Administrative Office Manager, Children, Youth and Families Division, Attorney General's Office

WASHINGTON STATE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 
  
Join an agency whose work impacts the lives of every resident of Washington State.
 
The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) touches the lives of every resident in this state.  We serve more than 230 state agencies, boards, commissions, colleges and universities, as well as the Legislature and the Governor.  The Office is comprised of nearly 700 attorneys and 800 professional staff, all working together to deliver the highest quality professional legal services to Washington state officials, agencies, and entities.  This includes:
 

• Economic justice and consumer protections (safeguarding consumers, protecting youth, seniors, and other vulnerable populations)
• Social justice and civil rights (addressing discrimination, environmental protection, and veteran and military resources)
• Criminal justice and public safety (investigative and prosecutorial support, financial crimes)
• And much more!

Our agency also has national reach, representing the State of Washington before the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals and trial courts in all cases that involve the state’s interest.  If you want to make a difference, we may be the perfect fit for you!  Learn more about the AGO here.  
 
Commitment to Diversity
 
Honoring diversity, equity and inclusion means that as an agency, and as individuals, we are committed to ensuring that all employees and volunteers enjoy a respectful, safe and supportive working environment. Only by fostering the inclusion of people from all backgrounds, cultures and attributes, can AGO employees and volunteers achieve their fullest potential and best advance the goals and mission of the AGO.  The AGO strives to be an anti-racist organization with the goal of identifying, discussing, and challenging racial inequity in the workplace and the impact it has on our employees, and, within our authority, combat racism that impacts the people of Washington State.
 
Position and Division Information

The Attorney General’s Office is recruiting for a permanent full time Administrative Operations Manager in the Children, Youth, and Families Division. This position is located in Tumwater, Washington. This position is not union-represented
 
Compensation
This is a WMS Band 1 position and the annual salary range is $57,000 - $82,250.  The annual compensation depends on qualifications.  Washington State employees are offered a solid benefit package that includes retirement, options for deferred compensation and a full array of health, dental and life insurance coverage.

The Children, Youth, and Families (CYF) Division of the AGO represents the State of Washington Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) in its mission to protect and support our State’s children, youth, and families.
 
The division’s 25 attorneys and 23 professional staff provide legal services, advice, and representation to the Department of Children, Youth & Families’ many programs and functions. This work involves program advice and litigation regarding a broad range of DCYF programs that operate our state’s child welfare and child care systems, and our state’s institutions for youthful offenders, and also involves representing DCYF in child abuse and neglect litigation in Thurston, Mason, Grays Harbor and Lewis Counties. The division also coordinates juvenile litigation with the four other divisions that represent DCYF statewide in these matters (Social and Health Services Seattle Division, Regional Services Division, Spokane Division, Tacoma Division).This position manages all non-legal administrative functions of the CYF Division, develops and implements policies and procedures, and manages the division’s assets and resources in a responsible manner. In partnership with the Division Chief, this position supports an inclusive, positive and high-functioning work environment by leading by example, and through proactive performance management. The position directly supervises the professional staff supervisors (currently 1-Legal Assistant 4 and 3- Paralegal 3 positions).
 
Some of the responsibilities include:
 

• Ensure that day-to-day operational needs of the division are met and ensure that the legal support services needed by the division are provided;
• Manage the recruitment and onboarding process for staff in the division; 
• Develop business rules and processes within the division to be presented to the management team for approval prior to implementation;
• Make recommendations to the Facilities team regarding use of space, construction projects and furniture needs.
• Make recommendations regarding personnel matters to include award recognition, promotional opportunities and progressive discipline measures for professional staff;
• Make recommendations to the Division Chief on how best to promote, manage, and support employee performance and link individual employees with the AGO vision and values and mobilize their talents in service to our mission; 
• Provide consistency in practice and performance measurement across the state by coordinating with the lead professional staff in the other four divisions that represent DCYF to provide centralized performance measurement, and to ensure that the CYF Division remains consistent with CMS and Timekeeping rules in order to enhance consistent measurement of performance; 
• Serve as a CMS Administrator for the CYF Division, acting as a liaison with the lead professional staff for the SHS Division and RSD to ensure that data is recorded accurately and consistently and can be used for reporting purposes;
• Make budget recommendations to the Division Chief and participate in quarterly Division Budget Review meetings with fiscal staff; 
• Make recommendations to the Division Chief for organizational and strategic planning;
• Participate on committees, as needed, to represent the needs of CYF.

The strongest candidates will possess a Bachelor's degree in business administration or allied field and three years of supervising, leading, mentoring, coaching or training staff in a legal or judicial setting; OR A combination of seven years of legal office experience and three years of supervising, leading, mentoring, coaching or training staff in a legal or judicial setting
 
Desired Qualifications:
3-5 years successful experience in:

• Law office management;
• Supervisory techniques; and
• Human resources management. 

Demonstrate knowledge of:

• Paralegal and legal secretary practices, policies and procedures;
• Management principles and practices, including training and supervision;
• Strategic planning;
• Organizational development;
• Budget planning, monitoring and implementation; and

 
Demonstrate Ability to:

• Support and coach first line supervisors

• Empower employees to contribute their knowledge, creativity, and expertise to further the Division's mission of providing excellent, ethical, and professional legal services
• Build and support a diverse, inclusive, and collaborative work environment
• Solicit, respond to, and incorporate employee feedback
• Ability to provide, receive and respond to feedback from work groups, individuals, stakeholders and the client
• Develop and implement long and short range plans
• Develop internal operating procedures
• Conduct effective meetings
• Organize, prioritize and manage a large number of projects and diversified work groups
• Effectively communicate both orally and in writing
• Work independently and as a member of a team
• Train employees on office and court procedures
• Effectively use Microsoft Office suite applications, case management systems, and data bases

 
Conditions of Employment
 
Per AGO Policy, employees and volunteers of the AGO must be fully vaccinated as a condition of employment. Being fully vaccinated means that an individual is at least two weeks past their final dose of an authorized COVID-19 vaccine regimen. Effective March 14, 2022, the AGO announced pursuant to its policy, that employees and volunteers must also receive a booster shot as a condition of employment. Employees or volunteers who are not eligible to receive the booster before their start date, due to required waiting times after receiving their initial vaccine(s), must provide confirmation of the vaccine type and date received so the AGO can calculate the date by which they must receive the booster. If you are selected to serve within the AGO as an employee or volunteer, you will be required to provide proof of vaccination and booster (if already received) before you are able to begin work. You may request an accommodation if you are unable to meet the requirement due to a medical or religious necessity.
 
Applicants or candidates being considered for employment shall not share their vaccination status with hiring managers or interview panels. 

Application Instructions:

In addition to completing the online application, applicants must attach the following documents to their profile in order to be considered for this position:
 

• A letter of interest, describing your specific qualifications for the position;
• A current resume detailing experience and education.

Read The Following Information Completely:

• Carefully review your application for accuracy, spelling and grammar before submitting.
• You may not reapply to this posting for 60 days.
• The initial screening of applications will be solely based on the contents and completeness of the “work experience” and “education” sections of your application in www.careers.wa.gov, completeness of the application material submitted, and responses to the supplemental questionnaire.
• A resume will not substitute for completing the “work experience” section of the application.
• All information may be verified and documentation may be required.

The AGO is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, national origin, sex, marital status, sexual orientation/gender identity, age, disability, honorably discharged veteran or military status, retaliation or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability.
 
For questions regarding this recruitment or assistance with the application process, please contact Judith Vandergeest @ (360) 586-7691 or Judith.Vandergeest@atg.wa.gov.
 
If you are having technical difficulties creating, accessing or completing your application, please call NEOGOV toll-free at (855) 524-5627 or support@neogov.com.