Investments and Portfolio Analyst

About the role

The State Treasurer's Office promotes a culture that supports high performance, exceptional work product, accountability, and collaboration. This position serves as the Investments & Portfolio Analyst for the Investment Trading and Operations Management Divisions, coordinating, managing, and overseeing custodian, trading, and compliance operations for the Investments of the State of South Carolina.

Responsibilities

• Monitors investment trading activities for all fixed income portfolios managed by the State Treasurer's Office.
• Provides sufficient information to the Investment Advisor to ensure liquidity for funding and investment needs.
• Assists staff with security settlement issues and investment accounting when called upon.
• Monitors portfolio investment performance, activity, and characteristics.
• Reviews portfolios for appropriate market exposure, credit quality, and conformity with the Comprehensive Investment Policy (CIP).
• Performs research and risk analysis.
• Provides ongoing review of the CIP, including allocations and benchmarks, and makes recommendations for modifications.
• Verifies that the CIP is realistic and in conformity with State law and portfolio management strategies and goals.
• Reviews compliance reports and communicates concerns with the Investment Advisor.
• Acts as a subject-matter expert for laws, regulations, and GASB pronouncements relevant to the investment portfolios.
• Completes and reviews monthly and quarterly reports to ensure the Investment Manager captures all trading activity.
• Reviews differences and compares reports to determine acceptable nominal variance; analyzes significant variance to identify reporting discrepancies.
• Reviews monthly Custody Valuations provided by the custodian to monitor the impact of interim sales of investments and related gains and losses.
• Assists in the preparation of the Division's "Monthly Report."
• Creates and maintains policies and procedures associated with operational issues and compliance.
• Identifies operational gaps or weaknesses and suggests areas of improvement to operational procedures.
• Effectively identifies and manages business risk, providing solutions to address risks associated with operations oversight.
• Communicates effectively with supervisors and STO staff across divisions.
• Provides timely responses to needs or inquiries from other agencies or entities.
• Works collaboratively with all team members and participates in cross-training to ensure functional coverage across the division.
• Develops and maintains productive working relationships within the Investments Division and the STO.
• Commits to all assigned training requirements and strives to meet related goals and objectives.
• Reviews and updates work procedures (e.g., Desk Procedures, User's Guides) to maintain accuracy and usability for quality outputs and cross-training.
• Develops and maintains relationships with custodian bank networks, the STO investment advisor, LGIP participants, and other internal and external stakeholders.
• Researches and resolves complex accounting issues for SAP, and reviews and updates complex accounting issues in SAP.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, economics, business management, or a related field.
• 3-5 years of experience in investment trading, accounting, finance, debt management, securities processing, credit, or banking.
• Experience in investments or relevant program experience in public finance, financial, or economic analysis is preferred.
• Excellent analytical skills and the ability to perform investment analysis.
• Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, with executive-level management, including investment, legal, and banking professionals.
• Ability to think and act quickly, adapt, and remain focused.
• Excellent time management and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to identify and recommend strategies and initiatives that improve financial programs/systems.
• Ability to analyze and interpret complex financial data and reports, and to interpret and apply rules and regulations.
• Critical thinking skills to reason through issues and provide solutions with direct impact.
• Ability to establish and maintain excellent working relationships with employees, management, and executive-level staff within and outside state government.
• Ability to comprehend and logically analyze situations before rendering decisions.
• Ability to make presentations and prepare reports.
• Ability to plan, organize work activities, and prioritize task completion to meet schedules and deadlines.
• May be required to work outside of normal business hours; must have a flexible schedule.
• Must be able to safely lift and carry files, books, and reports weighing up to 20 lbs.
• Must be able to sit, stand, and walk for intermittent periods of time.
• Must be able to reach, bend, and twist at the waist to perform filing, desk work, and operate general office equipment.

Benefits

• Public Service Loan Forgiveness eligibility.
• Paid parental leave.
• Health, dental, vision, long-term disability, and life insurance for employees, spouses, and children.
• Fifteen days of annual (vacation) leave per year.
• Fifteen days of sick leave per year.
• Thirteen paid holidays.
• State Retirement Plan and Deferred Compensation Programs.