Senior Strategic Projects Manager

Exempt recruitments may close at any time without prior notice. It is in your best interest to apply as soon as possible.

A variety of soft skills and experience may be required for the following role Please ensure you check the overview below carefully.

Join Us!

The Washington State Office of the Corrections Ombuds is seeking a Senior Strategic Projects Manager to join our team. If your purpose, passion, and expertise are in alignment with our vision, mission, values, and the primary functions of this role, let us hear from you!

Please Note : All relevant combinations of experience and higher education including lived, volunteer (paid or unpaid), or professional that demonstrate the ability to perform the work will be considered.

The starting salary offer will be determined based on the successful candidates’ qualifications within the starting salary range of $100,224 - $118,932 annually.

Please note that there is career salary growth beyond this starting range for the successful candidate.

Our physical office is in Olympia, WA, and we offer flexible work schedules. This position will be eligible for a partial telework schedule, after a mutually agreed upon training period.

Telework is a combination of in-building and offsite days. The selected candidate will be required to be in the Olympia office on Fridays for our mandatory all-staff, in-person workday.

This position will require frequent travel to off-site meetings, including some overnight travel to meet with incarcerated individuals and community partners across the state.

This position may require infrequent work on weekends and some early morning and late evenings to meet the business needs of the agency.

The selected candidate will be provided an OCO fleet vehicle for official business use.

The job opportunity

As the Senior Strategic Projects Manager (SSPM), you will have a significant impact on agency-wide initiatives by guiding policy changes and engaging in collaborative strategic design and implementation to address disparities in the Washington corrections system and within our organization.

To begin, the SSPM will be primarily focused on establishing (strategy, development, and management) of two inaugural committees at the OCO : (1) Construction Training and Pathways Oversight Committee and (2) Pro-Equity Anti-Racism - Community Advisory Team (PEAR-CAT).

The work of both committees is to collaborate with diverse stakeholders to find innovative solutions to systemic inequities in the Washington corrections system.

The SSPM position requires advanced leadership, facilitation, project management, and interpersonal skills, along with a deep understanding of equity, diversity, inclusion, and trauma-responsive leadership.

About the Office of the Corrections Ombuds :

The Office of the Corrections Ombuds (OCO) is an independent and impartial public office within the Governor's Office. The OCO serves the state of Washington by helping to resolve issues involving people incarcerated in the Department of Corrections (DOC) facilities.

Our goal is to address issues quickly and efficiently, and to provide assistance to the individuals incarcerated in the DOC facilities, and their families and friends.

Through our casework and published reports, we work to promote a positive change in corrections.

OCO’s Vision, Mission, and Values

Vision : The Office of the Corrections Ombuds envisions a more humane and transparent Washington corrections system.

Mission : The Office of the Corrections Ombuds is on a mission to provide opportunities for people impacted by incarceration to raise issues and resolve conflicts.

We work to reduce harm in the Washington corrections system by negotiating outcomes, recommending positive change, and reporting individual and systemic concerns.

Values : Integrity, Collaboration, Equity, Courage, and Respect

Learn more about Office of the Corrections Ombuds.

Some of the primary ways our Senior Strategic Projects Manager will contribute to advancing our vision of a more humane and transparent Washington corrections system are :

• Engage in significant collaboration with state and private partners, community-members, incarcerated individuals, and OCO staff.
• Lead transformative changes to support the agency’s goals of establishing two effective, equitable, and collaborative committees.
• Responsible for all work to establish and manage the OCO’s Construction Training and Pathways Oversight Committee.
• Recently passed legislation, HB2084, requires the OCO to convene an oversight committee for the purposes of expanding access to construction-related training programs in state correctional facilities and strengthening pathways for incarcerated persons to advance from those programs to state registered apprenticeship programs upon reentering the community.
• The committee will include individuals and community-based organizations that represent many of Washington’s diverse populations and communities connected with the WA corrections system.
• Appointed members of the committee will include, but are not limited to, representatives of the following : persons with lived experience, Department of Corrections, Correctional Industries, Department of Labor and Industries, State Board of Community and Technical Colleges, Washington state building and construction trades council, registered apprenticeship programs in construction trades, providers of apprenticeship preparation programs, college corrections navigators, Department of Children, Youth, and Families, and the Statewide Reentry Council.
• Responsible for all work to establish and manage the Pro-Equity Anti-Racism -Community Advisory Team (PEAR-CAT).
• The OCO PEAR-CAT’s membership will include incarcerated individuals, community-based organizations, and community members who represent many of Washington's diverse populations and communities connected with the WA corrections system.
• The establishment of the OCO PEAR-CAT is one of the ways the OCO demonstrates its commitment to manifesting a pro-equity anti-racism ecosystem in Washington.

The OCO is committed to removing barriers to co-creating policies with the community and the PEAR-CAT will follow the state’s Community Compensation Guidelines.

The OCO PEAR-CAT will play a key role in informing OCO’s strategies and community engagement activities.

What we need you to bring : Required Qualifications

• At least 4 years of demonstrated experience in the following :
• Leading / Project Management of multiple complex projects or initiatives simultaneously.
• Ability to earn the trust, respect, and confidence of co-workers and customers through consistent honesty, forthrightness, and professionalism in all interactions.
• Providing leadership and guidance beyond direct reports.
• Analyzing data to make informed decisions.
• Researching and understanding trends in leadership, diversity, equity, inclusion, well-being, and facilitation.
• Facilitating discussions / meetings of diverse topics.
• Working with diverse groups across all organizational levels.
• Using systems thinking to address root causes of inequities and challenges.
• Organizing, prioritizing, and managing tasks to meet deadlines.
• Creating clear written content for communication with various audiences.
• Proficient use of computers / Microsoft PowerPoint and Excel.

Desired Qualifications

• A bachelor’s degree or higher in public health, social work, public administration, business administration, or a related field;
• plus at least 2 years of experience in leading or supporting programs related to diversity and inclusion; social justice;

community engagement; leadership development; project management; and / or change management.

Relevant certifications in diversity, equity and inclusion; coaching; facilitation; leadership development; project management;

and / or change management.

• Demonstrated experience in the following :
• Experience and knowledge of corrections consideration of academic, lived, and professional background / experience will be given, combination preferred.
• Advanced principles and practices of project management.
• Proven ability to achieve excellent results with little need for oversight.
• Proficiency in leadership skills, including mindset, interpersonal skills, and technical knowledge.
• Understanding and application of trauma-informed and / or trauma-responsive leadership principles.
• Leading or supporting employee resource groups (ERGs), business resource groups (BRGs), or similar groups.
• Ability to collaborate on organizational strategies with executive leaders and sponsors.

If you have gotten this far and are thinking you do not qualify, consider again. Studies have shown that people of color and women are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification.

At the Office of the Corrections Ombuds, we are dedicated to building a diverse and authentic workplace centered in belonging.

If you are excited about this role but your experience does not align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway.

You may just be the needed candidate for this or other roles.

What we offer :

At the Office of the Governor, we foster a culture of integrity, innovation, inclusion, and belonging. We value both learned and lived experiences, believing that diversity makes us stronger.

To support your health and well-being, we offer a variety of benefit programs for our employees.

Please visit our Recruitment Page for a full list of benefits available to employees. Here’s a quick glance at some of the unique benefits that we offer :

• An environment of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging
• Tuition reimbursement
• Medical, Dental, Vision, and Life Insurance
• 12 paid holidays, 14 paid vacation days (minimum), and 12 days of sick leave per year
• State retirement programs

Application Process :

Once you’ve decided to apply for a state government job, you’ll complete an online application to showcase your qualifications.

Keep in mind that once you submit the application, a real person is going to read it. We do not use AI or other technology that screens your application and rejects it.

So please be sure to provide clear and detailed information about your work history so your qualifications can be accurately assessed.

We will contact the top candidates directly to schedule interviews. If you need reasonable accommodation in applying, please call 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6384.

For your application to be considered complete and sent to the hiring teams for review, you must submit all of the following :

• Cover letter : describing your qualifications for this specific position
• Resume : that details your applicable experience and education.
• References : at least three professional references and their phone numbers.

Questions :

For questions about this recruitment or to request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, please email us at [email protected].

The Office of the Governor 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, and disabled and Vietnam-era veterans are encouraged to apply.

This position is exempt from civil service rules.

For more information, please see WAC 357-19-195.

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