Program Manager - Office of Retirement Services, Pension Benefits Division
Job Details
- Description
The Pension Benefits Division is seeking a collaborative, innovative, and service-oriented Program Manager to lead disability retirement and customer service operations for the City's pension systems. This is an exceptional opportunity to make a meaningful impact by leading high-performing teams, enhancing the customer experience, and driving business-led technology and process improvements that support thousands of active and retired City employees and their families.
Reporting to the Division Manager, the Program Manager provides leadership for multiple teams responsible for administering complex retirement, disability, death, and customer service functions for both sworn and non-sworn members. This position plays a critical role in ensuring the accurate, timely, and legally compliant delivery of pension benefits while fostering operational excellence, continuous improvement, and exceptional customer service.
The Program Manager will also have the opportunity to help shape the future of the Division by leading strategic initiatives, modernizing business processes, implementing technology solutions, and collaborating across the organization to improve the delivery of retirement services.
This position follows a hybrid work schedule, with four days per week in the office and one remote workday. The specific remote workday will be determined in collaboration with the selected candidate based on operational needs.
Key Responsibilities
- Provide leadership and supervision for the Disability Retirement, Retirement/Death Intake & Customer Service, and Business Systems teams (6.0 FTE).
- Oversee the administration of the Disability Retirement Programs for the Police and Fire Department Retirement Plan and the Federated City Employees' Retirement System (FCERS).
- Present disability retirement cases and recommendations to the Pension Boards and Disability Committees.
- Manage contracts and relationships with disability retirement legal counsel, independent medical examiners, and other medical service providers.
- Lead high-volume retirement intake and customer service operations supporting thousands of member inquiries and benefit transactions each year.
- Champion business-led technology initiatives, digital transformation, and self-service enhancements to improve operational efficiency and the member experience.
- Review and approve complex pension benefit calculations, retirement benefit setups, payroll adjustments, disability determinations, and other specialized pension transactions.
- Partner with division leadership to develop policies, improve business processes, analyze complex issues, and ensure compliance with the San José Municipal Code and applicable laws and regulations.
- Mentor, coach, and develop staff while fostering a collaborative, inclusive, and customer-focused team culture.
The Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate is an experienced, collaborative leader with a passion for public service and continuous improvement. They will possess strong experience in pension administration, public-sector benefits administration, or another complex regulatory human resources environment, along with a demonstrated ability to lead high-performing teams, manage legally sensitive programs, and successfully implement operational and technology improvements.
Success in this role requires sound judgment, exceptional analytical and problem-solving skills, effective communication, political acumen, and the ability to build strong working relationships across all levels of the organization. The successful candidate will be equally comfortable leading people, managing complex operations, and driving strategic initiatives that improve service delivery and organizational effectiveness.
This recruitment may be used to fill multiple positions in this, or other divisions or departments. If you are interested in employment in this classification, you should apply to ensure you are considered for additional opportunities that may utilize the applicants from this recruitment.
Minimum Qualifications
Education: A Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited college or university.
Experience: Five (5) years of directly-related experience, including two (2) years of supervisory experience.
Required Licensing: Possession of a valid State of California driver's license may be required for some assignments.
Other Qualifications
The ideal candidate will possess the following competencies, as demonstrated in past and current employment history.
Job Expertise – Demonstrates knowledge of and experience with applicable professional/technical principles and practices, Citywide and departmental procedures/policies and federal and state rules and regulations.
Computer Skills - Experienced with common business computer applications including but not limited to: MS Outlook, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Access, and MS Excel.
Decision Making - Identifies and understands issues, problems, and opportunities; uses effective approaches for choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions.
Fiscal Management - Understands the relationship of the budget and resources to the strategic plan; complies with administrative controls over funds, contracts, and procurements.
Initiative - Exhibits resourceful behaviors toward meeting job objectives; anticipates problems, is proactive, and avoids difficulties by planning ahead; displays willingness to assume extra responsibility and challenges; pursues continuing education opportunities that promotes job performance.
Leadership - Leads by example; demonstrates high ethical standards; remains visible and approachable and interacts with others on a regular basis; promotes a cooperative work environment, allowing others to learn from mistakes; provides motivational supports and direction.
Supervision- Sets effective long and short-term goals based on a good understanding of management practices; establishes realistic priorities within available resources; provides motivational support; empowers others; assigns decision-making and work functions to others in an appropriate manner to maximize organizational and individual effectiveness.
Communication Skills -Effectively conveys information and expresses thoughts and facts clearly, orally and in writing; demonstrates effective use of listening skills and displays openness to other people's ideas and thoughts.
Selection Process:
The selection process will consist of an evaluation of the applicant's training and experience based on the application and responses to all the job specific questions. You must answer all questions to be considered or your application may be deemed incomplete and withheld from further consideration. Only those candidates whose backgrounds best match the position will be invited to proceed in the selection process. Additional phases of the selection process will consist of one or more interviews. The application deadline is July 20, 2026 at 11:59 PM.
If you have questions about the duties of these positions, the selection or hiring processes, please contact Ellesia Janto at ellesia.janto@sanjoseca.gov .Additional Information:
Employment Eligibility: Federal law requires all employees to provide verification of their eligibility to work in this country. Please be informed that the City of San Jose will NOT sponsor, represent or sign any documents related to visa applications/transfers for H1-B or any other type of visa which requires an employer application.
You must answer all job-specific questions to be considered for this vacancy or your application will be deemed incomplete and withheld from further consideration. Applicants are expected to write their own essays/responses.
Please note that applications are currently not accepted through CalOpps or any other third party job board application system.
This recruitment may be used to fill multiple positions in this, or other divisions or departments. If you are interested in employment in this classification, you should apply to ensure you are considered for additional opportunities that may utilize the applicants from this recruitment.
Please allow adequate time to complete the application and submit before the deadline or the system may not save your application. If your online application was successfully submitted, you will receive an automatic confirmation email to the email address you provided. IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE THE CONFIRMATION, please email CityCareers@sanjoseca.gov and we will research the status of your application.
AI and the Hiring Process
We recognize that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming part of daily life and can be a valuable tool for learning, research, and professional growth. We encourage candidates to use AI responsibly as a support in preparing application materials, live assessments, and interviews. However, we value authenticity, accuracy and truthfulness. Application responses and interview answers must reflect your own knowledge, skills, and experiences. While AI can supplement preparation, it cannot replace the originality and judgment we look for in our employees. This ensures fairness, transparency, and equity for all applicants in the hiring process.
- Job ID
- 394
- Job Title
- Program Manager - Office of Retirement Services, Pension Benefits Division
- Application Deadline
- 07/20/2026
- Salary Range
- $134,490.00 - $174,851.00
- Job Location
- San Jose, CA
- Website
- bit.ly/4wc9tqI
Contact Information
- Name
- John Flynn
- Phone Number
- (408) 794-1000
- citycareers@sanjoseca.gov
- Best Method of Contact