Principal Analyst (Finance Division)

Job Description:

Principal Analyst (Finance Division)

Description

Salary Range

$122,844.80 - $149,240.00

Job Description

The Superior Court of California, County of Alameda is accepting applications for the position of Principal Analyst within the Trust & Treasury, Accounting Services, and Budget/Grant Administration units. Under direction of an Executive Team member, the Principal Analystplans, implements, coordinates and manages projects and activities of major significance to the development and delivery of court programs and services; supervises professional and support staff or serves as a lead in a major project and/or program; and performs other related duties as assigned.

For the Accounting Services Unit:

This position will be assigned to the Accounting Services Unit. The work will include: preparing revenue projection status reports; reconciling grant expenditure documents, submitting billing/reimbursement requests to grantors, and maintaining grant related financial records; reconciling and maintaining payroll liability accounts; annual development of indirect cost allocation plans; quality control review on accounting transactions; general oversight for bi-weekly payroll processing, including compliance with federal and state regulations, Court policies, procedures, and applicable MOU’s ; working collaboratively with Court Operations staff to ensure compliance with statutes and improve finance-related business efficiencies; work with external auditors, provide requested documentation and coordinate audit activities with internal partners. The selected candidate will be responsible for planning, organizing, directing, coordinating, and evaluating the work of fiscal staff assigned to the work unit.

For the Budget/Grant Administration Unit:
This position will be assigned to the Fiscal Services Unit which is comprised of budgets and grant administration. The work will include: taking an active role in identifying, informing management, and resolving issues related to budgetary, financial and purchasing/contract transactions and processes; working collaboratively with management and Court staff to ensure compliance with federal, state, local, and Court financial policies and procedures; Ensure compliance with grant program requirements; identifying gaps in existing policies and making recommendations on improving finance-related business efficiencies; and other related assignments as needed to meet the Court's business needs. The selected candidate will be responsible for planning, organizing, directing, coordinating, and evaluating the work of fiscal staff assigned to the work unit.

For the Trust & Treasury Unit:
This position will be assigned to the Trust and Treasury Unit and will primarily be responsible for managing revenue processes. This work includes: understanding the federal, state and local revenue distribution compliance requirements; developing, implementing, and administering trust management and escheatment policies and procedures; working with Information Technology staff to identify and resolve gaps between financial processes/transactions and the Court’s case management systems; testing of updates and enhancements related to revenue distribution and financial processes work flow; taking an active role in identifying, informing management, and resolving issues; working collaboratively with Court Operations staff to ensure compliance with statutes and improve finance-related business efficiencies; conducting random internal audits in preparation for external audits; working with external auditors; communicating effectively orally and in writing with all levels of management, both internal and external customers. The selected candidate will be responsible for planning, organizing, directing, coordinating, and evaluating the work of fiscal staff assigned to the work unit.

Ideal Candidate:

The ideal candidates will possess exceptional writing skills; have the ability to listen to the needs of others and comprehend complex matters; have the ability to articulate issues in a clear and concise manner; possess the ability to manage people and projects independently and achieve desired results with minimal direction; have the ability to work collaboratively with internal and external partners; be skilled in researching and developing policy recommendations and implementing policies as authorized; possess an acute attention to detail and well-developed organization and time management skills; possess a well-developed sense of urgency and follow through; possess a team-oriented approach and can effectively lead teams as well as work cross-functionally and collaboratively with other organizations or business units; and be self-motivated, flexible, deadline-oriented and able to complete tasks with minimal supervision.

The current vacancies are assigned to the Finance & Facilities Division at the René C. Davidson Courthouse in Oakland.

Example of Duties

NOTE: The following are duties performed by employees in this classification. However, employees may perform other related duties at an equivalent level. Each individual in this classification does not necessarily perform all listed duties.

When assigned to the Finance Division:

1. Plans, organizes, and leads staff engaged in complex, sensitive and detailed analytical work for a variety of administrative functions; conducts feasibility and needs assessment studies; and prepares and/or oversees the preparation of financial reports and analytical accounting, statistical and narrative reports for use by department and other agencies.

2. Plans, implements, coordinates and manages project activities to improve administration of court programs and services; develops work plans and project goals.

3. Develops and maintains adequate internal controls and implements the guidelines and requirements of the Trial Court Financial Policies and Procedures Manual; implements and maintains the Court’s financial systems and applications.

4. Has a lead or administrative role in the financial close cycles; ensures the accuracy of general ledger maintenance, preparation of monthly journal entries, expense and revenue analysis for accrual activities, and financial reporting on a monthly, quarterly and annual basis.

5. Provides subject matter area expertise on the interpretation of official guidance for revenue distributions related to criminal and traffic cases; monitors the court's case management systems' performance; identifies and corrects revenue-related processing errors; develops suitable alternative procedures for processing certain citation types if necessary; and supports management in responding to information requests from AOC internal audit staff, the State Controller's Office, and other governmental units.

6. Defines problems, conducts analytical studies and implements change in court services and/or administrative services (e.g., accounting, budgeting, contract management, personnel, staffing, organization and office automation/data processing) based upon conclusions drawn from the study process; conducts and responds to verbal and written inquiries and informational surveys; prepares and presents status and final written and verbal reports of such work.

7. Develops budget submissions requiring moderately complex justification (e.g., routine cost benefit analysis) and involves consideration of alternatives; reviews accounting data regularly to ensure conformance with revenue expectations and expenditure plans; assists line managers with understanding of fiscal process and implication of accounting reports; investigates and resolves accounting discrepancies.

8. Analyzes the probable impact of proposed legislation and regulations and recommends changes in operational policy or procedure to comport with legal mandates as changes are made and conducts legislative research and analysis.

9. Develops and recommends various policies and procedures; develops written procedures to implement adopted policy and/or clarify and describe standard practices; designs and improves forms; coordinates publication and dissemination of such material.

10 Supervises professional, technical and support staff.

11. Acts in the absence of the Finance Director.

12. Performs other related duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

Education:
Possession of a Bachelor's degree in business administration, court administration, human resources, public administration or related field from an accredited college or university. A Master's degree in a related field is desirable.

And

Experience:
The equivalent to four (4) years of full-time professional-level experience in complex budget analysis, human resources, financial/fiscal analysis, legislative/administrative policy analysis or complex program development. Experience as lead staff in a complex organization is desirable.

KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITIES:

Knowledge of project management; data collection, research and analysis methods; state, court and county functions, organization and structure; principles, functions and practices of public administration and policy analysis; court operations; workflow process analysis; local, State and Federal laws pertaining to human resource management; principles, methods and techniques of personnel administration; revenue distribution methodologies and distribution formulas, generally accepted accounting principles (gaap), financial management systems and applications, budget development and practices; state and local legislative processes; statistical and research methods; supervision principles and practices.

Ability to manage special projects and programs; evaluate problems and issues with conflicting evidence, make recommendations and facilitate implementation; interpret and apply employee labor agreements and State and Federal laws pertaining to employment; use a variety of computer office, research and database applications; prepare written and oral presentations; maintain the confidence and cooperation of Court officials, employees and the public; collect, interpret and evaluate a variety of narrative and statistical data; develop and write procedures, correspondence and narrative and statistical reports; maintain confidentiality of information; exercise discretion and independent judgment.

CLASSIFICATION HISTORY:

Date established: 4/01; Rev. 4/24/13; Rev.10/1/19; Rev. 1/11/21; Rev. 9/19/23; Rev. 01/16/25; Rev. 11/18/25

CLASS SPEC TITLE 6:

Physical Demands:
Walk, stand, sit, and climb up and down stairs; strength, dexterity, coordination and vision to use a keyboard and video display terminal on a daily basis; hearing and speaking to communicate with the public and court staff; dexterity and coordination to handle files; occasional lifting of objects weighing up to 25 lbs. such as files, stacks of papers, reference and other materials and reach for items above and below desk level.

Working Conditions:
Video display terminal is used on a daily basis. Attend meetings outside of normal working hours. Work occasional evening and weekend hours. May be required to travel statewide as necessary.

Special Requirements:

A valid California Class "C" Driver's License or the ability to reliably utilize an alternative method of transportation when needed to carry out job-related essential functions.

This position includes a one-year probationary period. Employment is contingent upon successful completion of fingerprint check and the provision of appropriately identifying documents to certify eligibility to work in the United States.

The position is:
Unrep'd Manager

Hiring Process

The hiring process will include the following components:

• An initial screening of all application materials receivedincluding a completed application and supplemental questionnaire. A resume does not substitute for completing the application. An incomplete or partial application or supplemental questionnaire will result in disqualification.
• A review of the completed application and supplemental questionnaire to select the best-qualified candidates for the oral panel interview process.
• An oral interview that will be weighted as 100% of the candidate's final score. The oral interview may contain situational exercises.

The Court reserves the right to change the components of the examination process and may limit the number of candidates invited to the oral interview process to include only the best-qualified candidates should there be a large applicant pool.

The application and supplemental questionnaire are used to evaluate the candidate's qualifications. If you are interested in the opportunity, it is recommended that you submit your application and supplemental questionnaire as soon as possible since this recruitment may be closed at any time should the Court receive a sufficient number of qualified applicants.

If you require accommodation in the examination process because of disability, please call (510) 891-6021 to discuss.

Job Posting End Date

December 22, 2025

Salary:

$122,844.80 - $149,240.00