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Career Opportunity

Program Specialist – San Francisco Human Services Agency (2913) (X00047)

Recruitment: REF32294B

Published: October 20, 2023

Contact:

Miguel Campos Salas - miguel.campos@sfgov.org

Apply using SmartRecruiters, the City and County of San Francisco's application portal.

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Department: Human Services Agency
Job class: 2913-Program Specialist
Salary range: $99,996.00 - $121,524.00
Role type: Permanent Civil Service What does this mean?
Hours: Full-time
Exam type: Class Based Test
Rule: Rule of 3
List type: Combined Promotive and Entrance
 

About:

THIS IS A CITYWIDE EXAM

 

AMENDED AND EXTENDED FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES

This announcement has been amended and extended to enlarge the applicant pool and reflect changes with the application deadline.  Applicants who already applied under Recruitment CBT-2913-X00047 during the filing period October 6, 2023 through October 18, 2023 need not reapply and will be included in the applicant pool.  

10/18/2023: Extended announcement deadline to October 27, 2023 

San Francisco is a vibrant and dynamic city, on the forefront of economic growth & innovation, urban development, arts & entertainment, as well as social issues & change. This rich tapestry of culture and ideas is sustained by our City's commitment to heighten the quality of life for the diverse population of San Franciscans and residents of the greater Bay Area. Our employees play an important role not only in making our City what it is today, but also in shaping the future of San Francisco.

At the San Francisco Human Services Agency, we believe in a San Francisco where everyone has the opportunity and support to achieve their full potential.  We are comprised of the Department of Benefits and Family Support, and the Department of Disability and Aging Services (DAS), and are united by our commitment to deliver essential services that support and protect people, families, and communities.

From financial, nutritional and employment support to child and adult protective services, health care coverage, affordable childcare, and in-home services for older adults and persons with disabilities, our team lends support for all in need.

OUR COMMITMENT TO RACIAL EQUITY

As we work towards our vision of an inclusive San Francisco, we embrace our responsibility to root out systemic racism by creating services and a workforce which reflect the lived experiences and strengths of the people we serve. We are committed to fostering a work environment where our differences are celebrated and everyone has what they need to thrive--no matter their race, age, ability, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, or country of origin. Click here to learn more about what this commitment looks like in action.

Role description

The 2913 Program Specialist is used by In Home Supportive Services (IHSS), County Adult Assistance Program (CAAP), CalWORKs, Workforce Development (WDD), Family and Children’s Services (FCS), Investigations, SF Benefits Net, Program Support Operations, Alignment & Guidance as well as the Department for Homelessness and Supportive Housing. Under general supervision, the Program Specialist performs a variety of specialized technical duties that may include investigating, reviewing, evaluating, training, screening and coordinating the activities of various programs of the Human Services Agency and the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. Positions in this job code are responsible for carrying out specialized functions for an assigned program and performing specialized duties which require a comprehensive knowledge of Federal, State, Local and Departmental policies, procedures, rules and regulations. The Program Specialist may direct the work of clerical staff and manage the skill development of new employees.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES:

According to Civil Service Commission Rule 109, the duties specified below are representative of the range of duties assigned to this job class and are not intended to be an inclusive list; may include additional duties as assigned.

QUALITY ASSURANCE, INVESTIGATIONS, OVERPAYMENTS, AND/OR APPEALS SPECIALIST

Under general supervision, the Quality Assurance, Investigations, Overpayments or Appeals Specialist performs investigations in support of human service programs. The program specialist reviews and monitors Department compliance with County, Federal and State regulations as related to public assistance programs, prepares reports on findings, identifies problems of non-compliance, recommends corrective action regarding discrepancies, and may supervise clerical staff.

Essential duties may include, but are not limited to:

  1. Detect and prevent fraudulent claims for public assistance by investigating welfare fraud and other financial crimes.
  2. Conduct field investigations and home visits often in situations requiring communication with individuals who may have medical (e.g. drug or alcohol), psychiatric or aggressive behavior problems.
  3. Review guidelines related to the processing of public assistance applications; verifying eligibility, correctness of client information and payment decisions and appropriateness of the services provided.
  4. Investigate allegations or referrals of assistance overpayment, determine overpayment amounts if applicable and accepted, prepare related documentation, refer fraud and non-fraud overpayment; cite various laws and regulations violated.
  5. Conduct and verify investigations of cases in which the client has appealed a departmental decision regarding eligibility or amount of grant; verify, review and analyze case records and other pertinent documents.
  6. Prepare cases and represent the department at hearings conducted by the State; present oral arguments, examining witnesses, defend the department’s interpretation of regulations and provide legally binding stipulations.
  7. Ensure compliance with the hearing decision by determining appropriate action to be taken by the department; advise department staff of actions and monitor compliance.
  8. Perform research into program and quality control procedures to ensure compliance with eligibility requirements from Federal, State, Local, and Departmental policies, procedures, rules and regulations.
  9. Identify problems of non-compliance and recommend corrective action regarding discrepancies.
  10. Monitor error rate, identify error patterns and work closely with quality control unit to learn of errors.
  11. Actively review targeted tasks, phone calls, and supervisor QA forms, to ensure quality of customer service.
  12. Compile complex reports to track metrics on program quality and present summary findings and recommendations to supervisors and managers.
  13. Facilitate and contribute to short and long-term projects to assigned workgroups.
  14. Calculate and determine overpayments and/or over-issuance of benefit payments.

TRAINING AND POLICY DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST

Under general supervision, the Training and Policy Development Specialist performs policy writing, training, and supervision of clerical staff and/or trainees in support of human service programs.

Essential duties may include, but are not limited to:

  1. Provide classroom training, individual coaching, consultation, and policy interpretation.
  2. Evaluate and determine training needs for the assigned program while monitoring how new or revised programs and regulations may impact current training programs.
  3. Write and edit training manuals (including the translation of program materials), interactive online resources, presentation media, hard copy forms, technical reports, handbooks and procedural memos to ensure they reflect the latest policies and regulations and coordinate the production and distribution of online and printed materials.
  4. Supervise trainees during the on-the-job portion of induction training; foster career growth and evaluate trainees upon conclusion of training.
  5. Interpret, verify and analyze program policies and procedures to ensure they comply with new or revised Federal, State, and Local regulations. Provide feedback to State or Federal officials regarding new or proposed policies and procedures, audit findings, and case reviews.
  6. Supervise clerical staff in assigned unit.
  7. Provide advice, guidance and recommendations to Department staff and the general public on upcoming and existing Department services and program policies and procedures.
  8. Attend meetings, chair committees and consult appropriate stake holders or experts to gain knowledge related to the production of training and policy materials and/or review audit findings as a County or Department representative Participate in screening, interviewing, and recommending hiring of staff members. Communicate meeting outcomes to relevant program staff.
  9. Participate in screening, interviewing, and recommending hiring of staff members.
  10. Perform data analysis to monitor information systems’ data quality, in accordance with established performance metrics.
  11. Collaborate with designated Technical Assistance Providers to develop IS training materials, devised annual training calendar, identify training delivery format (online vs. in-person, CBT), and confirm the validity of existing training material to ensure compliance with federal requirements.
  12. Identify policy issues that need to be revised to improve the process by which  households experiencing homelessness are matched and referred to shelter or housing programs.

TECHNICAL PROGRAM SPECIALIST

Under general supervision, the Technical Program Specialist oversees the technical infrastructure of program systems (ex. iTasks, Q-Flow, Monet, ACD, Promptly, Digital Speech, CalWIN/CalSAWS, CMIPS II, MyBCW, MEDS) to ensure proper functioning.

Essential duties may include, but are not limited to:

  1. Monitor infrastructure to ensure quality and reliability of service. 
  2. Provide real-time modifications and scheduled maintenance to systems that may include:  managing users and user functions; managing requested modifications from programs; working independently or with the vendor to ensure requested modifications are completed, tested and implemented; submitting incident reports/tickets to vendors. 
  3. Provide real-time monitoring of systems that will include the following:  real-time ACD call metrics; real-time lobby traffic and response; real-time task distribution; real-time text messages.
  4. Serve as subject matter expert and first point of contact for system technical issues.
  5. Ensure that daily, weekly and monthly reports are produced accurately and on time. 
  6. Recommend system improvements and actively participate in performance improvement projects.
  7. Track and troubleshoot problematic system issues.
  8. Monitor infrastructure to ensure quality and reliability of service. 
  9. Create and run regular or ad hoc reports using Excel and Crystal Reports to identify case programs, demographic information, or gaps in business processes.

SERVICE CENTER COORDINATOR

Under general supervision, the Service Center Coordinator will be part of a team responsible in leading, coaching, and making recommendations with the objective to maximize program efficiency, productivity, and accuracy.

Essential duties may include, but are not limited to:

  1. Manage staff schedule to ensure adequate phone coverage.
  2. Makes sure equipment and system are in good working condition and facilitating and coordinating escalation or replacement request process.
  3. Provide coaching and support in handling problematic customer calls.
  4. Develop and issue call scripts, standard responses, policies and training materials to be used by Service Center Staff. 
  5. Send out real-time alerts and notifications to staff with high volume calls, increased wait times, and worker phone assignments.
  6. Develop ad-hoc reports as needed by management.
  7. Work with manager to identify issues that cause service gaps. Interpret, research, and evaluate call trends, develop long and short term forecasts to meet optimal service objectives, provide staffing recommendations based on analysis, review data to compare actual results versus forecasts, and develop recommendations to continuously improve center performance.

How to qualify

Experience: Three years of experience in the Social Services field performing duties in the area of eligibility determination, case management, data management, employment services or training.

Note: Data management experience refers to high-level and large scale data management activities using software programs dealing with large sets of data. Administrative record-keeping experience is not considered qualifying.

LICENSE AND CERTIFICATION

1. Some positions in Class 2913 Program Specialist may require possession of, or ability to obtain, a valid California driver's license.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

Essential duties involve the following physical skill and work environment:

  • Ability to work in a typical office environment
  • Most positions involve the physical activities of sitting, standing, and lifting 5-10 lbs.
  • The ability to travel to different sites and conduct home visits
  • May require hand-eye coordination and manual dexterity for data entry and extensive VDT exposure

Applicants must meet the Minimum Qualifications requirements by the filing deadline unless otherwise noted.

Some positions in some HSA programs may also require the following:

  1. Some positions must possess a valid accreditation by CAL Vet to ensure meeting the qualification standards of hiring CVSO staff.
  2. Some positions require recent and verifiable experience working with service assessment, provider enrollment, and/or payroll functions of the statewide CMIPS II database.
  3. Some positions require recent and verifiable experience working with a population of older adults (65+) and individuals with disabilities who are unable to perform activities of daily living and cannot live independently without assistance.
  4. Some positions require recent and verifiable experience directly working with the CalFRESH program (eligibility, case processing, quality assurance, quality control, etc.).
  5. Some positions require recent and verifiable experience directly working with the Medi-Cal program (eligibility case processing, quality assurance, troubleshooting, quality control, etc.).
  6. Some positions require recent and verifiable experience working with a population of foster youth/child welfare and title IV-E regulations.

Verification of Experience and/or Education: Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found at https://sfdhr.org/how-verify-education-requirements

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.

All work experience, education, training and other information substantiating how you meet the minimum qualifications must be included on your application by the filing deadline. Information submitted after the filing deadline will not be considered in determining whether you meet the minimum qualifications.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed City and County of San Francisco application.

Applications completed improperly may be cause for ineligibility, disqualification or may lead to lower scores.

Selection Procedures

Written Examination- Multiple Choice (Weight –100%):

Candidates who meet the minimum qualifications will be invited to participate in a written multiple-choice examination to determine their relative knowledge, skill, and ability levels in job-related areas, which may include but are not limited to: organizational skills, interpersonal skills, analytical skills, and problem solving.

The above test component is considered standardized and, therefore, test questions and answers are not available for public inspection or review.

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

A passing score must be achieved on the Written Multiple Choice Examination in order to continue in the selection process.

After application submission, candidates deemed qualified must complete all subsequent steps to advance in this selection process, which includes the following:

Minimum Qualifications Supplemental Questionnaire (Weight: Qualifying):

Candidates will be prompted to complete a Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire as part of the online employment application at a later time. 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.

What else should I know?

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 of 12 months, and may be extended with the approval of the Human Resources Director.

To find Departments which use this classification, please see:

https://sfdhr.org/sites/default/files/documents/Forms-Documents/Position-Counts-by-Job-Codes-and-Department-FY-2022-23.pdf

Terms of Announcement and Appeal Rights:

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. [Note: The correction of clerical errors in an announcement may be posted on the Department of Human Resources website at https://careers.smartrecruiters.com/CityAndCountyOfSanFrancisco1/

The terms of this announcement may be appealed under Civil Service Rule 110.4. Such appeals must be submitted in writing to the Department of Human Resources, 1 S Van Ness Avenue, 4th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94103-5413 by close of business on the 5th business day following the issuance date of this examination announcement. Information concerning other Civil Service Commission Rules involving announcements, applications and examination policies, including applicant appeal rights, can be found on the Civil Service Commission website at http://sfgov.org/civilservice/rules.

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

How to Apply

Applications for City and County of San Francisco jobs are only accepted through an online process. Visit https://careers.smartrecruiters.com/CityAndCountyOfSanFrancisco1/ and begin the application process.

• Select the “I’m Interested” button and follow instructions on the screen 

Applicants may be contacted by email about this recruitment and, therefore, it is their responsibility to ensure that their registered email address is accurate and kept up-to-date. Also, applicants must ensure that email from CCSF is not blocked on their computer by a spam filter. To prevent blocking, applicants should set up their email to accept CCSF mail from the following addresses (@sfgov.org, @sfdpw.org, @sfport.com, @flysfo.com, @sfwater.org, @sfdph.org, @asianart.org, @sfmta.com, @sfpl.org, @dcyf.org, @first5sf.org, @famsf.org, @ccsf.edu, @smartalerts.info, and @smartrecruiters.com).

Applicants will receive a confirmation email that their online application has been received in response to every announcement for which they file. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please contact the exam analyst, Miguel Campos-Salas, by telephone at (415) 557-5185 or by email at miguel.campos@sfgov.org. 

All of your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

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.