Business Assistance Section Manager

State of Montana•Helena, MT

8d•Hybrid

About The Position

Ready to shape Montana’s business culture and lead statewide impact? As Business Assistance Section Manager with the Montana Department of Labor & Industry, you will lead a team of professionals who partner with employers across the state to promote fair, lawful, and sustainable workplaces. This leadership role blends regulatory expertise, team development, and continuous improvement to help Montana businesses navigate working relationships, wage and hour, workers’ compensation, employment verification, and prevailing wage requirements. MISSION STATEMENT: Empowering all Montanans through work and opportunity. DLI CORE VALUES: Responsiveness Respect Integrity Excellence Cohesiveness It's about the people and the impact we make in our communities every day. We are proud of our open, team-based, supportive, and collaborative work environments. Learn more about DLI here. Position Overview: The Business Assistance Section Manager provides strategic leadership and oversight for a unit that supports employers in understanding and complying with state and federal labor standards. The role is responsible for aligning unit work plans, goals, and processes with division objectives while fostering a culture of proactive assistance, accountability, and high-quality customer service for Montana businesses.

Requirements

Interpret and Implement Advanced Labor Standards: Apply Montana and federal labor standards including wage and hour, worker’s compensation, working relationships, employment verification, and prevailing wage, to complex fact patterns, make sound compliance determinations, and provide practical, risk aware guidance to employers.
Regulatory Program Design and Oversight: Design, implement, and continuously improve compliance programs, including audits, monitoring tools, and corrective action processes that promote voluntary compliance and withstand regulatory scrutiny.
Data Driven Performance and Process Improvement: Use data, metrics, and trend analysis to diagnose problems, set performance targets, and lead structured improvement initiatives that enhance timeliness, consistency, and customer experience.
Strategic Budget and Resource Management: Manage an operating budget, forecasting workload and staffing needs, and making trade‑off decisions that balance statutory requirements, service expectations, and limited public resources.
Inclusive Leadership and Staff Development: Lead diverse teams by setting clear expectations, providing ongoing coaching, addressing performance issues, and building a positive culture of equity with professional growth opportunities.
High Impact Training and Outreach: Develop and deliver focused trainings, tools, and outreach tailored to employers and stakeholders, including those working on prevailing wage projects and other specialized compliance areas.
Complex Stakeholder and Conflict Management: Build credibility and trust with employers, employees, unions, legal representatives, and partner agencies; navigate adversarial situations; and de escalate conflict while upholding laws and agency expectations.
Strategic Vision and Change Leadership: Translate department and division goals into clear unit strategies, lead staff through policy, law, and system changes, and model a service oriented, education first compliance philosophy.
Public Communication and Presentation Skills: Communicate complex information clearly in public settings, design professional presentation materials, and adapt messages to diverse audiences to ensure understanding and engagement.
Visual Communication: Skilled in developing professional presentation materials that convey complex information in an accessible and visually compelling manner, ensuring audience understanding and engagement.
Presentation Expertise: Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively in public settings by delivering clear, engaging, and informative presentations tailored to diverse audiences, including staff, leadership, and external stakeholders.
Demonstrated experience leading teams or projects in environments were advising others, resolving complex issues, and ensuring compliance with policies, laws, or standards are central responsibilities, including regular supervision, coaching, or coordination of staff or peers.
Demonstrated experience assessing and explaining complex employment, personnel, human services, education, or regulatory issues and providing clear, actionable guidance to employees, employers, customers, or community members.
Experience interpreting and applying laws, rules, policies, contracts, or technical standards, and using sound judgment to balance regulatory requirements with practical business and customer needs.
Demonstrated experience planning, coordinating, or improving programs or operations, such as developing work plans, monitoring metrics, leading process improvements, or enhancing customer service or compliance outcomes.
Experience managing or stewarding resources, which may include overseeing budgets, grants, contracts, or staff time, and making decisions that reflect accountability for public resources.
A Bachelor’s degree in Public Administration or related field may supplement relevant professional experience but is not a substitute for demonstrated skills and competencies in the areas noted above. Equivalent combinations of education and directly related experience will be considered.

Responsibilities

Provides leadership and vision by developing processes that identify businesses which are not in compliance with labor laws and assist them in coming into compliance.
Supervise and develop knowledgeable teams, delegate authority, and foster an environment of high performance and continuous learning.
Develop training and audit plans for prevailing wage projects while ensuring compliance with required state laws.
Utilize data analytics to monitor program effectiveness, identify trends, and develop actionable solutions for improvement.
Monitors and evaluates the progress of unit work plans, goals, and objectives to ensure alignment with divisional priorities. Continuously assesses processes and identifies opportunities for improvement to support the division’s strategic objectives. Implement policies and procedures that guide daily operations and advance long-term organizational goals.
Provides budget administration support by collaborating with the Bureau Chief and Division Administrator in the development, management, and oversight of the unit’s budget.
Coaches, trains, and mentors staff to ensure they have the resources necessary to perform their duties effectively. Provides regular feedback—both orally and in writing—to recognize performance, encourage development, and maintain clear expectations.

Benefits

Work/life balance with hybrid schedules or partial telework may be available within the state of Montana.
38 paid days off a year including vacation, sick leave and holidays.
Military leave: You’ll get up to 15 days of military leave with full pay.
Longevity raises with continuous service, as well as any negotiated market increases and state statutory raises.
Health, dental, vision, life insurance coverage, flexible spending accounts, EAP
Free telehealth and access to free employee medical clinics through our medical plan
Choice between two retirement plans with an employer contribution between 8.73%25 - 9.07%25 of your annual salary. A third optional 457(b) deferred compensation plan is also available.
Public Service Loan Forgiveness- Employment with the State of Montana may qualify you to receive loan forgiveness
Career progression, training opportunities and room for professional growth.
State employee discounts at various businesses across the state.
This position may be eligible for a statutory $1.00 an hour base pay increase effective on July 1, 2026.
This position may be covered by a Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association (VEBA)