Deputy County Manager

Mecklenburg County

ORGANIZATION:
Mecklenburg County is home to over a million residents and the City of Charlotte. With 6.9 million residents within 100 miles, Mecklenburg County and Charlotte lie in the heart of a region that is the sixth largest urban area in the United States. Mecklenburg County has the largest population of any county in the State of North Carolina. The County includes the City of Charlotte; the towns of Cornelius, Davidson, and Huntersville (north of Charlotte); and the towns of Matthews, Mint Hill, and Pineville (south and southeast of Charlotte). With a world-renowned park and recreation system, a range of professional and minor league sports teams, and diverse communities, people who come to Mecklenburg County find an energized downtown (also known as “Uptown”) and a variety of living options. This access has helped attract several Fortune 500 and 1000 companies that bring millions of investment dollars into the local economy.

With an annual operating budget of $2.5 billion and over 6,000 employees, Mecklenburg County is governed by the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners (BOCC). The BOCC is a nine-member board made up of representatives elected from six single-member districts, and three at-large representatives elected by the entire county. Mecklenburg County contains seven municipalities including the City of Charlotte.

As one of the largest counties in North Carolina, Mecklenburg County is recognized by Niche.com, a market leader in connecting colleges and schools with students and families, as one of the Best Counties for Families in North Carolina (#2), Best Counties for Young Professionals in North Carolina (#2), and Most Diverse Counties in North Carolina (#3). Mecklenburg County has also been recognized as one of the hottest housing markets in 2024 (#7) by Zillow.

For more information please visit MeckNC.gov.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
The Deputy County Manager performs highly complex managerial and administrative work by providing direction and oversight to the daily operations of assigned departments and divisions for Mecklenburg County. This position serves on the Executive Team for the County and is responsible for assisting the County Manager with broad policy and long-range planning, organization, and direction of County government, and directing and managing administrative operations of the County Manager’s Office. Other responsibilities include participating in strategic business planning and budgeting; facilitating the development and implementation of policy proposals; leading focus area leadership teams to achieve strategic initiatives; representing the County with elected officials, other jurisdictions, citizen advisory boards, and public forums; responding to constituents; evaluating performance of assigned County departments, program categories and/or services to ensure prompt, efficient, and effective service delivery. The position is currently being recruited as a result of internal promotions.

Specific duties will include, but not necessarily be limited to:

Assist the County Manager with the development and/or implementation of broad County plans, goals and objectives, performance measures, and other strategic business functions.
Confer with the County Manager regarding developments, council directives, and other issues pertaining to the operation of County government.
Direct the daily operations of the County government by providing guidance and direction to subordinate department heads and managers, while keeping the County Manager apprised of issues regarding daily operations.
Ensure that programs, services, and systems directly support the County mission.
Assist managers with the formulation of division/department plans that support the broader County goals and objectives.
Discuss budget issues and developments with department heads and managers, and ensure that budget amendments are appropriate, documented, and support the County’s goals and objectives.
Ensure that human resources actions are enforced to meet compliance with state, federal, and local regulations, and support County goals and objectives.
Perform a variety of administrative duties associated with supervising staff, to include hiring, assigning work, providing guidance and direction, evaluating performance, and taking disciplinary action as necessary.
Identify resources and staff needed to complete special projects; develops project plans and schedules; directs committees, task forces, and other parties assigned to special projects; provides status reports, study findings and recommendations, and oversees implementation of approved plans and initiatives.
Represent the County to local businesses, community organizations, citizen groups, and the general public, and respond to inquiries and/or complaints from the general public that cannot be resolved by managers.
Serve as a member of the executive team, making action/response decisions during emergencies.
Directly supervise division and/or department operations as dictated by vacancies and/or unique circumstances.
Other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS / SKILLS / KNOWLEDGE / ABILITIES:

Minimum of seven years of progressively responsible leadership experience and managing municipal division, programs, and operations.
Knowledge of principles, practices, and procedures of public human resources administration and management.
Knowledge of statistical concepts and methods.
Knowledge of federal legislation and court decisions concerning timekeeping, equal opportunity, and affirmative action.
Knowledge of budgetary process.
Knowledge of principles and techniques of modern office management and procedures.
Build Partnerships: Identify opportunities and take action to build strategic relationships between one’s area and other areas, teams, departments, units, or organizations to help achieve business goals.
Facilitate Change: Encourage others to seek opportunities for different and innovative approaches to addressing problems and opportunities; facilitate the implementation and acceptance of change within the workplace.
Gain Commitment: Use appropriate interpersonal styles and techniques to gain acceptance of ideas or plans.
Drive for Results: Set high goals for personal and group accomplishment; use measurement methods to monitor progress toward goals.
Strategic Decision Making: Obtain information and identify key issues and relationships relevant to achieving a long-range goal or vision; commit to a course of action to accomplish a long-range goal or vision after developing alternatives based on logical assumptions, facts, available resources, constraints, and organizational values.
Stress Tolerance: Maintain stable performance under pressure or opposition (such as time pressure or job ambiguity); handle stress in a manner that is acceptable to others and to the organization.
Leadership Disposition: Demonstrate the traits, inclinations, and dispositions that characterize successful leaders; exhibit behavior styles that meet the demands of the leader role.
Leading Through Vision and Values: Keep the organization’s vision and values at the forefront of associate decision-making and action.
Leveraging Diversity: Work effectively with individuals of diverse cultures, interpersonal styles, abilities, motivations, or backgrounds; make the most effective use of the capabilities, insights, and ideas of all individuals.
Bachelor’s degree in business, public administration, or a related field required; a master’s degree in Public Administration (MPA) or Business Administration (MBA) is preferred.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:
Compensation will be commensurate with experience including a competitive base salary and a generous benefits package, including medical, dental, vision care, flexible spending accounts, short- and long-term disability, as well as basic and supplemental term life insurance. The selected candidate will be automatically enrolled into the North Carolina Local Government Retirement System upon their employment. In addition, there is optional participation in one of the two deferred compensation plans, a 457 Plan or 401(k) Plan, with a 5% match from the County.

APPLICATION AND SELECTION PROCESS:
To apply, provide a referral, or obtain additional information, please use the contact information below. Interested candidates may submit a cover letter and resume via email directly to [email protected] to apply. Resumes will be screened based on the criteria outlined above. Please visit MeckNC.gov to learn more about the municipality.

Mecklenburg County is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity at all levels of its workforce.