Senior Writer

Position Description

Precinct One's Mission

Precinct One's mission is that we are committed to become a national model for delivering responsive public service utilizing inclusive, innovative and collaborative approaches to improve the quality of life, advance equality of opportunity and promote the fair treatment of all people in Harris County. The Policy team advances the mission by developing and advancing equitable public policy that enhances the quality of life of all Harris County residents.

What you will do at Precinct One

Harris County Precinct One is seeking a skilled and experienced Senior Writer to lead and create Precinct One's external-facing written communications content. As the Senior Writer, you will be responsible for developing and executing comprehensive external communication strategies that promote constituent engagement, facilitate collaboration, and drive the achievement of our mission. You will collaborate with leaders across various departments to develop and execute comprehensive communications plans. You will also lead the development of written materials such as newsletters, memos, opinion editorials, statements, and other relevant content.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Develop communications plans and information-sharing strategies to elevate Precinct One priorities and advance strategic goals

• Frame messaging around critical public policy issues and current events

• Assist in the development of an annual strategic plan and content calendar for the Communications Division in collaboration with the Communications Director, Content Director, and key staff

• Monitor and research public opinion/sentiment, as well as progressive messaging around the country related to Precinct One's public policy priorities

• Serve as an inter-departmental liaison for writing projects involving Precinct One divisions

• Draft, review, edit, and finalize content, press materials, op-eds, and Commissioner talking points as needed/assigned

• Interact with members of the press as needed

• Other duties: Performs all other duties as assigned.

Harris County is an Equal Opportunity Employer

https://hrrm.harriscountytx.gov/Pages/EqualEmploymentOpportunityPlan.aspx

If you need special services or accommodations, please call (713) 274-5445 or email ADACoordinator@bmd.hctx.net.

This position is subject to a criminal history check. Only relevant convictions will be considered and, even when considered, may not automatically disqualify the candidate.

Requirements

What you will bring to Precinct One

Education:

• Bachelor's degree in Communications, Public Relations, English, Political Science, Public Policy, or a related field of study

Experience:

• Four (4) years of experience working on external communications

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Knowledge of local, state, and federal government operations

• Ability to effectively deliver and communicate information in a variety of settings to a diverse audience

• Skilled at working collaboratively with a commitment to serving the public

• Ability to perform highly skilled research

• Ability to apply logic and critical thinking to evaluate issues to identify strengths and weaknesses and offer various options, solutions, and approaches

NOTE: Qualifying education, experience, knowledge, and skills must be documented on your job application. You may attach a resume to the application as supporting documentation but ONLY information stated on the application will be used for consideration. "See Resume" will not be accepted for qualifications.

Preferences

Experience:

• Experience with progressive messaging. (preferred)

General Information

Position Type and Typical Hours of Work:

• Full-time | Regular

• Monday

• Friday | 9 am

• 6 pm

• Some evenings and weekends may be required

Work Environment and Physical Demands:

• Will generally perform duties in an office, though sometimes at external event locations

• Occasional travel within Harris County

What You Get in Return

You will be surrounded by coworkers who bring their best daily. Passionate people who want to make a difference in the communities Precinct One serves and Harris County as a whole. You will be in a mission-driven organization surrounded by colleagues who bring their best to work each day and collaborate to make a difference in the communities Precinct One serves along with Harris County as a whole.

Harris County employees receive a competitive salary plus medical, dental and vision insurance at no cost to the employee after the first two months of full-time continued employment. Vacation, sick time and floating holidays allow our employees to recharge and balance work and personal time. Mandatory participation in our retirement program allows employees to save for retirement. Various other benefits and discounts lead to the satisfaction and engagement of our employees.

About Precinct One

There are four precincts in Harris County. The four elected commissioners, along with an elected county judge, serve as members of Harris County Commissioners Court, the administrative head of the county's government. Commissioner Rodney Ellis represents the constituents of Precinct One.

With approximately 1.17 million residents, Harris County Precinct One is a diverse, urban precinct that covers 363 square miles. Precinct One's multi-racial, multi-ethnic population is roughly 33 percent African American, 38 percent Latino, 21 percent Anglo, 6 percent Asian and 2 percent other or multiple races.

Precinct One stretches south to Brazoria County and reaches into eastern and northern sections of Harris County. The Precinct's territory includes a large section of Downtown Houston, including the Downtown Harris County Courthouse Complex, Toyota Center, Minute Maid Park and the BBVA Compass Stadium. Other notable landmarks include the 263-acre NRG Park Complex and the renowned Texas Medical Center. The Precinct is also the higher educational home to Houston Community College, Rice University, Texas Southern University, the University of Houston and the University of St. Thomas. Precinct One manages more than 21 parks, 10 community centers, numerous hike-and-bike trails, three maintenance service centers and several area offices, all of which provide an array of services to Precinct One residents.

How to apply

If this job sounds interesting, you meet the required qualifications and you can see yourself working for Precinct One, we invite you to apply.

https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/harriscountytx

Employment may be contingent on passing a drug screen and meeting other standards.

Due to a high volume of applications positions may close prior to the advertised closing date or at the discretion of the Hiring Department.

BENEFITS

Harris County offers a competitive benefits program, including comprehensive group health and related benefits plan as well as defined benefit retirement plan.

The following list of benefits is offered only to employees in regular (full-time) positions:

• Medical Coverage

• Dental Coverage

• Vision Coverage

• Wellness Plan

• Life Insurance

• Long-term disability

• Employee Assistance Program

• Ten (10) days of vacation each year for the first five (5) years of service

• Accrual rates increase based on years of service

• Eleven (11) County-observed holidays and one (1) floating holiday

• Professional development opportunities

• Dependent Care Reimbursement Plan

• Healthcare Reimbursement Account

• 457 Deferred Compensation Plan

The following benefits are also available to regular (full-time) employment and may be available to part-time employees:

• Retirement Pension (TCDRS)
• Flexible schedule (varies by department)
• Transportation Assistance (Metro RideSponsor Program)

In accordance with the Harris County Personnel Regulations, Group Health and related benefits are subject to amendment or discontinuance at any time. Commissioners Court reserves the right to make benefit modifications on the County's behalf as needed.

For plan details, visit the Harris County benefits website:

https://benefitsathctx.com/

01

Which of the following best describes your highest level of education completed as it relates to this position?

• High School or GED diploma

• Associate Degree

• Bachelor's Degree

• Master's Degree or higher

• None of the above

02

If you selected a college degree in response to the previous question, which of the following best describes your major?

• Communications

• Public Relations

• English

• Political Science

• Public Policy

• Other Related Field

• Unrelated Field

• N/A; No Degree

03

Which of the following best describes your verifiable experience working on external communications? (To be considered, qualifying experience must be documented in your application's employment history)

• Less than five (5) years

• Five (5) years or more but less than six (6) years

• Six (6) years or more but less than seven (7) years

• Seven (7) years or more

• I do not have this experience.

04

Please provide details about your verifiable experience working on external communications.

• Do not use "See Resume", as we do not use resumes to assess qualifications.* (To be considered, qualifying experience must be documented in your application's employment history) Include your (a) role(s), (b) types of organizations, (c) scope of duties and responsibilities. If you do not have this experience, please type "None" in the space provided.

05

Which of the following describes your level of proficiency using a personal computer and common office software such as MS Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook). Please select your level of proficiency based on the following descriptions: Advanced: A person with this level of skills is able to produce very large, complex formal documents that require a table of contents, footnotes, endnotes, bookmarks, and other special elements; a wide range of graphic effects, and use advanced techniques for analyzing and manipulating data. Has full mastery of Macro commands and skills to tie the objects together into a cohesive system by using Macros and Visual Basic for Applications code. Makes interactive presentations by using hyperlinks and action buttons. Intermediate: A person with this level of skills is able to customize toolbars, import and insert graphs, embed Excel data, and elaborate reports. Understands the concepts of databases and is able to work with charts and to use the list management capabilities of Excel. Able to use complex query techniques, create efficient forms and reports, and create Macros to automate these forms. Makes interactive presentations by using hyperlinks and action buttons. Basic: A person with this level of skills is able to use basic formatting, editing, printing functions, and understands the document page setup. Has the ability to enter and correct data, modify a workbook, format a worksheet, and use printing functions. Understands the different database concepts and structures and is familiar with data validation and is able to create a simple presentation in PowerPoint, run it, and print it. Entry Level: A person with this level of skills has the ability to open, create, save and modify documents in Word, send and receive email in Outlook and create spreadsheets in Excel. Format documents for printing, comfortable using the printer menu to preview documents. Has ability to change the font, the margins, insert or delete pages and use the built-in spellchecker and grammar check.

• Advanced

• Intermediate

• Basic

• Entry Level

• Not proficient

06

Do you have experience with progressive messaging?

• Yes

• No

Required Question

Agency Harris County

Address 1111 Fannin St

Ste. 600

Houston, Texas, 77002

Phone 713-274-5445

Website https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/harriscountytx