Community Liaison Supervisor

Salary: $61,018.23 - $83,900.07 Annually
Location : Austin, TX
Job Type: Full Time
Remote Employment: Flexible/Hybrid
Job Number: 24-09525
Department: TNR (Trans & Natrl Resrc)
Opening Date: 10/17/2024
Closing Date: 11/13/2024 11:59 PM Central
Job Summary
Join our vibrant Outreach Team at Travis County Natural Resources (TNR) as a passionate advocate for nature and conservation, inspiring and educating the community about the wonders of the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve and beyond! The Community Liaison will manage social media accounts and conduct outreach and education programs on topics like the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve (BCP), endangered species, ecology, wildfire mitigation, and climate change adaptation. This role involves cultivating relationships with community organizations, BCP partners, volunteers, subject matter experts, researchers, media, and the public. Additional duties include public speaking, working with contractors on exhibit design, video production, and graphic design, identifying target audiences, addressing issues and concerns, and managing information through websites, social media, news releases, and media outlets.
TNR is comprised of highly talented and knowledgeable individuals who work well as a team. We are passionate about natural resource conservation and strive toward a resilient and environmentally balanced Travis County.
Distinguishing Characteristics
This is the second of two jobs within the Community Liaison series of the Management job family. Incumbents in this classification are distinguished from the Community Liaison by their exercise of supervisory responsibility over Community Liaisons. This classification may require a flexible work schedule in order to meet the needs of the department.
Duties and Responsibilities

• Plans, directs, and develops outreach and engagement strategies consistent with Natural Resources department goals. Develops strong community relationships. Serves as liaison with constituency to include businesses, government agencies, stakeholders, vendors, internal staff, elected officials and the Commissioners Court via public events, programs, presentations, and meetings to establish collaborative engagements and partnerships. Collaborates with Public Information Officer on the dissemination of public information.
• Oversees communication strategy. Leads the development of specific internal and external relations strategies for the department that drives consistent messaging and elevates brand, presence, initiatives, and reputation.
• Oversees the development and execution of multifaceted communication, outreach, and engagement strategy, branding, marketing, web, print, social media, and public relations. Measures communication, outreach, and engagement impact across multiple communication outlets.
• May supervise staff in the department's Outreach team.
• Manages and interprets data-informed insights and analytics to adjust strategies as necessary to adjust strategies as necessary.
• Performs other job-related duties as assigned.

Minimum Requirements
Bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice, Communication, Public Relations or a directly related field AND seven (7) years progressively responsible relevant work experience in communications, journalism, marketing, public relations, web development, new media or related field. Two (2) years of supervisory experience required;
OR,
Any combination of education and experience that has been achieved and is equivalent to the stated education and experience and required knowledge, skills, and abilities sufficient to successfully perform the duties and responsibilities of this job.
Licenses, Registrations, Certifications, or Special Requirements:
Valid Texas Driver's License.
Please attach a cover letter, resume and writing sample (written in full by applicant) to your application to be considered.
Experience or familiarity with one or more of the following is preferred:
• Degree in Communications, Public Relations, Education, or Natural Resources
• Writing for social media, public relations, professional reports, or journalism
• Public speaking, community outreach
• Land conservation, wildlife biology, or related fields.
• Central Texas ecology, flora, and fauna
• Habitat Conservation Plans and/or the Balcones Canyonlands Conservation Plan
• Endangered species protection
• Volunteer coordination or project management
• Fluent in Spanish
Knowledge of:

• Organization of government agencies including relationships between departments, agencies, and divisions.
• Communications and public relations strategies including marketing, branding, advertising, social media.
• Strategic planning and project management.
• Supervisory and leadership principles and techniques including interactions with different leadership styles.
• Developing and executing public events, outreach programs, presentations, meetings and workshops.
• Public relations strategies and practices.
• Public relations and promotional methods. May be required to develop knowledge of and adhere to federal and state laws requiring the confidential handling of certain health information.

Skill in:

• Researching, developing, preparing and disseminating public information, public speaking, and communicating through various methods to include written, oral, web, social media and graphic design elements.
• Editorial concepts and best practices.
• Managing multiple and competing priorities, identifying problems, evaluating alternatives, implementing solutions, and budgets.
• Establishing and maintaining collaborative working relationships with diverse groups, including executive leadership, and making use of community resources.
• Directing and managing others, including team building, training, and evaluating the work of others.
• Problem-solving and decision-making, data analysis and organizing data insights.

Ability to:

• Gather, assemble, correlate, and analyze data insights, develop, coordinate and implement programs and outreach initiatives, develop best practices for content creation, distribution, maintenance, re-purposing and implementation across all platforms.
• Lead with vision, accountability for results, team leadership, developing others and cross-organization collaboration, plan, assign, and evaluate the work of others, establish effective working relationships with constituency to include businesses, government agencies, stakeholders, vendors, internal staff, elected officials and the Travis County Commissioners Court.
• Meet deadlines, manage multiple projects concurrently, and pay close attention to detail, establish goals and objectives, think creatively, solve problems, and plan directions, interpret policies and guidelines, work independently and make sound judgments with limited supervision. Work in a highly visible position.

Work Environment & Other Information
Physical requirements include the ability to lift/carry up to 50 pounds occasionally, visual acuity, speech and hearing, hand and eye coordination and manual dexterity necessary to operate a computer and office equipment. Subject to standing, walking, sitting, repetitive motion, reaching, climbing stairs, bending, stooping, kneeling, crouching, crawling, pushing, pulling, balancing, client/customer contact, squatting to perform the essential functions. May be subject to contact with dust and exposure to extreme temperature/weather change including wet and/or humidity weather.
Travis County employees play an important role in business continuity. As such, employees can be assigned to business continuity efforts outside of normal job functions.
Work Hours: Monday - Friday 8 am - 5 pm
Department: TNR (Trans & Natrl Resrc)
Location: 11920 Wilson Parke Ave, Austin, TX
Criminal, Driving, Education, and Employment Background Checks Required.
This job description is intended to be generic in nature. It is not necessarily an exhaustive list of all duties and responsibilities. The essential duties, functions and responsibilities and overtime eligibility may vary based on the specific tasks assigned to the position.
Benefits
Employment at Travis County comes with a full array of benefits. We offer comprehensive health insurance, a no-cost, on-site Health and Wellness clinic, longevity pay, paid vacations, sick time and personal holidays, not to mention an industry competitive salary structure and a friendly, stable work environment.
FY2024 Travis County Benefit Guide
In this valuable you will find benefit summaries, eligibility requirements, costs, contact numbers and addresses as well as other general information on the benefits available to Travis County Employees and Retirees.
Credit Union
Employees may join the Travis County Credit Union which offers low-interest loans, savings plans through payroll deduction, safe deposit boxes and other benefits.
Deferred Compensation
Employees may enroll in a tax- free sheltered investment plan through payroll deduction.
Direct Deposit
Employees may sign up for direct bank deposit.
Employee Assistance Program
Travis County provides a confidential counseling and referral service free of charge to county employees and their family.
Employee Organizations
Membership in the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees Union is available through payroll deduction.
Employee Health & Wellness Clinic
Employees may access the clinic for a variety of wellness program and health care services with no co-pay, no deductible and no co-insurance costs.
Holidays
An average of eleven paid holidays are designated by the Travis County Commissioners Court at the beginning of each fiscal year.
Insurance
Employees may select from four plans: an Exclusive Physician Organization (EPO), Choice Plus Preferred Physician Organization (PPO), Consumer Choice or a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) with a Health Savings Account (HSA). All four options include a Pharmacy Plan. Travis County's current policy is to pay 100% of the employee's health insurance premium for the Consumer Choice and HDHP. Employees will pay a premium for both the EPO and PPO. Other insurance benefits include $50,000 Basic Life and AD&D paid by the County.
The following benefits are employee paid:

• Dental
• Vision
• Supplemental Life, AD&D
• Dependent Life
• Short Term Disability
• Long Term Disability
• Long Term Care

New employees are covered on the first day of the month following 28 calendar days of employment.
Longevity
Longevity pay is paid for each year completed after three years of continuous service. Peace Officers in a law enforcement activity, whose job requires state peace officer certification, receive pay after one year of certification.
On the regular payday on or after the employee's fourth and subsequent adjusted service dates, he or she receives a single payment for the previous year.
Parking
A limited number of assigned parking spaces are available to employees in the Courthouse Complex.
Personal Holidays
Regular, full-time employees are eligible for up to three paid personal holidays each calendar year. Part-time employees shall be granted personal holidays on a prorated basis. New employees earn personal holidays for the calendar year in which he/she begins employment, based on the month in which employment begins:
January - March
3 personal holidays
April - June
2 personal holidays
July - September
1 personal holiday
October - December
None
New employees are eligible to take personal holidays after 90 days of employment.
Retirement
Travis County is a member of the Texas County & District Retirement System with mandatory participation by certain classes of employees. Seven percent (7%) of the gross salary is deducted each pay period. An employee is fully vested after eight years of service. Benefits are prorated for part-time employees.
Sick Leave
Regular employees earn sick leave at a rate of eight hours per month with unlimited accrual during employment. Part-time employees earn sick leave on a pro-rated basis.
Parental Leave
Each Full-time Paid Parental Leave Eligible (PPL) Employee is entitled to a total of 320 hours of Paid Parental Leave in a 12 month period. Paid Parental Leave for Part-time PPL Eligible Employees is prorated based on the number of hours that they are regularly scheduled to work.
Tuition Refund
Certain classes of full-time employees may receive reimbursement for fees associated with pre-approved, job related course work completed satisfactorily.
Vacation
Based on years of county service, regular, full-time employees earn vacation time at the following rates:
0 to 5 years
4.0 hours per pay period
6 to 10 years
4.5 hours per pay period
11 to 15 years
5.0 hours per pay period
16 to 20 years
5.5 hours per pay period
21 plus years
6.0 hours per pay period
Part-time employees earn vacation leave on a pro-rated basis.
Workers' Compensation
The county provides all employees workers' compensation coverage with benefits in accordance with state statute, if the employee sustains an injury out of, or in the course of work.
01
What type of degree(s) do you hold? Check all that apply.

• None
• High School Diploma or GED
• Associate's Degree
• Bachelor's Degree
• Master's Degree
• PhD

02
How many years of communications, journalism, or public relations experience do you have?

• Less than one
• 1 to 2 years
• 3 to 4 years
• 5 years or more

03
How many years of experience do you have in developing, managing, and writing for social media?

• Less than one
• 1 to 2 years
• 3 to 4 years
• 5 years or more

04
Briefly describe your experience with public speaking and community outreach.
05
Briefly describe your knowledge of central Texas flora and fauna.
06
A resume, cover letter, and writing sample is required to apply for this position. Have you attached all of these to your application?

• Yes
• No

Required Question