ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW:

The Texas Pension Review Board (PRB) is a small state agency with 13 full-time equivalent positions and a $2.5 million biennial budget.  The agency provides oversight and monitoring of the 100 Texas public retirement systems, also known as pension systems. The agency receives and analyzes financial, actuarial, and benefit reports and data; conducts research regarding issues that affect public retirement systems; and provides educational and technical resources to retirement systems and administrators, the Texas Legislature, and other stakeholders.

WORK TO BE PERFORMED:

General Description:

The PRB Director of Business Operations serves as the primary budget, accounting, human resources, purchasing, and payroll director for the agency.  The work involves:

• performing advanced financial and other agency administrative work in accordance with state law and regulations and using state systems, such as USAS and CAPPS,
• preparing financial analyses and reports for oversight agencies as well as for internal management purposes,
• establishing, maintaining, and/or overseeing accounting systems, procedures, and controls,
• preparing and/or overseeing the preparation of agency budgets and appropriations requests,
• conducting and/or overseeing agency purchasing and procurement, and
• serving as the human resources officer of the agency.

May supervise the work of others. Works under minimal supervision, with extensive latitude for the use of initiative and independent judgment.

The ideal candidate is a self-starter experienced with most or all the job requirements.  However, due to the breadth of activities and knowledge required for the position, a successful candidate may not have direct experience with all aspects of the job requirements but ideally has experience with at least some state agency financial and administrative processes as well as a demonstrated ability to learn quickly. The PRB is a small state agency with a relatively simple budget, but still must comply with numerous state and federal laws and regulations and reporting requirements.  As a result, this position requires the ability to play multiple roles to ensure the agency’s administrative requirements are met and in compliance—including the appropriations/budget processes, human resources, and purchasing. On-the-job learning may be necessary for some aspects of the position depending on the candidate’s specific experience.

Essential Job Functions:

Budget and finance

• Completes agency’s monthly and quarterly reporting requirements such as federal wage and tax reporting, FTE reporting, veteran workforce reporting, HUB reporting, ABEST/USAS reconciliation, binding encumbrances, and others.
• Produces agency’s annual and semi-annual reports and projects such as financial reports, base reconciliation, operating budget, legislative appropriations requests, statewide allocation plan, fiscal year end rollover, and others.
• Maintains agency operating budget by producing year-end projections and monitoring expenditure transfers as well as incoming and outgoing appropriation transfers. As part of this function, provides useful budget reports to the executive team for decision-making purposes.
• Recommends and implements agency accounting and financial policies and procedures in accordance with statute and professionally accepted standards. Creates and maintains these policies and procedures as laws, rules, and internal processes change.

Procurement and purchasing

• Facilitates agency purchasing and accounts payable. Creates purchase orders, purchase vouchers, travel vouchers, and interagency vouchers. Enters vouchers into the CAPPS and USAS system. Reconciles monthly purchases.

Human resources

• Acts as the PRB’s chief HR officer. Coordinates employee onboarding and separation processes. Enters position and organizational changes in CAPPS. Completes personnel actions in CAPPS including promotions, demotions, salary changes, new hires, terminations, interagency transfers, and others.
• Produces and manages various types of agency payroll.
• Manages employee time and leave, including by acting as time and labor superuser, maintaining agency leave reporting, and related tasks.
• Acts as the agency’s benefits coordinator, using the Employees Retirement System benefit coordinator system.
• Manages personnel folders including performance evaluations and other documents.

Other

• Acts as the agency’s security coordinator, which includes parking badge access, background checks for certain new hires, CAPPS and USAS password maintenance, door key log, and others.
• Manages agency property and conducts agency property inventory, using the State Property Accounting System (SPA).
• May supervise the work of others.
• Performs related work as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

Experience and Education:

Qualified applicants will have a bachelor’s degree with major coursework in accounting, finance, human resources, business administration or related field. One year of relevant work experience may substitute for one year of coursework, with a maximum substitution of four years.

Qualified applicants will also have a minimum of five years of relevant work experience.  Candidates should have demonstrated experience with at least some of the job functions, but experience with all is not required and may be learned on the job.

PREFERRED EXPERIENCE:

• At least five years of experience in Texas state government with at least two years of directly related experience working with state agency administrative functions.
• Demonstrated experience and knowledge of all major state agency administrative functions required for this position, including budget and finance, human resources, and purchasing and procurement.
• Experience using all major state systems, including USAS, CAPPS, and ERS benefit coordinator system.
• Experience with and knowledge of the legislative appropriations process.

Knowledge of:

• State financial and other administrative reporting requirements
• Financial administration, budget control, and fiscal accounting
• Rules and regulations pertaining to travel and procurement
• Human resources-related functions, such as hiring, time and leave, benefits, and others
• Legislative appropriations process

SKILLS IN:

• Using Microsoft Office software, especially Excel
• Providing a high level of customer service, including interacting with and providing timely information to oversight agencies and legislative offices
• Oral and written communication

Ability to:

• Use state financial and HR systems, such as CAPPS, USAS, and ERS benefits system
• Organize and analyze data
• Provide useful budget and financial reports for management purposes
• Effectively handle multiple responsibilities and work projects and tasks concurrently
• Learn new processes and systems when needed
• Identify, analyze, and solve problems
• Complete all tasks with appropriate attention to detail

Physical Requirements and/or Working Conditions

Work is performed in a standard office working environment and requires:

• Regular, reliable, and punctual attendance.
• Frequent use of personal computer, copiers, printers, and telephones.
• Mostly sedentary in nature, but may involve moving, standing, pushing, pulling, kneeling, stooping, and bending.
• Frequent work under deadlines, as a team member, and in direct contact with others.
• Occasional moving and lifting objects up to 10 pounds.

Benefits

The PRB is a state agency offering both flexible scheduling and hybrid work opportunities. The State of Texas offers state employees competitive benefits that include:

• Health insurance, covering 100 percent of the individual employee’s premium and 50 percent of the premium for eligible family members
• Optional dental, vision, life, and disability insurance
• Accrued annual leave/vacation and sick leave
• Twelve paid holidays annually
• Membership in the Employees Retirement System of Texas (ERS) defined benefit pension plan; and a low-fee option for personal savings via 401(k) and 457 programs
• Combined service credit for retirement eligibility determination for members of certain retirement systems who participate in the Proportionate Retirement Program (PRP), such as the Teacher Retirement System of Texas. See the ERS website for more information.

For more information on benefits, please visit: https://www.ers.texas.gov/benefits-at-a-glance

NOTES

Veterans, Reservists, or National Guards with an MOS or additional duties that fall in Accounting, Audit, or Finance or other related fields pertaining to the minimum experience requirement may meet the minimum qualifications for this position. Please call 512-463-1736 for more information or assistance.

Military Crosswalk information can be accessed at:

https://hr.sao.texas.gov/Compensation/MilitaryCrosswalk/MOSC_PlanningResearchandStatistics.pdf.

HOW TO APPLY

Apply using State of Texas application form only, which can be found at https://www.twc.texas.gov/sites/default/files/busops/docs/state-of-texas-applications-e-133-twc.pdf

In addition to the required State of Texas application, applicants may submit a resume and cover letter.

Applications should be emailed to lindsay.seymour@prb.texas.gov or mailed to Pension Review Board, P.O. Box 13498, Austin, TX 78711-3498.

Applications may also be submitted through www.workintexas.com, but this is not a requirement.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The PRB is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. Selected applicant may be subjected to a background check. Official transcripts or other minimum requirement validations may be requested at the time of job offer. If hired for employment, you will need to provide documentation that establishes identity and employment eligibility. Documentation must be provided within three (3) days from date of hire. A complete list of acceptable documents is on file with the Texas Workforce Commission.

 Notice to Applicants Who May Require Reasonable Accommodation in the Interview Process: Applicants with disabilities who may need to discuss special accommodations during the interview process should contact Lindsay Seymour at 512-463-1736. If reasonably possible, please call at least 48 hours in advance to afford the agency sufficient time to properly review and coordinate your request.

Due to the high volume of applications, we do not accept telephone calls regarding this job posting and cannot reply to all email inquiries. Only candidates selected for interview will be contacted.