Originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, Andrea Benson, PSI Business Analyst, has always had an overactive imagination, outgoing personality, and interest in learning. “I grew up in Cincinnati attending church and playing outdoors with everyone in the neighborhood,” she said. “I never met a stranger, and I look forward to building new relationships.”
Benson channeled her gregarious nature into her studies. With a passion for global affairs, traveling and government, she pursued a bachelor’s degree in international relations and MPA in public administration from the University of Toledo. During college she had the opportunity to complete a study abroad program in Japan for three weeks. While there her tour group interned with a city government office and saw the sights in nearby cities. “We were placed with host families during our stay. This gave us a better understanding of the culture, and it was an eye opener,” she said.
Following graduation Benson was ready to go into Politics and move to Washington DC to work for the federal government. She made her first step forward when she received a job offer as a legislative intern for the Ohio Senate. The internship provided Benson a broad range of opportunities including serving on the Healthcare and Finance Committees. Following the internship, she received an opportunity at JP Morgan Chase & Co. as an Operations Analyst to support the production team on a legacy platform decommission. She jumped on the chance to further her skills. While at Chase, she gained experience as a Business Analyst and the assisted with production of a new tool development. That experience launched the next chapter of her career.
“Initially I dealt with managing Interface Migration projects to move clients from legacy mainframe tools to a strategic platform,” she said. “I also conducted gap analysis between the current and future state understanding and wrote detailed business requirements.”
From there Benson decided to transition to IT to further a new skill set and try something new. As a Business Analyst she enjoys having transferable skills and the ability to learn about new industries. “It’s exciting to take on fresh challenges and not be stagnant,” she said.
In her current contract with Cardinal Health, Benson works remotely as a Business Analyst on assignments with a project team of like-minded individuals in the healthcare sector. Cardinal Health specializes in distributing pharmaceuticals, medical, and laboratory products. “Their work plays an important role in healthcare globally,” said Benson.
Currently the team is working on a decommission effort to turn off legacy tools now that the company has moved to the SAP Platform – a technology platform that brings together data and analytics, artificial intelligence, application development, automation, and integration into one central space.
Throughout her time with Cardinal Health and PSI, Benson has encountered nothing but professional and considerate business partners. “I feel that my opinions have been heard and valued throughout the recruitment and placement process,” she said.
When it comes to what’s next for Benson’s career, the sky is the limit. “We all can become complacent with doing only what we have been taught and experienced first-hand. Sometimes a new perspective can be eye opening and be a win-win,” she said.