Assistant County Manager for Operations

The Assistant County Manager for Operations is accountable for the county's physical infrastructure and environmental services — the roads, stormwater systems, solid waste programs, county buildings, and parks that create the built environment county residents live in. When a bridge closes, roads flood, the landfill exceeds capacity, or a courthouse roof fails, the operations assistant manager is in the room explaining what happened and what's being done about it.

Capital program management is the most complex and visible responsibility. A mid-to-large county may run $100–$500M in annual capital investment across roads, bridges, drainage, facilities, and environmental infrastructure. Managing this program requires overseeing dozens of projects at varying stages — some in federal or state environmental review, some in design, some under construction, some in warranty — while managing the relationships with designers, contractors, and regulatory agencies that move projects forward.

Environmental compliance adds a regulatory dimension that operational managers in smaller jurisdictions sometimes underestimate. The county's MS4 stormwater permit, solid waste facility permits, landfill gas collection requirements, and fleet emissions standards each carry compliance obligations that require technical management and documentation. The assistant manager provides the executive accountability for compliance performance while department technical staff manage the day-to-day obligations.

Workforce management is substantial. County public works and environmental services departments often employ hundreds of skilled trades workers, equipment operators, and technicians under collective bargaining agreements. The assistant manager sets the tone for labor relations in those departments — how grievances are handled, how safety is prioritized, how contracts are implemented — and works with HR and department directors on workforce development and succession planning.

Emergency response gives the operations portfolio its highest-stakes moments. A major storm event that floods county roads and causes infrastructure failures requires the assistant manager to coordinate response across public works, emergency management, utilities, and communications — simultaneously managing operational logistics, public information, and board briefing demands.

Education:

• Master of Public Administration (MPA) from an NASPAA-accredited program
• Bachelor's or master's in civil engineering (PE license valued for technical credibility with engineering staff)
• ICMA-CM credential and APWA Public Works Executive (PWE) certification are both relevant

Experience benchmarks:

• 12–18 years of progressively senior county or municipal government experience
• Department director experience in public works, transportation, or utilities
• Demonstrated capital program management — delivery of multi-project programs at $50M+ scale
• Track record managing represented workforces with union contracts

Technical knowledge (breadth expected):

• Roads and bridges: pavement management, bridge inspection and replacement, right-of-way management
• Stormwater: MS4 permit compliance, drainage infrastructure, flood control
• Solid waste: collection operations, facility permitting, landfill gas, diversion programs
• Facilities: building systems, energy management, deferred maintenance prioritization
• Fleet: lifecycle costing, alternative fuel transition planning

Capital program competencies:

• Federal highway and transportation funding: STBG, NHPP, CMAQ, RAISE grants
• NEPA environmental review: categorical exclusions, environmental assessments
• Construction contract administration: design-bid-build, CM-GC, design-build
• Project delivery software: Primavera, MS Project, GIS-based asset management

Regulatory environment:

• FHWA/state DOT requirements for federal-aid highway projects
• EPA and state environmental agency requirements for solid waste, stormwater, and air quality
• OSHA for public works and construction safety
• FEMA BPAS and hazard mitigation grant compliance for resilience projects

Infrastructure has become the dominant investment priority in county government following years of deferred maintenance, accelerated by federal IIJA funding. Counties managing $20M–$200M in annual infrastructure investment need operations executives who can plan, deliver, and account for capital programs at that scale — and the supply of experienced public sector infrastructure managers is genuinely tight.

The IIJA created both opportunity and demand. Counties receiving significant federal infrastructure funding need staff who understand federal aid requirements, can manage compliance reporting, and can coordinate the intergovernmental relationships involved in federally funded projects. Assistant managers who have navigated complex FHWA or EPA-funded programs are highly sought.

Climate resilience is reshaping what operations managers need to know. Extreme weather events — intensifying storms, heat waves, drought — are stressing county infrastructure in ways that require both capital investment and operational adaptation. The assistant manager who understands green infrastructure, climate-resilient design, and the funding landscape for resilience investments is positioned for the next generation of the role.

Environmental services complexity is growing. Zero-waste goals, extended producer responsibility programs, organic waste diversion mandates, and landfill methane capture requirements are adding regulatory and operational demands to county solid waste programs. Counties in states with aggressive environmental legislation — California, Washington, Colorado — are driving the leading edge of this complexity.

The career ceiling in county operations leads to county manager positions in jurisdictions where operational background is valued alongside management breadth. Operations-focused county managers are common in infrastructure-heavy counties. The combination of PE credentials and MPA training creates a profile that is in demand and relatively uncommon in the current talent market.

Dear County Manager [Name] and Search Committee,

I'm applying for the Assistant County Manager for Operations position with [County]. I've served as Director of Public Works for [County] for seven years, managing a department of 220 employees, a $28M operating budget, and an annual capital program of $65M covering roads, bridges, stormwater, and county facilities.

The capital program work is where I've developed the most relevant executive experience for this role. We delivered 14 transportation projects last fiscal year totaling $47M — all within budget, 12 of 14 on schedule — while simultaneously managing five FHWA-funded projects with federal compliance requirements. I built the project controls infrastructure that made that performance visible in real time, not at year-end close-out. The board now gets a monthly capital program dashboard that they actually read.

I'm also a registered civil engineer, and I've found that the technical credibility it provides with engineering staff matters in ways that are hard to quantify but easy to observe. Conversations about design tradeoffs, contractor claims, and construction problems go differently when staff know their director can read the plans.

On the operations side, I led our department through a significant fleet electrification initiative — 40% of our light duty fleet is now electric — and a full MS4 program reset after a corrective action finding from the state. Both required sustained cross-departmental coordination and political communication that I'm confident prepares me for the assistant manager scope.

I hold an MPA from [University] and a PE in civil engineering. I'd welcome the chance to discuss what [County] needs in this role.

[Your Name]