Job Specification

Purpose :

- To provide economic and fiscal policy support analysis, advice and assistance in the development and coordination of the fiscal plan and forecasting.

Key Responsibilities :

1. Policy Analysis and Development:
- Participates in meetings in own/other ministries, the federal government and private industry to contribute/exchange information on current/proposed projects and discuss fiscal policy developments and research.
- Participates in fiscal and economic analysis exercises by estimating the effects on policy development, reviewing, summarizing and examine literature, studies, reports and external policy papers and submissions.
- Develops and conducts research projects to support policy development by determining methodology/approach to achieve desired results, address complex and contentious issues and preparing reports.
- Identifies collects, develops, programs verifies and analyzes data from multiple sources to support policy analysis and development.
2. Stakeholder Relations:
- Participates on Branch Committees and/or intra/inter-Ministerial Committees/Task Forces to contribute/exchange information on current/proposed projects.
- Assists in developing networks within own/other Ministries, other governments (e.g. federal/provincial/municipal), university/academia and the business community to exchange information on proposed polices, programs and trends/developments.
3. Information and Advice:
- Provides information and advice to Branch/Division staff support corporate fiscal and capital expenditure management planning, in such areas as in-year and multi-year planning and forecasting and process coordination for Branch/Division/Ministry products for assigned portfolio.
- Prepares presentations, briefing notes, contentious issues notes, Minister's correspondence and budget books and contributes research, data and information into sections of budget papers and policy proposals.
- Briefs manager, Director and Assistant Deputy Minister on specific policy issues, provides technical support at senior management meetings and identifies the need for follow-up consultation on specific issues.
- Coordinates, prepares or monitors responses to letters, enquiries in areas of interest specific to the Branch, for the Minister's and/or the Deputy Minister's signature.

Knowledge / Skill :

Knowledge of and skill in:
- Economic theory and principles and knowledge of economics and/or accounting to understand their relevance and applicability to the corporate tax policy development process.
- Knowledge of the Ontario fiscal and expenditure structure to conduct analyses and research, develop policy options and briefing materials assess the Provinces tax competitiveness and identify issues that may impact on policy.
- Provincial and ministry strategic directions with respect to provincial economy and fiscal and expenditure structure, policies, programs, taxation, governing legislation and regulatory structures; ensures that ministry business objectives and provincial agenda are effectively considered when providing input tin the development/evaluation of policy impacts; provide advice to senior management; and exchange information with stakeholders.
- Project management to coordinate/manage of Branch/Division Ministry correspondence, briefing materials, presentations and policy proposals.
- Knowledge of government/ministry structure, policy and government decision-making processes, to participate in the development of policy/program options/proposals.
- Written and oral communications to prepare reports, correspondence, memoranda and analyses and contribute to the development of briefing notes, presentations, budget papers and Cabinet documents.
- Computer applications for word processing, spreadsheets, graphics and databases to prepare briefing materials, reports, presentations, correspondence and research and policy/program development materials.

Interpersonal / Influencing Skill :

- Consultation and facilitation skills to interact/liaise effectively with counterparts in own/other Ministries to discuss/resolve issues and influence acceptance of policy options/proposals.
- Presentation skills to present and/or participate in presentations to senior management, Minister's staff and stakeholders on a range of corporate expenditure issues, policies and programs.

Analyzing / Problem Solving Skill :

Analyzing and problem solving skills to:
- Conduct research including literature review, studies, reports and external policy submissions and provide advice, interpretation and relevance to the development of corporate tax policy options.
- Develop, refine, and coordinate of products and the provision of advice on appropriate course of action.
- Identify cross-jurisdictional corporate fiscal and budgetary issues, trends and developments, assess applicability/potential impact on Ministry policies and programs and make recommendations to Branch/senior management on appropriate actions.

Decision Making / Responsibility :

This position is responsible for:
- Providing assistance through analysis and research to the team and client ministries in economic policy, fiscal policy, process development, forecasting and fiscal planning.
- Coordinating and compiling various branch/divisional materials such as briefing books, manuals and proposals.
- Maintaining knowledge of current provincial, local and national political issues and trends to understand potential impacts on analysis and policy development.
Has latitude to decide best approach to: undertake research projects, select/assess the relevance of data/information/models; determine data sources and methodology to support statistical analysis and present data/information to senior management.
Decision- making is guided by the general direction of the Manager, and within the framework of the Ministry of Finance's policies and procedures relating to economic, fiscal and budgetary policy.

Contacts / Stakeholder :

- Counterparts in own/other ministries to consult/exchange/obtain data/information on the development of policy options and economic projections, development of data models, discuss/resolve issues associated with budgets and fiscal policy and seek information on data and interpretation and collection practices.
- Minister's office and senior management to provide information and analysis and present/participate in presentations.
- Colleagues in other ministries, or with other central agencies to exchange information and to provide explanations, interpretation and advice.

Guidance / Supervision :

Provides technical guidance to project team members by briefing on specific issues and monitoring and updating team economic trends and developments.

Demands / Pressures :

Work Demands :

Frequently required to respond to immediate requests for information from the Offices of the Minister or ADM in order to meet tight deadlines.

Mental / Sensory :

Frequently required to read and concentrate on materials for research purposes.

Conditions / Environment :

Work is performed in a typical office environment.