Principal Clerk

The City of Ames is conducting an open recruitment to establish Civil Service eligibility lists of qualified Principal Clerk candidates for both Electric Administration and Administrative Services. The lists will be valid for up to one year from the date of certification by the Ames Civil Service Commission and may be used to fill one or more vacancies in this classification. In addition, City of Ames Civil Service employees who have previously held Civil Service status in this classification and are interested in voluntarily demoting or laterally transferring into the current vacancy must submit their application by the deadline.

We are currently hiring two roles.  One role will support the City's Electric Administration division.  The second position will provide support to the City's Administrative Services division.  

Within Electric Administration this position reports directly to the Manager of Energy Market Operations and collaborates closely with other areas of Electric Services.  This person will also partner with the Finance Department on invoicing.  Hours: Monday - Friday 7am-4pm.

The City of Ames Administrative Services division is a 5 member team providing support to the Public Works, Planning & Housing, and Fire Departments (including the Inspection division). The Principal Clerk for this division reports to a direct supervisor and provides active service and support both to external customers and to internal customers from these departments. Members of the Administrative Services division also support various City boards and commissions through agenda and packet preparation, attending after hour meetings periodically and taking meeting minutes.  Hours: Monday-Friday 8am-5pm as well as occasional evening meetings.

Under general supervision, the Principal Clerk plans, implements and carries out support staff functions, complex clerical assignments, and projects; applies departmental and City customer service and record-keeping policies; exercises sound judgment in applying departmental and City procedures; performs related work as required.

In order to be considered for this position, all applicants must submit their online application by the deadline listed on this posting. Your application includes complete responses to the supplemental questions. Please keep in mind that submission of a resume in lieu of work history on your application or answering the supplemental questions is not sufficient. 

Compensation Philosophy:
The City of Ames has a compensation philosophy that the starting pay for our merit salary ranges establishes the salary for employees who meet minimum requirements of a position. The median of any merit salary range is for an employee who can reasonably meet all expectations of the position responsibilities without initial extensive training. In order for employees to have an opportunity to grow within their position, we consider a candidate's education, experience, and skills above the minimum requirements when looking at a salary closer to or slightly above the median. The median for this position is $29.00 per hour.

Our comprehensive benefits package can be viewed at: City of Ames Benefits

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program: The PSLF Program is a federal program that is intended to encourage individuals to work in public service by forgiving the balance of their federal student loans. To qualify, the individual must have made 120 qualifying payments while employed by a qualifying employer. For more information, please visit the website through this link:  PSLF Program 

Examples of Essential Job Functions: Serves as frontline customer service representative. Provides needed support to members of work group. Receives and reviews documents in accordance with established policies and procedures; applies departmental and City policies; exercises sound judgment in applying departmental and City procedures. Plans, implements and manages complex clerical assignments and projects; collects and analyzes information; prepares summary reports for supervisory review. Composes meeting minutes and types correspondence, which require a comprehensive understanding of departmental operations and of proper grammar. Develops and maintains filing systems and automated data bases; uses software packages to compile and analyze data and to generate reports. Responds to customer and citizen requests; maintains customer and budgetary accounts; maintains and balances employee time records. Routinely schedules meetings and plans events; organizes project work and resources. Responsible for proofreading and editing department documents for proper grammar, punctuation, and accuracy.  

Each employee is expected to continually strive to bring shared values to life through our Excellence Through People organizational culture. ETP values include: committing to continuous improvement; inspiring creativity and innovation; being customer driven; making data-driven decisions; committing to diversity, equity and inclusion; championing employee involvement; striving for excellence; having fiscal stewardship; acting with honesty and integrity; exhibiting leadership; choosing a positive attitude; respecting one another; promoting safety and wellness; and cultivating teamwork. For leaders, this includes creating a work culture that brings these values to life. For all employees, this includes maintaining a Total City Perspective. The purpose of ETP is to deliver exceptional services to the public at the best price, and for employees to experience an enjoyable and stimulating work environment.

Other Job Functions: As determined by the department head, may serve as the secretary to one or more City boards or commissions, which includes preparing and compiling agenda items, distributing board packets, taking and transcribing minutes, notifying appropriate individuals, groups or agencies regarding board actions, and maintaining historical records of board actions; May manage departmental Web pages; monitor outgoing departmental communications to ensure they reflect positively on the organization; may process payroll.  

Education and Experience:

Required:
-Successful completion of high school, HiSet, or G.E.D.
-Three years of diversified office clerical and support staff experience.
-Proficient in Microsoft Word and Excel
An equivalent combination of education in support staff functions and/or support staff experience may be considered.

Preferred:

Electric Administration-
-Post-secondary professional development in support staff functions.
-Municipal and/or government administrative support experience.
-Experience with invoicing or billing
-Experience producing or running reports 
-Experience providing exceptional customer service and cultivating teamwork.

Administrative Services-
-Post-secondary professional development in support staff functions.
-Municipal and/or government administrative support experience.
-Experience taking meeting minutes.
-Experience processing payroll.
-Experience with ENERGOV or other scheduling software. 
-Experience providing exceptional customer service and cultivating teamwork. 

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: Considerable knowledge of modern office practices and procedures including the utilization of automated technology to enhance office efficiency and effectiveness; considerable knowledge of departmental policies and administrative requirements as they affect clerical operations and responsibilities. Ability to take initiative to resolve challenging issues and leverage resources as needed. Basic knowledge of accounting, payroll, bookkeeping or billing procedures.

Skill in organizing and maintaining complex clerical operations including both manual and automated filing systems; skill in executing a wide variety of routine and specialized office clerical functions, including demonstrated proficiency in word processing and other office software; skill in operating a computer terminal and other standard office equipment.

Ability to exercise sound, independent judgment in applying City and departmental policies and procedures to routine situations; ability to make simple analyses of data and to make arithmetic calculations; ability to prepare routine written reports; ability to establish and to maintain effective working relationships with City co-workers at all levels, customers and the general public; for Administrative Services, must be proficient in 10-key and able to type at least 40 words per minute. 

Required Physical Activities: Talking, hearing, walking, reaching, grasping, pushing, pulling, repetitive motions, stooping, kneeling, crouching, standing, sitting, and finger dexterity.

Physical Characteristics of Work: Work requires sitting and/or using various computer equipment approximately 75% of the time, and standing and/or walking 25% of the time. Frequently requires the exertion of up to 10 pounds of force, and infrequently requires the exertion of 10 – 50 pounds of force to lift or otherwise move objects.

Vision Requirements: The minimum standard for those whose work deals largely with preparing and analyzing data and written information, accounting, transcription, using a computer terminal, and/or extensive reading.

Environmental Conditions: For most positions in this classification, the worker is not substantially exposed to adverse environmental conditions. In some positions, the worker may be subject to noise, vibration, mechanical hazards, electrical hazards, chemical hazards, or atmospheric conditions that affect the respiratory system or the skin.

Examples of Equipment Used on the Job: Computer terminal and hardware; a variety of word processing, spreadsheet, database, presentation, and specialized software; general office equipment such as copier, files and file cabinets, photocopy machine, and calculator; communications equipment such as telephone and fax machine; typewriter.

Selection Process:
The selection process consists of an evaluation of education and experience and fully completed supplemental questionnaire, skills testing, a phone interview (depending on the number of candidates), hiring assessment, an on-site interview which will include a manager meeting, and the successful completion of a criminal background check, which includes a sex offender registry check.

All candidates will be notified by email of their application status.

Preference may be given to applicants possessing qualifications above the minimum.

Skills Testing:
Skills testing will be held the week of May 27th.  Specific date, location and time slots will be provided to those candidates eligible to participate.  Due to the anticipated number of candidates, no alternative testing dates or times will be made available.  Candidates are responsible for their own transportation and lodging costs to attend skills testing.

Depending on the number of qualified candidates, the City may forego phone interviews.

NOTE: Applicants with disabilities may submit requests for ADA testing or interview accommodations to the Human Resources Department prior to the test or interview.

The City of Ames is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, creed, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, ancestry, national origin, marital status, disability, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against. Inquiries can be directed to the Human Resources Department at 515-239-5199.

E-Verify Process:
The City of Ames participates in E-Verify and will provide the Social Security Administration (SSA)and, if necessary, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), with information from each applicant's Form I-9 to confirm work authorization. All candidates who are offered a position with the City of Ames must complete Section 1 of Form I-9 along with the required proof of their right to work in the United States and proof of their identity on their first day of employment. Please be prepared to provide required documents on your first day of employment. For additional information regarding acceptable documents for this purpose, please contact Human Resources at 515-239-5199 or go to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services web page at: http://www.uscis.gov.

Veteran’s Preference Points
The City of Ames provides Veteran's Preference Points for Civil Service positions. A copy of your DD214 and, if applicable, proof of disability, must be attached with your application (or faxed to 515-239-5297) prior to the close date of the posting in order to receive Veteran's Preference Points.