Engagement Strategy Manager na King County, WA

About the Department

King County's Metro Transit Department has an exciting opportunity for an Engagement Strategy Manager (Strategic Planning Manager II) in the Rail Division Director's Office. This senior leader will report to Rail's Deputy Division Director and will work in partnership with employees, colleagues, and stakeholders to ensure that Metro provides world-class service while advancing the following strategic priorities within Rail: 

• Build a Culture of care 
• Provide operational excellence 
• Deliver on time expansions 
• Maintain healthy and resilient partnerships with Sound Transit and the Seattle Department of Transportation, our partners in Rail Service Delivery.

The Engagement Strategy Manager will be charged with leading and managing a high performing cross-functional team to coordinate manage and develop innovative internal employee engagement and communication initiatives for the Division, oversee Division project management activities that are designed to advance Rail's internal priorities, support our partnerships, and enable effective organizational growth. The Engagement Strategy Manager will be responsible for communicating effectively with employees across the Division, working collaboratively with leaders, administrative staff, employees, and Sound Transit to provide internal capacity and support for the Division to provide operational excellence to our riders.

This leadership role requires the ability to communicate effectively with diverse constituents, proactively solve problems, break down barriers, oversee change management, implement continuous improvement, and build employee engagement to create a culture of care in the Division. The ideal candidate in this position will be skilled in navigating an ambiguous work environment, have experience leading people, and be able to manage multiple competing priorities to successfully deliver a large body of work in a fast-paced environment. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in equity and social justice, with experience making improvements for historically disadvantaged employee groups.

This leadership role requires the ability to communicate effectively with diverse stakeholders, proactively solve problems, break down barriers, oversee change management, implement continuous improvement, and build employee engagement to create a culture of care in the Division. The ideal candidate in this position will be skilled in navigating an ambiguous work environment, have experience leading people, and be able to manage multiple, competing priorities to successfully deliver a large body of work in a fast-paced environment. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in equity and social justice, with experience making improvements for historically disadvantaged employee groups. 

Who May Apply

Application Requirements

• A complete online King County application, updated with accurate contact information, and relevant work history going back at least 10 years (or more, if necessary), with all job duties. 
• Responses to the Supplemental Questions
• Letter of Interest (1-2 pages) describing why you are interested in this opportunity and how you meet the qualifications for this position; highlighting experience leading and supervising people and delivering complex organization/agency-wide projects.

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Metro Transit's Rail Division is responsible for operating and maintaining Sound Transit's Link Light Rail service on a 24.5- mile route from Angle Lake to Northgate. By the middle of 2026, our Light Rail is expected to expand to nearly 60 route miles in length, with the planned addition of 19 more stations. These rail services complement Metro's robust fixed-route bus system and mobility services, and the Puget Sound transit agencies are working together to build an integrated system that lets people travel farther, faster, and more easily.

Position Duties

Applying equity and social justice principles is a daily responsibility and foundational expectation for all King County employees. In this role, you will apply equity and social justice principles that exemplify shared values, behaviors, and practices to all aspects of this work.  As Rail’s Engagement Strategy Manager, you will also:

• As a member of the Rail Senior Leadership Team, provide advice and support to Division leaders on Division priorities, employee engagement, continuous improvement, project management, change management, and implementation.
• Lead and supervise a team to implement and oversee internal employee engagement programs that are focused on front line staff and which include developing strategies that foster a sense of belonging, driving employee engagement and culture change, tracking key data and engagement metrics to measure success, and enhancing employee satisfaction and internal communication.
• Oversee and manage Division employee engagement events to celebrate front line staff.
• Lead and supervise a team to implement and oversee the project management strategy for the Division in collaboration with other Division project managers.
• Coordinate and integrate employee engagement, continuous improvement and project management efforts with Division leadership, including the Training Strategy Manager and Partnership Strategy Manager, as well as the seven Operational Section Managers in Rail.
• Promote a culture of care, inclusion and belonging with front-line staff and employees across the Division and within the Director's Office by:
  • Leading, helping develop, and motivating employees, helping them to recognize the important role they each play in achieving the overall agency goals and empowering them to perform accordingly.
  • Developing and delivering an engagement strategy for the operational lines of business in the Division.
  • Collaborating with Metro's Equity Inclusion and Belonging and Internal Communication partners to ensure that equity, inclusion and belonging is the foundation of Rail's culture of care.
• Lead and manage projects related to Division strategic priorities and ensure activities undertaken by the agency are managed responsibly and comply with all relevant laws, regulations, and County policies. Coordinate and align Rail's strategic work with other parts of Metro, King County, and Sound Transit.
• Develop annual budget, objectives, work priorities and work plans for the Director's Office.
• Other duties as assigned: may be assigned to special projects at the discretion of the hiring authority

Minimum Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications
We are looking for candidates who have the following:

• Option 1: A Bachelor's degree and three (3) years of experience in strategic planning, internal employee engagement, change management, project management and organizational development within a service delivery environment. 

OR  

• Option 2: An Associate’s degree and five (5) years of experience in strategic planning, internal employee engagement, change management, project management and organizational development within a service delivery environment. 

OR 

• Option 3: Six (6) or more years of experience in strategic planning, internal employee engagement, change management, project management and organizational development within a service delivery environment.  

Three (3) years of experience managing high profile strategic projects that are cross-disciplinary in nature, including: 

• Knowledge of strategic business planning techniques, principles and practices. 
• Knowledge of project management techniques and principles. 
• Effectively synthesizing information and making recommendations within and outside of established policies and procedures. 
• Making timely and quality decisions. 
• Working on a number of high-priority projects/tasks simultaneously. 

Three (3) years of experience in leading and supervising people including: 

• Supervising multidisciplinary staff.
• Developing and leading direct reports, furthering people's career goals, providing challenging and stretching tasks and assignments, and effectively developing all levels of staff.
• Engaging the workforce, empowering, teaching, and mentoring staff. 

• Deep commitment to equity, inclusion and belonging for all employees. 

• Experience with strategic communication and internal employee engagement including:

  • Demonstrated experience to communicating effectively in person and in writing.

  • Working effectively with diverse individuals and populations.

  • Passionate about creating positive and inclusive cultures that prioritize well-being and belonging of employees in a setting with diverse employees.

• Ability to work well and collaborate with key stakeholders to achieve good results including: 
  • Knowledge of how to build relationships and treat all employees and customers equitably, with respect and dignity, as well as solve problems for the good of all.
  • Resilience, problem-solving skills, and capacity to handle challenging situations with composure and effectiveness.

• Knowledge of and experience with the King County and Sound Transit relationship, working conditions, policies and procedures. 

• Ability to translate King County's policies and procedures into Rail's unique operating environment. 
• Experience working with labor, within unionized environments, and ability to respect established processes, fostering an environment of mutual respect.

Other Qualifications

Forbes recently named King County as one of Washington State's best employers.

Together, with leadership and our employees, we're changing the way government delivers service and winning national recognition as a model of excellence. Are you ready to make a difference? Come join the team dedicated to serving one of the nation's best places to live, work and play.


Guided by our "True North", we are making King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive. We value diversity, inclusion and belonging in our workplace and workforce. To reach this goal we are committed to workforce equity. Equitable recruiting, support, and retention is how we will obtain the highest quality workforce in our region; a workforce that shares and will help advance our guiding principles--we are one team; we solve problems; we focus on the customer; we drive for results; we are racially just; we respect all people; we lead the way; and we are responsible stewards. We encourage people of all backgrounds and identities to apply, including Native American and people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQ+, people living with disabilities, and veterans.

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.

Application & Selection Process 
Submit an online employment application and attach a cover letter at https://www.kingcounty.gov/jobs. Your cover letter should describe why you are interested in this opportunity and how you meet the qualifications for this position; highlighting experience leading and supervising people and delivering complex organization/agency-wide projects.

Applicants will be screened for competitiveness, completeness, and written communication skills. The most competitive candidates may be invited to participate in a test and one or more interviews. Applications that are not complete or do not include the required attachments may be disqualified and not advance in the process.

If you are interested in pursuing this position, please follow the application instructions carefully. If you need this announcement in an alternate language or format, would like to request accommodation or assistance in the application or assessment process, or if you have questions, please contact Skyler Jones at [email protected].

Work Schedule 
This classification is exempt from the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act and is therefore NOT eligible for overtime pay. Work schedule is normally a 40-hour week Monday through Friday. Alternate work schedules may be considered. Work outside of the normal workday will be required for meetings, events, and outreach events.  

Work Location
The primary location of this position is 3407 Airport Way S. Seattle, WA 98134.  This position will be expected to travel occasionally to the Operations and Maintenance Facility – East, located in Bellevue (1925 120th Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98005).
 
Teleworking Requirement
The work associated with this position will be performed predominantly in a hybrid work environment working in the office and at home. The expectation is to be in the office 3 days a week. Employees will have access to shared workspaces at various King County facilities. Employees must reside in Washington State and within a reasonable distance to their King County worksite to respond to workplace reporting requirements.
 
Employees will be provided with a County issued laptop and must maintain a workspace with an internet connection (access may be supplemented in some situations) where they can reliably perform work and remain available and responsive during scheduled work hours. Please note that when employee conducts work that is likely to bring them in contact with another individual, safety precautions are required, including the wearing of masks in some situations. King County is committed to reducing our carbon footprint.
 
King County has a robust collection of tools and resources to support working remotely. The individual selected for this opportunity will be joining an innovative and progressive team that is redefining how we work as we transition to the department's hybrid environment.  
 
Union Representation: This position is not represented by a union
Class Code: 2453100 Strategic Planning Manager II 
Questions about this recruitment? Contact Skyler Jones, 206-263-0629, [email protected]