City of San Rafael
Civic Engagement Manager
The City of San Rafael is seeking a dynamic and experienced Civic Engagement Manager (formal title is Civic Design Manager) to spearhead comprehensive engagement programs while coordinating the Communication Team's activities. This role will work within the City's visionary Digital Services and Open Government Department (Department), which executes pioneering strategies to build trust with the community, increase transparency, and improve access to government for all. This position is part of a strong team with a service-driven culture where each day presents fresh challenges and opportunities to tangibly impact the lives of San Rafael's residents, businesses, and visitors!
This leader will play a pivotal role in the City by enhancing outreach and engagement, fostering inclusivity, providing methods of two-way communication and helping the City tell its story to the community. Our team achieves this mission through human-centered design, process improvement, and performance measurement, all aimed at continuously enhancing service delivery and the use of digital technologies to improve the relationship between government and people. This role will oversee our Digital Analyst and entails serving as the primary communications strategist for the City. Responsibilities include adept project management, fostering interdepartmental collaboration, improving the user experience of our digital engagement, working with community partners, engaging with media outlets, tracking metrics, and actively promoting San Rafael's outstanding reputation. Join us in reimagining how we bring all voices to the table and make government easier to use for everyone in our community-apply today!
THE CITY
The City of San Rafael is focused on enhancing our community members’ quality of life through well-designed services and a positive workplace culture. San Rafael is the economic and cultural heart of Marin County, and its high quality of life is centered on its commercial districts, engaged neighborhoods, active lifestyles, and natural environments. San Rafael (population approx. 60,000) is a full-service city with a City Council/City Manager form of government with 12 departments, more than 400 employees, and a total citywide budget of approximately $172M. The City’s vision is to be a vibrant economic and cultural center reflective of its diversity. The City Council is engaged and seeks to strengthen the urban and commercial areas as well as sustain the beautiful natural environment.
TOGETHER SAN RAFAEL
San Rafael’s organizational culture framework is an initiative called “Together San Rafael.” City employees are the organization’s greatest asset, and talented individuals with diverse backgrounds who are creative, curious, and excited about a challenge are sought to join the team. All departments are results-driven, with the goal of best serving the needs of community members. The Together San Rafael initiative is focused on increasing the engagement of employees to modernize and improve services for the community. This initiative recognizes the interconnectedness of the customer and employee experience. Together San Rafael is about:
- Bringing staff and management together to collaborate cross-departmentally.
- Empowering all employees to share and implement their innovative ideas.
- Celebrating the innovation happening every day in our departments.
Employees across the organization developed these guiding principles and staff integrate them throughout their work.
THE DEPARTMENT – Digital Services and Open Government
Government faces new challenges in the post-pandemic era. Community expectations of how government communicates, engages, and delivers services are changing. The City’s response is to assess what is working, what can be improved, and transform services to meet the needs of people and the expectations of modern times.
To meet these challenges, the Digital Service and Open Government is guided by core values including:
- Government should be designed with and for people.
- Empathy for all users leads to equitable outcomes.
- Data and information should be used to create trust, transparency, and better government.
- Building capacity across City teams empowers positive change.
- Technology should be secure, accessible, and make life easier.
The Department’s work is centered around four key focus areas including Civic Engagement, Digital Transformation, Data & Insights, and IT Operations and Maintenance. Our team collaborates interdepartmentally to innovate, improve processes, leverage data, empower citizens to participate in decision-making processes, and make access to municipal services more efficient. From improving the user-experience of City services to implementing open data initiatives that provide insights into government operations, staff is dedicated to creating a more inclusive and responsive government that serves the needs of all residents.
THE JOB
This is an exhilarating opportunity that puts this Civic Engagement Manager at the forefront of transforming community engagement, technology, and communication in the vibrant community of San Rafael. Reporting to the Director of Digital Service and Open Government, they will oversee the interdepartmental Communications Team and manage engagement operations in coordination with both the City Manager’s Office and other departments.
The Civic Engagement Manager will ensure that projects are completed on time, according to budget, and within the bounds of work contracts. They will direct website content strategy, guiding staff on user experience enhancements that will revolutionize the City's online presence. They will also take the reins on managing the City’s social media strategy, shaping its voice and swiftly responding to media inquiries. Providing critical creative direction for the City’s online presence is the key responsibility of this role – seizing the opportunity to lead crucial engagement strategies that promote equitable access to services and information!
UPCOMING PROJECTS & OPPORTUNITIES
- Communications Strategy: Establish an advanced strategy for communicating the City’s mission, vision, and values.
- Citywide Language Access Plan: Increase the accessibility of City services by establishing consistent guidelines and practices for multilingual engagement.
- Citywide Website Content Strategy: Coordinate with the website team to develop content strategy, oversee improvements to enhance the user experience.
- Public Comments & Requests Process: Coordinate with teams across the City to build best practices for responding to requests and questions from the community.
The City of San Rafael is an Equal Opportunity Employer
