Administrative Specialist/Research Analyst

OSA Posting Number 2026-08

SALARY RANGE (Grade 10) CSA315: $55,879.01/yr. -- $83,819.29/yr.  (Commensurate with experience)

This position will be based out of the Boston, Brockton, Lawrence, Quincy, Chicopee, or Marlboro OSA offices. Please indicate your geographical preference in office location when applying per the application instructions below. Travel to the Boston office location will sometimes be required even if daily work location is at another regional office location.

GENERAL STATEMENT OF DUTIES:

The Division of Local Mandates (DLM) within the Office of the State Auditor (OSA) seeks an Administrative Specialist/Research Analyst to conduct and review municipal cost certifications, conduct policy research, and help produce reports that inform state and local decision-making.

This role is ideal for someone who is detail-oriented, analytical, and interested in public policy, municipal finance, and data-driven government oversight.

For this entry-level position, the OSA/DLM is looking for candidates with strong communication and analytical skills, a strong desire for professional development, and the ability to maintain high standards even with repetitive, high-volume tasks.

SUPERVISION RECEIVED:

Works under the direction of DLM’s Director.

SUPERVISION EXERCISED:

N/A.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

DLM’s Administrative Specialist/Research Analyst is a hybrid role combining administrative coordination, analytical review, and policy research, and will provide support to all functions of the office. Specific duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to:

·        Collecting, verifying, and certifying election costs for all 351 municipalities (including certifying election costs for uniform polling hours and early voting, both in person and by mail), including but not limited to testing surveys; advancing communications; critically reviewing submissions for accuracy and compliance; identifying inconsistencies or missing information; applying rules; maintaining consistent standards across submissions; analyzing data; creating supporting materials; and maintaining records

·        Contributing to the work of analysts authoring municipal impact studies or issue briefs, and/or authoring these reports, including but not limited to formulating project scope and work plans; conducting research; collecting, analyzing and visualizing data; and drafting reports as assigned.

·        Assisting with research related to other division projects, including but not limited to drafting, reviewing, or editing related documents; collecting, analyzing and visualizing data; and/or digitizing and/or organizing files and other records.

·        Performing general departmental administrative tasks to support the division, including but not limited to data entry; attending, managing and scheduling meetings; creating transcripts or minutes; staffing group voicemail and email inboxes and relaying messages as necessary; scheduling appointments and conference calls; copy editing; photocopying and scanning; and document organization and filing.

·        Other duties as required by the Director related to the work of DLM.

DLM’s Administrative Specialist/Research Analyst will:

·        Demonstrate our organizational core values: accountability, efficiency, transparency, continuous improvement and innovation, respect, collaboration, and creativity.

·        Develop and maintain a comprehensive understanding of OSA procedures and systems relevant to successful performance of job duties.

·        Manage workload effectively to meet deadlines while maintaining quality.

·        Regularly update supervisor(s) of progress on all assigned tasks.

·        Respond to emails and phone calls in a timely and professional manner.

·        Remain generally informed as to laws and administrative regulations which have a significant financial impact upon cities and towns.

·        Perform all other duties related to the work of DLM as required.

What success looks like in this role:

·        Takes responsibility for learning proper processes, follows standard operating procedures (SOPs), and gets the details right.

·        Produces consistently accurate, high-quality work with minimal oversight.

·        Shares information openly.

·        Collaborates, communicates questions clearly to team members as they arise; clearly articulates developed ideas to improve processes, workflows, and data quality over time; approaches Director timely with concerns.

·        Engages respectfully and professionally with OSA/DLM staff, stakeholders, and the public.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

This is an entry-level position. Applicants will ideally possess and/or demonstrate the following, however if this work genuinely interests you, we encourage you to apply:

·        A degree and/or work experience related to data, research, economics, public administration, public policy, paralegal, statistics/mathematics, education, or a related field.

·        Respectful and effective communication, both orally and in writing.

·        A proven ability to work independently and as part of a team.

ADDITIONAL PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

Candidates with one of more of the following may be particularly well suited for this role:

·        Experience gathering relevant information from trusted and accurate sources, analyzing data, and authoring meaningful and instructive reports for public release.

·        Experience reviewing survey or similar submissions for accuracy, or other quality control or operational compliance experience.

·        Experience with data visualization (Power BI, Tableau, R, or other).

·        Professional experience working with data sets.

·        Advanced education, training or experience in research methods and data analysis.

·        Other indicators of high potential for strong and immediate contributions.

The Office of the State Auditor is committed to providing equal employment opportunities.  Employment actions such as recruiting, hiring, training, and promoting individuals are based upon a policy of non-discrimination.  Employment decisions and actions are made without regard to race, color, gender, religion, age, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, military status, genetic information, political affiliation, or veteran’s status.