Council Policy and Legislative Advisor – Council District Offices (D2, D6, D10)

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About the Department

The City of San José, the Capital of Silicon Valley, is one of the nation's best managed cities and one of the top ten cities in which to live, work and do business. Moreover, San José is the center of cultural government and economic activity for the region. The employees of the City of San José have embraced the following values: Integrity, Innovation, Excellence, Collaboration, Respect and Celebration.

The San José City Council consists of ten Councilmembers elected by district and a Mayor elected at-large, each for four-year terms. The Mayor and Council are responsible for representing the residents of San José, providing accountability, reviewing public policy and programs, and adopting those policies which best meet the needs of the residents, visitors, and businesses in San José.

Position Duties

The Council District Offices 2, 6, and 10 are up for election this year. The incoming elected officials will be recruiting for positions. The Council Policy and Legislative Advisor position will provide administrative, constituent services, and legislative support for an elected official. The position typically requires researching and responding to inquiries from residents; drafting written communications involving strategy, policies and/or procedures on behalf of the elected official; and serving as the representative of the elected official regarding certain functions. These duties require an employee with strong and effective organizational skills; ability to handle multiple assignments; excellent written and oral communications skills, and the ability to develop and maintain effective and collaborative working relationships with community members and neighborhood organizations, key stakeholders, and City staff.

Responsibilities for this position may include, but are not limited to the following:

• Leads initiatives within an assigned policy portfolio. Drives policy priorities through government and legislative process. Research best practices on assigned policy portfolio.
• Drafts resolutions, commendations, memos, and other materials on the City Council agenda.
• Prepares written memoranda and reports which articulate the elected official’s proposals, priorities, and positions on matters pending before the City Council or other governmental agencies.
• Provides communication support such as drafting correspondence, memoranda, or reports for routine to complex matters related to neighborhood or community concerns, pending issues before the City Council or another governmental body; state or federal legislation; or other matters.
• Assists in preparation of speeches and talking points for the Councilmember.
• Develops and maintains positive working relationships with council offices, community organizations, residents, business community, non-profit organizations, and government agencies as they are key partners on policy and as a representative of the Councilmember's Office.
• Coordinates arrangements for meetings, programs, or other civic functions on behalf of the Councilmember.
• Attends meetings and community events with the Councilmember, requires availability on evenings and weekends.
• Analyzes a wide variety of materials on assigned projects, programs, and topics.
• Responds to constituent inquiries and issues, resolving complaints, and interpreting operating policies for residents of the community and other interested parties.
• Attends and represents the Councilmember at City-related meetings and activities, meeting with governmental agencies, private industry, and related meetings.

Employees in this classification are not members of the classified civil service and appointment would be on a contract “at-will” basis and is for a specified period of time to be determined by the appointing elected official and does not extend past the end of the elected official's term. Candidates must be willing to work a flexible schedule as needed, including frequent evenings and weekends and as exempt management employees, are not eligible for overtime compensation. This unclassified position requires a disclosure of outside investments, real property interest, income and business positions.

Minimum Qualifications

Any combination of training and experience equivalent that provides the knowledge, skills, and abilities to advise and support the Councilmember on matters of matters of constituent services; public policy; community outreach and engagement; and communications.

Education: Typically requires a Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent.

Experience: Typically requires two (2) or more years of government, public service, or customer service experience.

Required Licensing: Possession of a valid California driver’s license is required.

Competencies

• Knowledge of federal, state, and local rules and regulations pertaining to municipal operations.
• Knowledge of the principles and practices of public or business management including budgeting and fiscal management; personnel administration; or other governmental functions.
• Ability to effectively communicate with members of the public through a variety of letters, memoranda and reports; prepare agendas and meeting summaries; ability obtain information from and convey information to the public
• Ability to develop and maintain harmonious and effective working relationships with a wide range of individuals, neighborhood, business, and community organizations, as well as City staff, members of Boards and Commissions and other constituencies.
• Ability to provide administrative support to an elected official including maintain office records and systems and scheduling and coordinating appointments, meetings, and events for the Councilmembers.

Other Qualifications

Desirable Qualifications

• Bilingual skills: oral and written proficiency with languages such as Spanish, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Korean, Chinese (Cantonese and/or Mandarin), Tagalog, or other languages as determined by the hiring authority.
• Ability to exercise judgment in developing, analyzing, and evaluating programs and proposals and to make recommendations regarding policy options involving complex matters.
• Ability to handle administrative matters independently, including the preparation and management of office budgets, grants and other fiscal functions.
• Ability to manage programs, activities, and projects within the scope and authority of the elected official.
• Ability to draft routine to complex correspondence, memoranda, and reports which articulate the elected official’s proposals and position on matters before the City Council and other governmental bodies.
• Ability to prepare summaries of public and private meetings; reports, memoranda and other documents for review by senior staff and the elected official.
• Ability to participate in budget analysis of City departments and agencies.
• Ability to serve as a liaison with the community and other interested parties to report community concerns, issues, and priorities.
• Ability to effectively communicate, in oral and written form, the elected official’s policies, positions, and goals to the media, public, constituent groups, boards and commissions, City and other governmental representatives and staff.
• Ability to conduct and direct research including survey techniques and statistical methods.
• Specialized knowledge, skills, abilities, education, experience, or licensure may be established for individual positions.

Selection Process

The selection process will consist of an evaluation of the applicant's training and experience based on the application and resume. Only the candidates whose backgrounds best match the position will be invited to proceed in the selection process. Additional steps of the selection process may consist of one or more interviews.

To be considered for this position, you must fill out the online application on the City of San Jose website and submit the following:

• Cover Letter
• Resume

If you have questions about the duties of these positions, the selection or hiring processes, please contact Dominique.Voelker@sanjoseca.gov.

This posting/recruitment is for multiple offices and will remain open until vacancies in these offices are filled. Applications are reviewed continuously; therefore, we encourage applicants to apply as soon as possible.

Additional Information:

Employment Eligibility: Federal law requires all employees to provide verification of their eligibility to work in this country. Please be informed that the City of San Jose will NOT sponsor, represent or sign any documents related to visa applications/transfers for H1-B or any other type of visa which requires an employer application.

You must answer all job-specific questions to be considered for this vacancy or your application will be deemed incomplete and withheld from further consideration. Applicants are expected to write their own essays/responses. Please be advised that use of AI content in your responses may result in your removal from the hiring process.

Please note that applications are currently not accepted through CalOpps or any other third party job board application system.

This recruitment may be used to fill multiple positions in this, or other divisions or departments. If you are interested in employment in this classification, you should apply to ensure you are considered for additional opportunities that may utilize the applicants from this recruitment.

Please allow adequate time to complete the application and submit before the deadline or the system may not save your application. If your online application was successfully submitted, you will receive an automatic confirmation email to the email address you provided. IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE THE CONFIRMATION, please email CityCareers@sanjoseca.gov and we will research the status of your application.

The City of San Jose offers a wide range of core health benefits including Medical, Dental, Vision, Employee Assistance Program, Life Insurance, Disability, and Savings Plans. Please visit the City's benefits pagefor detailed information on coverage, cost, and dependent coverage.

For information on the City’s Retirement Plan(pension for full-time employees), please visit the Office of Retirement Services website. You will be able to view information based on different Sworn/Federated job classification.

In additional to the benefits above, there is an additional perks siteto explore further benefits of working for the City of San Jose like paid leave, educational reimbursements, and holiday pay are specific to the job classification and union membership.

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• City of San Jose

• 408-535-1285

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