A Day in the Life of a Fiscal and Policy Analyst at City of Seattle
A Fiscal and Policy Analyst at the City of Seattle spends their day in a 50/50 split between meetings—"checking in with the mayor's office" and other departments—and independent analytical work, "opening up the spreadsheets" to solve budget issues such as adjusting contract reimbursement rates. This balance of meetings and independent analysis is a key aspect of the role at their current level, a balance the analyst expects to shift towards more meetings with increased seniority.
Data Analysis, Budgeting, Policy Analysis, Communication, Problem-Solving
Advizer Information
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Sarah Burtner
Fiscal and Policy Analyst
City of Seattle
UCLA, 2014
Masters in Special Education and Teaching at CUNY Hunter College, Masters of Public Policy at UCLA
Economics
Government & Public Sector
Data and Analytics
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. The role involves a balance of meetings and independent work, approximately 50/50, with more meetings expected at higher levels.
2. A significant portion of the work involves budget analysis, including evaluating reimbursement rates, data analysis, and presenting findings to various stakeholders.
3. The analyst uses spreadsheets and other data sources to solve problems and make recommendations on budget-related issues, demonstrating the importance of data analysis skills in this profession.
Transcript
What does your role look like then?
I work fairly remotely, though I do go to the office a few times. It's probably a 50/50 split between meetings and talking to my departments.
This includes checking in with the mayor, the mayor's office, and my management about any issues that might have come up, including budget issues. They do exist.
For example, we might need to raise the reimbursement rate for a contract that's up for renewal. If that comes up, I'll have to address it that day.
I'll have many meetings to discuss things like when the rate was last raised, how much money is being lost, and how much needs to be recovered.
The other half of my work involves sitting down and doing the analysis. I open up spreadsheets with all the numbers and figure out if I have enough data to solve the problem. Then, I'll jump into a meeting to explain the data or the nuances behind it.
At the analyst level, I have a very 50/50 split between meetings and independent work. As you go up the chain, it becomes more meetings and less independent work. I have a good balance in my day-to-day right now.