A best-in-class city that attracts best-in-class talent, Philadelphia is an incredible place to build a career. From our thriving arts scene and rich history to our culture of passion and grit, there are countless reasons to love living and working here. With a workforce of over 30,000 people, and more than 1,000 different job categories, the City of Philadelphia offers boundless opportunities to make an impact.

As an employer, the City of Philadelphia values inclusion, integrity, innovation, empowerment, and hard work above all else. We offer a vibrant work environment, comprehensive health care and benefits, and the experience you need to grow and excel. If you’re interested in working with a passionate team of people who care about the future of Philadelphia, start here.

What we offer

• Impact - The work you do here matters to millions. 
• Growth - Philadelphia is growing, why not grow with it? 
• Diversity & Inclusion - Find a career in a place where everyone belongs.
• Benefits - We care about your well-being.

Agency Description

 Budgets are where the values and vision of a community get translated into programs and policies that impact people’s lives. The Philadelphia Budget Office prepares and monitors the annual operating and capital budgets for the City of Philadelphia, which are about $12 billion per year for all funds. Additionally, the Office performs these other activities:

• Provides projections of the year end fund balance for the operating funds for the City.
• Prepares the City’s five-year financial and strategic plan including financial and economic forecasts and assumptions, and other budgetary reports.
• Prepares and monitors appropriations legislation
• Reviews and analyzes spending and project proposals prior to implementation.

In recent budget cycles, the Office has developed and run a robust community engagement initiative that embeds racial equity into the process and decision making.

The Budget Office is within the Office of Director of Finance was created by the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter, adopted by the electors of the City on April 17, 1951, to give the Mayor and the City government a principal officer responsible for the financial, accounting, and budgeting functions of the executive branch. The Director of Finance is thus the chief financial officer of the City and all powers and duties concerning finances, accounting, and budgeting in the executive branch are directly or indirectly the Director's. The Director of Finance is also the Chairman of the Board of Pensions and Retirements and an ex-officio member of the board of various quasi-governmental agencies, including the Pennsylvania Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority. The City of Philadelphia operates on a fiscal year between July 1st and June 30th.

The City of Philadelphia (the City) is seeking a Director of Budget Equity & Engagement in its Budget Office.  The Director will report to the Deputy Budget Director for Policy and Strategy and will manage the Participatory Budgeting Specialist.

The Director of Budget Equity & Engagement will develop and implement strategies and initiatives to align the City’s allocation of resources with community priorities to ensure that investments in government services and infrastructure reduce racial disparities in Philadelphia. The Director will work to achieve this by expanding involvement of stakeholders in the budget process, performance measurement for impact, and accountability to community voice and recommendations.

The Director will work with community members, city employees, and leadership of the Administration to ensure accessible, understandable budget information is available to all. This can include developing and disseminating multi-lingual, accessible documents (including flyers, social media, and videos). Budget education, in the form of community forums and webinars tailored to different audiences, will be part of the portfolio of work for the Director. Budget education materials may be developed in collaboration with the subject matter experts in the Budget Office.

The Director will gather qualitative and quantitative input to inform budget decisions and assess the impact of different investments on improving equity. This will include working with outside consultants to score funding requests for their potential impact on equity, leading the City’s Budget Equity Committees, and convening community members and leaders in ongoing dialogue about budget choices (virtual, in-person, and asynchronous). Community engagement will likely require some evening and weekend work, but the Office’s flextime time policy affords the ability to maintain work/life balance.

Essential Functions

As a senior member of the team, you’re responsible for leading all aspects of the City’s budget equity and engagement work, in collaboration with budget subject matter experts.

Below are the primary duties of this position:

Strategizing

• Design and facilitate thoughtful, inclusive, and ethical education and engagement in the budget process (in collaboration with other City departments and community organizations) to understand the needs of residents, staff, leaders, and other stakeholders.
• Synthesize the insights and well-defined opportunities to inform the Mayor, the staff of the Mayor’s Office, Finance Director, Budget Director and other senior City leadership as they make budget decisions.
• Develop feasible, person-centered, and comprehensive strategies that improve resident and City employee understanding and engagement with the budget process.
• Design education and engagement that works across channels of experience—including digital and non-digital touchpoints (e.g., in-person interactions and physical service environments).

Communicating

• Use iterative processes to ensure project deliverables, like budget infographics and videos, are rigorously executed.
• Choose the right deliverable and facilitation approach for the right kind of conversation.
• Visually communicate ideas, research synthesis, and prototypes, so stakeholders can align on concepts.
• Develop compelling narratives that communicate the human experience to decision-makers, so they can make clear decisions that align with evidence and human need.

Implementing

• Work with budget subject matter experts and develop budget process and content expertise to produce accurate and accessible information and engagement processes.
• Create project scopes, timelines, and resource allocations that set implementation efforts up for success—acknowledging the constraints and realities of the budget cycle and fiscal conditions.
• Develop metrics of success to measure the effectiveness of project outcomes.
• Evaluate education and engagement efforts to understand what works and doesn’t.
• Take appropriate action to revise education and engagement approaches based on learnings from evaluation.

Collaborating

• Communicate work without jargon or pretense.
• Ensure participatory design processes include the right people, at the right points in time.
• Offer and take constructive feedback.
• Respect and protect team members and stakeholders’ time.
• Communicate with clarity and honesty around the status of work.
• Cultivate and maintain respectful relationships with project stakeholders.

Project managing

• Collaborate with senior leadership on the design of a project.
• Break down complex projects into reasonable project plans with clear deliverables, milestones, and deadlines.
• Lead project partners and team members through processes.
• Clearly communicate project plans and their status to leadership, team members, and other stakeholders.
• Effectively navigate through ambiguity and project challenges.
• Deliver projects on time.

Competencies, Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Community-driven: Ability to center marginalized community voices in decision-making processes and to meet people where they are at for education and input opportunities.
• Creative: Ability to push against dogma, think beyond what has already been done, and creatively problem solve within known constraints.
• Impact-focused: Passionate about using data (qualitative and quantitative) to inform strategies and decision-making.
• Excellent communicator: Ability to articulate jargon to general audiences, explain the logic behind decisions, craft compelling narratives, and write/speak clearly.
• Relationship-builder: Ability to work with a variety of people and personalities and cultivate strong relationships to ensure seamless collaboration. Passion for collaborating with community organizations, Philadelphia residents, and advocates to create systems change.
• Curious: Ability to practice active listening, ask questions to get at the root of a problem, be open to receiving/giving constructive feedback, and have a sincere interest in learning new skills and growing old ones.
• Compassionate: Ability to empathize with people’s experiences, and based on that understanding, take appropriate action.
• Rigorous: Ability to be detail-oriented and intentional in your work.
• Organized: Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects, estimate timelines, rework a project approach based on unforeseen challenges, work well under pressure, and set/meet reasonable deadlines.
• Proactive: Ability to see opportunities, navigate barriers, be self-directed, and problem solve solutions that enhance the Studio’s deliverables, processes, and practices.
• Resilient: Ability to learn from mistakes and return to work after experiencing a setback.
• Amplifier: Ability to amplify others’ strengths and successes and operate beyond ego and self-interest.
• Supportive Manager: Ability to direct the work of the Participatory Budgeting Specialist to achieve goals and encourage staff development.

Nice-to-have skills:

• Bilingual or multi-lingual
• Strong visual design aesthetic
• Understanding of local government budgeting processes and structure
• Experience working in the social impact space on complex challenges

•  A community engagement, community development, urban planning, public policy, public finance or related degree or relevant industry experience.
• 5 (+) years of relevant professional experience or a graduate degree plus 3 (+) years of professional experience. Experience working with government budgeting processes is preferred but not required.
• 5 (+) years managing project relationships with colleagues, clients, and project stakeholders.
• Demonstrated experience designing or leading community engagement processes in partnership with diverse communities, including but not limited to Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), people with disabilities, immigrants, LBGTQ+ communities, and families experiencing poverty.
• Proven track record of putting concepts of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging into practice through policy or programs.
• The City of Philadelphia is interested in hiring the best possible candidate. We recognize that experience, education, and qualifications can be attained in a variety of ways and that many skill-sets are transferable. If you feel you’re a good fit, please don’t hesitate to apply.

TO APPLY: Interested candidates must submit a cover letter, references and resume.

Salary Range: $85,000 - $95,000 

Did you know?

• We are a Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program qualified employer
• 25% tuition discount program for City employees (and sometimes spouses and dependents as well) in partnership with area colleges and universities
• We offer Comprehensive health coverage for employees and their eligible dependents
• Our wellness program offers eligibility into the discounted medical plan
• Employees receive paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays
• Generous retirement savings options are available

*The successful candidate must be a city of Philadelphia resident within six months of hire

Please note that effective September 1, 2021 the City of Philadelphia is requiring all new employees to present proof of vaccination against COVID-19. 

The City of Philadelphia is an Equal Opportunity employer and does not permit discrimination based on race, ethnicity, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, marital status, source of income, familial status, genetic information or domestic or sexual violence victim status. If you believe you were discriminated against, call the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations at 215-686-4670 or send an email to [email protected].

For more information, go to: Human Relations Website: http://www.phila.gov/humanrelations/Pages/default.aspx