Keeping Washington Clean and Evergreen

In this role, you will have the opportunity to collaborate with diverse stakeholders including tribal governments and industry leaders to achieve environmental clean ups through scientific, financial, and regulatory assistance.

Our Mission at the Department of Ecology is to protect, preserve and enhance Washington’s environment and promote the wise management of our air, land and water for the benefit of current and future generations. This mission is achieved by the pursuit of three goals: (1) prevent pollution (2) clean up pollution and (3) support sustainable communities and natural resources.

Our Toxics Cleanup Program (TCP) supports the Agency’s mission through pursuit of all three goals. The TCP Program Manager is one of ten principal environmental management positions within the Department of Ecology. This position is responsible for the strategic vision, administration and management of a statewide program to clean up contaminated sites, restore economic and/or habitat value at those sites and prevent source pollution through the regulation and inspection of underground storage tanks in Washington. 

Protecting Washington State’s environment for current and future generations is what we do every day at Ecology. We are a culture invested in making a difference. Join a team that is highly effective and collaborative, with leadership that embraces the value of people.

Ecology cares deeply about employee wellness; we go beyond traditional benefits, proudly offering:

• A healthy life/work balance by offering flexible schedules and telework options for most positions.
• An Infants at Work Program that is based on the long-term health values of infant-parent bonding and breastfeeding newborns.
• Continuous growth and development opportunities. 
• A wellness program that offers education, fitness classes, and an agency-wide fondness for outdoor meetings.
• Opportunities to serve your community and make an impact through meaningful work.

Diversity, equity, inclusion, and respect (DEIR) are core values central to Ecology’s work. We strive to be a workplace esteemed for sharing our authentic identities, while advancing our individual professional goals and collaborating to protect, preserve, and enhance the environment for current and future generations. 

Diversity: We celebrate and appreciate diversity; our unique perspectives and abilities enrich us all and lead to innovative approaches and solutions.

Equity: We champion equity, recognizing that each of us need different things to thrive.

Inclusion: We intentionally create and hold space so that we all have meaningful opportunities to participate and contribute to Ecology’s work.

Respect: We treat each other with respect and dignity, acknowledging the inherent worth of our diverse perspectives and lived experiences, even in times of uncertainty and disagreement.

We believe that DEIR is both a goal and an action. We are on a journey, honoring our shared humanity and taking steps to demonstrate our commitment to a vision where each of us is heard, seen, and valued.

During Healthy Washington Roadmap to Recovery, employees are working a combination of in-office and/or telework based on position and business need. Ecology is following current state guidance regarding building occupancy, mask requirements, health screening questions before entry, and social distancing. 

Application Timeline: This position will remain open until filled, with an initial screening date of February 7, 2022. In order to be considered for initial screening, please submit an application on or before February 6, 2022. The agency reserves the right to make an appointment any time after the initial screening date. 

Duties

What will you be doing?

You will lead and support a team of approximately 205 FTEs. The position has 11 direct reports, which includes seven second level managers, located in four regional offices and at our Headquarters Building.

 Responsibilities include:

• Plan, lead, organize, and prioritize the work performed by the Toxics Cleanup Program. Assure appropriate and optimum use of the organization’s resources and enhance the effectiveness of employees through timely appraisal and professional development opportunities. Support effective communications throughout the organization. Maintain the highest standards of personal/professional and ethical conduct and support the state’s goals for a diverse workforce.
• Establish the direction of the Toxics Cleanup Program as authorized by state and federal statutes and direct staff to implement accordingly.
• Represent the agency on complex negotiations with diverse stakeholder interests to determine the cost-effective and otherwise appropriate approaches to meeting the program’s objectives, resolutions of disputes, project-specific concerns, and policy issues affecting toxics cleanup and Underground Storage Tank (UST) program implementation.
• Represent the agency before the legislature on toxics cleanup and UST issues.
• Ensure staff implement UST regulations, including provisions for financial responsibility at the approximately 9,000 regulated tanks in Washington.
• Serve as the determiner for sites that could score high enough to be considered federal Superfund sites. The state maintains the lead role wherever feasible.
• Establish program/section priorities through an inclusive process involving affected staff throughout the state.
• Develop biennial strategic plan and budget, including significant participation in development of the Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) specific appropriations request.

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for an experienced leader who is ready to team with a large group of dedicated professionals. You will need to have the ability to:

• Problem solve and adjust strategies to capture emerging opportunities or unexpected challenges.
• Have a clear understanding of larger state and federal clean up policies which impact the work and direction of the Toxics Cleanup Program, as well as an ability to translate those larger imperatives into appropriate actions.
• See and understand the opportunities and challenges of how the work impacts people and what is needed to ensure durable outcomes to restore and protect the environment.

A Key Member of Ecology’s Executive Leadership Team

It is critical that this important position maintains the highest standards of personal, professional, and ethical conduct to support the state’s commitment to efficient, effective, and accountable government.

This is a highly visible role for the cleanup and restoration of the State’s land and water resources that have been impacted by contamination. This position represents Ecology’s cleanup interests to tribes, advocacy groups and residents from communities with environmental justice concerns, local government, the Legislature, business, industry and agriculture interests. It requires constant use of advanced management principles to address various and often-conflicting views of these groups in carrying out national and statewide toxics cleanup requirements. The position must be able to conceptualize, initiate, develop and implement strategic components of the state’s cleanup and underground storage tank goals under federal and state law. This position requires the use of effective communication skills to carry out the responsibilities inherent in the position.

As a key member of our Department’s Executive Leadership Team, the successful candidate will:

• Represent the Director with federal, state, local, tribal and elected officials, the general public, environmental groups, environmental justice advocacy groups and the business community.
• Develop credibility as a problem solver and a source of land use and water quality information for decision-makers and the public.
• Make recommendations to the Executive Leadership Team on how to implement programs and develop policies including agency direction for work procedures to ensure responsive service delivery and consistency.
• Foster a diverse, equitable, inclusive and respectful workplace.

Why join the team?

This is an opportunity to make an impact! You will have the opportunity to help solve complex environmental issues, clean-up contaminated sites, restore communities for more healthy living, work collaboratively with diverse stakeholders, and build an extensive statewide network to make durable and meaningful changes across our state. 

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

Experience for both required and desired qualifications can be gained through various combinations of formal professional employment, educational, volunteer and lived-experience. There are multiple ways to qualify for this position. See options listed below:

Option 1: 

Eleven (11) years of experience and/or education: 

Education: in public administration, business administration, environmental management, natural sciences, natural resources, environmental sciences, physical sciences, engineering, planning, or other related field.

Experience: in professional level management, which includes the following:

• Five (5) years of professional level supervisory responsibility, including experience-managing supervisors.
• Providing direction to mid-level managers and supervisors in scientific, engineering and/ or public health fields, which included coaching, training, recruitment, evaluation, and performance.
• Providing oversight of a program’s diverse functions combining and directing all aspects to meet overall program objectives.
• A minimum of five (5) years of budget management experience.
• A minimum of three (3) years of strategic planning experience (annual or biennial based business plan) including the ability to conceptualize and articulate the future direction of a program.

Please note: Experience in each of the areas may have been gained concurrently.

Option 2: A Bachelor’s degree in public administration, business administration, environmental management, natural sciences, natural resources, environmental sciences, physical sciences, engineering, planning, or other related field AND Seven (7) years of professional level management experience as described above.

Option 3: A Master’s degree in public administration, business administration, environmental management, natural sciences, natural resources, environmental sciences, physical sciences, engineering, planning, or other related field AND Five (5) years of professional level management experience as described above.

All experience and education combinations that meet the requirements for this position:  

Special Requirements/Conditions of Employment:

The ability to obtain and maintain a valid driver’s license.

Desired Qualifications:

We highly encourage you to apply even if you do not have some (or all) of the desired experience below.

• Experience using advanced management, communication, negotiation and consensus building skills with high-level, influential, elected and appointed officials. Initiates, develops, and implements strategic components of the state’s water management goals under state and federal law. Decisions from this position are precedent setting and have significant, long lasting, statewide impact. 
• Experience managing diverse fund sources.
• Member of a leadership team.
• Environmental, natural resource, public health, or similar background.

Note: Having some (or all) of this desired experience may make your application more competitive in a highly competitive applicant pool.

Supplemental Information

Ecology seeks diverse applicants: We view diversity, equity, inclusion, and respect through a broad lens including race, ethnicity, class, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, immigration status, military background, language, education, life experience, physical disability, neurodiversity, and intersectional identities. Qualified candidates from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

Need an Accommodation in the application and/or screening process or this job announcement in an alternative format?

• Please call: (360) 407-6186 or email: careers@ecy.wa.gov and we will be happy to assist.
• If you are deaf or hard of hearing you can reach the Washington Relay Service by dialing 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6388.
• If you need assistance applying for this job, please e-mail careers@ecy.wa.gov. Please do not send an email to this address to follow-up on the status of your application. You can view the latest status of your application on your profile’s main page.
• If you are reading this announcement in print format, please enter the following URL to your search engine to apply: https://ecology.wa.gov/About-us/Get-to-know-us/Jobs-at-Ecology.  

Application Instructions:

It’s in the applicant’s best interest to submit all of the documents listed below. Applications without these documents may be declined.

• A cover letter describing why you are interested in this position.
• A resume outlining your experience and education (if applicable) as it relates to the minimum qualifications of this position.
• Three professional references.

Please do NOT include your salary history. Wage/salary depends on qualifications or rules of promotion, if applicable. 

For Your Privacy:

When attaching documents to your application (Resume, Cover Letter, Transcripts, DD-214, etc.):

• Please be sure to remove private information such as your social security number, date of birth, etc. 
• Do not attach documents that are password-protected, as these documents may not be reviewed and may cause errors within your application when downloaded. 

Additional Application Instructions for Current Ecology Employees: 

Please make sure to answer the agency-wide questions regarding permanent status as a classified employee within the Washington General Service or Washington Management Service. Do not forget to select Department of Ecology as a response to question 2, and type your personnel ID number for question 3. If you are not sure of your status or do not know your personnel ID number, please contact Human Resources.

Application Attestation: 

The act of submitting application materials electronically is considered affirmation that the information is complete and truthful. The state may verify this information and any untruthful or misleading answers are cause for rejection of your application or dismissal if employed. 

Other Information:

Why work for Ecology?

As an agency, our mission is to protect, preserve and enhance Washington’s environment for current and future generations. We invest in our employees to create and sustain a working environment that encourages creative leadership, effective resource management, teamwork, professionalism, and accountability.

Joining Ecology means becoming a part of a team committed to protecting and restoring Washington State’s environment. A career in public service allows you to help solve some of the most challenging problems facing our state, while keeping your health and financial security a priority. We combine one of the most competitive benefits packages in the nation with a strong commitment to life/work balance.

Ecology employees may be eligible for the following:

Student debt: how working for Ecology can help

Equal Opportunity Employer: The Washington State Department of Ecology is an equal opportunity employer. We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and gender identity diversity. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, persons of disability, persons over 40 years of age, veterans, military spouses or people with military status, and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities are encouraged to apply. Persons needing accommodation in the application/testing process or this job announcement in an alternative format may call (360) 407-6186. Applicants who are deaf or hard of hearing may call the Washington Relay Service by dialing 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6388.