CONSUMER ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH DIVISION DIRECTOR

Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, Milwaukee is an urban hub bursting with energy. Milwaukee provides a casual sophistication – big city appeal without the big city hassles. We are accessible and affordable, and our residents are welcoming. Milwaukee has evolved through the years, bringing together its unsurpassed old world charm with a breathtaking Art Museum, top-flight arts and cultural attractions, professional sports, lakefront festivals, recreational opportunities, and great restaurants.

“The Milwaukee Health Department is a leader in assuring that Milwaukee is the healthiest city in the nation.”

DIVISION OVERVIEW:  The Division of Consumer Environmental Health (CEH) has substantial health and financial impact on City of Milwaukee residents and visitors. The Division is responsible for inspecting more than 3,200 food establishments and 1,100 temporary events each year. It is critical that inspections are performed in a high-quality, standardized manner to prevent either the costly loss of food or outbreaks of foodborne illness. In addition, the Division inspects hundreds of other establishments such as tattoo and body piercing establishments as part of its consumer protection program. The Division is currently staffed with 25 environmental health supervisors, coordinators, specialists, and clerical employees.

PURPOSE:  Under the direction of the Commissioner of Health and the Health Operations Administrator, the Consumer Environmental Health Director is responsible for developing, implementing, and evaluating cost-effective and outcome-based strategies for the department’s regulatory food and consumer protection programs. The Director is responsible for establishing and maintaining partnerships with other agencies to assure safety of the food being sold in Milwaukee and protect consumers from environmental health hazards and fraudulent retail practices. The CEH Director assures the integrity of the inspectional programs by implementing systems and providing oversight to the division’s managers, coordinators, and inspectors, who inspect and enforce City, state, and federal regulations related to food safety and security, environmental health, and consumer protection. As a member of the Health Department’s executive leadership team, the CEH Director provides input on the department’s overall strategic and operational development.

Leadership, Direction, and Planning:

• Exercise a high degree of independent judgment and decision-making while overseeing the department’s regulatory food and consumer protection inspection and enforcement activities.
• Assure program compliance with all City, state, and federal regulatory requirements relating to food and weights and measures.
• Monitor national best practices for regulatory programs, and use outcomes-based management and proven quality improvement strategies to improve division performance and outcomes.
• Manage the investigation of foodborne illness complaints and outbreak investigations as well as facilitate product trace-backs and recalls within the community and in coordination with other divisions, departments, and agencies.
• Manage federal and state grants, contracts, and agreements.
• Formulate and recommend City policies, ordinances, resolutions, and legislative position related to environmental, communicable disease, and emergency preparedness and response issues that impact human health, economic development, and overall quality of life within the City.
• Write, update, and amend City ordinances related to food and consumer protection in coordination with other City agencies.
• Generate program summaries, project updates, special reports, technical papers, grant applications, statistical analyses, and other documents as requested to support programs.
• Champion grant opportunities within the organization, and play a lead role in writing the grants, developing the budgets, and building new or existing projects through grants.
• Maintain data management systems related to evaluation of outcomes, expenditures, and revenues generated through division activities to validate effective and efficient program and project strategies.
• Develop and implement strategies for the integration of technology into public health practice to achieve efficiencies in programmatic activities, including the implementation of the new electronic inspection system.
• Serve as the department’s technical expert on regulatory food, environmental health, and consumer protection issues.

Staff Management and Administration:

• Supervise a team of environmental health supervisors, coordinators, specialists, and clerical employees.
• Participate in recruitment, selection, and assignment of CEH personnel.
• Lead efforts to build morale, enforce accountability and discipline, and improve performance.
• Guide and mentor division management staff.
• Promote an environment of critical thinking, creative thinking, professional growth, adult learning, open communication, and collaborative relationships.
• Develop, implement, and oversee a career ladder system in order to assure a knowledgeable, responsive, and accountable workforce.
• Develop and implement a program for professional development of division staff.
• Develop, implement, and oversee a system for field evaluation of inspectional staff.
• Participate as a member of the executive leadership team, working with and advising the Commissioner of Health.
• Analyze data to monitor division outcomes and performance.

Community Leadership:

• Develop and maintain collaborative relationships with other City departments as well as state and federal regulatory agencies.
• Develop and maintain collaborative relationships with food establishment operators and community-based organizations, representing the department at community based events as appropriate.
• Act as spokesperson for the department on regulatory food, environmental health, and consumer protection issues, including responding to media requests and appearing before the Common Council.
• Assist Alderpersons and their staffs with resolving constituent problems and questions.
• Provide assistance to citizens, the Mayor’s Office, the City Clerk’s Office, and other City departments.

Reasonable accommodations requested by qualified individuals with disabilities will be made in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, as amended by the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA) of 2008.

1. Must be willing to work beyond standard business hours to accomplish work and meet departmental needs.
2. Travel outside the City of Milwaukee, occasionally overnight, may be required.
3. The incumbent will be required to carry a mobile device.

1. Master’s degree in environmental health, public health, epidemiology, science, public administration, business administration, or a related field from an accredited college or university.
2. Five years of progressively responsible experience in program management, administration, and supervision, preferably within a governmental agency, overseeing programs similar to those conducted within Division.
3. Valid Wisconsin Driver’s license at time of appointment and throughout employment and availability of a properly insured personal automobile for use on the job throughout employment; mileage reimbursement is provided.
4. Two or more of the following credentials at the time of appointment, including eligibility to obtain the RS or CP-FS at the time of appointment; upon hire, the incumbent must actively pursue the others:

• Registered Sanitarian (RS) from the State of Wisconsin
• Certified Professional–Food Safety (CP–FS) from the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA)
• Emergency Preparedness Training (ICS 100, 200, 300, and IS-700) from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Emergency Management Institute
• Various consumer protection seminars offered by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
• Advanced coursework in public health
• Certification in quality improvement or quality improvement techniques (LEAN, Six Sigma, etc.)

Equivalent combinations of education and experience may also be considered.

IMPORTANT NOTE: College transcripts are required and must be received by the application period closing date. Transcripts should be attached to your online application. Applications without transcripts attached will be considered incomplete and will be rejected. Your transcript must be legible and include your college/university name, your name, the degree completed (if applicable) and the date completed.

• Graduate-level coursework in industrial hygiene, environmental health, and epidemiology.

Technical Knowledge:

• Broad cross-disciplinary knowledge of environmental health, epidemiology; microbiology; health education, communication, and informatics; public health statutes, ordinances, and regulations; the grant process; and emergency preparedness principles.
• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret voluminous work-related documents such as local, state, and federal ordinances, statutes, and regulations, scientific and technical journals, financial reports, and legal documents.
• Knowledge of mathematics and the ability to make accurate calculations.
• An understanding of the capabilities of information technology, including contact management systems, project management software, epidemiology and data collection tools, and public health related data systems.
• Proficiency using the Internet for research and word processing, spreadsheet, database, presentation, and email applications.

Communication and Interpersonal Skills:

• Written communication skills, including skill in writing correspondence, grant applications, policies, ordinances, resolutions, reports, speeches, and articles for publication.
• Oral communication and presentation skills; skill in presenting information effectively one-on-one and before groups such as top management, boards of directors, media, legislative bodies, and the public.
• Customer focus: dedication to exceptional service delivery and ability to satisfactorily respond to inquiries or escalated complaints from customers, regulatory agencies, other City departments, the media, academics, and members of the business community.
• Political acumen and the ability to work effectively with staff, colleagues, and representatives of other agencies.

Leadership Ability and Supervisory Skills:

• Leadership, initiative, and vision: ability to provide operational oversight and expert advice for a diverse staff of environmental health professionals in support of the division’s mission.
• Supervisory skills: ability to set objectives; make assignments and delegate tasks; direct work; measure and evaluate work outcomes; and hire, train, develop, and discipline staff as necessary; ability to build an effective team.

Critical Thinking and Planning Skills:

• Ability to analyze and creatively solve complex problems as well as decision-making skills and sound judgment.
• Ability to plan, organize, and prioritize work to achieve objectives within deadlines.
• Ability to be flexible and adjust to changing circumstances.

Professionalism:

• Ability to perform well under pressure.
• Ability to represent the department with honesty and integrity as well as to maintain confidentiality.
• Commitment to the promotion of health and the prevention of disease; commitment to staying abreast of current best practices in consumer environmental health, management, and quality improvement.

THE CURRENT SALARY RANGE (1IX) for City of Milwaukee residents is $75,478-$105,669 annually, and the non-resident starting salary is $73,627. Appointment above the minimum requires approval and will be based on qualifications and experience.

The City of Milwaukee offers a collaborative, positive work environment where each employee contributes to making the city the best place possible to live and work. The City offers a comprehensive benefits package, including a top rated pension plan, health, and dental benefits, paid time off including vacation, 11 holidays, sick leave accrual, and much more.

THE SELECTION PROCESS will be job related and will consist of one or more of the following: education and experience evaluation; written, oral, or performance tests, or other assessment methods. The Department of Employee Relations reserves the right to call only the most qualified candidates to oral and performance examinations. Oral examinations may include written exercises. Selection process component weights will be determined by further analysis of the job.

INITIAL FILING DATE: The examination will be held as soon as practical after February 5, 2016. Receipt of applications may be discontinued at any time after this date without prior notice. However, recruitment may continue until the needs of the City have been met. Qualified applicants will be notified of the date, time, and place of the examination. Unless otherwise required by law, the City of Milwaukee will not provide alternative test administration. The applicant is responsible for attending all phases of the job selection process at the time and place designated by the City of Milwaukee.

NOTE: The City’s residency requirement set forth in City Charter 5-02 is under litigation. Even though the City is legally able to enforce the current residency requirements based on a recent Wisconsin Court of Appeals decision, the City has agreed to continue to suspend enforcement of the ordinance until the Wisconsin Supreme Court issues a final decision. If the Wisconsin Supreme Court affirms the Court of Appeals decision, the City intends to fully enforce the residency requirement for all employees. Consequently, employees who disregard the requirements of the ordinance do so at their own risk. Applicants for City of Milwaukee positions should understand the City’s commitment to its residency requirement. During this period of uncertainty it is important to take that into account when submitting an application and more importantly when deciding to accept an employment offer. Please contact (414) 286-3751 if you have questions regarding your individual circumstances as part of the application and/or selection process.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE:

• Applications can be accessed by visiting www.jobaps.com/MIL.
• If you would like assistance completing an application, please contact the Department of Employee Relations at (414) 286-3751 or staffinginfo@milwaukee.gov.
• The Department of Employee Relations is located in City Hall, 200 E Wells St, Room 706, Milwaukee, WI 53202.

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