DIRECTOR OF CONSTITUENT SERVICES

Position Information

The County Manager’s Office (CMO) is seeking a Director of Constituent Services to lead the office’s constituent services team connecting residents and businesses to County services and resources, facilitating customer service process improvements, and identifying emerging community issues working in a high pace team-matrix environment with County leadership and staff. This is a visible, hands-on position representing the County Manager requiring extensive public engagement and occasional public speaking.

Specific Duties Include

• Investigating and responding to inquiries and concerns raised by residents, businesses, civic groups, and other stakeholders; identifying appropriate resolutions, providing information and referrals;
• Providing oversight and managing a new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system to include delegating and tracking County Board Office (CBO) and other constituent inquiries including phone and email intake;
• Supervising six direct reports who provide customer service and constituent support for residents and businesses, welcomes and assists visitors at the Welcome Center in the Ellen M. Bozman Government Center (the County's main administrative building);
• Training staff on CRM workflows, customer service response levels, and communications;
• Preparing written and oral responses to County residents, other constituents, County Manager and County Board Office by effectively using a new CRM system to track trends, generate reports, and manage constituent inquiries;
• Managing some CMO administrative functions including coordination of FOIA responses generated in the County Manager’s Office with the County Attorney’s Office; and
• Representing the CMO at general Public Comment session during monthly County Board meetings, community meetings, and civic events.
  
  

The Ideal Candidate Will Have The Following

• Excellent collaboration skills and demonstrated ability to build productive relationships with a variety of internal and external stakeholders to include colleagues, staff, County leaders, and community members;
• Excellent writing skills to prepare clear and concise communications;
• Empathetic demeanor and strong interpersonal skills to resolve complaints;
• Exceptional problem-solving skills to gather relevant information to identify and resolve often vaguely defined problems or complex issues; and
• Effectively respond to high-profile concerns with diplomacy, political savvy, and a broad knowledge of local government.
  
  

Selection Criteria
Minimum: Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Political Science, Communications, or a related field plus significant customer relationship management experience to include investigating and responding to customer concerns, writing, editing, collecting/interpreting data, producing correspondence, final documents, and collaborating with diverse stakeholders to identify appropriate resolutions.

Substitution: Additional qualifying experience may substitute for the education requirement on a year-for-year basis.

Desirable: Preference may be given to applicants who demonstrate or have experience in one or more of the following areas:

• Serving as an Ombudsman or similar role to include coordinating projects within a Local, State, Federal, or other government relations environment;
• Collaborating with executives or senior officials to identify solutions for regulatory or political issues;
• Managing conflict resolutions;
• Utilizing CRM workflows to delegate tasks, track trends, and generate reports;
• Master's Degree in Public Administration or a related field; and/or
• Bilingual: English/Spanish.
  
  

Special Requirements
A cover letter of application is required. Please use the space provided in the supplemental questionnaire to insert a letter or attach to your application.

A pre-employment criminal records check will be conducted. It may include checks of the following: criminal record, driving record, education, professional licensure, and credit history. You may be required to sign a release authorizing the County to obtain your background information.

Please complete each section of the application. A resume may be attached, however, it will not substitute for the completed application.

Additional Information
An urban county of 26 square miles adjacent to Washington D.C., Arlington has a population of nearly 200,000 and is among the most densely populated jurisdictions in the country. About 40% of residents are Hispanic, African-American, Asian or multi-racial. One in four was born outside of the U.S. and one in three speaks a language other than English at home. Over 60% of adults have bachelor's degrees and 30% have graduate degrees.

Work hours: This is a 40 hour a week position with varying hours depending on meetings and engagements with some flexibility and telework options pending supervisor approval. Flexibility will be required to accommodate weekends and evening events, or meetings as needed.

The official title of this position is Media Relations/Communications Manager.

Starting salary will depend upon the qualifications and experience of the candidate selected. This position is in the Arlington County Government's Extended Management Accountability Program (XMAP), in which Senior Executives are eligible for a negotiated salary/benefits package and are evaluated and compensated per a performance agreement linked to the County Management Plan, and results achieved. XMAP is a flexible total rewards/compensation system directly linked to performance and the market.

Applicants who have questions or need assistance with the application may telephone (703) 228-3500 or visit the Human Resources Department. Our staff will be happy to work with you to enter your application into the system. Public access computers are available at all County Libraries, and in the Human Resources Department.

The examination process for this position may include: (1) training and experience evaluation; (2) written and oral examination; (3) personal interview; (4) performance test/work sample; and/or (5) physical examination.

Applicants with disabilities may request reasonable accommodation during the application or selection process. Please call the ADA Coordinator at 703-228-3559 (voice) or email [email protected].