Job Description

Competition # : 38865

Department: Elections Nova Scotia

Location: DARTMOUTH

Type of Employment: Permanent

Union Status: NSGEU - NSPG

Closing Date: \xe2\x80\x8b5/8/2023\xe2\x80\x8b (Applications are accepted until 11:59 PM Atlantic Time)

About Us

Elections Nova Scotia is an independent, non-partisan agency that is responsible for the administration of the Elections Act. Its mandate is to conduct provincial general elections and by-elections; ensure compliance with provincial electoral law including the political financing regime; establish and maintain election-related information including the Nova Scotia Register of Electors and electoral geography and spatial distribution of electorate base. Elections Nova Scotia is also mandated to provide support to the independent electoral boundaries commission charged with reviewing the boundaries of provincial electoral districts.

Who are you

You have the skills to act independently and apply modern software development techniques and up-to-date knowledge of databases and web-based application development to further the use of technology in the electoral process. You have strong experience in IT systems analysis, various programming languages, and advanced web development skills within Microsoft .NET framework including ASP.net, ASP.NET MVC, C#, AJAX, JavaScript, HTML5 as well as expertise in MS SQL Server DBMS and T-SQL, utilizing Visual Studio and SQL Server Management Studio.

You like to continuously learn and acquire new skills. You are a team player willing to help in any situation that may arise and are flexible and adaptable to changing business priorities. You have excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to interact effectively with staff, and peers in other departments and at all levels of management.

You are a dependable person who can efficiently and collaboratively work under stressful and time sensitive deadlines as is the case during election events and can employee creativity in developing solutions and responding to ad-hoc requirements.

About Our Opportunity

The Senior Programmer Analyst - a Computer Services Officer (CSO3) position, is a senior level technical position who plays a significant role in the development and operation of on-premise and Azure cloud based application systems for Elections Nova Scotia (ENS). You will be responsible for the analysis, design, programming, testing, and ongoing support and maintenance of SQL database web-enabled software solutions that include new or modified applications to support the election management systems and the Register of Electors\' data cleansing and reconciliation activities, GIS applications and interfaces to the electoral geo-databases, website support, and Azure environment performance-tuning and management.

You will be reporting to the Computer Services Officer 4 (CSO4) position, still at ENS, employees often multi-task to ensure the continuing renewal of the electoral process, and as senior programmer and analyst, you will be part of the IT/GIS team, serve as the in-house expert on all systems and work closely with ENS GIS analysts, adopt and enforce the coding and documentation standards, deliver fully tested and documented complex programs and systems that support various election-related activities, and contribute to the management of the Azure cloud-based services and infrastructure hosting the election management systems.

Primary Accountabilities

System analysis and design, programming, systems testing and quality assurance of new web applications, enhancements of existing systems, specialized functions and data mining routines and reports to support the election management systems and the Register of Electors\' data cleansing and reconciliation activities; primarily using skills within Microsoft .NET and MVC frameworks including ASP.NET MVC, ASP.NET, C#.NET, AJAX, J-Query, JavaScript, HTML5, and expertise in MS SQL Server and T-SQL, utilizing Visual Studio.

• Adopt and enforce the standards in coding principles and techniques, security by design, program documentation and specifications; ensure control over the source code versions through the use of source control software; and consistent promotion of code and database changes between the three IT environment of development, staging and production.

• Assist with the ENS website planning, content management and website maintenance as needed; provide support to Elections Nova Scotia website online tools and pages.

• Work closely with ENS GIS analysts to coordinate development effort of current or future GIS-based systems and ensure consistency of coding quality and integration with GIS-based tools and maintenance of spatial and attribute data in electoral geo-databases.

• Liaise with Nova Scotia Digital Services support teams to ensure all IT equipment at ENS are election ready, and provide the required technical support with hardware, imaging, equipment access security, networking, and other technology aspects at ENS to keep all IT equipment and peripherals functioning properly and follow up on their firmware and operating system maintenance schedule.

• Be responsible for and provide support for ENS\'s Microsoft Azure cloud presence, and ensure the optimum use of Azure IT architecture and up-to-date deployment of Azure services to ensure best performance, business continuity, access security, and prevention of cyberattacks during an election event.

• During election events, assist in preparing the Election Management System (EMS) for use by the returning offices at the call of Election and ensure the accurate data exchange with Elections Nova Scotia\'s website to keep ENS\'s online presence updated and provide Nova Scotians with accurate information during the election. Support of the deployment and set up of IT equipment and networking at returning offices and provide technical support to returning office staff to resolve all data and EMS related issues; ensure smooth election night results reporting and publishing to website and media. Be on call at all times during an election event to support the effective implementation of the election management systems in the Azure Cloud.

Qualifications and Experience

You have a Bachelor\'s degree in Computer Science or Diploma in relevant fields (such as Computer Programming, Computer Information Systems, Information Technology) from an accredited university or college along with 3 years of systems analysis and programming experience, or an equivalent combination of training and 8 years experience.

Must have experience in the following technologies:

The latest Microsoft .NET and MVC frameworks, with focus on ASP.NET MVC, and C#.NET
JavaScript, and HTML5
MS SQL Server and T-SQL
Visual Studio

and

Must have at least 3 years in .NET in systems analysis and software development of web-based application systems and implementation.

Having the any of the following will be considered as assets:

Demonstrated experience with Python, AJAX, J-Query .
Demonstrated knowledge of geographic and spatial concepts.
Knowledge of Nova Scotia electoral geography and civic addressing.
Demonstrated experience with AZURE cloud services.

We will assess the above qualifications and competencies using one or more of the following tools: written examination, standardized tests, oral presentations, interview(s), and reference checks.

Benefits

Based on the employment status and Union agreement, the Government of Nova Scotia offers its employees a wide range of benefits such as Health, Dental, Life Insurance, Pension, General Illness (Short and Long Term), Vacation and Employee and Family Assistance Programs. Click to learn more about our various benefits offering and eligibility criteria.

What We Offer

• Opportunity to learn, train and develop your skills.
• Engaging workplace. Our Employees feel valued, respected, connected, and tuned in. We have forward-thinking policies and strategies.
• Department Specific Flexible working schedules.

Pay Grade: PR 14

Salary Range: $2,640.65 - $3,215.50 Bi-Weekly

Employment Equity Statement:

Our goal is to be a diverse workforce that is representative, at all job levels, of the citizens we serve. The Government of Nova Scotia has an Employment Equity Policy, and we welcome applications from Indigenous People, African Nova Scotians and Other Racially Visible Persons, Persons with Disabilities and Women in occupations or positions where they are under-represented. If you are a member of one of these equity groups, you are encouraged to self-identify on your electronic application.

This is a bargaining unit position initially restricted to current civil service employees represented by the Nova Scotia Government Employees Union (NSGEU). If applying from outside a government office, employees must apply correctly via this link:

Failure to apply correctly means that your application will not be given first consideration as a bargaining unit applicant, and will only be included if external applications are pursued.

External applicants and current casual employees will only be considered if there are no qualified civil service bargaining unit candidates. PLEASE NOTE: Candidates will not be considered for an interview if applications are incomplete or are missing information.

Offer of employment is conditional upon the completion of all applicable background checks and confirmation of credentials, the results of which must be satisfactory to the employer. We thank all applicants for the interest, however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted. All questions and concerns may be directed to Competitions@novascotia.ca.

Government of Nova Scotia