with financial data to third party vendors.
- Troubleshot client accounting issues, delivering detailed resolutions to enhance client satisfaction.
- Reconciled Quarterly and Year to Date Employee W-2 Data for Year End Preparation.
Accountant
Allmerica Financial
Worcester
08.1995 - 01.1998
- Prepared monthly general ledger reconciliations for Annuity, Life Suspense, and Balance Sheet accounts to ensure accuracy and compliance.
- Weekly reporting of the automated payment system for outstanding cash payments.
- Researched, analyzed, and resolved suspense account outstanding items, with business partners.
- Contributed to Suspense Account reconciliation process improvement project, collaborating with team to enhance efficiency.
- Instructed New Employee Training class for multiple business units on a monthly basis.
- Assisted Technical Analyst in developing and implementing automated monthly reconciliation processes to streamline operations.
- Monitored outstanding payments to ensure timely processing and compliance. & out of balances, ensuring that payments received by contract holders are applied within the 5-day compliance standard.
Annuity Specialist
Allmerica Financial
Worcester
07.1995 - 01.1998
- Issued new contracts and managed cash flows for annuities through AWD, an automated paperless workflow environment.
- Processed financial and non-financial transactions for fixed and variable annuities within specific time standards.
- Processed annuity payments for individual and corporate retirement plan clients, ensuring timely and accurate disbursement.
- Maintained annuity contract cash flows with a commitment to accuracy.
- Monitored suspense report for outstanding funds to ensure compliance with SEC regulations.
- Key contact for incoming wired transfer of funds for new and existing clients.
- Correspondence and research for Client Services, Agency contacts, and clientele.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Business Administration, Minor Psychology
University of New Hampshire
Durham, NHSkills
- Business intelligence
- Data analytics
- Data-driven strategy
- Data-driven decision making
- Data integration
- Data visualization
- Data visualization techniques
- Data Warehouse - Snowflake
- MySQL
- Jira, Kanban, Scrum
- Agile development
- Project management
- Product & project management
- Roadmap planning
- Stakeholder engagement
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Cross-functional leadership
- Process improvement
- Project storyboarding
- Strategic data analysis
- User Requirements, Stories, Validation
- Independent decision-making
- Problem solving
- Critical thinking
- Time management
- Verbal and written communication
- Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Outlook
- Team development initiatives
- Reporting oversight
- Data-driven decision making
Certification
- Tableau Certified Data Analyst 04/2023
- Agile Certification, 01/4
- Six Sigma Black Belt 2007
- Snowflake Data Analyst 06/2025
- Snowflake Hands-On Essentials 2025
Timeline
Senior Manager Business Intelligence & Data Analyt
FIRST
09.2023 - 07.2026
Manager, Business Intelligence & Data Analytics
FIRST
12.2021 - 09.2023
Business Intelligence Developer
FIRST
06.2017 - 12.2021
Business Data Analyst
FIRST
03.2008 - 06.2017
SENIOR CONTROL ANALYST
Fidelity Investments
01.2008 - 01.2016
Project Manager - Client Data Quality Strategy
Fidelity Investments
06.2007 - 01.2008
Project Manager, HR Payroll
Fidelity Investments
10.2006 - 06.2007
Year End Tax Manager, HR Payroll
Fidelity Investments
11.2005 - 10.2006
Senior Control Analyst, HR Payroll
Fidelity Investments
08.1998 - 2004
Accountant
Allmerica Financial
08.1995 - 01.1998
Annuity Specialist
Allmerica Financial
07.1995 - 01.1998
Tax Compliance Analyst, HR Payroll
Fidelity Investments
2004 - 11.2005
Senior Tax Technical Analyst, HR Payroll
Fidelity Investments
2003 - 2004
Bachelor of Science - Business Administration, Minor Psychology
University of New Hampshire