Retirement Compliance Officer

Bring your project management and risk assessment experience to the County of Sonoma.

The Sonoma County Employees' Retirement Association is seeking a Retirement Compliance Officer.

Starting salary up to $75.81/hour ($158,224/year) and a competitive total compensation package!*

Join Our Team

The Sonoma County Employees' Retirement Association (SCERA) is a small office that values customer service, collaboration, professionalism, consistency, proactive planning, flexibility, and innovative problem-solving. We are committed to creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace where individuals from all backgrounds are welcomed, supported, and empowered to reach their full potential.

Reporting directly to the Assistant Chief Executive Officer/Chief Legal Counsel, the Retirement Compliance Officer serves as a member of SCERA’s management team and participates in manager meetings and organizational strategic planning. In this role, you will act in a lead and technical advisory capacity on compliance matters across all SCERA divisions. Working closely with division managers and staff, you will identify risks, evaluate controls, develop policies and procedures, implement mitigation measures, and provide compliance education. In addition to department staff and the Retirement Board, you may interact with participating employers, affiliated organizations, vendors, regulatory agencies, outside professionals, members, and other stakeholders on compliance matters. In addition, you may need to provide direction to and/or supervise subordinate staff if assigned.

Other responsibilities of the position include:

Establishing, administering, and continuously improving SCERA’s organization-wide compliance program, including the compliance charter, program goals and priorities, policies and procedures, compliance calendar, and supporting systems

Designing and conducting SCERA’s annual comprehensive risk assessment in collaboration with division managers and staff; identify, evaluate, and prioritize operational, fiscal, legal, regulatory, and program risks

Conducting scheduled and targeted compliance reviews, monitoring, and internal control testing to evaluate compliance and determine whether controls are appropriately designed and operating effectively

Monitoring and researching laws, regulations, Board policies, procedures, fiduciary requirements, and emerging compliance standards affecting SCERA; assess their impact and recommend necessary updates to policies, procedures, controls, or practices

Developing recommendations to address identified risks or deficiencies; collaborating with management on corrective and mitigating actions, tracking remediation, and follow up on implementation

Preparing and presenting compliance evaluations, findings, recommendations, status reports, and risk assessment results to management, the Audit Committee, and/or Board of Retirement

Developing and delivering compliance education, orientation, and training for SCERA staff and the Board

Receiving, reviewing, investigating, and documenting reports or complaints involving potential non-compliance, fraud, abuse, or other compliance concerns and recommend appropriate responses

Serving as SCERA’s technical advisor and organizational lead on compliance matters and participating in management meetings, strategic planning, and external committees or meetings as appropriate

Working as a partner with management and staff to accomplish goals

In this role, you will use your consultation, facilitation, and interviewing skills to gather information, understand processes, and work with staff to identify practical solutions. In addition to strong research and analytical skills, you will possess many of the following:

Experience designing, implementing, or managing an organization-wide compliance, enterprise risk management, internal audit, internal control, or fiscal compliance program

Experience conducting risk assessments, compliance reviews, internal control evaluations, audits, investigations, or process reviews

Knowledge of public pension systems, defined benefit plan administration, fiduciary responsibilities, and laws or regulations affecting public retirement systems

Excellent written communication skills for preparing risk assessments, compliance reports, policies, procedures, and corrective action plans

Strong project management skills, including planning multi-step reviews, taking corrective actions, and managing multiple deadlines

Experience developing and delivering clear training programs and presentations to staff, management, and governing bodies

Coursework in accounting, business administration, public administration, finance, risk management or a related field

Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint

Compliance or risk-related certifications such as Certified Compliance & Ethics Professional (CCEP), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), or Certification in Risk Management Assurance (CRMA) are desirable but not required

What We OfferWorking at the County of Sonoma offers expansive opportunities for growth and development, the ability to be a part of a challenging and rewarding work environment, and the satisfaction of knowing you're working to better our communities. You can also look forward to flexible work arrangements and excellent benefits* including:

Salary Advancement - A salary increase after 1,040 hours (6 months when working full-time) for good work performance; eligibility for a salary increase for good performance every year thereafter, until reaching the top of the salary range

Paid Time Off - Competitive vacation and sick leave accruals, 12 paid holidays, and an additional 8 floating holiday hours per year

Staff Development/Wellness - Annual benefit allowances of up to $2,000 and ongoing education/training opportunities

County Paid Health Premium Contributions - 100% premium contribution for the majority of employee-only and employee + family health plan options

Post-Retirement Health Reimbursement Arrangement - County contributions to help fund post-retirement health insurance/benefits

Retirement - A pension fully integrated with Social Security

Incentive Retirement Savings Plan (IRSP) and 457 Voluntary Deferred Compensation - 3% of salary County contribution to a 401(a) plan, in addition to the County matching up to 1% of base salary in a 401(a) plan, based upon employee contribution

Paid Parental Leave - May be eligible for up to 8 weeks (320 hours) after 12 months of County employment

Hybrid Telework - Partial telework may be available upon the completion of probation based on the needs of the department

Additional Benefits: Excellent dental, vision, disability, life insurance, employee assistance program, professional development, and more

Student Loan Debt Relief – County employees may be eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness through the U.S. Department of Education

*Salary is negotiable within the established range. Benefits described herein do not represent a contract and may be changed without notice. Additional information can be found in the Salary Resolution (SalRes) and our Employee Benefits DirectoryThis recruitment is being conducted to fill a Retirement Compliance Officer position in SCERA. This employment list may also be used to fill future full-time, part-time, or extra-help (temporary) positions as they occur during the active status of the list. Qualified County employees who wish to be considered for future positions should consider applying to this recruitment.

Application submissions require the Supplemental Questionnaire to be completed.