🚀 Policy, Planning, and Strategic Support Deputy Director

The Office of the City Manager (CMO) provides strategic leadership that supports the Mayor and City Council in making public policy decisions and ensures the organization is delivering cost-effective services that meet the needs of our community with the highest standards of quality and customer service. The City Manager’s Office also serves to guide fiscal and change management, the building and development of our workforce, and development of long term, data driven strategies that invest in the City’s future. The City Manager has designated five foundational strategic support areas aimed at ensuring organizational health and improving service delivery to the community. These five foundational strategic support areas include: delivering excellent customer service; closing racial and social inequities; structurally balancing the General Fund; driving organizational performance, and making San José a great place to work.

The City Manager’s Office of Administration, Policy and Intergovernmental Relations (API) is responsible for administrative support, policy analysis, and intergovernmental affairs. Administrative duties include oversight, management, and planning of the City Manager's Office budget, contract development and management, fiscal and purchasing services, hiring and retention of staff in the City Manager's Office, management of administrative staff, strategic and operational support for city-wide initiatives, and coordination of multi-departmental Public Record Act (PRA) requests. Policy duties include City Council and Committee agenda services and tracking of referrals, oversight of the design of complex, interdepartmental or interjurisdictional policy and special initiatives, support of program evaluations, strategic planning efforts, and the strategic support for the City Council’s and City Manager’s focus areas. Intergovernmental Relations duties include tracking, monitoring and advocating for legislation at the federal, state, and local levels, and oversight of the state and federal lobbying contracts.

The City of San José seeks an experienced policy professional to lead the planning, policy, and strategic support functions and team, reporting to the API Director. In collaboration with the Director, oversight of this portfolio requires reviewing and tracking policy proposals, leading and managing policy analysis and implementation, major initiative planning and consultation, providing timely and thorough research and data-analytics support for key city priorities and ballot measure initiatives, facilitating and participating in strategic planning exercises, supporting executive staff in cross-departmental planning and management and committees, and ensuring high quality, timely services are delivered to the organization and the public through agenda services.

This position is classified as a Deputy Director and communicates regularly with senior and executive staff, elected members and their staff, and key external partners to exchange information on City issues.

Key Position Responsibilities

• Oversee API’s policy, planning, and strategic support portfolio by managing and mentoring team members and advising them through a public policy lens to develop, organize, manage, and communicate effective policy solutions to key partners and elected bodies;
• Coordinate complex policy issues with senior and executive staff, including research and policy analysis, to develop comprehensive understandings of policy challenges and execute the City’s policy strategy;
• Identify emerging issues and develop position documents, memorandums, and presentations to support the City’s public policy formation (internally and externally);
• Coordinate public policy issues with the intergovernmental relations team to ensure representation on issues is aligned with the City’s overall strategic plan, vision, adopted legislative priorities and policies;
• Maintain awareness of policy issues and program activities affecting City operations and develop and maintain close working relationships with teams across City Departments and Offices to advise on emerging issues;
• Develop and enhance positive, effective relationships with policymakers and other agencies and representatives;
• Represent the Director at committees and forums; act as staff support for City Council committees; and,
• Commit to promoting and supporting an environment of diversity and inclusion.

• Education/Experience: A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in public administration, business administration, or a discipline related to the business performed by the department, AND six (6) years of management and/or administrative experience in government or private business/industry. A Master’s degree is preferred and may be substituted for one (1) year of the required experience.
• Licenses/Certificates: Possession of a valid license authorizing operation of a motor vehicle in California may be required. Certain positions may require possession of a specialized certificate, license, and/or registration related to a specific area of responsibility.
• Form 700 Requirement: This position requires a disclosure of outside investments, real property interest, income, and business positions. You must complete and file an “Assuming Office Form 700” with the City Clerk’s Office within the first 30 days of employment with the office.

The ideal candidate is excited to work on the hardest, sometimes most controversial, issues affecting cities and enjoys working with people and in a team environment. They will have experience and demonstrated success in a wide variety of highly visible, complex policy issues or legislative affairs. They are confident, politically astute, racial equity focused, and customer service driven when leading large inter‑department, inter‑disciplinary teams on complex policy and program issues.

They will be able to quickly learn the City of San José’s processes, systems, and priorities with respect to City Service Areas, reporting Committees, Council Focus Areas, and Enterprise Priorities. The successful candidate will represent the Director in various public forums and meetings. This person is a team player and enjoys overseeing highly‑driven and highly‑skilled staff. They will champion Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI), inspire, and engage others as they bring about change. This person will have strategic agility, drive for results, demonstrate outstanding leadership skills, and enjoy collaborating with other City departments and elected officials of all political perspectives. The ideal candidate must have outstanding verbal and written communication skills with the ability to write complex memorandums, make direct and effective public presentations and translate complex policy issues to non‑expert audiences.

The ideal candidate will possess the following competencies and related skills, as demonstrated from past and current employment history:

• Vision/Strategic Thinking : Supports, promotes, and ensures alignment with the organization’s vision and values; understands how an organization must change in light of internal and external trends and influences; builds a shared vision with others and influences others to translate vision to action. Experience in the development and implementation of strategies to solve complex organization business and municipal problems.
• Leadership : Leads by example; demonstrates high ethical standards; remains visible and approachable and interacts with others on a regular basis; promotes a cooperative work environment, allowing others to learn from mistakes; provides motivational supports and direction. Demonstrate a positive attitude and flexibility to change, and a high tolerance for ambiguity. Maintain steady leadership in challenging and fluid situations.
• Management : Strong project management experience. Proficiency in guiding data‑informed and community‑driven decision making. Strong administrative, budgeting, organizational, and planning skills. Evaluates priorities to ensure the ‘true’ top priorities are handled satisfactorily; sets clear goals for the employees and the work unit. Detail‑oriented and can balance strategic‑level thinking with managing day‑to‑day tasks on multiple projects simultaneously.
• Job Expertise : Demonstrates knowledge of and experience with applicable professional/technical principles and practices, Citywide and departmental procedures/policies and federal and state rules and regulations.
• Supervision : Sets effective long and short‑term goals based on a good understanding of management practices; establishes realistic priorities within available resources; provides motivational support; empowers others; assigns decision‑making and work functions to others in an appropriate manner to maximize organizational and individual effectiveness.
• Communication Skills : Effectively conveys information and expresses thoughts and facts clearly, orally and in writing; demonstrates effective use of listening skills; displays openness to other people’s ideas and thoughts. Strong meeting preparation and facilitation skills.
• Teamwork & Interpersonal Skills : Develops effective relationships with co‑workers and supervisors by helping others accomplish tasks and using collaboration and conflict resolution skills.

Application and Selection Process

The selection process will consist of an evaluation of the applicant's training and experience based on the application and responses to the job‑specific questions. You must fill out the online application available on the City of San José website. As part of this process, you will be required to answer three supplemental questions. References to resumes will be considered incomplete and your application withheld from further consideration. Please limit your response to no more than two pages.

SUPPLEMENTAL QUESTIONS

1. What is the highest level of education you have completed?
   • High School Diploma or the equivalent (GED)
   • College (1 to 29 semester units/ 1 to 44 quarter units)
   • College (30 to 59 semester units/ 45 to 89 quarter units)
   • College (60 to 89 semester units/ 90 to 134 quarter units)
   • College (90 to 119 semester units/ 135 to 179 quarter units)
   • College (120 or more semester units/ 180 or more quarter units)
   • Associate's Degree
   • Bachelor's Degree
   • Master's Degree
   • Doctoral Degree
   • Other
   • None of the above
2. The Policy, Planning, and Strategic Support Deputy Director position is required to oversee or support many high‑priority projects simultaneously. How would you approach managing a diverse portfolio with several high‑priority projects or policies? How do you ensure the delivery of high quality and timely deliverables for people on your team?
3. This position is all about working with and supporting people outside of your team, often on highly visible, complex, and politicized projects. Can you give us an example of when you led a complex and politically sensitive project? How did you bring stakeholders together? What was the outcome? What lessons did you learn?
4. What makes you excited to work for the City of San José and the City Manager’s Office of Administration, Policy, and Intergovernmental Relations (API) specifically?

This position will remain open until filled, with a first review pull date of Monday, November 17, 2025. To apply, please complete an application via the City of San José’s Job Opportunities website.

Those candidates with experience and training that best match the position will move forward to the next phase of the selection process, which will include interview(s) and reference checks. Candidates deemed to have the most relevant qualifications will be invited to panel interviews that are tentatively scheduled between Friday, November 21, 2025 and Friday, December 5, 2025.

If you have questions, comments, or concerns about the recruitment, selection, or hiring process, please contact Edwin Huertas, Senior Executive Analyst, at or

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