Engineer Director of Wastewater Policy

City and County of Denver • Denver, CO

12d • $157,385 - $267,554 • Hybrid

About The Position

The City and County of Denver’s Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI) is seeking an experienced, collaborative leader to direct the Policy Division within Denver’s Wastewater Enterprise Fund. The Director provides strategic direction for enterprise-wide policy, planning, asset management, financial programming, regulatory alignment, stakeholder engagement, and long-range investment strategies. The Policy Division provides overall wastewater program direction and operates at a functional and authoritative level similar to the Wastewater Implementation and Wastewater Operations divisions. The Director leads approximately 20 employees, including managers, supervisors, professional staff, and consultants, and provides leadership for Asset Management, One Water, Water Quality, MS4, and Master Planning.

The Director works closely with the Wastewater Enterprise Executive, City Engineer, Core Infrastructure leadership, Wastewater Operations and Implementation Directors, senior DOTI leadership, the Department of Finance, regulatory agencies, elected officials, and other internal and external partners. The role establishes a coordinated, sustainable, and forward-looking approach to managing Denver’s wastewater enterprise fund and infrastructure.

This is a hybrid position. Employees work where needed, including at a job site several days per week and off-site in the field as needed. The Director is expected to work on site at least three days per week at the Denver Wastewater Building. Remote work must be performed within Colorado.

The position is classified as unlimited. Applicants must submit a resume and a cover letter describing their public municipal leadership skills and experience with Wastewater Policy, as well as their interest in the role. The position is expected to remain open until November 15, 2026, at 11:59 PM.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or Architecture; experience cannot substitute for the education requirement, though additional appropriate education may substitute for experience requirements.
• Five years of experience at the type and level of functional or operational management, including management of licensed engineer or architect supervisors.
• Valid driver’s license at the time of application.
• Registration as a Professional Engineer (PE) by the Colorado State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers, or registration as an Architect by the Colorado State Board of Registration, at the time of application. Registration in another state is accepted in lieu of this requirement if Colorado registration is obtained by completion of probation; licenses and certifications must remain current during employment.
• Demonstrated strategic leadership, including the ability to establish a long-term vision, develop multi-year strategies, and turn complex infrastructure and organizational priorities into actionable programs.
• Significant experience in wastewater, water resources, public infrastructure, asset management, capital planning, engineering, environmental programs, or a closely related field.
• Experience developing or administering infrastructure policy, long-range planning, asset-management programs, capital-investment strategies, or regulatory programs.
• Strong financial and business acumen, including experience with capital programming, project prioritization, operating or capital budgets, expenditure management, and long-range financial planning.
• Experience navigating complex regulatory, political, interagency, and stakeholder environments.
• Strong political and relational acumen and the ability to communicate complex technical and policy matters effectively with elected officials, executive leadership, regulatory agencies, community stakeholders, and technical professionals.
• Demonstrated ability to lead managers, supervisors, and multidisciplinary professional teams, establish accountability, and develop organizational talent.
• Ability to resolve complex and sensitive issues involving competing technical, operational, financial, regulatory, and stakeholder considerations.
• Commitment to using data, performance measures, risk analysis, and best practices to inform decisions and continuously improve programs and services.
• Submit a resume and a cover letter detailing public municipal leadership skills and experience with Wastewater Policy and interest in the role.
• Applicants must have valid work authorization that does not require visa sponsorship for employment authorization in the United States.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in municipal public leadership and Wastewater Policy.
• Experience with asset management, One Water, Water Quality, MS4, or Master Planning.

Responsibilities

• Establish and advance a long-term vision and multi-year strategy for the Wastewater Enterprise Fund and Policy Division, aligning programs, resources, and investments with enterprise, DOTI, and citywide priorities.
• Develop and direct implementation of goals, objectives, policies, procedures, work standards, and annual and multi-year work plans.
• Provide policy direction and strategic coordination across the Wastewater Enterprise in collaboration with Operations and Implementation leadership.
• Advise senior leadership on complex wastewater infrastructure, organizational, financial, regulatory, and policy matters; resolve sensitive issues by coordinating technical, financial, regulatory, operational, and stakeholder perspectives.
• Lead the Wastewater Enterprise asset-management program for wastewater assets, including storm drainage, sanitary sewer, waterways, lift stations, buildings, property, bridges, green infrastructure, and related infrastructure.
• Establish asset-management policies, strategies, and investment frameworks supporting reliability, resiliency, regulatory compliance, and financial sustainability.
• Lead long-range infrastructure and master planning, integrating asset condition, risk, growth, regulatory requirements, and service objectives.
• Use asset information, performance trends, data, and emerging practices to guide infrastructure investment and policy decisions.
• Lead Denver’s One Water policy and high-level strategy, promoting integrated and sustainable water-resource planning and infrastructure.
• Direct Water Quality and regulatory policy; oversee strategic alignment for MS4 management and compliance and other applicable water-quality requirements.
• Coordinate policy and regulatory matters across Wastewater divisions and with local, regional, state, and federal partners.
• Lead Wastewater Enterprise Fund financial programming with Wastewater leadership, DOTI Finance, and the Department of Finance.
• Direct development of project-prioritization methodologies and the six-year capital improvement program, aligning investments with infrastructure needs, regulatory obligations, asset risk, financial capacity, and strategic priorities.
• Oversee program expenditure tracking and support long- and short-range financial planning.
• Coordinate grants, intergovernmental agreements, and other funding opportunities, and ensure resources are prioritized and allocated to advance enterprise strategies and work plans.
• Represent the Wastewater Enterprise and DOTI with elected and appointed officials, regulatory agencies, partner agencies, community organizations, and other stakeholders.
• Lead stakeholder and political alignment, coordination, and communication on significant wastewater policy, planning, financial, and regulatory matters.
• Translate complex technical, financial, and regulatory information into clear, actionable information for decision-makers and stakeholders.
• Build collaborative, trust-based relationships and navigate complex stakeholder and regulatory environments to resolve multi-party issues involving competing priorities.
• Lead and develop managers, supervisors, and professional staff through clear expectations, coaching, accountability, and professional development.
• Communicate business plans, organizational priorities, and performance expectations and align staff around enterprise objectives.
• Establish and monitor performance measures and accountability structures to evaluate progress and organizational effectiveness.
• Identify opportunities for process improvement, innovation, and modernization.
• Select, develop, evaluate, and support staff; build leadership capacity and succession planning within the Policy Division.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, inclusion, accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.

Benefits

• Guaranteed life-long monthly pension after vesting with five years of service.
• 457B Retirement Plan.
• 140 hours of PTO earned within the first year.
• 12 paid holidays, one personal holiday, one Wellness Day, and one volunteer day per year.
• Competitive medical, dental, and vision plans effective within one month of start date.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director