Local Public Health System Workforce Manager

Local Public Health System Workforce Manager

The Washington State Association of Local Public Health Officials (WSALPHO) is a membership organization representing and convening the 35 local health jurisdictions across Washington State. We aim to collaborate with other public health agencies to advance public health, educate and inform policymakers on local health issues, advocate for public health policy, and empower local health departments. WSALPHO is an affiliate of the Washington Association of Counties (WSAC), which provides administrative and operational support to the association.

Position Overview

A responsive, resilient, and well-supported governmental public health system is essential to the health and economic vitality of Washington’s communities. Protecting the public’s health is a core governmental responsibility that depends on a skilled, diverse, and sustainable workforce. Over the next decade, Washington State estimates that it will need an additional 1,000 public health workers to meet its core responsibilities. 800 of these workers will be hired at the local level. The need for coordinated, consistent, and accessible training and orientation is critical to onboarding our incoming local health workforce.

WSALPHO’s membership has tasked the organization with leading and coordinating a statewide approach to local public health workforce development. This includes:

• Assessing local public health system workforce needs to identify current and forward focused priorities.
• Designing and implementing standardized onboarding and orientation systems
• Expanding access to workforce training and continuing education
• Supporting leadership development and succession planning
• Developing and advancing workforce recruitment and retention strategies
• Strengthening workforce pipelines and partnerships across education and training systems

The Local Public Health System Workforce Manager will play a central leadership role in this effort by coordinating a system-wide workforce strategy grounded in data and aligned with state and national workforce trends. This position will lead efforts to translate workforce data (including PH WINS and WSALPHO findings) into actionable strategies that strengthen recruitment, retention, workforce well-being, and training infrastructure across local health jurisdictions.

This position works closely with the WSALPHO Managing Director and WSALPHO staff, WSAC staff, WSALPHO membership, governmental public health partners, and other public health agencies. This position may be directed to coordinate and manage contracts and contractors as directed by the Managing Director.

This position is full-time, exempt, and reports directly to the WSALPHO Managing Director.

The position is approved to work remotely within Washington State and must be able to attend in-person meetings and events as required by the WSALPHO Managing Director.

Primary Responsibilities

• Lead development and implementation of a statewide local public health workforce development plan aligned with PH WINS findings and WSALPHO workforce priorities.
• Support recruitment and retention strategies addressing compensation challenges, burnout, and workforce mobility
• Develop leadership development and succession planning programs to address document turnover in leadership roles.
• Facilitate, develop, and implement WSALPHO workforce development training and learning events. Coordinate online and on-demand content with WSALPHO staff and other public health partners. Conduct evaluation of workforce events and activities.
• Co-create and coordinate larger public health system workforce development opportunities that address critical skill gaps in partnership with the WA State Department of Health and other public health agencies and institutions.
• Build and maintain strategic partnerships and relationships with academic institutions, training organizations, government, and community-based organizations.
• Provide technical support and assist local health jurisdictions in formalizing and implementing local health workforce development plans, including designing standard onboarding and orientation systems for new local public health workers.
• Provide routine workforce development updates and opportunities for local health jurisdictions through WSALPHO Board, standing committees, organizational meetings, etc.
• Co-create reports, materials, and messaging regarding workforce development with WSALPHO staff.
• Maintain engagement and awareness of other local, state, and national training opportunities to coordinate and leverage existing public health workforce-building efforts.

Examples of work activities and products:

• Annual training and needs assessment
• Lead training content planning and curriculum mapping
• Collaborate with subject matter experts, contractors, and stakeholders
• Biennial workforce survey, presentation, and report
• Facilitate LHJ workforce ad-hoc group
• Participation on statewide workforce committee and groups (ex. Public Health Academic Leadership Collaborative)

Other duties as deemed pertinent to the position by the Managing Director.

Desired Qualifications

• Ability to manage multiple projects at once.
• Demonstrated success in developing partnerships and maintaining relationships.
• Attention to detail and organizational skills.
• Experience designing, administering, and analyzing surveys and other data collection efforts to inform priorities, decision-making, and strategic actions.
• Ability to connect single projects to larger-picture goals and objectives.
• Ability to travel both within Washington State and to national events.
• Desire to provide excellent customer service.
• 5 years of experience in public health, working at a governmental public health agency level is preferred. Local public health or experience working in Washington State is highly preferred.
• 2 years of experience implementing program management is preferred.
• Interest in workforce development and system-building work.

Required Qualifications

While this position will work collaboratively with the WSALPHO team, the ideal candidate will be self-motivated and use creativity in problem-solving, implementing strategies, and achieving success. Knowledge and experience in public health are critical, and the candidate will have experience working in a local public health agency. A bachelor’s degree in public health, health education, or a similar field is required. Additional certification in leadership development, quality improvement, project management, or strategic planning is desired.

Environmental Factors

Speech/visual/hearing skills sufficient to interact with staff and the public.  Frequent travel throughout the state is required.  Work is primarily sedentary and will involve long hours of sitting or standing.

Salary and Employment Information

The salary range for this position is $85,000 – $105,000 annually and will directly depend on the successful applicant’s qualifications and experience. The Washington State Association of Counties (WSAC) will be the employer of record. WSAC offers an excellent employee benefits package, including 12 paid holidays, 4 personal holidays, vacation and sick PTO, 100% employer-paid medical employee and full family, dental, vision, a health reimbursement account, and generous 401k contributions. WSAC is also a qualifying employer for the Federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.

All WSAC employees are at will. This position is funded through Foundational Public Health Services investments.

To Apply

Individuals interested in applying for this position shall electronically submit a letter of interest and resume to Tiffin Moreno, Director of Finance and Administration, Washington State Association of Counties, at . The application period will remain open until a candidate is hired.

If you have questions regarding the position, please get in touch with Jaime Bodden, Managing Director, Washington State Association of Local Public Health Officials, at .