CITY OF SANTA ROSA, CALIFORNIA

CommunityEngagementDivisionDirector

THE COMMUNITYCombining robust urban life with laid-back outdoor living, Santa Rosa is the perfect place for the person ready to work, ready to enjoy Sonoma County’s Mediterranean climate and beautiful outdoors, and to relax when work and play are done. With a population exceeding 175,000, Santa Rosa is the 5th largest city in the San Francisco Bay Area, and 26th largest city in the state. It is grounded by a diverse and stable economy that is the center of trade, government, commerce and medical facilities for the greater North Bay area. Ideally located an hour’s drive north of San Francisco and 30 miles east of the Pacific Ocean, Santa Rosa is the county seat of Sonoma County, housing over one-third of the county’s residents and businesses.

Santa Rosa and Sonoma County consistently rank high in the nation’s top places to live and work. Each of the 9 cities in the county are defined by urban growth boundaries ensuring a regional commitment to open space and uniquely picturesque locations. A culturally rich, self-contained city located in active agricultural surroundings, Santa Rosa, the region’s urban center, is located near beaches, redwoods, wineries and many historic sites. Within city limits, Santa Rosa is equally committed to a thriving and transit oriented downtown and open spaces with a park in every neighborhood accommodating a full range of sports and activities for all ages. Santa Rosa has a unique diversity of neighborhoods and historic districts that provide a sense of place through arts, culture and community. Known for its local craft breweries creating world renown ales, and home to many of the region’s best restaurants and the world-famous Schulz Museum, Santa Rosa also boasts numerous farmers markets, and hosts annual events that draw crowds small and large, locally and internationally.

Recently ranked as one of the top metropolitan regions in the United states for most educated residents, education is a community priority with a number of top-rated K-12 schools, a variety of innovative charter schools, as well as quality early childcare and higher education options.

Santa Rosa – both the community and the organization – is a truly vibrant, dynamic community offering an inspiring place to grow both personally

and professionally. To learn more, visit https://www.srcity.org.

CITY GOVERNMENTIncorporated on March 16, 1868, Santa Rosa is a Charter City operating under the Council-Manager form of government. The City Council is comprised of seven Council Members and is transitioning to council districts; three of which were elected in 2018, with the remaining four to be elected by district in 2020. The Mayor and Vice Mayor are both named by the Council Members; the Mayor serves a two-year term, while the Vice Mayor serves one year. The City Council appoints the City Manager, City Attorney, and members of the City’s Boards and Commissions.

The City Manager is the administrative head of the City and is responsible for overall management of the municipality’s 13 departments and approximately 1,300 staff, organized within three general portfolios: community services, internal services, and operational services. Administration of the organization is based upon the City Charter and the policy direction provided by the City Council. At the beginning of each year, the City Council establishes goals and priorities for the upcoming budget period. The following goals established policy direction for the Fiscal Year 2019-2020 Budget:• Ensure Financial Stability of City

Government• Effectively Implement the

Recovery and Rebuilding of Santa Rosa

• Meet Housing Needs• Attain Functional Zero

Homelessness

• Invest in and Sustain Infrastructure and Transportation

• Provide for Community Safety, Valued City Services, and Open Government

• Foster Neighborhood Partnerships and Strengthen Cultural Assets

• Promote Environmental Sustainability• Foster a 21st Century City and Organization• Foster a Strong Downtown and Overall

Economic Development of the Community

The City of Santa Rosa continues to focus on long-term financial stability.  The wildfires that swept through the community in 2017 caused the City to deplete General Fund reserves below levels established by the City Council.  The City has replenished those reserves and continues to strengthen its financial position and address structural issues resulting from increasing pension costs, aging infrastructure, and additional demands for services.  The revenue portfolio remains strong and diversified, with no more than 35 percent coming from any single source of General Fund Revenue.  For Fiscal Year 2019-20, the City has a total budget of $439 million, with $369 million in operational funding and $70 million in capital projects. General Fund expenditures of $171 million reflect the City’s emphasis on funding core services and addressing the Council’s goals and priorities.

Mission StatementTo provide high-quality public

services and cultivate a vibrant, resilient, and livable City.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT DIVISIONUnder the direction of the Assistant City Manager for the Community Development and Engagement Portfolio, the City of Santa Rosa’s Community Engagement Division is responsible for leading and providing strategic direction for building community through the engagement of residents with their neighborhoods, their government, and the decisions that affect their lives. Specifically, the Division supports organizing civic engagement opportunities for Santa Rosa residents, connects community members and interest groups with their local government, and enables ground up engagement from the community to help shape policy. The development and implementation of strategies are based on recommendations from the Mayor’s 2014 Open Government Task Force Report to create an inclusive, transparent, participatory and collaborative relationship with the community. The Division works in partnership with the Community Advisory Board (CAB), a Council-appointed board which serves by City Charter to develop recommendations to increase citizen and neighborhood participation and responsibility as citizens, and advise the City Council on public safety issues, capital improvement priorities, involvement plans for development issues, and recommendations on public improvement funds allocated by the City Council. Community Engagement staff also administer the Community Improvement Grant program aimed at creating healthy and resilient neighborhoods, and strengthening neighborhood connectiveness and emergency preparedness through the Neighborfest Pilot Program.

The Community Engagement Division also houses the Violence Prevention Team which leads the Violence Prevention Partnership (Partnership). The Partnership is a collaborative effort of over 50 organizations, including private citizens, government, local community-based organizations, schools, parents, the faith community and local law enforcement in an effort to reduce violence by creating safe and healthy neighborhoods through collective impact. The Division administers and evaluates the

Measure O (2004) CHOICE Grant Program, the Guiding People Successfully referral services for vulnerable youth and families, the Community Safety Scorecard and the Partnership’s 2017-2022 Strategic Plan.

The Community Engagement Division Director leads a team of 7 professional and administrative staff, and will be part of the leadership team that reports to the Assistant City Manager responsible for the following divisions: Planning, Building, Engineering, Economic Development, Housing/Homelessness, Recreation, and Community Engagement.

THE IDEAL CANDIDATEThe new Division Director will be an enthusiastic and experienced professional who understands the value of diverse, equitable, accessible and inclusive community participation in supporting a high quality of life for all our residents. The ideal candidate will be an advocate for inclusion and open government, and deploy innovative strategies that effectively engage the public in designing City services. He/she will have extensive experience managing community

services, working with community partners and effectively communicating with a diverse community. Known for maintaining a visible and accessible presence in the community, this individual will have an impressive track record of community engagement resulting in successfully addressing complex service delivery and programming needs for a socio-economically diverse population. The City is interested in engaging someone familiar with the City Resilience Framework, and the characteristics of resilient systems and opportunities to enable healthy communities.

A Collaborative Relationship Builder…Possessing exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, the ideal candidate will be a strong leader who builds and maintains effective relationships with staff, colleagues, community-based organizations and the public. The successful individual will understand how to look at the city holistically, capitalizing on opportunities within the City organization and the community as a whole to enhance Santa Rosa’s economic and social wellbeing through increasing meaningful and authentic civic participation.

Accessible Leader and Mentor…Possessing a welcoming and approachable demeanor with high emotional intelligence, the ideal candidate will be an excellent mentor to not only her/his direct reports, but will also serve as a leader throughout the organization in empowering a broad range of stakeholders in civic engagement. Known for outstanding leadership skills, this individual will have a proven approach to the professional and leadership development of employees, coupled with an empathetic and flexible style that engages and builds trust with, and capability and capacity of subordinates, colleagues and other leaders in the community. The new Division Director will employ a thoughtful approach to leading

organizational change, serving to inspire and motivate employees and stakeholders around new opportunities.

Exceptional Communicator…This accessible leader will be a skillful communicator with excellent speaking and written abilities. She/he will be highly sensitive to the needs of Santa Rosa’s diverse community and create regular opportunities for information and idea sharing. Further, this individual will have a history of interacting effectively with elected and appointed officials and key stakeholders, employing a transparent, well-informed approach that instills confidence and credibility. The ability to communicate bilingually is desirable.

Technological Innovator…The Division Director will be familiar with industry trends, E-democracy and best practices that can enhance community engagement efforts. She/he offers a stellar record of project management that demonstrates the ability to proactively support the long-term goals of the City.

The successful candidate will possess a combination of education and experience that provides the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary for this role. A proven track record with sufficient experience with the functions associated with the Community Engagement Division, and an education equivalent to a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university, ideally with a major in public administration, organizational development, social services, psychology or related field are expected. A Master’s degree and experience working in youth and/or violence prevention programs are desirable, as is the ability to communicate bilingually.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITSThe City provides an attractive compensation package that includes a competitive salary range up to $151,305 annually. Santa Rosa does not participate in Social Security, but assesses the Medicare contribution of 1.45%. Among the fringe benefits are:

• Retirement – CalPERS, 2.5% @ 55 formula with single highest year compensation for Classic Members.  Employee pays 9.5% employee contribution. New CalPERS Members formula is 2.0% @ 62 with 3-year final average compensation; employee pays 7.75% employee contribution.

• Health Insurance – City provides choice of three plans (Kaiser, Anthem Blue Cross EPO and Anthem Blue Cross PPO); City contributes between 80% and 87.5% of the monthly premium for employee and dependents.

• Dental and Vision Insurance – The City provides and contributes the monthly premium for Delta Dental PPO and VSP vision plans for employee and dependents.

• Life Insurance – The City provides Life Insurance at $50,000 with the option to purchase up to $200,000.

• Long Term Disability – The City provides Long Term Disability at 60% of monthly income up to $6,000 with a benefit waiting period of 60 days.

• Vacation Leave – 80 hours of accrual annually for one to four years of service. Additional days are earned with additional years of service.

• Administrative Leave – Up to 80 hours.• Paid Holidays – The City observes 10 paid

holidays annually, plus 2 to 3 “floating” holidays per year depending on years of service.

• Sick Leave – Accrued at the rate of 8 hours per month with service credit for unused sick leave.

• Deferred Compensation – Employees can choose to contribute to a 457 Deferred Compensation Plan.

APPLICATION & SELECTION PROCESSThe closing date for this recruitment is midnight, Sunday, May 3, 2020.  To be considered for this opportunity, upload cover letter, resume and a list of six professional references using the “Apply Now” feature at www.tbcrecruiting.com.

Suzanne Mason • 562.631.2500 Teri Black  •  424.296.3111

TERI BLACK & COMPANY, LLCwww.tbcrecruiting.com

Following the closing date, resumes will be screened in relation to the criteria articulated in this brochure and applicants with the most relevant qualifications will immediately be granted preliminary interviews by the recruiters.  Candidates deemed to be the best qualified will be invited to participate in interviews in Santa Rosa in May.  The top candidates will then be invited to participate in additional interviews and other selection activities.  An appointment is anticipated shortly thereafter, following the completion of thorough background and reference checks.  Please note that references will not be contacted until the end of the process and, at that time, will be done so in close coordination with the candidate impacted.