Overview
Did you know that nearly each of California’s over 200 government agencies has its own accounting team? Business and finance careers span all agencies regardless of their primary field. These roles often support the daily operation and large budget of statewide agencies, enabling them to provide services for Californians.
What You Might Work On
In California state government, professionals in this field often:
- Use data to inform investment decisions, investigations and risk forecasting
- Develop procedures and plans to assess effectiveness of department programs
- Collaborate with control agencies to ensure compliance with federal and state regulations
Is This a Good Fit?
While roles and responsibilities vary, you might enjoy this field if you:
- Enjoy data management and tracking across large agencies
- Manage or support agency-wide financial operations
- Implement programs to enable citizens to receive benefits
Job Classifications
What are job classifications?
Job classifications map to specific job titles found across California state government. A corresponding code maps to the required exam for that classification. For example, 00104720 is the code for a business service officer.
How to use them:
You can use the job classifications to search for positions on CalCareers in the classification section within the advanced search filter. You can also use key words to find roles in the search bar on the home page. Below is a list of common examples, but additional roles and classifications can be found on CalCareers.
| Exam Code | Classification Name | Common Keywords | What You’ll Do |
|---|---|---|---|
| 00104179 | Accountant Trainee | Accountant Trainee; Accountant | This full-time entry-level role maintains accounts and records while receiving training; develops analytical studies of accounting systems and the formulation of new or revised systems; and collaborates with control agencies in fiscal control activities. |
| 00105157 | Analyst | Analyst; Business Analyst; Budget Analyst; Financial Analyst | This entry-level role is used by many offices such as an agency budget office, performance management unit or fiscal services division. Duties will depend on the office but may include the compilation, reconciliation, interpretation and analysis of data and other materials. Analysts are expected to develop solutions, provide recommendations, plan, implement, monitor, forecast and evaluate program initiatives. You may also conduct administrative compliance reviews and field evaluations and respond to public complaints or inquiries. |
| 00104441 | Insurance Rate Analyst | Insurance Rate Analyst | This entry-level role will participate in the examination of rates, rating plans and rating systems of insurance companies, advisory organizations and other rating organizations. You will verify the application of adopted rates, prepare the basic analysis of data and evaluate the ratemaking formula and procedures. You may also gather information on economic and social conditions affecting insurance rate data and assist in the investigations of complaints regarding rates. |
| 00105084 | Health Facility Construction Financing Analyst | Health Facility Construction Financing Analyst | This entry level-role duties may include analyzing financial feasibility studies, evaluating market demand studies, evaluating and analyzing an applicant’s financial capacity to undertake a project, and evaluating project and property acquisition costs. Additional duties may include reviewing and analyzing the value of corporation assets, reviewing environmental compliance issues, assessing the community benefit of the project analyzing construction costs and approving the disbursement of construction progress payments. |
| 00104656 | Investment Officer (California Public Employees’ Retirement System) | Investment Officer | This entry-level role performs a wide variety of analytical, research, oversight, asset allocation and risk management work involved in the evaluation, acquisition, management and sale of CalPERS investments, domestic and international equities, fixed income assets, real estate and private equity investments. Within an assigned area of responsibility, you will gather information from a variety of sources to develop and maintain current knowledge of investment market conditions and trends. Officers may also search for new investment opportunities that would add value to the CalPERS portfolio. |
Where You Could Work
State government is broad — so where do you start?
One approach is to focus on a type of role. Another is to focus on a mission area or the kind of impact you want to have (i.e., in public health, education, transportation or elsewhere).
Keep in mind: mission areas often span multiple agencies, so you may find relevant roles in places you wouldn’t expect!
Professionals in this field work across many state agencies depending on mission area, including:
- Emergency Management: California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services
- Insurance: California Department of Health Care Services
- Land Resources: California Department of Conservation
- Transportation: California Department of Transportation
Example of California Agencies with Business and Finance
Did you know you could have a business and finance career at one of these agencies? Note: This is not an exhaustive list of all the options in California state government, but a helpful starting place as you begin exploring your future business and finance career!
| Agency Name |
|---|
| California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection |
| California Department of Health Care Services |
| California Department of Public Health |
| California Employment Development Department |
| California Government Operations Agency |
| California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services |
| California Public Employees’ Retirement System |
| California Public Utilities Commission |
| California State Controller’s Office |
| State of California Franchise Tax Board |
Sample Positions
FI$Cal Incident Support Analyst [00105157]
| Employer / agency | California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection |
|---|---|
| Location(s) | Yolo County |
| Mission context | The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) is California’s fire department and resource management agency. The organization is comprised of nearly 14,000 permanent and seasonal employees. The mission of the department is to serve and safeguard the people and protect the property and resources of California. |
In this role, you may:
- Be responsible for the procurement and processing of all CAL FIRE acquisitions and payments under the purview of the Business Services Office as it relates to incident management teams
- Enter procurement and asset management data into the FI$Cal system for payment, tracking and reporting requirements of the department and various control agencies
- Conduct and perform incident-related acquisitions, including purchases in support of wildland fire emergency operations, compliance with departmental procurement policies and emergency acquisitions regulations
Investment Operations Officer [00104656]
| Employer / agency | California Public Employees’ Retirement System |
|---|---|
| Location(s) | Sacramento County |
| Mission context | CalPERS is the nation’s largest public pension fund with investments in both domestic and international markets. The Investment Office invests and manages CalPERS assets in an efficient and sustainable manner to generate risk-adjusted returns that meet CalPERS funding obligations. |
In this role, you may:
- Assist, under supervision, the Private Asset Operations group with less complex real asset, private equity and private debt cash flows, including through timely processing and verification. Responsibilities also include obtaining approval for capital calls and distributions and acting as the first point of analysis of the cash flow
- Frequently interact with stakeholders, ensuring the timely execution of cash flows, verification of unfunded commitments and/or bank wiring instructions
Analyst [00105157]
| Employer / agency | California Public Utilities Commission |
|---|---|
| Location(s) | San Francisco County |
| Mission context | The Safety and Enforcement Division has safety oversight of electric and communications facilities, natural gas and propane gas systems. SED advocates for public safety through incident investigations and audits, development of proposed new safety rules and taking enforcement actions to prevent violations of natural gas, electric and telecommunications general orders and statutory requirements |
In this role, you may:
- Develop and analyze branch performance metrics for continuous improvement in program performance
- Complete research to support policy analysis and formulation, systems development and budget tracking
- Manage, analyze and maintain databases and spreadsheets that contain data related to inspections, audits, incident investigations and customer complaints for utilities and power generating facilities
