Executive Assistant

SUMMARY:

The Department of Local Services, Permitting Division is seeking an Executive Assistant who will directly support the Permitting Director and Deputy Director in their leadership of the Division.  This position requires a high level of discretion due to frequent exposure to sensitive and confidential issues and communications.  The selected candidate will perform complex administrative support and organizational coordination functions.

The selected candidate is expected to learn and maintain knowledge of division projects and implement projects at the direction of the Director and Deputy Director, to problem-solve for division-wide issues; to keep the Division Director and Deputy Director apprised of current and potential challenges; to manage and prioritize numerous incoming requests with skill, including those from departmental leadership; and to maintain strict confidentiality.  With excellent communication skills, the selected candidate will frequently convey instructions to senior staff on projects in coordination with the Division Director and Deputy Director and ensure follow-through of those instructions.  Strong people skills and high attention to detail and accuracy is required.

The incumbent should be committed to working with diverse populations throughout King County to provide excellent customer service to a broad range of cultures, in accordance with the King County Equity and Social Justice Ordinance and the King County Strategic Plan.  The position supports and advances the Permitting Division’s values for fair and culturally competent service delivery, innovative, effective and efficient application of resources, building a culture of continuous improvement and expanding opportunities to seek input, listen and respond to residents.

JOB DUTIES:

To be considered for this opportunity, you must at a minimum, demonstrate knowledge, skill and ability to:  

Applying equity and social justice principles is a daily responsibility and a foundational expectation for all King County employees. In this role, you will apply equity and social justice principles that exemplify shared values, behaviors, and practices to all aspects of the work.

• Provide wide variety of daily support to Division Director, Deputy Director, and senior leadership staff to accomplish their duties and responsibilities in the leadership of the division.
• Provide technical expertise to the Division Director, Deputy Director, and senior staff.
• Support program development for the Division, in coordination with Division Director and Deputy Director.
• Assist Division Director, Deputy Director, and Senior Staff with responses to elected officials, community groups and the general public.
• Take meeting notes at a wide variety of meetings and track action items and progress.
• Compose, draft, summarize, prepare, proofread, edit documents, memos, contracts, letters and/or reports for the Division Director, Deputy Director, Chief Financial Officer, HR Manager and Product Line Managers to ensure they conform to established procedures, and high customer service standards.
• Maintain the calendar schedule for the Division Director and Deputy Director.
• Develop, implement and evaluate methods for monitoring existing and new administrative systems to support work activities at the division level.
• Business System Administration:  support for user licenses, accounts, access to enterprise applications, use of system reporting tools, vendor relations and contract administration.
• Convey directions and instructions to senior staff on project basis. Furnish explanations, when necessary. Advise staff of the Director’s and Deputy Director’s preference and requirements. Provide regular reminders to staff and maintain a detail tracking system to ensure deadlines are met.
• Organize, update and maintain the hard copy and electronic files using various software and systems including SharePoint.
• Other duties as assigned.

EXPERIENCE, QUALIFICATIONS, KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS:

The ideal candidate will have the following:

• Demonstrated experience providing primary administrative support to one or more senior leaders in a business or government setting. 
• Excellent communication skills, both oral and written, including understanding and executing complex verbal and written instructions. 
• Excellent organizational skills, requiring ability to prioritize and effectively manage numerous ongoing, emerging projects, and requests daily while meeting deadlines. 
• Excellent interpersonal skills, including considering and responding appropriately to the needs, feelings, concerns and capabilities of a wide diversity of people in different situations. Ability to be tactful, compassionate and sensitive, and treat others with respect. 
• Strong skillset in providing direction to others and following through on project milestones and deliverables. 
• Strong familiarity with principles of equity and social justice and ability to apply equity and social justice principles in the workplace. 
• Excellent problem-solving capabilities, including problems of a complex and sensitive nature regarding staff and organizational function, as well as problems of a technical nature. 
• Experience managing highly confidential, and sensitive issues effectively and with integrity
• Ability to prioritize workload, work efficiently and calmly under pressure with tight turn-around times and every-changing priorities; juggle and track multiple assignments, and meet deadlines.
• Knowledge and ability to apply proper grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure to documents.
• Experience in business system administration
• Have intermediate to expert-level skills with technology tools: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams and SharePoint.

Our most competitive candidate will also have:

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office suite of products, including as a SharePoint user and/or SharePoint site administrator
• Familiarity with business intelligence tools such as Power BI
• Experience in business system administration
• Experience with PeopleSoft, DocuSign, Visio, Teams

SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION:

Those applicants who pass the initial screening will be invited to interview the week of October 3, 2022.

If you are selected as a finalist, you will be asked to come back the week of October 17, 2022, for a second interview. 

This recruitment may be used to fill vacancies for up to 6 months. Including appointed, special duty assignments, STT and TLT opportunities. 

WHO MAY APPLY: This position is open to all qualified applicants. 
 
WORK SCHEDULE: The work week is normally Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., but may at times require work outside of normal business hours. This full-time position is overtime eligible.

FORMS AND MATERIALS: An online employment application, resume, and a cover letter (no more than 2 pages) summarizing how you meet the experience, qualifications, knowledge and skills for the job are required.
 
SELECTION PROCESS: Applicants will be screened for clarity, completeness, and competitiveness. The most competitive candidates may be invited to participate in one or more interviews. Interviews will be conducted via Teams. Reference checks and file reviews will be conducted.

UNION MEMBERSHIP: Non-represented 

For more information regarding this recruitment, please contact:
   Vivienne Swai
   Human Resources Analyst
   206-477-1538
   vswai@kingcounty.gov

Covid-19 Vaccination Requirement
King County Executive Branch employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. If you are the successful candidate for the position you applied for, the County will send you a conditional offer letter.
 
 As a condition of employment, prior to a final offer of employment, you will be required to:
 • submit proof of vaccination or
 • have an approved request for medical or religious exemption and an approved accommodation. Philosophical, political, scientific, or sociological objections to vaccination will not be considered for an exemption or accommodation.

People are considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19 two weeks after receiving the final dose of a vaccination approved by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
 
The Executive Branch includes employees in the Executive branch, the Assessor’s Office, Elections, the King County Sheriff’s Office, and the Executive Office. 

Teleworking Requirement 
The work associated with this position will be performed by teleworking; complemented with onsite work and meetings as needed. The responsibilities of this position may include regular and ongoing in-office work involving in person customer service in accordance with the division's available customer service options. 

Employees will have access to shared workspaces at various King County facilities. Employees must reside in Washington state and within a reasonable distance to their King County worksite to respond to workplace reporting requirements. 

Employees will be provided with a County issued laptop and must maintain a workspace with an internet connection (access may be supplemented in some situations) where they can reliably perform work and remain available and responsive during scheduled work hours. Please note that when an employee conducts work that is likely to bring them in contact with another individual, safety precautions are required, including the wearing of masks in some situations. King County is doing its part to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and remains committed to reducing our carbon footprint.

King County has a robust collection of tools and resources to support working remotely.

The individual selected for this opportunity will be joining an innovative and progressive team that is redefining how we work as we transition to the department's hybrid environment.

ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT

King County is the local service provider for the roughly quarter-million people who live in the unincorporated areas of the county. Taken together, the population in unincorporated King County would be the second-largest city in the state. The Department of Local Services includes a Director's Office and the Road Services and Permitting Divisions. The Director’s Office includes a robust Community Service Area group focused on identifying and responding to the needs of urban and rural unincorporated King County residents and businesses. The department provides a single executive point of accountability for delivery of local services to all the unincorporated areas.

Forbes recently named King County as one of Washington State's best employers. 
 
Together, with leadership and our employees, we're changing the way government delivers service and winning national recognition as a model of excellence. Are you ready to make a difference? Come join the team dedicated to serving one of the nation's best places to live, work and play.

Guided by our "True North", we are making King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive. We value diversity, inclusion and belonging in our workplace and workforce. To reach this goal we are committed to workforce equity. Equitable recruiting, support, and retention is how we will obtain the highest quality workforce in our region; a workforce that shares and will help advance our guiding principles--we are one team; we solve problems; we focus on the customer; we drive for results; we are racially just; we respect all people; we lead the way; and we are responsible stewards. We encourage people of all backgrounds and identities to apply, including Native American and people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQ+, people living with disabilities, and veterans.
 
King County is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer
No person is unlawfully excluded from employment opportunities based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), age, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or other protected class. Our EEO policy applies to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, selection for training, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation.
 
To Apply
If you are interested in pursuing this position, please follow the application instructions carefully. If you need this announcement in an alternate language or format, would like to request accommodation or assistance in the application or assessment process or if you have questions, please contact your recruiter listed on this job announcement.

Executive Assistant | Job Details tab | Career Pages (governmentjobs.com)