Strategic Planning & Equity Manager

Responsibilities include professional and technical work in planning, housing and economic development with a focus on racial and social equity and justice. The employee will assist the Executive Director by managing cross-departmental projects, ensuring that they are on-schedule and have adequate resources. The employee will ensure that equity and justice are department priorities in all departmental programs, projects and policies. The employee will ensure that all departmental programs involving public involvement include the voices of historically disenfranchised and vulnerable communities. Employee is required to perform all similar or related duties.

Essential Functions
The essential functions or duties listed below are intended only as illustrations of the various type of work that may be performed. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related, or a logical assignment to the position.

• Serve as a member of project teams including neighborhood planning efforts, economic development plans, urban renewal plans, and roadway and park design projects to ensure that equity is at the center of each planning effort.
• Work with OSPCD staff to shift internal practices and develop decision making tools in order to advance equity and justice in Somerville’s planning and community development.
• Manage antiracism and equity education within OSPCD staff
• Work with OSPCD staff to identify and analyze structures of inequality and injustice in Somerville’s built environment and its planning and community development practices.
• Work with OSPCD staff to amplify the voices of individuals or groups historically underrepresented in planning and community development processes.
• Research and analyze data.
• Coordinate special projects for the OSPCD Executive Director.
• Collaborate on presentations for various city, regional, state, and federal agencies.
• Perform analyses to support various city policies.
• Provide information to public regarding City planning efforts
• Advise the outreach coordinators in OSPCD, assisting and advising in developing tools to increase the participation of disenfranchised and vulnerable communities in all planning efforts
• Assist the OSPCD Executive Director in ensuring that staffing is adequate across the department to meet department priorities and complete long-range planning efforts.
• Assist the OSPCD Executive Director and division heads with increasing diversity in OSPCD staff.
• Develop innovative strategies and policies to address equity.
• Participate in work with the Procurement & Contracting Department and Economic Development Division to improve sourcing of an increasingly diverse pool of suppliers and contractors. 
• Supervise the coordinator of the “digital bridge initiative” program that will address the digital divide in Somerville that disproportionately impacts lower-income, marginalized and vulnerable populations.
   

Education and Experience
Master’s Degree in planning or related field and three (3) years’ experience; or any equivalent combination of education, training and experience which provides the required knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the essential functions of the job. Experience in equity and social justice issues.  

Knowledge, Abilities and Skill
Knowledge:  Knowledge of racial and social justice programs and strategies, project management, planning, economic development, housing, transportation and parks programs.

Abilities: Ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing with state and federal agencies, architects, contractors, developers, owners, supervisors, employees, and the general public.

Skill: Skill in facilitating and public presentations is required. 

Work Environment 
The work environment involves everyday discomforts typical of offices, with occasional exposure to outside elements.  Noise or physical surroundings may be distracting, but conditions are generally not unpleasant.  Employee may be required to work beyond normal business hours in response to attend evening meetings or complete work assignments.  When in the field or attending meetings, the environment can be at construction sites and outdoors.

Physical and Mental Requirements
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the position’s essential functions.

Physical Skills: Minimal physical demands are required to perform the work. Work effort principally involves sitting to perform work tasks, with intermittent periods of stooping, walking, and standing. Work requires some agility such as moving in or about construction sites or over rough terrain. There may also be some occasional lifting of objects such as office equipment or photocopy paper (up to 30lbs.).  When in the field, more physical skill may be required to accomplish the duties required.

Motor Skills: Duties are largely mental rather than physical, but the job may occasionally require minimal motor skills for activities such as moving objects, operating a telephone, personal computer and/or most other office equipment including word processing, filing and sorting of papers. 

Visual Skills: Visual demands require constantly reading documents for general understanding and analytical purposes.
 

Send your resume and cover letter to

City Hall Personnel Office
93 Highland Avenue
Somerville MA 02143
Fax: 617-666-4426
TTY: 1-866-808-4851
Email: employment_opportunities@somervillema.gov

City of Somerville residents are especially encouraged to apply.

The City of Somerville is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, age, national origin, disability or any other protected category. Women, minorities, veterans, and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply. Auxiliary aids and services, written materials in alternative formats, and reasonable modifications in policies and procedures will be provided to qualified individuals with disabilities free of charge, upon request.

Individuals with disabilities who need auxiliary aids and services for effective communication, written materials in alternative formats, or reasonable modifications in policies and procedures, in order to access the programs and activities of the City of Somerville or to attend meetings, should contact the City’s ADA Coordinator, Nancy Bacci, at 617-625-6600 x2250 or NBacci@somervillema.gov.