Cognos BI Consultant

Position:

Exp:

Location:

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Role Overview

Cognos BI Consultant

Key Responsibilities

• Provide

  Level 3 support

  for IBM Cognos BI/Analytics environments, including complex production incidents and service requests.
• Troubleshoot issues across

  Cognos Analytics, Framework Manager, Report Studio, dashboards, reporting services, and Cognos Administration

  .
• Perform detailed

  root-cause analysis (RCA)

  for recurring and high-priority production issues.
• Analyze and resolve report failures, slow-running reports, scheduling issues, authentication problems, and data connectivity issues.
• Monitor and optimize Cognos server performance, including

  dispatcher, query service, batch/report services, and gateway components

  .
• Investigate and resolve issues related to

  Cognos Content Store, metadata models, packages, reports, jobs, schedules, and security

  .
• Develop, enhance, and troubleshoot complex

  Cognos reports, dashboards, queries, and Framework Manager models

  .
• Work with database teams to investigate SQL performance, data-quality issues, connectivity problems, and query execution plans.
• Perform

  Cognos report and query performance tuning

  , including SQL optimization and report design improvements.
• Support Cognos upgrades, patches, configuration changes, migrations, and environment refresh activities.
• Troubleshoot

  Cognos authentication and security

  , including users, groups, roles, namespaces, and access permissions.
• Analyze Cognos logs and system behavior to identify underlying technical problems.
• Manage incidents and problems according to defined

  SLA/ITIL processes

  .
• Coordinate with L1/L2 support teams and provide technical guidance and knowledge transfer.
• Collaborate with infrastructure, middleware, database, ETL, security, and application teams to resolve cross-platform issues.
• Prepare technical documentation, RCA reports, troubleshooting guides, and operational procedures.
• Participate in

  on-call/after-hours production support

  when required.

Required Technical Skills

IBM Cognos

• Strong hands-on experience with

  IBM Cognos Analytics /Cognos BI

  .
• Expertise in:
• Cognos Administration
• Report Studio / Reporting
• Framework Manager
• Query Studio
• Cognos dashboards
• Cognos scheduling and jobs
• Packages and data sources
• Cognos security
• Content Store
• Strong understanding of

  Cognos architecture and multi-tier environments

  .
• Experience troubleshooting Cognos services, dispatchers, gateways, and report execution.
• Experience with

  Cognos configuration, deployment, and environment management

  .
• Knowledge of Cognos upgrades, patches, migrations, and environment cloning.

Database & SQL

• Strong

  SQL

  skills.
• Experience with databases such as

  Oracle, SQL Server, DB2, or PostgreSQL

  .
• Ability to analyze and optimize complex SQL queries.
• Understanding of database indexes, execution plans, joins, views, stored procedures, and performance tuning.

Production Support

• Strong experience in

  L3/SME-level production support

  .
• Experience with incident, problem, and change management.
• Ability to analyze application logs and identify root causes.
• Experience working with

  SLA-driven support environments

  .
• Strong troubleshooting and analytical skills.

Preferred Skills

• Experience with

  Cognos Analytics 11.x/12.x

  .
• Knowledge of

  Cognos Analytics Administration Console

  and command-line/admin utilities.
• Experience with Linux/Unix and Windows environments.
• Basic scripting knowledge using

  Shell scripting, Python, or PowerShell

  .
• Exposure to ETL technologies such as

  Informatica, DataStage, or SSIS

  .
• Experience with enterprise monitoring tools such as

  Splunk, Dynatrace, AppDynamics, or similar platforms

  .
• Knowledge of cloud-based BI environments is an advantage.
• Exposure to Agile/ITIL methodologies.

Education

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related field.
• Relevant IBM Cognos certifications are an advantage.

Key Competencies

• Excellent troubleshooting and problem-solving ability.
• Strong analytical and diagnostic skills.
• Ability to work independently on complex production issues.
• Strong communication and stakeholder-management skills.
• Ability to prioritize incidents based on business impact and severity.
• Strong documentation and knowledge-transfer skills.
• Ability to collaborate effectively with geographically distributed teams.

Success Criteria:

The successful candidate will be expected to:

• Resolve complex Cognos production issues within agreed SLAs.
• Minimize recurring incidents through effective RCA and permanent fixes.
• Improve Cognos report and platform performance.
• Maintain a stable and highly available Cognos BI environment.
• Provide technical leadership and mentoring to L1/L2 support teams.
• Ensure effective documentation and knowledge sharing across the support organization.