Thursday, May 10, 2012

Then what is the other 80 percent?

In today's issue of the Herald-Standard, Franklin Township resident Jerrie Mazza questioned the qualification of former Herald-Standard.com reporter Amy Revak to perform the job of Fayette County chief clerk.

Jennifer Harr, who wrote the story ("Resident questions qualifications of Fayette's new chief county clerk"), included these two paragraphs, which are printed here verbatim. (Please pay attention to the words we've underlined.)

The questions, Mazza said, were only about Revak's qualifications for the position, which does include some work with the county's budget. Revak has a four-year degree in English.

Dominick Carnicella, human resources director through Felice Associates of Greensburg, said that Revak's experience qualified her for the position and noted that about 20 percent of the job is budget-related and those numbers come from the controller's office.

Luckily, we were able to obtain a copy of the job description, as it was posted on the county's website. We leave it up to you, the loyal readers of Fayette Patch Hunky, to digest this and decide if the job, as advertised, includes some work with the counthy's budget, to the tune of about 20 percent.

FAYETTE COUNTY

CHIEF CLERK
Position Description Exempt

OVERALL OBJECTIVE OF JOB:
To perform a variety of complex financial and administrative duties to assist the County Commissioners in the management of the County, its programs and expenses.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS OF JOB:
1. Develops budget and monitors County expenditures.
2. Assures that the Commissioner's Office adheres to governing laws and regulations.
3. Collects, interprets, analyzes and summarizes information to be used as a basis for the executive actions of the Commissioners.
4. Prepares agendas and makes arrangements for hearings or meetings for the Commissioners.
5. Ensures accurate minutes of public meetings are recorded and maintained.
6. Attest documents, orders and voucher checks issued by the Commissioners.
7. Maintains up-to-date on developments affecting public policy and County government.
8. Studies and analyzes administrative operations and problems, prepares reports of findings and makes recommendations to Commissioners regarding changes, adjustments or other necessary and required information.
9. Reviews correspondence, reports, news sources or publications and informs Commissioners of subsequent developments and/or problems.
10. Communicates with County officials, offices, news media and general public in regard to essential job duties.
11. Acts as a liaison between the Commissioners and elected officials, department heads, other employees and the public.
12. Assists in the management of County programs, and assures that policies, procedures and regulations are adhered to.
13. Supervises staff engaged in clerical/administrative or technical support within the Commissioner's office, as delegated.14. As Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) liaison forward matters of this regard to the Director of Human and Community Services.
15. Administer oaths and affirmations pertaining to the business of the office.
16. Process Right To Know Requests in your role as the Right To Know Officer.

OTHER DUTIES OF JOB:
1. Represents the County at meetings, seminars, etc. as required.
2. Performs special assignments as received from the Commissioners.3. Attends meetings, hearings, training, etc. as required.
4. Serves on various committees as needed.
5. Performs other job-related duties as required.

SUPERVISION RECEIVED

Receives some instruction and supervision from Commissioners in regard to daily work duties.

SUPERVISION GIVEN:
Supervises staff as delegated by Commissioners.

WORKING CONDITIONS:
1. Works indoors in adequate work space, temperatures, ventilation and lighting.
2. Works with average indoor exposure to noise and stress, but subject to frequent disruptions.
3. Normal indoor exposure to dust/dirt.


PHYSICAL AND MENTAL CONDITIONS:
1. Must possess ability to record, convey and present information, explain procedures and follow instructions.
2. Must be able to sit for long periods throughout the workday, with occasional walking, standing, twisting, bending, reaching and driving as necessary to carry out essential job duties.
3. Dexterity requirements range from coordinated movements of fingers/hands to simple movements of feet/legs/torso as necessary to carry out work duties.
4. Sedentary work, with occasional lifting/carrying of objects with maximum weight of ten pounds.
5. Must be able to cope with the physical and mental stress of the position.
6. Must be able to pay close attention to details and concentrate on work.


QUALIFICATIONS:
To do this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related or a logical assignment to the position. The job description does not constitute an employment agreement between the employer and employee and is subject to change by the employer as the needs of the employer and requirements of the job change. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

A. EDUCATION/TRAINING
Bachelor's degree, preferably in Accounting, Public Administration, Business and/or related field.

B. WORK EXPERIENCE
At least 4 years experience in Accounting, Public Administration, Business and/or
any equivalent combination of experience, education and training which provides the required knowledge, skills and abilities.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES REQUIRED:
1. Must be able to speak and understand the English language in an understandable manner in order to carry out essential job duties.
2. Must possess ability to prepare annual budget for department and control expenditures accordingly.
3. Must possess initiative and problem solving skills.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES REQUIRED (Contd):
4. Must possess ability to function independently, have flexibility and the ability to work effectively with staff, government officials, general public and others.
5. Must possess ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing with employees, consultants, other governmental agency representatives, municipal officials and the general public.
6. Must possess ability to maintain confidentiality in regard to County information and records.
7. Must possess ability to make independent decisions when circumstances warrant such action.
8. Must possess ability to learn of principles and practices of county administration, programs and policies and the ability to ensure that these are carried out within the County programs.
9. Must possess ability to develop and implement administration policies and procedures, and to evaluate same for efficiency and effectiveness.
10. Must possess a willingness to travel as necessary to carry out essential job duties.
11.
12. Must possess ability to analyze and make thorough recommendations to County Commissioners.
13. Must possess ability to exercise good judgment and discretion in serving as the Commissioners' representative.

***************************************************************

I HAVE READ THE ABOVE POSITION DESCRIPTION AND FULLY UNDERSTAND THE

REQUIREMENTS SET FORTH THEREIN. I HEREBY ACCEPT THE POSITION OF CHIEF CLERK AND AGREE TO ABIDE BY THE REQUIREMENTS AND DUTIES SET FORTH. I WILL PERFORM ALL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY.

________________________________ ____________________

Signature of Employee Date

________________________________ _____________________

Signature of Supervisor Date

DRAFT

In compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act, the Employer will provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities and encourages both prospective employees and incumbents to discuss potential accommodations with the Employer.

1 comment:

  1. I have an English degree, and I wouldn't even finish reading the description before deciding I wasn't qualified let alone seriously consider taking it OR accepting it. Field experience in journalism may teach you a lot about the world, but it doesn't give you the equivalent of an accounting or business degree.

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