Budget Analyst II

This position is posted until 11:59pm Eastern time on August 9, 2026. This budget analyst position will specialize in personnel cost budgeting and labor cost modeling. The position is responsible for developing, maintaining, and analyzing personnel cost projections that support the school system’s annual operating budget and long-range financial planning. Supporting the development and management of the budget and working collaboratively with the aligning work done by other budget analysts, this position specializes in salary and benefit forecasting, staffing cost analysis, labor agreement financial modeling, and position control. The analyst collaborates with Human Resources, Payroll, and instructional staffing teams to ensure accurate personnel budgeting and provide strategic financial analysis for staffing decisions and minimum school funding. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS A combination of education and experience may be considered. Education: Possession of a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in Public Administration, Business Administration, Finance or a related degree. Experience: Four years of budget development, budget analysis, or other relevant financial management experience in a government agency. PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS we welcome applications from candidates with diverse backgrounds and experiences. Education: Master’s degree in Public Administration, Business Administration, Finance or related field. Experience: Experience in personnel cost budgeting and labor cost modeling. Experience with K-12 public school budgeting and finance, Maryland state education funding formulas (Blueprint for Maryland’s Future), and position control systems. Experience using Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems such as Workday, Oracle, SAP, PeopleSoft, PowerSchools or similar financial management systems. Experience with advanced Excel functionality, business intelligence, and data tools such as Power BI. ESSENTIAL POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES The below list is a summary of the functions of the job, not an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all possible job responsibilities, tasks, and duties. Develop and maintain the school system’s personnel budget, including salaries, wages, allowances, stipends, and employee benefits. Prepare and update annual personnel cost projections based on approved staffing plans and projected enrollment. Assist with and track the calculation and monitoring of the fiscal impact of new positions, position eliminations, reorganizations, and staffing changes. Ensure personnel budgets align with approved staffing allocations and minimum school funding reporting requirements. Analyze workforce trends, vacancies, turnover, retirements, and hiring assumptions to improve forecast accuracy. Build and maintain labor cost models for each bargaining unit. Model the budgetary impact of collective bargaining proposals, salary schedule adjustments, step and grade movements, cost-of-living adjustments, and benefit changes. Conduct multi-year financial forecasts to support contract negotiations and long-term fiscal sustainability. Maintains strict confidentiality of all work done to support labor negotiations, ensuring sensitive information and related work remain secure. Responsible for working with Program Managers to develop and manage program budgets including budget development, monthly budget reporting, budget amendments, and tracking approved staffing levels. Maintain budget office position control records to ensure authorized positions are accurately reflected in budget systems. Reconcile staffing records between Human Resources, Payroll, and Finance systems. Coordinate with Payroll to validate salary and benefit expenditures. Verify funding sources for positions across operating, grant, and special revenue funds. Support position management and organizational restructuring initiatives. Collaborate with Human Resources and instructional staffing teams in other divisions on the development and managing of staffing plans. Provide technical guidance on personnel budgeting and labor cost analysis. Analyze enrollment trends and staffing ratios to project macro-level staffing needs. Develop scenario analyses to support strategic staffing decisions. ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES The below list is a summary of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for success in this position, not an exhaustive or comprehensive list. Knowledge Public School Finance & Personnel Budgeting: Deep understanding of school system budgeting, including salary structures, stipends, allowances, benefit rates, and staffing ratios based on student enrollment. Position Control & Systems Integration: Comprehensive knowledge of how authorized positions are tracked, managed, and reconciled across disparate HRIS, Payroll, and Finance/ERP databases. Labor Relations & Collective Bargaining: Familiarity with union bargaining units, collective bargaining agreements (CBAs), salary schedules, step/grade movements, and the mechanics of cost-of-living adjustments (COLA). Governmental Budgeting and Fund Accounting . Workforce Demographics & Analytics: Understanding of workforce dynamics, including vacancy rates, turnover trends, retirement patterns, and hiring velocity, and how they impact budget forecasting. Skills Advanced Financial Modeling & Scenario Analysis: Advanced-level skill in Excel or other financial modeling tools to build multi-year projection models, labor cost impact analyses, and "what-if" strategic scenarios. Data Reconciliation & Auditing: High proficiency in comparing complex datasets from HR, Payroll, and Finance systems to identify, investigate, and correct discrepancies in staffing records and funding codes. Strategic Enrollment Analysis: Ability to analyze enrollment trends and apply staffing ratios to project macro-level personnel and instructional needs. Technical Consulting & Guidance: Skill in translating highly complex financial and personnel budget data into clear, actionable technical guidance for department heads, program managers, and instructional teams. Abilities Maintain Absolute Confidentiality: Demonstrated ability to exercise extreme discretion and maintain strict security over highly sensitive information related to labor negotiations, reorganizations, and personnel actions. Collaborate Across Key Divisions: Ability to build strong, collaborative partnerships with Human Resources, Payroll, instructional leadership, and department heads to align staffing plans with fiscal limits. Manage Program Budgets Dynamically: Ability to partner with program managers to develop, monitor, and adjust budgets mid-year, including processing budget amendments and tracking staffing changes. Work Under High-Pressure Deadlines: Ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously, particularly during active union negotiations and the peak annual budget development cycle, without compromising accuracy. #J-18808-Ljbffr Howard County Public School System