Strategic Planning Manager I

King County Metro’s Mobility Division is seeking an experienced organizational transformation expert to deliver major, mission‑critical organizational changes underway in the division. This position will be primarily for major transformation initiatives, including leading a program to integrate Metro’s flexible transportation services portfolio, leading a project to streamline and modernize the division’s core administrative functions, and managing a project to increase the division’s ability to monitor and control financial performance. Changes of this scale, complexity and urgency require a leader who can see the big picture while managing interconnected changes in our workforce, organizational structure, financial and contracting approaches, and the technology we use to bring it all together. We are looking for passionate change‑makers with demonstrated ability to effectively initiate projects, lead diverse workgroups, and build coalitions at all levels of a large, complex organization. The most competitive candidates bring a strong combination of the skills and knowledge required to lead the technical, operational, and people sides of transformation. Strategic Planning Lead strategic business planning, communications, and budget development efforts. Develop strategies to achieve Metro’s strategic goals, including overseeing the development of holistic organizational transformation strategies, operational plans, resourcing and cost management plans, and detailed project implementation plans to ensure successful change. Participate as a core leadership team member and ensure consistency of activities with organizational mission and goals; develop annual objectives, work priorities, and work plans. Ensure a consistent approach to strategic planning across the division; track and ensure effective implementation of strategic plans across the division. Project and Program Management Serve as transformation program director bringing together groups of related projects in a clear and efficiently managed way; serve as project manager on major transformation projects that include operationalizing the integration of flexible services across the Mobility Division and supporting the organization changes needed for this alignment. Initiate projects, including defining scope, schedule, resource planning, and project team structure. Analyze business needs, design appropriate project methodology, and plan project work. Manage, monitor and report on completion of project tasks and deliverables. Lead and convene cross-departmental project teams. Track, analyze and manage risks, issues and decision-making necessary to deliver projects. Coordinate work and manage dependencies with other Metro projects. Manage project communications and stakeholder engagement. Manage contract and matrixed resources as part of unified project teams, including contract procurement, vendor performance management, financial controls, and closeout. Ensure on-time completion and closeout of project deliverables. Ensure consistent governance and reporting across division’s portfolio of transformation projects and programs. Organizational Change Management Conduct change readiness analysis. Define and implement change plan to ensure adoption of behavioral, structural, and technical changes required to ensure successful transformation, including employee change communications, executive and sponsor engagement, action planning and creation of deliverables needed to support this work. Serve as organizational change management lead and expert consultant within major projects. Track and report progress on change plan progress. Serve as visible change management lead across division efforts. Core Qualifications Demonstrated expertise leading organizational changes involving people, operational and technology. Excellent organizational and project management skills. Demonstrated ability to manage all phases of complex projects with diverse project teams. Demonstrated ability facilitating group decision‑making. Demonstrated experience delivering projects in a highly matrixed organizational structure. Ability to distill complex technical information into effective messages for a variety of audiences. Skill in consulting, facilitating, and influencing at senior leadership levels. Demonstrated ability to analyze, plan for, and manage major organizational changes. Strong persuasion skills. Skill in working collaboratively with individual contributors, customers, and senior leadership to bring positive change. Skill in analyzing information, solving complex challenges, and making recommendations based on analysis. Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively and successfully with a diverse group of individuals from a variety of different positions and backgrounds. Ability to create clarity among teams working on related or interdependent projects. Ability to manage multiple and shifting priorities. Desirable Qualifications Portfolio of successful organizational transformation efforts in a large, complex operational organization. Certifications in organizational change management (PROSCI or similar), project management (PMP or similar), and/or process improvement (LEAN/Six Sigma greenbelt or similar). Demonstrated experience designing and implementing project team and/or portfolio governance structures. Demonstrated experience driving adoption of major new technologies in a large organization. Facilitation skills with demonstrated ability to design, run and facilitate meetings. Training and experience in collaborative problem‑solving, group decision‑making and/or innovation processes. Training and experience in organizational design. Experience working in public transit systems and/or local government. Familiarity with public‑sector contracting, financial management and accountability requirements. Knowledge or experience with continuous improvement and development of standard work. Work Schedule Work schedule is normally Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. This position is exempt from the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act and is therefore not eligible for overtime pay. Union Representation Not represented by a union. Work Location This is a hybrid position. The team works in a hybrid model, with days in the office as well as telecommuting. Currently the team is required to work 3 days in office each week. The ratio of remote to onsite work will be dependent on business needs and is subject to change. The primary onsite location is King Street Center, 201 S. Jackson, Seattle, Washington 98104. Employees must reside in Washington state and within a reasonable distance to their King County worksite to respond to workplace reporting requirements. The County provides a laptop and requires a reliable home workspace with internet connectivity during scheduled work hours. Equal Employment Opportunity King County is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer. No person is unlawfully excluded from employment opportunities based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), age, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or other protected class. Our EEO policy applies to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, selection for training, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation. #J-18808-Ljbffr King County