Strategic Planning Analyst - Parks and Urban Forestry

Ready to be the agile analyst who spearheads crucial operational improvements, synthesizes complex data into meaningful policy, and forges the productive partnerships needed to drive important City initiatives? You'll be the driving force behind diverse, high-impact projects and initiatives that directly shape how the City manages its operational services, from urban forestry to parkland permitting. This position provides essential project management support, ensuring alignment and success across different departmental units and with community partners. You will lead initiatives involving policy development and process improvements, using your expertise to connect the Branch's strategic vision with on-the-ground operational activities. This is a dynamic opportunity for an agile and collaborative problem-solver who can tackle anything that is thrown their way and pivot effectively between long-term strategic planning and immediate operational needs. What will you do?

• Drive continuous improvement by managing project processes for initiatives that directly impact field operations, like the Turf-Horticulture combining pilot, developing and implementing further changes to the mobile food vending program, or developing new tools and processes to manage parkland agreements
• Develop comprehensive business cases and project plans to meet project goals and deliver quality results on time and within budget
• Cultivate relationships with community partners, and internal subject matter experts to gather data, leverage their expertise, to contribute to project success
• Formulate, chair, and lead temporary project teams, ensuring deliverables are completed in a timely manner without direct functional oversight
• Act as a key liaison, leading the development of council reports that respond to Council's requests for information or recommendations, synthesizing complex data into meaningful insights for decision-makers
• Ensure the smooth transition of project outcomes, handing over ongoing operational results to the appropriate functional teams and providing transitional support
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of OPM's project management processes, gathering lessons learned, and providing mentorship to other analysts
• Negotiate priorities and scope of work with interested and/or affected Parties and project Sponsors to ensure clear deliverables

Qualifications:

• University degree in science, engineering, business administration, statistics, mathematics, commerce, political science or equivalent supporting education/training in organizational development, leadership, process improvement, quality, business analytics, strategic planning, change management
• A minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible experience demonstrating proficiency in standardization, strategic policy development, and/or stakeholder/partner relations, including successfully supporting the facilitation of multi-party technical or policy-setting groups or committees, and possessing robust skills in project management, strategic thinking, research, report writing, and business case development

Assets:

• A Project Management Professional or Quality Management designation, knowledge, and experience

Skills required for success:

• Agility and versatility to shift gears and balance competing timelines and varying degrees of complexity across multiple simultaneous projects
• Ability to lead and conduct studies and research, analytical skills and experience in locating, collecting, and analyzing complex data to prepare meaningful, concise reports
• Ability to write for external audiences and translate technical information for a non-technical audience
• Collaboration and relationship-building skills to develop and sustain partnerships with internal teams and external community partners
• Develop plans for monitoring, reviewing, and revising approved project outcomes to ensure successful execution
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to present technical and strategic information clearly to diverse audiences, including senior leadership and decision-makers
• Strategic thinking, risk assessment, and decision-making ability to identify optimal methodologies and alternative solutions
• Strong organizational and prioritization skills to manage a large breadth of functional knowledge and complex data
• Alignment to our Cultural Commitments and Leadership Competencies ( https://bit.ly/4brRrXm )
• Embracing a culture of equity, diversity, reconciliation and inclusion.
• Applicants may be tested

Conditions of employment:

• Candidates are required to hold a valid Alberta Class 5 driver’s license (or provincial equivalent) or higher. Candidates will be required to arrange their own transportation and, where appropriate, will be reimbursed in accordance with City of Edmonton policy. This may require the candidate to obtain business-use auto insurance

Work Environment:

• Note: This position may be eligible for a hybrid work arrangement with the flexibility to work from both home and the worksite as per the Letter of Understanding between the City of Edmonton and Civic Service Union 52
• The weekly hours of work for this position are currently under review and may change at a future time. Any changes will be made in accordance with the City of Edmonton/Civic Service Union 52 collective agreement and the incumbent will be notified in advance

The City of Edmonton values applicants with a diverse range of skills, experiences and competencies, and encourages you to apply. We strive to provide reasonable access and accommodations throughout the recruitment process. To request an accommodation, please contact employment@edmonton.ca. Learn more about our benefits https://bit.ly/COEbenefits . Up to 1 temporary full-time position for up to 11 months Hours of Work: 40 hours per week. Salary Range: $47.353 - $59.833 (Hourly); $98,873.06 - $124,931.30 (Annually) Talent Acquisition Consultant: PO/VH

• Edmonton rests in the heart of Treaty Six territory in Alberta and the homelands of the Metis Nation.