The San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System offers an exceptional opportunity for the right candidates to serve this historic, well established City Department by engaging in interesting and rewarding mission critical work. Established in 1889 as a fund for families and orphans of firefighters and police officers, today the San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System serves more than 75,000 active, vested and retired employees of the City and County of San Francisco and their survivors. 

Our Mission

The San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System is dedicated to securing, protecting and prudently investing the pension trust assets, administering mandated benefits programs, and providing promised benefits to the active and retired members of the City and County of San Francisco.

Update: The deadline date for this job announcement is set for Wednesday, November 17, 2021, at 5:00 pm.

Receipt of applications may close at anytime, but not before October 12, 2021. Applicants are encouraged to submit their application immediately.

Compensation: $112,216 - $136,422 Annually

The Benefits Supervisor supports the implementation of retirement benefits provisions for the San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System; supervises and directs the work activities of analytical and technical staff in meeting the operational goals of the department. Examples of primary duties may include:

1. Train, evaluate, supervise and direct a major unit of professional analysts and technicians in an assigned employee benefits program.
2. Review Charter, Federal, State and City laws and regulations and pending legislation to determine its applicability to San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System.
3. Document existing business processes and procedures. Assist management in developing and implementing new operational procedures to accommodate legislative changes.
4.  Assist management in monitoring operational procedures to enhance workflow and program effectiveness. Identify and resolve issues or problems. Research to determine causes of issues or problems and recommend solutions. Communicate outcomes to members verbally and in writing.
5. Coordinate with Operations, Benefits, Information System, Accounting, Actuary and Business Services Division to gather and analyze data, to make payments and to manage pension administration; participate in information systems design, development, testing and implementation. Identify and resolve problems including performing research to determine causes of issues and recommending solutions.  Communicate outcomes to members verbally and in writing.
6. Prepare and present oral presentations regarding the San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System. Develop content for member educational webinars and videos.
7. Manage complex special projects.
8. Contact City departments, employees, employee’s representatives, other government agencies and various private entities to furnish and/or obtain information on complex pension related matters.
9. Manage and monitor business processes and workflow to ensure quality and timeliness of work product and resulting service to members. Identify operational procedures that can be improved and bring those to the attention of management.
10. Collect and analyze data in order to develop and present detailed reports to management on various operational matters including statistical reports.

Minimum Qualifications:

1. Possession of a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university, AND
2. Four (4) years of progressively responsible experience in administering employee retirement and/or pension benefits programs. This experience must include two (2) years senior level work and knowledge of the administration of employee pension and death benefits programs; including applicable federal/state/City law and associated terminology.

Substitution:

Additional qualifying experience may be substituted for the required education on a year-for-year basis.

The above minimum qualifications reflect a special condition associated with the position(s) to be filled. They may differ from the standard minimum qualifications associated with this class code.

Desirable Qualifications:

The stated desirable qualifications may be used to identify job finalists at the end of the selection process when candidates are referred for hiring.

• Minimum of four (4) years verifiable experience with employee retirement benefit programs involving analysis of data for counseling and benefit calculations with a public sector retirement and/or pension plan or experience with a defined benefit plan or defined contribution plan.
• Minimum of two (2) years verifiable supervisory experience in benefit administration or in a customer service focused environment.
• Working knowledge of PeopleSoft.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office products, including Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Teams. Demonstrated proficiency in using Excel for complex calculations and tracking preferred.
• Strong oral and written communication skills.

Verification: Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point in the application and/or departmental selection process. Written verification (proof) of qualifying experience must verify that the applicant meets the minimum qualifications stated on the announcement. Written verification must be submitted on employer’s official letterhead, specifying name of employee, dates of employment, types of employment (part-time/full-time), job title(s), description of duties performed, and the verification must be signed by the employer. City employees will receive credit for the duties of the class to which they are appointed. Credit for experience obtained outside of the employee’s class will be allowed only if recorded in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Service Commission Rules. Experience claimed in self-employment must be supported by documents verifying income, earnings, business license and experience comparable to the minimum qualifications of the position. Copies of income tax papers or other documents listing occupations and total earnings must be submitted. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found at http://sfdhr.org/index.aspx?page=456.

Note: Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

SELECTION PROCEDURES

Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire (Weight: Qualifying):

Candidates will be sent a Supplemental Questionnaire to complete and submit. This Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire is designed to obtain specific information regarding an applicant's experience in relation to the Minimum Qualifications for this position. Applicants must also complete the official application. It is essential that applicants provide complete information in identifying their education, experience and training. The Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire will be used to evaluate if the applicant possesses the required minimum qualifications.

Supervisory Test Battery (Weight: 40%)

Candidates will be invited to participate in a computer-based examination designed to measure competencies in job-related areas which may include but not limited to: Problem Solving; Leadership; Decision Making; Interpersonal Skill, Human Resources Management; Team Building; and Communication and Conflict Management. For More information about Supervisory Test (and suggested reading list) please visit: https:/ sfdhr.org/supervisory-test-battery-information

A passing score must be achieved on the Supervisory Test Battery in order to continue in the selection process.

This is a standardized examination, and therefore, test questions and answers are not available for public inspection for review.

Scores attained on the Supervisory Test Battery will be valid and "banked" for three years, starting from the date of the examination.  This means that, during this three-year time period you will not be required to take the Supervisory Test Battery. The Supervisory Test Battery may be used for many other classes; therefore your test score may be applied to one or more of these classes if you choose to apply to future recruitment. If the selection process for the future announcement is held within one year of the date of this examination and it includes the Supervisory Test Battery, your score will be automatically applied to that announcement. However, after one year, you have the option to either (a) apply your test score to the other announcement or (b) re-take the Supervisory Test Battery. Re-testing is permitted no sooner than one year from the date of the examination and only in association with your eligibility for another announcement for which the Supervisory Test Battery is used. Please note that should you re-test, your re- test score would become your official score sine it is the most recent.

Supplemental Questionnaire Evaluation: (Weight: 60%)

Applicants who meet the minimum qualifications and pass the Supervisory Test Battery will be sent a supplemental questionnaire. The Supplemental Questionnaire Evaluation is designed to measure knowledge, skills and/or abilities in job-related areas which may include but not be limited to: knowledge of administration of benefit plans, knowledge of management and planning techniques; knowledge of investigative techniques and benefits counseling techniques; ability to perform accurate benefits calculations; ability to research and analyze data; human relation ability; written communication ability; supervisory ability analytical ability; ability to apply the principles and methods for employee pension benefits; and ability to work on sensitive and confidential matters.

A passing score must be achieved on the Supplemental Questionnaire Evaluation and Supervisory Test Battery in order to be ranked on the eligible list.

Applicants meeting the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed to advance through all of the steps in the selection process. The department may administer additional selection procedures upon certification in order to make a final hiring decision.

Candidates’ scores on this examination may also be applied to other announcements involving other job titles, when directed by the Human Resources Director.

Upon approval of the Human Resource Director (see Civil Service Rule 111A.26.5), the eligible list resulting from this announcement may be used by other departments that also use this classification or a similar classification. To find other Departments which use this classification, please see http:/ www.sfdhr.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentID=21246. Search that document by title or job code to see which departments use the classification

In line with the Official Public Health Order to slow the spread of COVID-19, “shelter-in-place” has been issued for all San Francisco residents that is expected to be in effect until further notice. As a result, Department of Human Resources (DHR)’s office (located at 1 South Van Ness Avenue, 4th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94103) is currently closed to the general public. If you have any questions, please feel free to email the Human Resources Analyst listed on this announcement.

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

• Information About The Hiring Process
• Conviction History
• Employee Benefits Overview  
• Equal Employment Opportunity 
• Disaster Service Worker
• ADA Accommodation
• Veterans Preference
• Right to Work
• Copies of Application Documents
• Diversity Statement

Eligible List/Score Report 
A confidential eligible list of applicant names that have passed the civil service examination process will be created, and used for certification purposes only. An examination score report will be established, so applicants can view the ranks, final scores and number of eligible candidates. Applicant information, including names of applicants on the eligible list, shall not be made public unless required by law. However, an eligible list shall be made available for public inspection, upon request, once the eligible list is exhausted or expired and referrals resolved. The eligible list/score report resulting from this civil service examination process is subject to change after adoption (e.g., as a result of appeals), as directed by the Human Resources Director or the Civil Service Commission. 

The duration of the eligible list resulting from this examination process will be six months, and may be extended with the approval of the Human Resources Director. 

Certification 
The certification rule for the eligible list resulting from this examination will be Rule of Three Scores.  Additional selection processes may be conducted by the hiring department prior to making final hiring decisions. 

This is a Position Based Test conducted in accordance with Civil Service Rule 111A. Applicants must be guided solely by the provisions of this announcement, including requirements, time periods and other particulars, except when superseded by federal, state or local laws, rules or regulations. Clerical errors may be corrected and, if so, an amended note will be posted on this official job announcement.

The terms of this announcement may be appealed under Civil Service Rule 111A.35.1. The standard for the review of such appeals is ‘abuse of discretion’ or ‘no rational basis’ for establishing the position description, the minimum qualifications and/or the certification rule. Appeals must include a written statement of the item(s) being contested and the specific reason(s) why the cited item(s) constitute(s) abuse of discretion by the Human Resources Director. Appeals must be submitted directly to the Executive Officer of the Civil Service Commission within five business days of the announcement issuance date.

If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please contact the exam analyst, Tess Bobila, by telephone at 415-487-7026, or by email at [email protected].

Exam Type: Combined Promotive and Entrance

CONDITION OF EMPLOYMENT:  All City and County of San Francisco employees are required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment.  For details on how it is applicable to your employment, please click here.

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.