Assistant Director Of People & Culture

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF PEOPLE & CULTURE

Land Acknowledgement

Waterfront Park is situated on the land of the Coast Salish peoples, who have resided here since time immemorial and continue to thrive. With respect and humility, we acknowledge the history of the waterfront, the dispossession of land fromthe CoastSalish people, and, most importantly, the strength and resilience of Native people and their culture through this history and to the present.

The Role

Reporting directly to the COO, the Assistant Director of People & Culture will lead human resources related processes, policies, strategies, and internal work culture for the purpose of supporting staff through:

• Centering equity and people in all human resources work
• Fostering an organizational culture of trust and collaboration
• Recruiting, hiring, and retaining staff dedicated to achieving Friends' work and mission.
• Advancing the organization's disability and accessibility efforts.

About Friends of Waterfront Seattle

Friends of Waterfront Seattle (Friends) is a 501c3 non-profit. Through a public-private partnership with the City of Seattle, Friends is leading operations, fundraising, programming, public safety investments, and long-term stewardship of Waterfront Park now and for generations to come. This model of a nonprofit managing and ensuring the success of a park is common across major U.S. cities, including Friends of the Highline and Brooklyn Bridge Parks Conservancy in New York, and Friends of the Underline in Miami.

Nearly 15 years in the making, Waterfront Park project represents a grand community vision for reimagining Seattle's waterfront in the footprint of the old viaduct, a 1950's infrastructure; creating a new kind of civic and cultural space. Seattle is a city known for innovation and Waterfront Park represents that spirit - it is so much more than simply a park. Waterfront Park is creating 20-acres of green space, inviting locals and visitors to reconnect with the water, the mountains, and each other. It will run from Belltown to Pioneer Square, and has a large urban footprint for programming, activation, and other park uses. Opening in 2025, Waterfront Park will serve as a fresh cultural anchor for downtown, offering free public programming co-curated with communities from across the region.

Friends' vision goes far beyond the park's 20 acres. Alongside the City of Seattle, we envision a common space that is truly safe and welcoming to everyone; a space that is centered in equity. Friends has an opportunity and an inherent responsibility to disrupt patterns of exclusion and serve as a model for public spaces in Seattle and around the country. We have already made progress by working to establish strong community ties and trust and delivering BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) community led programs at Pier 62, the first piece of the park to open to the public.

Equity Commitment

Friends recognizes and acknowledges historic and existing systemic racism embedded in our city. We are committed to becoming an anti-racist organization by prioritizing racial equity within the organization and in the public spaces we operate.

Responsibilities

Community Engagement, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Access

• Center and embed the Friends' diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) values and goals into every aspect of the staff culture, workplace.
• Collaborate with the People and Culture team and other stakeholders to create, revise, and track stated DEIA goals.
• Contribute to an inclusive workplace culture; adhere to and help evolve Friends' Community Agreements.
• Propel a culture of inclusion while collaborating cross departmentally within Friends.
• Engage in regular conversations about race, disability, and equity through organizational conversations including all-staff meetings and trainings.
• Project management staff-wide continuing education, trainings, workshops to advance DEIA, including race-based caucusing.
• Identify and address barriers to employment with Friends for historically marginalized communities.
• Maintain relationships and resources to address access needs of individuals living with a disability. Assist staff in the provisioning and use of these resources. (ASL interpreters, captioning services, sensory resources, etc.)
• Partner with the Community Impact Senior Manager to facilitate an accessibility committee. Coordinate with staff to implement the committee's recommendations.
• Act as the primary contact for public accessibility requests.

Team/Organizational Culture & Development

• The People and Culture Manager works with staff and volunteers throughout the organization. They work most closely with the COO, People and Culture/DEIA consultant, Accessibility consultant and Finance Manager who support and partner with them in accomplishing their duties.
• Partner with the Senior Leadership Team to build a strong team culture and a courageous, safe, supportive and nurturing environment that fosters trust, collaboration and productivity.
• Support the hybrid work culture that maintains the appropriate safety protocols for events and office working situations.
• Administer annual staff reflection and feedback process.

Human Resources Management

• Lead with an anti-oppressive and racially equitable lens that is mindful of federal, state, and local employment laws and regulations, and recommend best practices in line with people-centered internal policies.
• With the support of the COO, lead hiring processes, creating job descriptions, postings, setting up interviews and partnering with hiring managers to recruit, hire, onboard and retain new staff.
• Lead the management, organization, and related staff training of all human resources related systems, functions, strategies and goals. Collaborate with the leadership team in coordinating and tracking other staff trainings and professional development.
• Lead the organizing, electronic filing, documentation and maintenance of all human resources processes, policies and procedures, including the employee handbook.
• Participate in the planning and execution of staff social events as a member of the "Fun Times" committee.
• Provide a safe, and when needed confidential, space for employees and volunteers to express concerns and grievances. Support the resolution of concerns and grievances when appropriate.
• Support accessibility, disability justice, and inclusion by encouraging knowledge-sharing, internal staff support, and facilitating training that advance Friends' DEIA goals.
• Create and manage an effective onboarding program to ensure new employees are welcome and supported and can be effective in fulfilling their job duties.
• Support, and work with the Senior Leadership Team to improve staff wellness benefits, compliance notices, enrollments, changes, terminations, annual plan renewals, and open enrollment process.
• Lead external human resources processes, legal matters, mediation processes, conflict resolution related matters using an anti-oppressive, racially equitable, trauma-informed approach.
• Manage the HR documentation such as generating employee offer letters, collecting new-hire paperwork, documenting exit interviews, etc.
• Attend leadership meetings, updating the leadership team on the overall organizational culture and emerging issues, new developments in HR law, policy, and guidelines.
• With the COO, manage and define the People and Culture budget.
• Evaluate options for internship, volunteer and supported employee programs. Oversee the creation of these programs should they be deemed an effective part of Friends' People and Culture strategy.

Minimum Qualifications

• Deep interest in understanding a range of diverse cultural differences and the ability to work effectively with people from a range of social, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds
• A commitment to incorporating the practices and ethos of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice (DEIJ) in all facets of your work
• At least 3-5 years of experience in People & Culture and/or Human Resources
• HR experience operating through an anti-oppressive lens that centers human dignity and lived experiences of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color
• Project management experience, including leading collaborative processes with co-workers, direct staff support, and building structures and strategies and for HR operations that are people-centered
• Experience supporting, facilitating, and leading training, mediation, and conflict related matters operating through a trauma informed lens
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience
• Strong communication skills
• Excellent time management skills, with the ability to manage multiple projects and meet deadlines
• Ability to handle sensitive information in a confidential manner
• Ability to work collegially as a member of a team and help ensure coordinated, integrated, and efficient workflow
• Expert use of Microsoft Office Products (Teams, SharePoint, Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
• A strategic thinker, a data-driven ability to evaluate effectiveness to improve organizational culture
• Detail-oriented, with strong project management skills, with the ability to handle multiple deadlines on a variety of projects simultaneously.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively and effectively as a member of a leadership team.
• Ability to thrive in an environment that requires nimbleness, working through ambiguity, and responding to fast-paced, evolving opportunities.

Desired Qualifications

• Experience working in a non-profit organization or a public space
• BambooHR experience
• Experience with project management tools (e.g., Asana)

Other Requirements

• This position is contingent on passing a criminal background check.

Working Conditions

• This position is a hybrid role with at least 60% of the work being in-person at our office on the waterfront and in the community. The hybrid nature of this position, and the required days in person are subject to change based on the needs of the organization.
• While typical office hours are Monday-Friday, 9-5, Friends is an event-based, seasonal organization. During peak event season (roughly May-September) and other special events, many employees work a higher percentage of their time in-person including some evenings and weekends.
• Office employees are expected to staff some events during the summer season.
• Exempt employees are asked to work a flexible schedule as determined by volume of work; however, the organization works hard to ensure proper work-life balance and to prevent burnout.
• About the office space:
• Our office is on the second floor. There is elevator access at the front entrance.
• Most separate rooms and offices have braille labels.
• The office building contains a parent's room, a wellness room, a kitchen, as well as several quiet meeting rooms.

The physical requirements of this role listed below are representative of those that may need to be met by an employee in this role:

• Operating a computer and other office equipment.
• Ability to work in an open office format with a fluctuating noise level - Friends' office is located on the waterfront. Music and ferry horns can often be heard from the office. However, noise cancelling headphones and other accommodations are provided. Noise levels are low to moderate in the office.

Compensation and Benefits

The annual salary for this role will be between $92,000 to $113,000.

Relocation assistance available.

Benefits include employer paid medical, dental, life, and vision insurance, paid time off, WA PFML and additional supplement, ORCA card, and a 3% retirement account match.

How to Apply

Please upload a cover letter that answers the following:

1. What attracts you to this role and Friends of Waterfront Seattle?
2. Friends is committed to prioritizing racial equity internally and within the public spaces we operate. Describe your journey to understanding anti-racism and anti-oppression. How might you embed those values into this role at Friends? How do you live these values in your day-to-day life and habits?
3. What are some approaches you would take to truly promote an inclusive workplace and staff culture?

Friends is committed to improving hiring practices to be more inclusive and anti-ableist. We have reviewed the job requirements and only include physical abilities when completely necessary. During the interview process, we email the panel questions ahead of time. We are also able to provide captioning and/or interpretation (e.g., ASL) if requested. If you need specific assistance and/or accommodation during the application or recruiting process, please let us know by emailing our People & Culture team athiring@waterfrontparkseattle.org.

Applications will be accepted until the position is filled, but priority will be given to applications received by January 11, 2023.Please note that this position is also accepting applications internally. Priority will be given to internal applicants, and the job will be taken down if/when it is filled.