Dep Dir, Policy and Staff Development

City of New York•New York City, NY

About The Position

The Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) protects and promotes the safety and well-being of children and families through child welfare and juvenile justice services and community supports. ACS manages community-based supports and foster care services and provides subsidized childcare vouchers. ACS child protection staff respond to allegations of child maltreatment. In juvenile justice, ACS oversees detention, placement and programs for youth in the community. DCP’s Central Office teams support the Deputy Commissioner and the Borough and Program offices. The team is comprised of a small number of leaders and experts. Roles and responsibilities include strategic planning; supporting case practice and administrative functions throughout DCP; developing, issuing, and training new policies and procedures; technology planning; coordinating responses on fatalities and critical cases; personnel and budget planning and tracking; emergency preparedness planning; special projects; and liaising and collaborating with internal and external stakeholders. Reporting to the Assistant Commissioner of Policy and Program Development, the Deputy Director of Policy and Staff Development will work closely with the ACS DCP leadership, borough leadership, Workforce Institute, James Satterwhite Academy and line staff in the planning, preparation and implementation of all policy and staff development initiatives.

Requirements

A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college and four years of full-time, satisfactory professional social services or related experience in organizations dealing directly with children and/or adolescents; such as (but not limited to) child welfare agencies, Day-Care, educational institutions, mental health groups, pediatrics, juvenile justice.
At least eighteen months of the required experience must be in a supervisor, administrative, managerial or executive capacity.
Education and/or experience equivalent to "1" above.
However, all candidates must have at least eighteen months of experience in a supervisory, administrative, managerial, or executive capacity.
A Master's degree in Social Work may be substituted for one year of the required general experience.

Nice To Haves

A record of proven managerial or supervisory accomplishments in child protection or a closely related human service field
Master of Social Work degree or master’s degree in a related discipline; excellent communications skills
Ability to deal tactfully and effectively with diverse constituencies at all levels and an extensive understanding of child welfare issues
Knowledge of the NY State Connections comprehensive case management system, or other automated child welfare system
Familiarity working with NYC’s diverse communities
Experience and ability to step into an existing unit and assume all responsibility quickly
Bilingual ability to communicate clearly in Spanish or other languages is considered a plus for this position

Responsibilities

Ability to make sound decisions and balance multiple critical priorities
Demonstrate strong research, communication, and problem-solving skills
Manage special projects and initiatives under the leadership of the Assistant and Associate Commissioner of Policy and Staff Development assuring high-quality implementation and sustainability and contribute authoritative interpretation of complex challenges
Manage the Staff Development Program responsible for the ongoing professional development of all level staff in the Division of Child Protection
Coordinate the activities and workflow of the Staff Development team, collect data, and continuously monitor effectiveness in supporting staff development and retention
Oversee the On-the Job Training (OJT) Program in partnership with the Professional Development Manager and Staff Development Manager
Work closely with the Workforce Institute and James Satterwhite Academy leadership in the design and delivery of effective learning program to enhance staff competency.
Serve as subject matter experts on behalf of DCP on various training subjects in development, conduct reviews and provide feedback
Work closely with the PPM Policy team to Align policies and procedure practice innovation and streamline policies as needed
Develop, deliver and coordinate training for all staff, practice leaders and stakeholders and oversee attendance efforts
Build engagement with internal and external programs consistent with the extent of interface through learning, information sharing and collaboration
Work collaboratively with leadership to integrate the SDCs role into the borough and program operation to support managers and supervisors to implement strategies that support the transfer of learning as staff learns new skills
Provide input into the development of learning programs, evaluation tools such as surveys and focus groups to measure the effectiveness of learning strategies
Partner with DCP leadership, Staff Development team and the ACS WI, Learning and CUNY team to support the incorporation of Coaching into supervisory practices within DCP
Collaborate on efforts to integrate Staff Development Coordinators, Practice Instructors and coaches into DCP borough offices in order to support supervisors and managers to support staff to practice newly learned skills on the job
Represented the Division of Child Protection (DCP) in focus groups, forums and cross divisional meetings; help in critical decision-making and implementation of strategic operational plans
Communicate, create, update internal policies and learning tools to support casework practice
In partnership with the Staff Development Manager oversee the implementation of the DCP CPS Peer Mentorship Program
Develop and make recommendations on ACS practice, policies, procedures by analyzing current systems, program objectives, researching alternative methods of design and implementation of program, in order to improve delivery of services and flow of work