Seattle's economic engine is fueled by diversity, innovation, and an entrepreneurial spirit. The Office of Economic Development (OED) promotes an economy where you can achieve your career goals no matter who you are, who you love, or where you are from.
We encourage economic mobility and shared prosperity by financing entrepreneurs, innovators, and our current and future employees. We support small neighborhood businesses and community ownership by connecting our workforce to meaningful work across the economy.
The Office of the Executive Director is the mayor's executive office, providing tools and technical assistance to entrepreneurs on racial and social justice and advising the mayor on policies and programs that promote a vibrant economy.
With the rapid growth of Seattle and the critical role of small businesses in both the economy and the social fabric of our neighborhoods, OED has made it a priority to focus on the position you are hiring for at OED, our Small Business Advocate. OED Small Business Development Team.
This program provides access, problem-solving, capacity building, government navigation, and communications resources to hundreds of Seattle businesses each year.
Work Responsibilities
Small Business Attorney provides direct business development assistance to Seattle's dynamic small business community, which is well represented in Seattle's diverse industry mix, including retail, manufacturing, shipping, and technology.
This position also plays an important role in resolving business issues arising from city policies or practices at the policy level,
and implementing proactive strategies to mitigate negative impacts on small businesses and corporations.
The Small Business Development Consultant plays an important role in supporting and hiring women and minority-owned businesses (WMBEs) and generally assisting small businesses in maintaining City operations, expanding facilities, hiring employees, and generating tax revenue. The city of Seattle.
- Develop and coordinate collaborative solutions for businesses challenged by city regulations and permitting processes
- Assist small businesses in resolving issues, identifying required action, and connecting the business to the appropriate resources/staff
- Develop software/tools within a team to connect with local businesses, learn about their needs, concerns, and barriers to growth, and develop individual solutions to address problems
- Outreach efforts focused on women, minority businesses, immigrants, and other underrepresented populations
- Use creative thinking and innovation to propose better policies and programs that support and develop small businesses in collaboration with other city government employees, with a particular focus on supporting women, immigrants, and minority-owned businesses.
- Use data and national best practices to guide the development of performance measures to ensure the successful impact of business access, support, and technical assistance
The successful prospect for this position will have shown ability and experience:
- Fostering relationships with various community groups, in particular, business or commerce groups, chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, and WMBEs
- Work in a political environment.
- Work with immigrants, members of minorities, and/or small business owners
- Monitor issues and issues as they arise to identify recurring bottlenecks and opportunities for improvement through program changes, policy development, or problem-solving across departments and governments
- Monitor issues and communications and measure performance results
- Aggregate program results data to create useful reports for use in briefings and external communications
- Ability to respond professionally and promptly to members of the business facing pressing business issues in a high-pressure environment
- Demonstrated ability to address problems, resolve conflicts, and/or implement programs using innovative thinking based on best practices and performance metrics
- Proven experience communicating, communicating, and collaborating with various stakeholders
- Strong writing and ethical communication skills
- Experience developing community communications, collaborations, or partnerships
- Ability to manage competing priorities
- Experience working with different cultural, commercial, and art groups
additional information
OED seeks to reflect our core values in our daily work and priorities and to promote a respectful work environment inside and outside the office.
These values are:
- Service: customer focus, outsourcing, and empathy.
- Equality: social justice, inclusion, service to the entire population, recognition of institutional barriers.
- Perseverance: influence, perseverance, perseverance.
- Integrity: Collaborative, reliable, courageous, and keep the promise of public service.
- Purpose: Strategic priority, measurable impact, demonstrable results, and well-thought-out boundaries.
- Innovation: entrepreneurship, problem-solving, and creativity.
Who can apply?
Seattle values diverse perspectives and life experiences. Applicants will be considered without regard to race, color, creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, marital status, disability, religious or political opinion, age, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
The department encourages people of all backgrounds to apply, including people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBT people, people with disabilities, veterans, and people with diverse life experiences.