Central Regional Manager WMS2

The Hiring Team may make a hiring decision at any time. The first review of applications will be Friday, December 11. It is within your best interest to apply for this position at your earliest convenience.

Schedule and location: The successful candidate may reside anywhere in the central region of Washington State. This position will typically work 8:00am to 4:30pm but may need to attend meetings and travel outside of traditional agency business hours, including overnight.

Work Setting: Office, Cubicle, field work and tours including rough terrain, steep slopes, rocks, or other hazardous terrain. Physical exertion such as walking, lifting boxes up to 50 pounds, long hours standing, sitting in meetings, long hours driving. Who we are: The Washington State Conservation Commission (SCC) is a non-regulatory state agency that supports and coordinates our state’s 45 conservation districts and administers voluntary conservation programs. Together, the SCC and conservation districts provide incentive-based services that empower people across Washington to take actions that keep natural resources and working lands healthy for all.

About this Position: As the Central Regional Manager, you will work independently under the general guidance of the Conservation District Services Director, providing a wide variety of services to the state’s conservation districts. Your role will include helping provide operational and financial guidance to conservation districts, while facilitating collaborative solutions that combine state natural resource priorities and work on the ground in local communities. In this position, you will provide support to the following conservation districts*, although the specific districts may be adjusted from time to time: Cascadia, Foster Creek, South Douglas, Kittitas County, North Yakima, South Yakima, Eastern Klickitat, Central Klickitat, and Underwood. *Minor adjustments to the service area may be considered if feasible.

Some of what you'll enjoy doing:

Conservation District Board Members Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Build and maintain effective working relations with each conservation district supervisor.
• Provide/facilitate board member development of knowledge, skills, and abilities to fulfill their responsibilities, through SCC delivery of products, tools, and training.
• Assist with connecting board members with their area, state and national associations and SCC.

Conservation District Employees Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Coordinate on communications and outreach, certification, training, and mentoring support tasks, and general project coordination for increasing employee knowledge, skills, & abilities, including measuring effectiveness.
• Coordinate with partner agencies and groups on specific tasks and programs
• Build and maintain effective working relations with key district employees.
• Assist employees with operating effectively with others, including resolution of issues.
• Provide training to new conservation district staff.

Connection to the Community, Clients & Partners

• Help conservation districts create and maintain effective working relationships with community, clients, and partner agencies and organizations.
• Provide conservation districts with examples, methods, facilitation and resources to connect land managers, stakeholders, and the natural resources needs through district program planning & implementation.
• Encourage and coordinate resource conservation activities between county, state, and federal units of government and the conservation districts.

Coordination, & Oversight

• Facilitate and assure completion of conservation district long range, annual planning, annual reporting and budget activities.
• Provide model guidance (prevention) and direct assistance (based upon that guidance) to conservation districts on common procedural requirements and issues (eg. elections, appointments, accounting, etc).
• Provide direct assistance to conservation districts utilizing an evaluation tool covering financial, operations, governance, and program delivery.
• Facilitate information sharing regarding what other conservation districts are doing.
• Serve as the principal link between conservation districts and SCC on programs affecting conservation districts and their cooperators.
• Plan, direct, and coordinate special projects and programs for SCC and conservation districts..

Communications & Services Provided within SCC by Regional Managers:

• Utilize regional manager relationships with conservation districts to assist other SCC staff, Conservation District Services Director, and Executive Director with critical information needs (significant change(s) in the district, state audits, suspected fraud and misappropriation, major accidents, other issues) and issues resolution – utilize the lead role structure for information sharing.

Operations & Administration Tasks:

• Effective operations, administration and reporting including: Email management, time sheets, travel vouchers, leave slips, vehicle reports, unanticipated requests from other SCC staff, new staff training, research & operations issues.
• Prepare a program plan for the position's area of management which defines goals and objectives and prioritizes activities. Measures implementation of the program plan.

Required Education, Experience, and Competencies:

• The position requires a working knowledge of laws, policies and procedures which impact conservation districts. The position requires a clear understanding of larger state and federal policies which impact the direction of SCC and conservation district programs
• Demonstrated proficiency with Word, Excel, Outlook, use of internet
• Proficiency in time management and managing multiple activities.
• Skilled in verbal and written communication.
• Ability to visit conservation districts across the state, including overnight travel.
• Presentation experience.
• Excellent customer service skills.
• Decision-Making & Problem-Solving: Exercise independent judgment in complex or high-risk situations; negotiate and facilitate collaborative decision-making; make recommendations for agency action.
• Planning & Results Orientation: Establish objectives, performance measures, and outcomes; balance competing priorities; maintain long-term focus while meeting short-term demands; demonstrate persistence, initiative, and accountability.
• Communication & Representation: Represent the agency or executive leadership in meetings; compose clear and technically accurate directives, policies, procedures, contracts, and interagency agreements; facilitate meetings and consensus-building with committees and partners.
• Work Performance & Reliability: Accept responsibility for quality and timeliness of work; consistently follow applicable guidelines, regulations, and standards; meet deadlines and maintain focus in a dynamic work environment.
• Ethics & Integrity: Maintain highest standards of personal and professional conduct; foster trust and respect among coworkers, partners, and stakeholders; support diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Customer Relations & Collaboration: Build strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders; resolve conflicts and negotiate agreements effectively; work in collaborative, multi-stakeholder environments.
• Technical Competencies: Skilled with project management and performance tracking tools; able to organize, track, and prioritize information and tasks; adept at handling multiple projects with competing deadlines.

Equity Competencies State of Washington Employees contribute to ensuring services, programs, workplaces, and interactions are responsive, respectful, accessible, and effective to the people and communities we serve. Employees are expected to:

• Take action to learn and Grow: Demonstrate a willingness to learn from new experiences, seek feedback, consider different perspectives, and continuously improve knowledge, skills, communication, and approaches to work.
• Take action to meet the needs of others: Seek to understand the needs and experiences of customers, coworkers, and communities. Identify barriers to access and participation and address them before they become obstacles for the people we serve, providing support that is respectful, timely, and effective.

Preferred/Desired Education, Experience, and Competencies:

• Awareness of purposes and activities of the state’s 45 conservation districts.
• Knowledge of State laws, policies and other applicable guidelines
• A Bachelor's degree and two years of professional experience.
• Additional applicable work experience may be substituted, year-for-year, for the educational requirements.

How to Apply: Interested? We would love to hear from you! Click “Apply” at the top of this page to start your application. You can save the application and come back to it, if needed. Be sure to complete the application fully to include a full work history and responses to the supplemental questions.

Please provide the following documents in order to be considered; failure to do so may result in you not being considered for the position:• A cover letter that addresses how you meet the qualifications for this position as outlined in the job posting.

• A current resume, detailing experience and education; and
• A current list of at least three (3) professional references with current contact information (attached or available to provide at the time of interview)

NOTE: By submitting these materials, you are indicating that all information is true and correct. The state may verify information. Any untruthful or misleading information is cause for removal from the applicant pool or dismissal if employed. A resume will not substitute for completing the “duties summary” section or supplemental questions of the application. Please do not “refer to resume” for detail, or your application may be disqualified.

Opportunity for All: Washington State celebrates our differences and we are committed to a workplace that supports equal opportunity employment and inclusion regardless of race, creed, color, national origin, citizenship or immigration status, marital status, families with children (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sex, sexual orientation, gender identity diversity, age, status as a protected veteran, honorably discharged veteran or military status, status as an individual with the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with disabilities or other applicable legally protected characteristics. We will also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state and local laws.

You are welcome to include the name and pronoun you would like to be referred to in your materials and we will honor this as you interact with our organization.

Contact Information: For questions about this recruitment or to request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact Angie Anderson at email: [email protected].

Applicants who are deaf or hard of hearing may call through the Washington Relay Service by dialing 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6388.