Senior Supervisor, Administration - Office of Retirement Services

The City of San José, the Capital of Silicon Valley, is one of the nation's best managed cities and one of the top ten cities in which to live, work, and do business. Moreover, San José is the center of cultural, government and economic activity for the region. The employees of the City of San José have embraced the following values: Integrity, Innovation, Excellence, Collaboration, Respect and Celebration. The City's Office of Retirement Services (ORS) is seeking an individual whose values align with the values of the City's employees.

The mission of the Office of Retirement Services (“ORS”) is to deliver accurate and timely retirement benefits and services while prudently managing the assets entrusted to ORS with integrity, accountability, and long-term vision. ORS administers the benefits of the two Defined Benefit Retirement Plans for the City of San Jose Employees and oversees the investment of plan assets. One plan is for the sworn police and fire employees, called the Police and Fire Department Retirement Plan. The other plan is for all other eligible City employees, called the Federated City Employees’ Retirement System. Each plan is governed by its own Board of Administration.

The Office of Retirement Services (ORS) is recruiting for a Senior Supervisor, Administration. 

The salary range for this classification is $100,158.24 - $121,714.32. 

This salary range includes an approximate five percent (5%) ongoing non-pensionable compensation. Actual salary shall be determined by the final candidates’ qualifications and experience.

Under the general direction of the Program Manager, Administration, this position supervises the Administration Team and is responsible for the supervision, coordination, and performance of specialized administrative work in support of the Office of Retirement Services, its two Boards of Administration, and executive leadership. The position provides leadership to the administrative support team, coordinates Board and Committee meeting operations, develops and improves administrative processes, and ensures the efficient delivery of administrative services that support the department's business operations. 

The ideal candidate is a collaborative and customer-focused leader with strong supervisory, organizational, and communication skills. The successful candidate will have experience leading administrative staff, managing competing priorities, improving business processes, and working effectively with executive leadership, Board Trustees, consultants, other City departments, and external stakeholders.

Duties and Responsibilities 

The Senior Supervisor, Administration will primarily be responsible for the following duties:

• Supervise the Administration Team by assigning, prioritizing, and monitoring workloads to ensure timely, accurate, and high-quality administrative support for ORS and its two Boards of Administration. 
• Coach, mentor, and develop administrative staff by providing ongoing guidance, performance feedback, training, and opportunities for professional growth. 
• Conduct performance evaluations and make hiring, promotion, and disciplinary recommendations. 
• Ensure delivery of high-quality administrative services through exceptional customer service, operational excellence, and responsive support to internal and external stakeholders. 
• Oversee the coordination and administration of Board and Committee meetings, including meeting logistics, agendas, meeting materials, meeting technology (e.g., Zoom), public comment procedures, and post-meeting follow-up to ensure meetings are conducted efficiently and effectively. 
• Direct the preparation and quality review of Board materials (including agendas and minutes), Board reports (such as travel, attendance, and education reports), correspondence, resolutions, and other ORS documents to ensure accuracy, completeness, consistency, and professionalism. 
• Ensure ORS documents, Board materials, and any public-facing content comply with applicable accessibility standards, including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
• Develop, implement, and continuously improve administrative policies, procedures, workflows, and office practices to enhance operational efficiency and service delivery. 
• Research, analyze, and recommend improvements to administrative operations, business processes, and customer service. Prepare reports to summarize recommendations to departmental initiatives and special projects.
• Coordinate administrative support for departmental procurement, contract administration, and other administrative areas, as necessary.
• Serve as the department coordinator for compliance-related processes, including California Public Records Act (CPRA) requests and Statement of Economic Interests (Form 700) filings, by monitoring deadlines, tracking submissions and responses, and coordinating with staff and stakeholders to ensure timely compliance.
• Ensure administrative operations are carried out in accordance with applicable Board governance documents, City policies, departmental procedures, and records retention requirements. 
• Maintain and continuously improve departmental records management practices and administrative filing systems.
• Facilitate effective communication and coordination between City departments, Board Trustees, consultants, vendors, retirees, and other stakeholders 
• Coordinate special projects, department-wide initiatives, and other administrative activities as assigned. 
• Exercise sound judgment, professionalism, and discretion while handling confidential, sensitive, and complex matters. 
• Effectively manage multiple competing priorities and ensure timely completion of assignments in a fast-paced environment. 
• Supervise, coordinate, and perform administrative support work for the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and executive leadership, as needed.
• Perform other duties of a similar nature or level as assigned.

Education: Two (2) years of undergraduate course work from an accredited college or university (equivalent to at least 60 semester units or 90 quarter units)

Experience: Four years of experience in varied office clerical work. The four years of experience must include two years of experience at the level of Senior Office Specialist or above including lead responsibility (must be customer service experience if supervising a clerical function involving primarily customer service). 

Acceptable Substitutions: Additional experience at the level of Senior Office Specialist or above may be substituted for the education requirement on a year-for-year basis.

The ideal candidate will possess the following competencies, as demonstrated in past and current employment history.

Job Expertise – Demonstrates knowledge of and experience with applicable professional/technical principles and practices, Citywide and departmental procedures/policies and federal and state rules and regulations.

Communication Skills - Effectively conveys information and expresses thoughts and facts clearly, orally and in writing; demonstrates effective use of listening skills and displays openness to other people's ideas and thoughts.

Computer Skills - Experienced with common business computer applications including but not limited to: MS Outlook, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Access, and MS Excel

Teamwork and Interpersonal Skills - Develops effective relationships with co-workers and supervisors by helping others accomplish tasks and using collaboration and conflict resolution skills.

Customer Service – Demonstrates the ability to anticipate customers' needs and deliver services effectively and efficiently using professional demeanor. 

Supervision - Sets effective long and short-term goals based on a good understanding of management practices; establishes realistic priorities within available resources; provides motivational support; empowers others; assigns decision-making and work functions to others in an appropriate manner to maximize organizational and individual effectiveness.

Initiative - Exhibits resourceful behaviors toward meeting job objectives; anticipates problems, is proactive, and avoids difficulties by planning ahead; displays willingness to assume extra responsibility and challenges; pursues continuing education opportunities that promote job performance.

Problem Solving – Approaches a situation or problem by defining the problem or issue; determines the significance of the problem; collects information; uses logic and intuition to arrive at decisions or solutions to problems that achieve the desired outcome.

Desirable Qualifications: 

Selection Process: 

The selection process will consist of an evaluation of the applicant's training and experience based on the application and responses to all the job specific questions. Only those candidates whose backgrounds best match the position will be invited to proceed in the selection process. Additional phases of the selection process will consist of one or more interviews.

If you have questions about the duties of these positions, the selection or hiring processes, please contact Quynh Doan at [email protected].