Washington State

Description

Hybrid: Our physical office is in Olympia, WA. This position is flexible/hybrid, with the ability to telework, and some travel to in-person activities, meetings, and events are required.

Why work for OFM

The Office of Financial Management (OFM) serves as the backbone of Washington state government. Our vision at OFM is to work together for the equitable future of all Washingtonians. Our mission is to make our state a better place by connecting people, budgets, policies, data, and systems for state agencies and the Legislature.

We’re also committed to creating an environment that fosters our core values – Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging, Integrity, Innovation, Collaboration and Operational Excellence. All staff are expected to embed these values in their team and work. Join us in filling a key role in enhancing how state government serves its citizens, making a meaningful difference and taking public service to another level.

The job opportunity

We’re seeking a dynamic, strategic leader with a passion for people, policy, and public service. As the Deputy Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO), you’ll play a vital and high-impact role at the heart of statewide HR leadership. As a division leader, you'll play a critical role in shaping the future of our workforce and championing inclusive, equitable, and forward-thinking human resource practices across the enterprise.

In this leadership position, you'll guide core teams within our State Human Resources (SHR) division, including Labor Relations and Compensation Policy, Classification & Compensation, Rules & Appeals, and the Legislative/Planning and Strategy team. Your leadership will extend beyond the division, as you'll frequently represent the Chief Human Resources Officer in high-level meetings with elected officials, agency and institutional leaders, union representatives, and members of the HR community.

As a key advisor and empowered decision-maker, the Deputy CHRO exercises signature and appointing authority, serves as the final approver on classification and compensation matters, and represents the Governor in statewide collective bargaining and labor policy. This position offers more than leadership, it’s an opportunity to shape impactful policy, champion innovation, and make a lasting difference in public service.

Duties

What you’ll work on:

Oversight of the Labor Relations and Compensation Policy, Classification and Compensation, Rules & Appeals, and the Policy/Project management business Operations

• Lead section heads and policy/project staff across the SHR division, with supervision for 45 positions (with four direct reports) and oversight of three distinct budgets.
• Drive strategy for enterprise labor relations including biennial collective bargaining (32 contracts), classification/compensation system, and WAC 357.
• Collaborate with state agency leaders and OFM executives on statewide initiatives including budgeting, legal/legislative affairs, policymaking, and labor strategy.

Executive Leadership within the SHR division

• Lead and coach 80 SHR team members, driving alignment, development, and succession planning.
• Manage daily operations, cross-functional collaboration, and strategic decision-making.
• Design inclusive workflows, meetings, and communication to support SHR, OFM, and Governor’s priorities.
• Ensure enterprise-wide coordination, including the needs of small agencies and higher education.

Backup to the Chief Human Resources Officer

• Act on behalf of the CHRO for strategic planning, high-level decision-making, and public representation, including briefings with the Governor’s Office, legislative testimony, enterprise HR leadership, and national forums such as National Association of the State Personnel Executives (NASPE).
• Lead and manages sensitive initiatives such as executive orders, SHR directives, confidential investigations, and coordination with the Attorney General’s Office.

Legislative Session and Implementation Oversight

• Lead division-wide legislative strategy during session, reviewing workforce-related bills for impact, coordinating legal review, and escalating key issues to OFM leadership.
• Oversee post-session implementation of SHR-related legislation and enterprise-wide policy execution, including required reporting.

Oversight of ad-hoc Enterprise Workgroups

• Lead the creation and management of ad-hoc workgroups to address emerging enterprise priorities (e.g., COVID response, furloughs, wildfire recovery, hiring freezes), including forecasting needs, assembling cross-functional teams, and delivering timely resources and guidance.

Qualifications

What we need you to bring

Required Qualifications:

Note: We are evolving from degree/years of experience to skills-based qualifications, we encourage all people who believe they possess the skills/abilities below to share how within their resume and cover letter.

• Strong understanding of public sector HR systems and processes including recruitment, onboarding, classification & compensation, leave and benefits, workplace policies, labor relations, HR operations and collective bargaining.
• Understanding of full-cycle personnel investigations including conducting intakes, managing scope, reviewing reports and understanding of how employment and labor laws intersect with personnel investigations.
• Ability to write clear and concise issue papers, policy and bill analysis, Memorandums of Understanding, performance-related expectations and feedback, and executive summaries.
• Ability to use understanding of HR systems and labor laws to propose redesigns or modifications to how work is done that is still in compliance with labor laws but also creates more equitable outcomes for job candidates and employees.
• Understanding of diversity of people including race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, physical ability, neurodivergence, age, etc. with an ability to build equitable processes and systems that lead to more equal outcomes for the workforce.
• Ability to facilitate cross-sectional teams that lead to holistic decision-making.
• Ability to listen to understand and communicate in a way where team members from different backgrounds and with distinct communication styles all feel heard and understood.
• Ability to provide strategic direction, clear performance expectations, development, and guidance that creates high performing individuals/teams that achieve performance outcomes.
• Demonstrated expertise in labor law including contract interpretation, labor negotiations and due process, etc.
• Excellent emotional intelligence and regulation that can be demonstrated by having a strong self-awareness, ability to “read the room” and respond accordingly to achieve identified meeting outcomes, ability to deescalate emotionally charged conversations and people.
• Understanding of government systems, including how systems can create disparate outcomes with the ability to build and implement strategies to design new systems and processes that lead to more equal outcomes for all current and prospective state employees.
• Demonstrated ability to cross-collaborate with teams, stakeholders, customers, and other key partners in a way that achieves strategic outcomes that contribute to larger, cross-functional goals.

Desired Qualifications:

• Juris Doctorate in Labor and/or Employment Law
• Understanding/experience in Washington state government
• Understanding/experience of state authorizing environment
• Understanding/experience of labor friendly state environment
• Understanding/experience of state budgeting process

Core Competencies:

• Results Orientation & Initiative: Focus on results and desired outcomes and how best to achieve them. Identify what needs to be done and proactively takes appropriate action.
• Accountability: Accept personal responsibility for the quality and timeliness of work. Can be relied upon to achieve excellent results with limited need for oversight.
• Adaptability/Flexibility: Adapt easily to changing business needs, conditions and work responsibilities. Adapt approach, goals, and methods to achieve successful solution and results in dynamic situations.
• Customer Focus: Build and maintain internal and external customer relationships.
• Ethics and Integrity: Earn the trust, respect and confidence of co-workers and customer through consistent honesty, forthrightness and professionalism in all interactions.
• Relationship Building: Build constructive working relationships characterized by a high level of acceptance, cooperation and mutual respect. Demonstrated success in working cooperatively and effectively with multiple, diverse stakeholders.
• Communications: Exceptional interpersonal, written and oral communication skills that demonstrate the ability to engage groups of employees and stakeholders form differing backgrounds, profession and levels of position.
• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: Demonstrates a working knowledge of diversity, equity, and inclusion concepts such as privilege, anti-bias, and distancing / othering through education and personal relationships. Embraces the differences between people and groups of people.

We are invested in acquiring the best and most innovative candidate for the job, if you are excited about this role but your experience does not align perfectly with every qualification in this job posting. Don’t let doubts stop you, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may just be the needed candidate for this role.

Supplemental Information

What we offer:

At OFM, we foster a culture of integrity, innovation, inclusion, and belonging. We value both learned and lived experiences, believing that diversity makes us stronger. To support your health and well-being, we offer a variety of benefit programs for our employees.

Please visit our Recruitment site for a full list of benefits available to employees. Here’s a quick glance at some of the unique benefits that OFM offers:

• A culture that values and strives to advance diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging
• Tuition reimbursement
• Medical, Dental, Vision, and Life Insurance
• 12 paid holidays, 14 paid vacation days (minimum), and 12 days of sick leave per year
• State retirement programs

Application Process: Once you’ve decided to apply for a state government job, you’ll complete an online application to showcase your qualifications. Keep in mind that once you submit the application, a real person is going to read it. We do not use AI or other technology that screens your application. Please be sure to provide clear and detailed information about your work history so your qualifications can be accurately assessed. We will contact the top candidates directly to schedule interviews. If you need reasonable accommodation in applying, please call 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6384.

When completing your application, we encourage you to attach all of the following:

• Cover letter: describing your qualifications for this specific position
• Resume: that details your applicable experience and education.
• References: at least three professional references and their contact information.

Questions: OFM's Staff ASL interpreter is available to all deaf and hard of hearing applicants. For questions about this recruitment or to request a reasonable accommodation in the application or interview process, please email us at TalentAcquisition@ofm.wa.gov.

The Office of Financial Management is an equal opportunity employer. We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and gender identity diversity. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, persons of disability, persons over 40 years of age, and disabled and Vietnam-era veterans are encouraged to apply.

This position is exempt from civil service rules.

For more information, please see WAC 357-19-195.

More than Just a Paycheck!

Employee benefits are not just about the kind of services you get, they are also about how much you may have to pay out of pocket. Washington State offers one of the most competitive benefits packages in the nation.

We understand that your life revolves around more than just your career. Like everyone, your first priority is ensuring that you and your family will maintain health and financial security. That's why choice is a key component of our benefits package. We have a selection of health and retirement plans, paid leave, staff training and other compensation benefits that you can mix and match to meet your current and future needs.

Read about our benefits:

The following information describes typical benefits available for full-time employees who are expected to work more than six months. Actual benefits may vary by appointment type or be prorated for other than full-time work (e.g. part-time); view the job posting for benefits details for job types other than full-time.

Note: If the position offers benefits which differ from the following, the job posting should include the specific benefits.

Insurance Benefits

Employees and their families are covered by medical (including vision), dental and basic life insurance. There are multiple medical plans with affordable monthly premiums that offer coverage throughout the state.

Staff are eligible to enroll each year in a medical flexible spending account which enables them to use tax-deferred dollars toward their health care expenses. Employees are also covered by basic life and long-term disability insurance, with the option to purchase additional coverage amounts.

To view premium rates, coverage choice in your area and how to enroll, please visit the Public Employees Benefits Board (PEBB) website. The Washington Wellness program from the Health Care Authority works with PEBB to support our workplace wellness programs.

Dependent care assistance allows the employee to save pre-tax dollars for a child or elder care expenses.

Other insurance coverage for auto, boat, home, and renter insurance is available through payroll deduction.

The Washington State Employee Assistance Program promotes the health and well-being of employees.

Retirement and Deferred Compensation

State Employees are members of the Washington Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS). New employees have the option of two employer contributed retirement programs. For additional information, check out the Department of Retirement Systems' web site.

Employees also have the ability to participate in the Deferred Compensation Program (DCP). This is a supplemental retirement savings program (similar to an IRA) that allows you control over the amount of pre-tax salary dollars you defer as well as the flexibility to choose between multiple investment options.

Social Security

All state employees are covered by the federal Social Security and Medicare systems. The state and the employee pay an equal amount into the system.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

If you are employed by a government or not-for-profit organization, and meet the qualifying criteria, you may be eligible to receive student loan forgiveness under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.

Holidays

Full-time and part-time employees are entitled to paid holidays and one paid personal holiday per calendar year.

Note: Employees who are members of certain Unions may be entitled to additional personal leave day(s), please refer to position specific Collective Bargaining Agreements for more information.

Full-time employees who work full monthly schedules qualify for holiday compensation if they are employed before the holiday and are in pay status for at least 80 nonovertime hours during the month of the holiday; or for the entire work shift preceding the holiday.

Part-time employees who are in pay status during the month of the holiday qualify for the holiday on a pro-rata basis. Compensation for holidays (including personal holiday) will be proportionate to the number of hours in pay status in the month to that required for full-time employment, excluding all holiday hours. Pay status includes hours worked and time on paid leave.

Sick Leave

Full-time employees earn eight hours of sick leave per month. Overtime eligible employees who are in pay status for less than 80 hours per month, earn a monthly proportionate to the number of hours in pay status, in the month to that required for full-time employment. Overtime exempt employees who are in pay status for less than 80 hours per month do not earn a monthly accrual of sick leave.

Sick leave accruals for part-time employees will be proportionate to the number of hours in pay status, in the month to that required for full-time employment. Pay status includes hours worked, time on paid leave and paid holiday.

Vacation (Annual Leave)

Full-time employees accrue vacation leave at the rates specified in WAC 357-31-165(1) or the applicable collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Full-time employees who are in pay status for less than 80 nonovertime hours in a month do not earn a monthly accrual of vacation leave.

Part-time employees accrue vacation leave hours in accordance with WAC 357-31-165(1) or the applicable collective bargaining agreement (CBA) on a pro rata basis. Vacation leave accrual will be proportionate to the number of hours in pay status, in the month to that required for full-time employment.

Pay status includes hours worked, time on paid leave and paid holiday.

As provided in WAC 357-58-175, an employer may authorize a lump-sum accrual of vacation leave or accelerate the vacation leave accrual rate to support the recruitment and/or retention of a candidate or employee for a Washington Management Service position. Vacation leave accrual rates may only be accelerated using the rates established WAC 357-31-165.

Note: Most agencies follow the civil service rules covering leave and holidays for exempt employees even though there is no requirement for them to do so. However, agencies are required to adhere to the applicable RCWs pertaining holidays and leave.

Military Leave

Washington State supports members of the armed forces with 21 days paid military leave per year.

Bereavement Leave

Most employees whose family member or household member dies, are entitled to three (3) days of paid bereavement leave. In addition, the employer may approve other available leave types for the purpose of bereavement leave.

Additional Leave

Leave Sharing

Parental Leave

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

Leave Without Pay

Please visit the State HR Website for more detailed information regarding benefits.

Updated 12-31-2022

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