Deputy Director of Human Resources

Full Job Description

The King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office is in search of our next dynamic, collaborative, and innovative Deputy Director of Human Resources. The Deputy Director of Human Resources serves as part of the PAO’s leadership team and is a trusted thought partner to the Director of Human Resources. This is a high-impact leadership position that is responsible for bridging strategy with execution through managing day-to-day human resources operations and projects. Functioning with a high level of autonomy, the Deputy Director will regularly represent PAO Human Resources in cross-functional settings, serve as a senior advisor to division leadership and supervisors, escalating and consulting with the Director of Human Resources on the most serious human resources matters in the organization.

As a separately elected department, the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office has an internal Human Resources team that provides a high level of service delivery to our team of approximately 550 employees. We partner closely and collaborate with other separately elected departments and the executive branch, including but not limited to the King County Department of Human Resources. We are seeking an experienced human resources professional who will join us in our mission to do Justice and ensure care, accountability, and compassion every step of the way.

About the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
Guided by our core values of Integrity, Compassion, Professionalism, and Leadership, our mission is to do Justice:

• We exercise the power given to us by the people with fairness and humility.
• We serve our diverse community, support victims and families, and hold individuals accountable.
• We develop innovative and collaborative solutions for King County and the State of Washington.

Our office is composed of six divisions that are further organized into specialized units:
We value diversity and strive to hire a workforce that reflects the community that we serve. It is essential to our mission that we create and maintain an office that is diverse and inclusive. All PAO employees are expected to participate in PAO equity work and attend equity trainings and discussions. PAO employees are expected to comply with equity and social justice principles, and to work with PAO colleagues and management to identify opportunities for improvement.

To learn more about the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (PAO), please visit our website.

Requirements

The Deputy Director will be responsible for directly supervising the HR team and ensuring operational excellence through high-quality, equitable, and legally compliant HR practices across the office.

Passion for continuous improvement, creative and high-quality problem-solving skills, exceptional judgment, professional discretion, and cultural humility are critical components to succeeding in this role.

The first year in this role will be spent working closely with the HR Director to develop alignment and apply sweeping updates/modernization of standard operating procedures across all HR functions.

Strategic Partnership & Leadership

• Partner with the HR director on workforce strategy, vision, organizational development, and culture initiatives.
• Translate strategic priorities into operational plans, action, tools, and practices that can be implemented office wide.
• Participate in PAO leadership discussions and represent PAO HR in meetings, committees, and workforce initiatives.

Human Resources Operations & Program Oversight

• Oversee day-to-day HR operations and the HR team’s workload, striving for excellence by ensuring high-quality, consistent service delivery.
• Identify operational risks and proactively recommend solutions.
• Supervise, coach, and develop HR staff, nurturing relationships and a healthy team culture while fostering accountability, collaboration, and professional development.
• Lead or coordinate key HR functions such as:
  • Employee & labor relations and performance management
  • Recruitment, hiring processes, and new employee onboarding
  • Classification and compensation support
  • Leave administration and disability services/reasonable accommodations
  • HR information systems, data, and process improvements
  • Other duties as assigned

Employee & Labor Relations

• Serve as a senior advisor to supervisors and managers on complex employee relations matters, including discipline, corrective action, and conflict resolution.
• Oversee labor relations in the PAO, including interpreting collective bargaining agreements, preparing for negotiations, serving as the Labor Management Committee Co-Chair (as the HR Director’s designee), and serving as a liaison with our labor partners within the PAO.
• Keep the HR director informed of any employee and labor matters that arise, partnering with the PAO’s labor and employment attorney(s), and escalating the most complex matters to the director for guidance and to ensure HR responses are consistent with strategy, are legally sound, equitable, trauma-informed, and aligned with the PAO mission and values.

Culture, Organization Health & Development

• Embed race, equity and social justice principles and cultural humility into all aspects of HR practice and decisions through a collaborative, team-unifying approach.
• Partner with PSP, division leadership, and supervisors to assess organizational climate and champion a positive workforce culture.
• Support initiatives related to wellbeing, resilience, and trauma-informed practices in a high-stress, highly politicized legal environment through workforce development and programming.
• Serve as a stabilizing leader during periods of change, conflict, and organizational uncertainty.
• Support onboarding and development of new supervisors and leadership.

Coverage and Operational Continuity

• Acts on behalf of the HR director when delegated, including decision-making authority and representation at PSP meetings, with division leadership and supervisors, working with executive branch agencies, our civil division, and in workgroups and committees.
• During the HR director’s absence, ensure continuity of operations and HR leadership.

Qualifications

• Significant progressively-responsible experience in human resources or legal matters, including but not limited to employment law, labor and employee relations, training, staffing, classification/compensation, performance management, etc.; OR any combination of experience and education that clearly demonstrates the ability to perform the job duties of this position.
• Supervisory experience and/or leadership responsibility over complex human resources or legal functions.
• Experience conducting and coordinating workplace investigations in a unionized work environment.
• Advanced knowledge of HR generalist functions or HR specialization.
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to handle highly sensitive issues in a highly politicized and unionized governmental agency while maintaining confidentiality.
• Ability to gain support by building relationships and soliciting input from others; asks for and uses feedback continually to improve own capability and team performance.
• Demonstrated ability to coach others to close development gaps, increase capability, and develop effective problem solvers and decision makers.
• Ability to take strategic risks to innovate, learning from mistakes and encouraging others to do so as well.
• Ability to empower team by clarifying roles, enabling the team to execute, and celebrating success.
• Ability to lead the implementation of change initiatives and process improvements and encourage others to challenge common practices and generate new ideas.
• Ability to respond professionally under pressure, meet strict deadlines, and adapt to unanticipated requests.
• Demonstrated ability to provide positive, helpful customer service in person, in writing, and by phone.
• Ability to build trust, collaborate with teams, and work independently with minimal supervision.
• Strong analytical and critical thinking abilities to identify issues, evaluate options, and recommend solutions.
• Ability to streamline processes, improve workflows, and anticipate needs.
• Advanced problem-solving skills and sound judgment in complex or time-sensitive situations.
• Commitment to ongoing cultural competence development and alignment with the PAO’s RESJ principles.
• Project management and other duties as assigned.
• Must submit to a criminal background check, which will include being fingerprinted.

The most competitive candidates will possess:

• Demonstrable progressively responsible human resources expertise in King County, OR any combination of experience that demonstrates a familiarity with King County’s employment ecosystem and an ability to quickly get up to speed.
• Race, equity and social justice experience that has yielded positive, articulable outcomes for the community

Competencies
Instills trust – Gains the confidence and trust of others through honesty, integrity, and authenticity.
Ensures accountability – Holds self and others accountable to meet commitments.
Decision quality – Makes good and timely decisions that keep the organization moving forward.
Plans and aligns – Plans and prioritizes work to meet commitments aligned with organizational goals.
Interpersonal savvy – Relates openly and comfortably with diverse groups of people.
Directs work – Provides direction, delegation, and removes obstacles to get work done.
Manages conflict – Handles conflict situations effectively, with a minimum of noise.
Being resilient – Rebounds from setbacks and adversity when facing difficult situations.

Additional Information

Salary: Range 78 -- $157,121.95 (step 1) - $199,161.46 (step 10)

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday; core business hours are 8:00am to 5:00pm. This position is exempt from the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act and is not overtime eligible.

Location: King County Courthouse in Seattle and other locations as needed.

This is a hybrid position requiring a minimum of 3 days/week in-office, as business needs allow, subject to a telecommuting agreement and supervisor’s approval. Mondays are a required in-office day.

Employees new to the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office may be required to work in-office 4 days a week for their first six months.

Questions regarding this position can be directed to:
Hazel Johnson (she/her) - Director of Human Resources - Hazel.johnson@kingcounty.gov

King County is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) EmployerNo 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.

To ApplyThis recruitment is open to internal and external candidates. 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 the recruiter listed on this job announcement.

Application Process:
1. Fully complete King County application*
2. Attach Cover Letter
3. Attach Resume
4. Answer supplemental questions
*Applications or supplemental questionnaires that state "see my resume" or that are blank are considered incomplete and will not be considered competitive.