***RECRUITMENT NOTICE: Business Development Specialist***
Agency Title: Director of Strategic Initiatives
Open To: Public
Open Period: October 27, 2023 – November 10, 2023
 

Overview:
The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED) assists the Mayor in the coordination, planning, supervision, and execution of economic development efforts in the District of Columbia with the goal of creating and preserving affordable housing, creating jobs, and increasing tax revenue. DMPED pursues policies and programs that create strong neighborhoods, expand and diversify the local economy, and provide residents with pathways to the middle class. 

DMPED is seeking a Supervisory Project Manager (Director of Strategic Initiatives) for its Business Development & Strategy unit. The mission of the Business Development Unit is to attract and retain businesses, create jobs, and forge partnerships between government, business and communities. We implement our mission through a comprehensive approach based on proven business attraction, retention and expansion strategies to foster inclusive economic growth for residents of the District of Columbia.

Position Description:
The Supervisory Project Manager will serve in the role of Director of Strategic Initiatives, a senior-level position in the Business Development Unit overseeing efforts to improve the business climate in DC through policymaking, cross-sector collaboration, and the development of new economic development solutions. The incumbent will oversee a team focused on developing and implementing strategic initiatives that support the goals of the District’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy, including creating new opportunities for investment in DC-based businesses; supporting the growth of key industry sectors, including education, technology, life sciences, professional services, and hospitality; and developing reports and strategies to analyze and highlight DC’s economy. In addition, the Director of Strategic Initiatives will work closely with the Business Retention, Expansion, and Attraction (BREA) teams and the Small Business and Retail teams to determine a policy agenda to improve DC’s economic competitiveness for large and small businesses across diverse industries and collaborate with internal and interagency teams to enact legislative or regulatory changes.

Specific responsibilities include:

• Oversee the Strategic Initiatives team: manage the performance of three team members, delegate workload across the project portfolio, and manage communications and reporting between the team and Unit/Agency leadership.
• Support implementation of the District’s updated five-year comprehensive economic development strategy by coordinating with other DMPED business units and District government agencies.
• Evaluate opportunities for new strategic initiatives: oversee the identification and research the impact of local industry or economic trends; collaborate with local and regional partners, District government agencies, and other DMPED business units; assess alignment of opportunity with the District’s economic strategy; and provide a recommendation to Unit/Agency leadership.
• Monitor and evaluate public policy issues that impact economic development, oversee relevant research, and make recommendations to Unit/Agency leadership for policy and regulatory changes.
• Supervise the implementation of the DC Venture Capital Program, a new investment program to support the growth of DC-based startups, using funds from the State Small Business Credit Initiative program through the U.S. Department of Treasury.
• Provide oversight of the implementation of two existing federal grants provided by the Economic Development Administration (EDA), including designing a strategy for a series of projects to support the recovery and growth of the Hospitality and Tourism industry in DC in partnership with key external stakeholders such as Events DC and Destination DC.
• Develop a strategy to regularly engage local universities as economic development partners, on topics such as technology transfer and research commercialization, procurement to power the local economy, and student entrepreneurship.
• Research and evaluate new federal grant opportunities and make a recommendation to Unit/Agency leadership about value in pursuing.
• Coordinate with other Business Development teams to support the development of industry-specific growth strategies and reports, and to evaluate and communicate the impact of Business Development programs.
• Collaborate with other DMPED units on projects as required, such as Economic Intelligence and Interagency Affairs, Real Estate, and Legislative Affairs units.
• Occasional attendance at meetings and events at night and on weekends.
• Other duties as assigned, which could include responding to general inquiries from companies interested in relocating to or expanding their presence in the District, preparing briefing memos, creating presentations, and drafting talking points.

Experience/Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree and Master’s degree (required) with focus in public policy, economic development, or related field.
• Deep knowledge of the District of Columbia’s neighborhoods, business environment, government operations, and economic development stakeholders is preferred.
• Demonstrated experience with Microsoft products (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, Teams).
• At least 3-5 years of similar work experience in public policy or economic development for a public entity.
• Demonstrated successful project management and relationship building skills.
• Superior communication and presentation skills; must possess extremely strong written and verbal skills with the capability to relate economic development ideas to diverse audiences and communities.
• Demonstrated ability to cultivate relationships that support organizational objectives
• Experience developing, managing, and completing high-visibility projects in a cross-functional team environment, whether working as a team member or a team leader.
• Familiarity with economic development and incentive programs, processes, and project management.
• Entrepreneurial thinking and creative problem-solving skills.
• Interdisciplinary minded: Ability to discern connections between diverse economic development and policy issues and design long-term, city-wide strategies to move the needle on complex problems.
• Exceptional planning and organizing skills.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Team oriented and very collaborative.
• Desire to leverage skills to serve the public interest required; interest in local economic and community development preferred.

Salary: This position is a grade 14 on the District government’s Management Supervisory Service salary scale. The salary ranges from $109,999 - $141,707. Actual salary is determined by a variety of factors including: years of experience, applicant qualifications, internal equity comparisons and the agency organizational structure.

Application Process: This position is posted on the DC government’s Department of Human Resources website. Interested applicants are encouraged to follow the steps below to apply for the position:

If you are having technical issues, please contact DCHR at (202) 442-9700.