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City of San Rafael

Civic Engagement Manager

The City of San Rafael is seeking a dynamic and experienced Civic Engagement Manager (formal title is Civic Design Manager) to spearhead comprehensive engagement programs while coordinating the Communication Team's activities. This role will work within the City's visionary Digital Services and Open Government Department (Department), which executes pioneering strategies to build trust with the community, increase transparency, and improve access to government for all. This position is part of a strong team with a service-driven culture where each day presents fresh challenges and opportunities to tangibly impact the lives of San Rafael's residents, businesses, and visitors!

This leader will play a pivotal role in the City by enhancing outreach and engagement, fostering inclusivity, providing methods of two-way communication and helping the City tell its story to the community. Our team achieves this mission through human-centered design, process improvement, and performance measurement, all aimed at continuously enhancing service delivery and the use of digital technologies to improve the relationship between government and people. This role will oversee our Digital Analyst and entails serving as the primary communications strategist for the City. Responsibilities include adept project management, fostering interdepartmental collaboration, improving the user experience of our digital engagement, working with community partners, engaging with media outlets, tracking metrics, and actively promoting San Rafael's outstanding reputation. Join us in reimagining how we bring all voices to the table and make government easier to use for everyone in our community-apply today!

THE CITY
The City of San Rafael is focused on enhancing our community members’ quality of life through well-designed services and a positive workplace culture. San Rafael is the economic and cultural heart of Marin County, and its high quality of life is centered on its commercial districts, engaged neighborhoods, active lifestyles, and natural environments. San Rafael (population approx. 60,000) is a full-service city with a City Council/City Manager form of government with 12 departments, more than 400 employees, and a total citywide budget of approximately $172M. The City’s vision is to be a vibrant economic and cultural center reflective of its diversity. The City Council is engaged and seeks to strengthen the urban and commercial areas as well as sustain the beautiful natural environment.

TOGETHER SAN RAFAEL
San Rafael’s organizational culture framework is an initiative called “Together San Rafael.” City employees are the organization’s greatest asset, and talented individuals with diverse backgrounds who are creative, curious, and excited about a challenge are sought to join the team. All departments are results-driven, with the goal of best serving the needs of community members. The Together San Rafael initiative is focused on increasing the engagement of employees to modernize and improve services for the community. This initiative recognizes the interconnectedness of the customer and employee experience. Together San Rafael is about:

• Bringing staff and management together to collaborate cross-departmentally.
• Empowering all employees to share and implement their innovative ideas.
• Celebrating the innovation happening every day in our departments.

Employees across the organization developed these guiding principles and staff integrate them throughout their work. 

THE DEPARTMENT – Digital Services and Open Government
Government faces new challenges in the post-pandemic era. Community expectations of how government communicates, engages, and delivers services are changing. The City’s response is to assess what is working, what can be improved, and transform services to meet the needs of people and the expectations of modern times. 

To meet these challenges, the Digital Service and Open Government is guided by core values including: 

• Government should be designed with and for people.
• Empathy for all users leads to equitable outcomes.
• Data and information should be used to create trust, transparency, and better government.
• Building capacity across City teams empowers positive change.
• Technology should be secure, accessible, and make life easier.

The Department’s work is centered around four key focus areas including Civic Engagement, Digital Transformation, Data & Insights, and IT Operations and Maintenance. Our team collaborates interdepartmentally to innovate, improve processes, leverage data, empower citizens to participate in decision-making processes, and make access to municipal services more efficient. From improving the user-experience of City services to implementing open data initiatives that provide insights into government operations, staff is dedicated to creating a more inclusive and responsive government that serves the needs of all residents.

THE JOB
This is an exhilarating opportunity that puts this Civic Engagement Manager at the forefront of transforming community engagement, technology, and communication in the vibrant community of San Rafael. Reporting to the Director of Digital Service and Open Government, they will oversee the interdepartmental Communications Team and manage engagement operations in coordination with both the City Manager’s Office and other departments.

The Civic Engagement Manager will ensure that projects are completed on time, according to budget, and within the bounds of work contracts. They will direct website content strategy, guiding staff on user experience enhancements that will revolutionize the City's online presence. They will also take the reins on managing the City’s social media strategy, shaping its voice and swiftly responding to media inquiries. Providing critical creative direction for the City’s online presence is the key responsibility of this role – seizing the opportunity to lead crucial engagement strategies that promote equitable access to services and information!

UPCOMING PROJECTS & OPPORTUNITIES

• Communications Strategy: Establish an advanced strategy for communicating the City’s mission, vision, and values.
• Citywide Language Access Plan: Increase the accessibility of  City services by establishing consistent guidelines and practices for multilingual engagement.
• Citywide Website Content Strategy: Coordinate with the website team to develop content strategy, oversee improvements to enhance the user experience.
• Public Comments & Requests Process: Coordinate with teams across the City to build best practices for responding to requests and questions from the community.

The City of San Rafael is an Equal Opportunity Employer

The Position

The Solid Waste Manager reports directly to the Environmental Services Manager and is responsible for the administration of multiple integrated waste management contracts and programs within the Environmental Services Division. This position supervises a team of technical staff who execute various integrated solid waste management activities and may serve as the division head in the absence of the Environmental Services Manager.

Examples of Duties

• Manage multiple City franchise agreements for solid waste collection, material transfer and recovery, and landfill disposal including negotiating contract terms and monitoring performance.
• Oversee the division’s solid waste programs including planning, organizing, and implementing programs to create environmentally sound and cost-effective methods for the disposal of garbage and household hazardous waste, recovery of recyclables, diversion of organic material, and waste prevention.
• Plan, develop, and oversee the work of integrated waste management staff, providing leadership and fostering staff development.
• Receive and respond to complex customer service requests concerning scope of program, technical information, and service delivery issues.
• Oversee the Division’s public education, outreach, and special events to promote environmentally responsible and sustainable behavior.
• Analyze proposed legislation affecting integrated waste management activities, develops and implements program and policies to ensure City compliance with regulatory mandates.
• Conduct analysis and prepare reports and documents as required by regulatory agencies and for City Council study sessions and meetings.
• Participate in budget preparation and administration.
• Make presentations to City Council, boards, commissions or other public groups and acts as the City designated representative as assigned.
• Other related duties as assigned.

Per the City’s COVID-19 Mandatory Vaccination Policy, the City requires all employees starting on or after February 11, 2022 to provide proof of vaccination as a condition of employment absent a documented medical and/or religious exemption.  Proof of vaccination means that employees are required to be “up-to-date” with regards to the COVID-19 vaccine. Consistent with the Santa Clara County Public Health Order issued on December 28, 2021, "up-to-date" means that employees are required to be vaccinated with the entire recommended initial series of a COVID-19 vaccine (two doses of the Pfizer, Moderna or Novavax COVID-19 vaccine or a single dose of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine).   

Please note that applications are currently not accepted through CalOpps or any other third-party job board application system. To apply, applicants must complete an application via the City of San Jose’s website at http://www.sanjoseca.gov/citycareers. 

The total salary range for the Council Chief of Staff classification is $86,318.44 - $172,058.64. This amount includes an approximate five percent (5%) ongoing non-pensionable pay. The actual salary shall be determined by the final candidates’ qualifications and experience. 

The District 8 Council Office, supporting Councilmember Domingo Candelas, is recruiting for a Chief of Staff position. The position will work closely with the Councilmember and lead the staff support team for the Councilmember. The Chief of Staff is an integral link between the Councilmember and the Mayor and City Council colleagues, City administration, and the community. The Chief of Staff must have excellent oral and written communication skills, effective organizational, analytical, and management skills, and a dedication to public service. The position requires the ability to develop and maintain effective and collaborative working relationships with community members and neighborhood organizations, key stakeholders, and City staff. The Chief of Staff will serve as a liaison to the Councilmember and will regularly represent the Councilmember at City-related meetings and functions. Bilingual language skills (Vietnamese, Chinese and/or Spanish) both oral and written are highly desirable.  

Responsibilities for this position may include, but are not limited to the following:  

• Advises the Councilmember on policy, budget, and community matters. 
• Manages the day-to-day office operations. 
• Supervises staff to implement office projects and achieve identified objectives. 
• Manages staffing to include workloads, training, performance evaluations, and assisting with hiring and corrective or disciplinary actions. 
• Creates and maintains a collaborative team culture within the Councilmember's office. 
• Oversees budgetary, legislative, and strategic planning processes. 
• Manages communications and public relations, interfacing with media, governmental officials, department directors, business leaders, advocacy groups, constituents, and others on behalf of the Councilmember. 
• Responds to other matters as needed. 

Candidates must be willing to work occasional evenings and weekends, and as exempt management employees, are not eligible for overtime compensation. Employees in this classification are not members of the classified civil service and are appointed "at will." Each appointment is for a specified period to be determined by the appointing Councilmember and does not extend past the end of the elected official's or appointing authority's term. This unclassified position requires a disclosure of outside investments, real property interest, income, and business positions. 

This job opportunity is continuous and application reviews are performed periodically.

San Mateo is a city of approximately 104,000 residents, strategically located midway between San Francisco and San Jose, and is within the Silicon Valley.  One of the City’s strengths is its diversity, both in the ethnic makeup and the physical development of the community.  San Mateo has a vibrant business and retail environment with national and international businesses, two major shopping centers and an active downtown.  The community values its historic and new residential neighborhoods and recently approved a major new Transit Oriented Development that will add 1,500 new homes, 300,000 square feet of new retail and as much as 1.5 million square feet of commercial office space.  

The City organization has a culture of innovation, collaboration and strong customer service.  The City’s annual budget is $191 million and is staffed by approximately 540 full time employees.  The City is continually evaluating new and innovative ways of providing high quality services to its residents while acknowledging the competing demands for the limited funds available. Find out more interesting facts at:  www.cityofsanmateo.org.

Look at some of the reasons why the City of San Mateo is a great place to work, https://youtu.be/_GTIzeSpc_g

The Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) is a 15.7 MDG sub-regional facility that serves an estimated 164,545 customers  administering the annual operation and maintenance budget over $12.8 million with a staff of 34 professional and technical personnel.  The City of San Mateo is building a team tasked with the safe and continuous operation of the current expansion of this conventional activated sludge plant by introducing new facilities including; preliminary treatment, primary treatment, enhanced biological nutrient removal/membrane bioreactors (BNR/MBR), biological and chemically enhanced treatment (BioACTIFLO), and additional upgrades to existing process equipment. A vital and instrumental member of this team is the WWTP Operator III.

The Position

This position will receive general direction from the Chief Plant Operator and instruction from their Shift Supervisor to provide daily guidance to lower level operators and trainees. The WWTP Operator III will be responsible for supporting these efforts to guide, develop and mentor staff on their assigned shift, act in a supervisory capacity in the absence of the Shift Supervisor, and is the assigned lead in getting both scheduled and unscheduled work completed. Those who have prepared themselves and are ready for the challenge to use their skills as a journey-level wastewater professional should seriously consider this opportunity.

This position is assigned rotating shifts working nights, weekends, and holidays with on-call emergency response 24 hours per day.  However, along with this challenge is the benefit of working  a 12-hour shift that results in a very favorable work/life balance and requires the minimum commuting days as compared to other standard 8-hour shifts.

The Duties

Depending upon assignment, duties may include, but are not limited to the following.

Operate wastewater treatment facilities to control flow and processing of wastewater, sludge and effluent; monitor gauges, meters and control panels; observe variation in operating conditions, interpreting meter and gauge readings and test results to determine process requirements.

• Operate valves and gates; start and stop pumps, engines and electric motors to control and adjust flow and treatment processes; operate and maintain boilers; perform routine maintenance work on valves, tanks, related equipment and facilities to optimize performance.
• Maintain appropriate plant records to support water quality goals.
• Perform the duties of the Designated Operator-in-Charge when required in accordance with State regulations.
• Operate rolling vehicles and stationary machinery as required to perform essential job functions.
• Foster and maintain good working relationships and provide excellent customer service in the course of their work.
• Assist in the inventory, requisition, and purchase of supplies and materials.
• Supervise and train less experienced operators on assigned shift.