Assistant City Manager for Human Service Programs

About The Department

The Department of Human Service Programs (DHSP) creates and coordinates services that enhance the quality of life for Cambridge residents. Driven by the needs of residents, DHSP’s extensive services and programs touch almost every sector in the city: from newborns to senior citizens, from school-aged children to homeless families, from non-profit organizations to local employers. While the Department is responsible for delivering services to all residents, low-income residents are prioritized for most services. The Department provides direct services as well as coordinates services with the City's non-profit providers and has a budget of over $65 million in city dollars and over 11 million in federal and state grants.

About The Role:

This is a cabinet level position reporting to the City Manager leading a department of over 750 full and part-time staff, serving thousands of residents each year, from newborns to senior citizens, and operating out of 27 sites.  In addition to the leadership of the department, the position plays a major role in working with the City Manager on cross-city initiatives and collaborating with the Superintendent of Schools given DHSP serves 1/3 of students in the public school system. This highly visible position requires excellent communication, leadership, negotiation, and management skills.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities:

The essential functions or duties listed below are intended only as illustrations of the various types 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.

• Provide leadership and oversight to the department's over 750 employees and the over $65-million-dollar budget to enhance the quality of life of Cambridge's residents with particular focus on low-income residents.
• Provide leadership and vision across DHSP, supporting a culture of responsiveness, accountability and commitment to equity.
• Oversee and support the Assistant Director for Child, Youth and Family Services, the Assistant Director for Adult and Family Services, the Assistant Director for Administration and Operations, the Executive Director of the Office of Early Education and other senior leaders in the Department.
• Provide leadership to the Department's Race and Equity Initiative and support other efforts in the continued development of a strong and supportive culture for employees across the department.
• Work with the City Manager and his key reports in coordination of major city initiatives.
• Oversee the development and management of an over $65 million budget, working with the Assistant Director for Administration and Operations and their team and the City's Budget Director to maximize the use of city dollars in support of the department's operations.
• Coordinate the city's work with the non-profit community both around services and funding.
• Responsible for overseeing, managing, and aligning processes that reach the entire organization, ensuring that they support organizational strategy, objectives, and operations.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.      

Minimum Qualifications:Education And Experience:

• At least ten years of leadership experience leading a complex and multi-tiered organization in the human service, education or a related field.
• Prior experience and demonstrated success in working with diverse community groups and interests.
• Master’s Degree in related field and knowledge of the local community is preferred. 

Knowledge, Skills, And Abilities:

• Demonstrated ability to lead and develop leadership in others; ability to build collaborative relationships with senior leaders, subject matter experts, public, staff, and elected and appointed officials.
• Deep sense of humility, curiosity, and learning-orientation.
• Good judgement, high ethical standards, and personal integrity.
• Ability to manage multiple demands across multiple areas.
• Highly organized with excellent writing, oral and communications skills. 
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex processes and operations.
• Facility with conflict resolution strategies and practices.
• Commitment to anti-racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion. The City of Cambridge's workforce, like the community it serves, is diverse. Applicants must have the ability to work and interact effectively with individuals and groups with a variety of identities, cultures, backgrounds, and ideologies. 

Preferred Qualifications:

• Familiarity with municipal government.

• Familiarity With Cambridge.

Work Environment:

Standard office environment with fluorescent lighting, carpeted floors and air conditioning.

Physical Demands:

Ability to access, input, and retrieve information from a computer.  Answer telephones and maintain multiple files. Must read and analyze large quantities of information.  Must have sufficient mobility to get back and forth from office to offsite meetings.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

• REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:
• All applicants must provide the following materials when submitting their job application:

• Resume.

• Cover Letter