Community & Economic Development Director

Salary

$178,027.20 - $250,640.00 Annually

Location

Tacoma, WA

Job Type

Non-Classified

Job Number

M0240-24

Department

Community & Economic Development

Opening Date

07/09/2024

Closing Date

7/30/2024 5:00 PM Pacific

• Description

• Benefits

• Questions

Position Description

The City of Tacoma is recruiting candidates for the executive position of Community and Economic Development (CED) Director. The CED Director is a key member of the City's Executive Leadership Team with a critical leadership role in advancing the City's economic development strategy, including business recruitment and retention, funding and development of housing, arts and culture and community development. The CED Director performs highly complex, innovative work resulting in positive, significant impacts to Tacoma and the regional community.

The CED Director reports to the City Manager and has a broad range of strategic, analytical, administrative, and project management duties. The position plans, organizes, manages, and provides administrative direction and oversight for all functions and activities of the City's CED Department. The CED Director also develops strategic partnerships with community representatives, business community, external agencies, and other organizations to guide economic strategic planning.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Guided by City Council and community input, develops an economic development strategy for the City to include short and long range planning.

• Advises the City Manager and Council on emerging and existing economic development issues.

• Collaborates with department directors and other senior managers to analyze organization and community needs and takes action in response to those needs.

• Proactively monitors and evaluates the efficiency and effectiveness of economic development policies and programs, while identifying opportunities for improvement.

• Fosters external partnerships (locally, regionally and internationally) to further the City's economic development goals.

• Directs the development and administration of budgets, policies, projects, and programs of the department to deliver high quality services effectively and efficiently to the community.

• Ensures department operations conform to local, state, and federal government regulations, and other applicable rules and policies.

• Supports the growth and retention of small businesses through implementation of programs, policies, and outreach designed to champion Tacoma’s small business economy.

• Leads the City's workforce development strategy to increase the number of Tacoma’s residents to obtain the skills necessary to meet industry's needs for qualified workers now and for the future.

• Oversee the financing initiatives using federal, state, and local resources to support affordable housing development and preservation citywide.

• Develops partnerships that lead to sustainable economic growth with shared prosperity.

• Provides strategic leadership, performance management and oversight to the CED department, ensuring timely and quality completion of deliverables and an equitable and inclusive work environment.

  IDEAL CANDIDATE

  A successful candidate will be an innovative and experienced leader with a demonstrated commitment to inclusive community and economic development. They possess diverse private and/or public sector experience with knowledge of economic development focused on capital investment, workforce development/job creation, incentives, entrepreneurial and business startups, business incubators / accelerators, public-private partnerships, business administration, economics, and the future of work.

As the CED Director, the candidate will create, develop, maintain, and implement community and economic development strategies, programs, projects, policies, and services. They must excel in economic development, job creation, personnel management, municipal operations, and innovative leadership, and be adept at establishing and maintaining effective relationships with both internal and external partners.

THE COMMUNITY

Tacoma is centrally located just 32 miles south of the city of Seattle and 31 miles north of the state capital, Olympia. The City of Tacoma is also home to the Port of Tacoma, which is among the largest container ports in the United States. Like most cities in the northwest, Tacoma is surrounded by beautiful nature, giving residents many opportunities for outdoor adventures.

Largely suburban in nature with a small, but dense, urban core, Tacoma is home to a large number of institutes of higher learning that attract students from across the country. The University of Washington Tacoma, Pacific Lutheran University, University of Puget Sound, a satellite campus of the Evergreen State College, three community/technical colleges, and several trade and business schools are within Tacoma's geographic area. Downtown's Cultural District is the site of the Washington State History Museum, Museum of Glass, the Tacoma Art Museum, and America's Car Museum.

With its affordable housing and distinctive neighborhoods and business districts, the city has been recognized numerous times as a best city to live in the nation. To see a few of the great things Tacoma has to offer, view this YouTube Video! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2n5MWl8KFvI)

DEPARTMENT MISSION

Our mission is to facilitate equitable economic growth and opportunity in Tacoma by supporting existing businesses, enabling reinvestment and revitalization, and promoting the attraction and creation of new businesses, living wage jobs, and housing options to enhance the quality of life in the community.

CITY OF TACOMA COMMITMENT TO EQUITY AND DIVERSITY

At the City of Tacoma, we're on a mission to make our workforce as diverse and inclusive as the community we serve. We're committed to eliminating racial and other disparities, and we actively seek out candidates from a wide range of backgrounds and cultures. Join our team at the City of Tacoma and help us build a more vibrant, inclusive, and equitable community for all.

The City of Tacoma believes that diversity of thought, background, and experience contributes to our success and innovation. If you’re passionate about this role and our mission, we encourage you to apply. If you have a less traditional background, we want to hear about your transferrable skills and experience. We value a variety of perspectives and are excited to see what you bring to the table.

Qualifications

MINIMUM EDUCATION*

Bachelor's degree in business or public administration, planning or directly related field

MINIMUM EXPERIENCE*

12 years professional experience in community development and/or affordable housing including prior supervisory and managerial experience.

*Equivalency: 1 year of experience = 1 year of education

Selection Process & Supplemental Information

APPLY

Interested individuals should apply online. Please attach a detailed resume and cover letter that includes job experience, major responsibilities and accomplishments related to this position.

Reference checks will be conducted on final candidates and appointment is subject to passing a background check.

COMMUNICATION FROM THE CITY OF TACOMA:

We primarily communicate via email during the application process. Emails from cityoftacoma.org and/or governmentjobs.com must be placed on your safe domain list to ensure that you receive notifications in a timely manner. As a precaution, you may also want to check your junk email folders.

In order for your application materials to be considered, all information must be submitted by the closing date and time listed on this job announcement.

For assistance with the NEOGOV application process, questions regarding this job announcement, or if you are experiencing complications while applying, please contact the Human Resources office at (253) 591.5400 by 4:00 pm of the closing date of the job announcement. This will allow us to assist you before the job announcement closes.

The City of Tacoma provides excellent medical, dental and vision plans for the whole family; paid holidays and paid leave; participation in the Tacoma Employees' Retirement System (alternate plan for Police/Fire); continuing education and advancement opportunities and a growing variety of City-sponsored health and wellness opportunities and incentives.

Medical Coverage: For eligible employees and their families, including domestic partners and dependent children age 26 or younger.

Dental Coverage: For eligible employees and their families, including domestic partners and dependent children age 26 or younger.

Vision Coverage: For eligible employees and their eligible dependents.

Paid Leave: City employees are entitled to received paid holidays, sick/vacation leave or personal time off (PTO), depending upon union affiliation and appointment type.

Insurance Plans: Employees are covered by a long-term disability plan. Short-term and expanded long-term disability insurance plans are also available to employees. The State Industrial Insurance Act also covers employees.

Deferred Compensation: Income can be set aside on a pretax basis and invested for supplementation of normal retirement income.

Retirement: All employees of the City, except members of the Police and Fire services, Tacoma Rail and certain project employees, are included in the Tacoma Employees' Retirement System. Information on the Tacoma Employees' Retirement System can be found at www.cityoftacoma.org or by calling (253) 502-8200.

Other Employment Information

Direct Deposit: Employees are paid on a bi-weekly schedule by direct deposit.

Salary Increases: Based on satisfactory job performance, the City provides for a regular progression of salary increases for most classifications according to the salary schedule.

Union Affiliation: Many job classifications are covered by union security provisions which require union membership, dues, or payment of equivalent service fees.

Note: The provisions of this job announcement do not constitute an expressed or implied contract. Any provision contained herein may be modified and/or revoked without notice.

01

Do you have a Bachelor's degree in business or public administration, planning or directly related field, or 4 years of supplemental experience?

• Yes

• No

  02

  Do you have 12 years professional experience in community development and/or affordable housing including prior supervisory and managerial experience?

• Yes

• No

  03

  Responses to supplemental questions must be original content created by the applicant using their own words. The use of online tools or resources to create responses, such as Artificial Intelligence (ChatGPT, etc.), Google, Bing, etc., or plagiarism in any form, is considered cheating and falsification of the application. I understand that any form of cheating or falsification will disqualify my application for further consideration.

• Yes

• No

  04

  How do you approach leading a diverse team to achieve strategic objectives? Can you provide an example of a time when you had to manage a significant change within your department

  05

  Describe your experience with budget development and financial management within a large organization. How did you prioritize funding for various projects and initiatives?

  06

  Can you describe your experience in developing and implementing long-term economic development strategies? How did you ensure these strategies were aligned with community and city council goals?

  07

  How have you worked to promote diversity and inclusion within your team and/or operationalize equity in economic development or housing initiatives?

  08

  One of the City's Principles that guides us is Equity. Describe what equity means to you and describe any experience you have working with diverse groups of people.

  09

  Please tell us how you learned about this job opening.

• Job Interest Card notification

• Professional organization

• Military organization

• City of Tacoma employee

• Online job board posting

• Word of mouth

• LinkedIn

• Tacoma Training & Education Program (TTEP)

• Indeed

• Facebook

• Instagram

• Careers in Government

• Government Jobs

• Outreach Event

• National Diversity Network

• African American Job Network

• Disability Job Network

• Asian Job Network

• Latino Job Network

• Retirement Job Network

• LGBT Job Network

• Veteran Job Network

• Other

  10

  Please provide specific information regarding how you learned about this job opening. Thank you, your feedback will be used to evaluate our success reaching the public and refine our methods for future job postings.

  Required Question

Agency

City of Tacoma

Address

Human Resources Department 747 Market Street Tacoma, Washington, 98402-3764

Phone

253-591-5400

Website

http://www.cityoftacoma.org

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