Principal Account Clerk (1634) – Citywide (C00320)

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.

THIS IS A CITYWIDE EXAM

• Application Opening: March 17, 2025
• Application Deadline: March 24, 2025
• Compensation Range: $88,946 to $108,082
• Recruitment ID: CBT-1634-C00320 (Classification and Compensation Info)

Under general direction, the Principal Account Clerk is responsible for supervising the activities of staff engaged in various accounting and financial transaction activities and performs difficult and complex accounting, financial and clerical work.  Essential functions include: supervising, training, instructing, planning, assigning, coordinating, monitoring, evaluating, and reviewing work of subordinates and office personnel in an accounting unit, including such functions as utilizing system applications, preparing statements, and worksheets, processing statistical reports, performing account reconciliations, processing and/or approving of cash receipts, distributions, encumbrances and payments; utilizing a numeric keypad to input information and perform calculations; performing complex accounting analysis and account reconciliations, and financial transaction processing, and resolving difficult financial and operating issues; preparing routine correspondence, reports, memoranda and letters regarding accounting and financial operations to members of the staff, other organizations and the public, responding to inquires in person or on the phone from members of the staff, other organizations and the public regarding accounting and financial operations and transactions; and interpreting and carrying out existing policies, regulations and procedures related to accounting and financial activities and assisting in the development and implementation of new operating policies and procedures. The Principal Account Clerk is the advance level in the Account Clerk series.  Positions at this level are distinguished from those at the lower level in the complexity of work performed. Positions at this level perform the more complex and specialized duties in a highly independent manner.  The Principal Account Clerk also performs related duties as required.

Please note that incumbents in this classification may be required to perform duties as listed in the class specification, 1634-Principal Account Clerk | City and County of San Francisco.

Minimum Qualifications (Applicants must meet the minimum qualifications requirement by the filing date.)

Experience:

1. Two (2) years (equivalent to 4,000 hours) of verifiable experience in a position supervising and directing accounting and/or financial transaction functions.

OR

1. Four (4) years (equivalent to 8,000 hours) of verifiable experience processing financial and accounting matters (e.g. cost records, deposits, expenditures, allocations), bookkeeping, and/or financial record keeping. Such experience typically includes verifying correctness of financial documents, maintain expenditure records and reconciling subsidiary accounts.

Substitution of Experience: 30 semester units/ 45 quarter units of coursework from an accredited college or university with a minimum of 12 semester units (or equivalent quarter units) in accounting may be substituted for up to one (1) year of the required experience as described in #1 or #2.

Every application is reviewed to ensure that you meet the minimum qualifications as listed in the job ad. Please review our articles on Employment Application and Minimum Qualifications and Verification of Experience and/or Education for considerations taken when reviewing applications. 

Applicants must meet the minimum qualification requirement by the final filing date unless otherwise noted.

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.

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

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

Minimum Qualification Supplemental Questionnaire (Weight: Qualifying)
Candidates will be required to complete a Minimum Qualifications Supplemental Questionnaire (MQSQ) as part of the employment application at a later time. This MQSQ is designed to obtain specific information regarding an applicant’s experience in relation to the Minimum Qualifications (MQ) for this position. The MQSQ will be used to evaluate if the applicant possess the required minimum qualifications.

Account Clerk Written Examination (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 level in one or more of the following job related areas as appropriate. These areas may include, but not limited to: knowledge of financial record-keeping and accounting methods/concepts; ability to perform accounting tasks; ability to perform mathematical calculations; knowledge of internal control, handling, and account for varying amounts of money; and interpersonal ability (establish and maintain effective working relationships).

Please Note: If you also apply and meet the minimum qualifications for the 1630 Account Clerk and/ or 1632 Senior Account Clerk recruitment, you will only be scheduled once for this examination.  The same exam is used for all three classes (1630,1632,1634), however the pass point for each class is different.

The score that you achieve on the exam shall be valid and "banked" for three years, starting from the date of the examination. This means that, during this three-year time period, you will not be required to take this test again should you apply and be found eligible for a future announcement for which this particular test is used. If the test for this future announcement is held within 12 months of the date of this examination, your score will be automatically applied to that announcement. However, after twelve months, you have the option to either (a) apply your test score to the other announcement or (b) re-take the test. Re-testing is permitted no sooner than twelve months from the date of the examination and only in association with your eligibility for another announcement for which this test is used. Please note that, should you re-test, your re-test score would become your official score going forward since it is the most recent. A passing score must be achieved on the exam in order to be placed/ranked on the eligible list/score report. The hiring department may administer additional position-specific selection procedures to make final hiring decisions.

The multiple-choice exams will be administered either on a computer or in a paper format. The type of format will depend on the size of the qualified applicant pool. Qualified candidates will be notified of the type of exam format in their exam appointment notification. These are standardized multiple-choice examinations. In accordance with Civil Service Rule 111.11.4, inspection privileges do not apply to the questions and answers in these examinations.

The hiring department may administer additional position-specific selection procedures to make final hiring decisions.

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

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.sf.gov/.] 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 https://sf.gov/departments/civil-service-commission.

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

• Information About the Hiring Process
• Conviction History
• Employee Benefits Overview
• Equal Employment Opportunity
• Disaster Service Worker
• ADA Accommodation
• Veterans Preference
• Seniority Credit in Promotional Exams
• Right to Work
• Copies of Application Documents
• Diversity Statement

HOW TO APPLY

Submit your application through this job ad. Applicants will receive a confirmation email from [email protected] 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.

Future email contact: Applicants may be contacted by email about this recruitment and, therefore, it is your responsibility to ensure that your registered email address is accurate and kept up-to-date. Also, applicants must ensure that emails from CCSF is not blocked on your 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).

Exam Analyst Information: If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please contact the exam analyst, Jennifer Bushman at [email protected].

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.