Planner IV - Planning, Building, and Code Enforcement Department

About the role

The Planning Division of the City of San José is seeking to fill two Planner IV Full-Time positions: one on the Housing Element and Housing Policy Team and one on the Permit Center Team.

Responsibilities

• Supervises subordinate planning staff, including: prioritizing and assigning work, training, editing documents prepared by subordinate staff, and general review of work performed by the team under supervision, conducting performance evaluations, making hiring, termination and disciplinary recommendations.
• Manages studies relating to formulating land use policies and General Plan designations.
• Develops special plans and planning policies.
• Develops housing elements, plans and programs.
• Gathers and analyzes socioeconomic and demographic data.
• Mentor staff to prepare them for future promotional opportunities.
• Collaborates with other City departments and other planning agencies on matters relating to assigned planning programs.
• Makes presentations before the City Council, Planning Commission, Historic Landmarks Commission, neighborhood and community groups, and/or other agencies.

Requirements

• Education: Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited college or university in urban or regional planning, urban studies, architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, urban geography, environmental studies or a closely related field.
• Experience: Five (5) years of professional planning experience that includes three (3) years journey-level experience.
• Acceptable Substitution: Master’s Degree or sixty (60) semester units of graduate course work from an accredited college or university in urban or regional planning, urban design, urban studies, architecture, landscape architecture, urban geography, or environmental studies or a closely related field can substitute for two (2) years of planning work experience at the City of San Jose's Planner II/III level or equivalent.

Qualifications

• Job Expertise: Demonstrates knowledge of and experience with applicable professional/technical principles and practices, Citywide and departmental procedures/policies and federal and state rules and regulations.
• Creativity: Addresses objectives and problems while questioning traditional assumptions/solutions in order to generate creative ideas and new ways of doing business; exhibits creativity and innovation when contributing to organizational and individual objectives; seeks out opportunities to improve, streamline, reinvent work processes.
• Leadership: Leads by example; demonstrates high ethical standards; remains visible and approachable and interacts with others on a regular basis; promotes a cooperative work environment, allowing others to learn from mistakes; provides motivational support and direction.
• Multi-Tasking: Can handle multiple projects and responsibilities simultaneously; has handled a wide variety of assignments in past and/or current position(s).
• Political Skill: In taking action, demonstrates an understanding and consideration of how it will impact stakeholders and affected areas in the organization.
• Problem Solving: Approaches a situation or problem by defining the problem or issue; determines the significance of problem; collects information; uses logic and intuition to arrive at decisions or solutions to problems that achieve the desired outcome.
• Project Management: Ensure support for projects and implement agency goals and strategic objectives.
• Supervision: Sets effective long and short-term goals based on a good understanding of management practices; establishes realistic priorities within available resources; provides motivational support; empowers others; assigns decision-making and work functions to others in an appropriate manner to maximize organizational and individual effectiveness.
• Teamwork & Interpersonal Skills: Develop effective relationships with co-workers and supervisors by helping others accomplish tasks and using collaboration and conflict resolution skills.
• Communication Skills: Communicates and listens effectively and responds in an timely, effective, positive and respectful manner; written reports and correspondence are accurate, complete, well-organized, legible, concise, and in proper grammatical form; responds to statements and comments of others in a way that reflects understanding of the content and the accompanying emotion; asks clarifying questions to assure understanding of what the speaker intended, ensures consistent communication takes place within area of responsibility.