Store Systems Analyst at Vallarta Supermarkets in Santa Clarita, CA

Job description

• The Store Systems Analyst supports the implementation, deployment, and delivery of retail store systems and store technology initiatives across locations from Southern to Central California. This role supports point-of-sales (POS) systems, payments, self-checkout (SCO), and other store technology solutions by coordinating projects, executing deployments, supporting testing and stabilization, and driving vendor coordination to resolution.
• Note: Vallarta has an in-house Help Desk and Field Support teams responsible for day-to-day user support and break/fix. This role focuses on project delivery and provides technical guidance, documentation, and handoff materials for IT operational support.

Responsibilities

• Lead assigned initiatives from intake through closeout, including scope definition, requirements
• gathering, acceptance criteria, and stakeholder alignment.
• Create and maintain work plans (milestones, timelines, dependencies, owners, and deliverables) and adjust plans as conditions change.
• Facilitate cross-functional execution with Store Operations, Vendors, IT teams, Continuous Improvement, and Store Leadership.
• Keep a tracker of risks, issues, assumptions, and key decisions to stay ahead of problems; communicate trade-offs early and escalate blockers or approvals when needed.
• Provide concise status updates (weekly or as required) and document key decisions, actions, and outcomes.
• Drive closeout by validating results, documenting outcomes, and transitioning support materials (Helpdesk KB Articles, job aids, known issues, etc.) to operational teams.
• Execute store technology deployments, including configuration, software/hardware installation, and on-site/remote validation.
• Support deployments across POS, SCO, Electronic Payment Systems, digital signage, fresh department scales, scale labeling, restaurant kiosks, and department queuing systems.
• Coordinate cutover activities to minimize operational impact. Confirm readiness with site checklists and communicate expectations to stakeholders.
• Maintain deployment documentation and checklists to enable repeatable execution and consistent outcomes.
• Develop and execute regression testing scripts for upgrades/changes (POS workflows, payments, peripherals, and other department workflows as applicable).
• Document test results and support go/no-go decisions with clear evidence and defined acceptance criteria.
• Track issues discovered during testing and rollout. Prioritize fixes and coordinate remediation plans with stakeholders and vendors.
• Support post-deployment stabilization and ensure completed solutions are transitioned with usable documentation and support procedures.
• Manage vendor incidents related to assigned initiatives end-to-end, including impact summary, supporting evidence, and clear reproduction steps.
• Coordinate troubleshooting with vendor partners and drive follow-ups until resolution is confirmed.
• Validate vendor fixes in-store and/or via remote verification (as appropriate) prior to closure. Confirm stability to prevent repeat issues.
• Maintain clear case notes and other evidence (logs, timestamps, screenshots) to reduce back-and-forth and speed resolution.
• Coordinate and execute vendor software updates/upgrades for assigned store systems, including scheduling, dependencies, and rollback considerations.
• Maintain documentation (current version by store/system, release dates, upgrade history, and configuration notes) to support troubleshooting.
• Track and document known issues, workarounds, and incident trends by version. Validate fixes and update records as issues are resolved.
• Review and analyze vendor release notes to assess operational impact, define testing/regression scope, and communicate changes to stakeholders in plain language.
• Ensure updates follow change management and validation practices, with documented test evidence and clear go/no-go criteria prior to rollout.
• Maintain a positive, professional communication style when working with store teams, operations leadership, and vendors.
• Translate technical status into clear updates for non-technical stakeholders. Set expectations, communicate risks early, and confirm decisions.
• Contribute to standard operating procedures, checklists, and training materials to support consistent adoption and supportability.
• Use remote support tools (for example: Beyond Trust/Bomgar, VNC, RDP, Aloha CMC) and review common configuration artifacts (.INI/.XML/.CFG).
• Create and maintain basic scripts (PowerShell/batch) as needed for support and deployments.

Requirements

• Strong troubleshooting foundation across network and application layers (OSI model concepts), including the ability to apply these concepts when diagnosing store endpoint connectivity and application issues (for example: cabling/Wi-Fi, VLANs, IP/DNS/DHCP, ports/timeouts, and application connectivity).
• Experience troubleshooting Windows Server environments (physical and virtualized) and enterprise (LTSC) Windows workstations.
• Strong understanding of network environments for store endpoints (TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP).
• Strong organization and documentation skills (clear status updates, action tracking, and stakeholder alignment).
• Positive, professional communication style. Able to work effectively with all levels of users and management and maintain a customer-service mindset in alignment with the company’s core values.
• Familiarity with logs and configuration artifacts used in POS environments.
• Basic scripting exposure (PowerShell/batch).
• Basic familiarity with PCI concepts as they relate to store payment environments.
• 3+ years of experience supporting retail POS systems and store technologies in a multi-store environment.
• Demonstrated ability to plan and execute initiatives (milestones, timelines, dependencies) and drive them to close out with minimal oversight (planning, coordination, execution, validation, and documentation).
• Demonstrated strong problem-solving skills, including the ability to assess ambiguous issues, identify root causes, and recommend practical solutions.
• Demonstrated experience working with vendors: opening cases, providing technical details, following up consistently, and validating fixes prior to closure.
• CompTIA A+ certification (or equivalent foundational IT certification) preferred.
• Experience with Grocery and/or Hospitality POS platforms such as Encor/Aloha (or comparable enterprise POS/SCO platforms).
• Experience supporting self-checkout environments, restaurant kiosks/KDS, digital menu boards, digital signage implementations, and other store technology integrations.
• Experience with fresh department technologies such as weight scales and/or customer queuing systems (meat/seafood).
• Payment device experience (EMV/contactless/EBT), including coordination with payment processors and vendors.
• Experience supporting pilots/phased rollouts and building rollout playbooks, regression test scripts, and readiness checklists.

Skills

Required

• Customer-service mindset
• Enterprise (LTSC) Windows workstations
• TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP
• Configuration artifacts (.INI/.XML/.CFG)
• PowerShell/batch scripting
• PCI concepts
• POS platforms (Encor/Aloha)
• Self-checkout environments
• Restaurant kiosks/KDS
• Digital menu boards
• Digital signage
• Weight scales