Director of Public Works

Job Description:

Director of Public Works

Description

The Position

The City of Oakland is an equal opportunity employer that values workforce diversity, inclusion, and equity. Oakland has a long history of activism around issues of justice and equity. Both oppression and this resistance to oppression have shaped the city’s historical roots and the lives of its residents to this day. As public servants in one of the most diverse cities in the nation, we strive to develop employees who understand the harm and impacts of systemic inequity to create lasting, meaningful outcomes for everyone. Oakland strives to establish an environment that embraces the richness of culture, community, and individualism of employees.

This search is being conducted by Ralph Andersen & Associates . To view the full brochure, please click here .

An Outstanding Opportunity for An Accomplished Professional Seeking to Make a Difference

The City of Oakland is seeking an energetic, highly accomplished professional with superb leadership abilities to serve as its next Director of the Oakland Public Works (OPW) Department. The former Director, G. Harold Duffey, was recently promoted to Assistant City Administrator. This new Executive will join a carefully assembled group of dynamic, high achieving individuals serving as the City Administrator’s senior leadership team, whose mission is to take the Oakland community to new and exciting heights.

The successful Director will have broad experience in municipal public works, complemented by a collaborative approach to problem-solving. The Director will be forward-thinking, while at the same time, well-grounded in the day-to-day essentials of managing and leading a robust and active public works department which serves a large, diverse and highly interactive community. The new Director will be outcome-focused as opposed to process-driven and have a proven track record of success in managing people and projects.

The Director will oversee a committed workforce of approximately 660 employees in four bureaus (Administration, Environment, Maintenance and Internal Services, and Design and Construction) in a large, complex organization. The Director will also oversee aspects of several approved bond measures that will provide significant funding for infrastructure improvements for both City streets and facilities.

Being part of a dynamic team of professionals as they reset the organization and partner with the community as it undergoes an exciting urban resurgence is a rare and exhilarating opportunity.

The Position

Under the general direction of the Assistant City Administrator, the Director is responsible for directing, planning, and leading the operations of the Oakland Public Works Department, has oversight of capital improvement projects on behalf of sponsor agencies, and oversees coordination/control of some work performed in the City’s right-of-way. Oversight responsibilities include strategic planning, management of contracts, effective management of contract relationships, ensuring compliance with all local, State, and Federal codes. The Director also serves as an Operations Section Chief in the City’s Emergency Operations Center, responsible for managing emergency responses to events affecting the City’s public infrastructure and providing executive level support in other emergency situations.

Read the complete job description by clicking this * link *.

Click on the following link to see a video on what it's like to work for the City of Oakland: Working for the City of Oakland

Opportunities & Challenges

The Director of OPW will be presented with a number of opportunities and challenges, including:

• The new Director will apply a fresh set of eyes to the department’s structure and recommend more effective and efficient ways of delivering services.
• Maintaining Oakland’s high standard for continued self-assessment and improvement as demonstrated by it being the 35th city to be accredited through the American Public Works Association (APWA).
• Oakland enjoys a high degree of civic engagement. Oakland residents care deeply about their community and are vocal about community projects and issues, including aging infrastructure. This level of community involvement is a key component of the decision-making process utilized in Oakland. Being comfortable presenting and participating in vibrant public forum is essential to this position.
• Oakland’s government consists of several different bargaining units, which represent and support City staff. The Director’s ability to work collaboratively with these bargaining units is critical to the Director’s success.
• OPW oversees the City’s Zero Waste franchise contracts.
• The Director has a unique opportunity to work collaboratively with the Director’s peers on the most significant projects in Oakland due to OPW’s role in providing capital projects delivery services to all City departments. This collaboration requires a strong investment in building genuine relationships and demonstrating value that serves the best interests of all involved.
• Oakland’s aging infrastructure and high demands on service delivery translates to the need for a high performance and high-output department. The Director will lead the department in refining its data analytics to address deferred maintenance and make decisions about service and project delivery. Many exciting capital projects are underway, with even more on the horizon, so the use of data analytics has become increasingly critical to prioritization and decision making.

The Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate will embrace Oakland’s vision and values. The new Director will provide strong visionary and collaborative leadership. The ideal candidate will be a fair, ethical, and decisive leader whose leadership and decisions will focus on what is best for the city and community. The selected candidate will be a confident and empowering leader who builds both strong team morale while maintaining accountability. This top professional will also be an excellent manager of people and resources with the ability to prioritize needs for a large complex organization that values timeliness, transparency, and customer service. The new Director will continue to promote and embrace a strong culture of equity, inclusion, and customer service across the city-wide organization.

The new Director will have broad interdisciplinary and technical background and be adept at managing in a fast-paced and dynamic environment. The successful candidate must be both diplomatic and decisive, and work with a sense of urgency and focus on progress and continued improvement. In addition, the new OPW Director will help the Department research and incorporate technology that increases efficiency and ensures best industry practices.

The ability to build meaningful relationships across city government, community partners, business stakeholders, neighborhood associations, and employees at all levels is fundamental to this position. The next Director will also need to be politically savvy without being political and will be consistently motivated and driven by the core stewardship principles of choosing service over self-interest.

Top candidates for consideration will have a leadership style that is engaging, empowering, respectful, and rooted in genuine concern for others, both internal to OPW and externally in the community. The Director will also be accessible, engaged, and lead from outside the office. Top contenders will bring strong communication and people skills to this important role. An added plus will be a spirit of innovation and creativity. Lastly, the ideal candidate will have the ethical courage to share the truth about obstacles that may delay the completion of key projects and initiatives and offer concrete alternatives and solutions rather than excuses.

Experience with project delivery, especially alternative methods, will be beneficial. Likewise, prior experience with public-private partnerships, grants, financing methods and funding of capital projects will be an asset. As a supporter of technological enhancements, the Director will also be tasked with overall better use of technology to monitor deliverables, mobile applications and social media.

Minimum Requirements for Application

Education : A Bachelor’s degree in engineering or a technical discipline related to design and construction, public administration, and/or management is desired. An advanced degree is a plus combined with strong, relative career experience.

Experience : At least five years of progressively responsible management experience is required in a medium-to-large public works organization. Comparable experience in a fast-paced, dynamic, ethnically diverse and urban environment is strongly desired.

Licenses and Certifications : Engineering or Architectural license issued by the State of California is highly desirable, though not required. Out-of-state candidates that have achieved these certifications in other states, combined with relative career experience may be strong, viable candidates for consideration based on the extent of the applicant pool.

Supplemental Information

Compensation & Benefits

A competitive compensation package will be offered with an annual salary of $204,966 to $307,449 for this at-will executive position. The City generally hires at the mid-point of the range.

Benefits include generous medical insurance, life insurance, automobile allowance, paid holidays, vacation, sick leave, management leave, public sector retirement (CalPERS 2.5%@55 classic member; 2%@62 new/PEPRA member), and voluntary deferred compensation.

Click on the link for the City’s 2024 Benefits Matrix .

Application Process

Candidates are encouraged to apply immediately by submitting a comprehensive resume and compelling cover letter via email to apply@ralphandersen.com .

The first review of resumes is scheduled to begin on November 4, 2024. Interested candidates are encouraged to apply early in the process for optimum consideration.

This search is being conducted by Ralph Andersen & Associates . To view the full brochure, please click here .

This is a confidential process and will be handled as such throughout all phases of the search process. References will not be requested or contacted until mutual interest has been established. It is anticipated that the newly selected Director of Public Works will join the City of Oakland in January 2025 (or sooner). Confidential inquiries are welcomed to Mr. P. Lamont Ewell at (916) 630-4900.

The City of Oakland is committed to the wellbeing of its employees and offers comprehensive health and wellness services along with an array of other benefits for most positions. Benefits may include*:

• CalPERS Medical
• Dental
• Vision
• Medical Waiver Plan - Cash-In-Lieu
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• Commuter Benefits
• Group & Supplemental Life Insurance
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Guaranteed Ride Home (GRH)
• Pension Benefits
• Deferred Compensation

* Specific benefits may vary depending on the assignedspecific bargaining unit. Information regarding most benefits can be reviewed here: Employee Benefits Information Current MOUs may be reviewed here: City of Oakland Labor Agreements

Closing Date/Time: 11/3/2024 11:59 PM Pacific

Salary:

$204,966.00 - $307,449.84 Annually