Senior Project Manager for Tenant Engagement and Special Projects
About the Agency:
The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) is the nation’s largest municipal housing preservation and development agency. Its mission is to promote quality housing and diverse, thriving neighborhoods for New Yorkers through loan and development programs for new affordable housing, preservation of the affordability of the existing housing stock, enforcement of housing quality standards, and educational programs for tenants and building owners.
Your Team:
The Office of Neighborhood Strategies is charged with ensuring that HPD’s development and preservation efforts are guided by meaningful community engagement and coordinated with public investments in infrastructure and services, as put forth in the Mayor's Housing Plan. The Division of Neighborhood Development and Stabilization leads the agency's commitment to strategic preservation and development through engagement and collaboration with community-based organizations, tenants, homeowners, landlords, and other neighborhood stakeholders on issues involving the planning of vibrant neighborhoods anchored by affordable housing.
Your Impact:
As a Senior Project Manager for Tenant Engagement and Special Projects, you will help develop, manage, and lead the implementation of innovative programs to educate tenants about their rights and available resources and to protect them from landlord harassment and displacement. The team implements these strategies in close collaboration with a wide range of community stakeholders. The Partners in Preservation program, a data-driven initiative first launched by HPD in 2019, is one of these programs you will help lead. Responding to increased speculation, harassment, and displacement in rent-regulated housing, the agency developed Partners in Preservation to foster collaboration between tenant organizing groups, government agencies, and legal services providers. The program will be significantly expanded in the coming years.
Your Role:
The Division of Neighborhood Development and Stabilization is seeking an enthusiastic candidate with excellent project management and data analysis skills, knowledge of housing issues (with an emphasis on issues affecting low-income tenants), the ability to effectively collaborate with community and government partners, and a commitment to racial equity and social justice. Your role will be to support the Director and Deputy Director in leading and managing the Partners in Preservation program and support the development and management of the Division of Neighborhood Development and Stabilization’s data models and databases. Additionally, you will collaborate with other team members to develop and implement new, innovative strategies to protect tenants from displacement, coordinate with internal and external partners, and conduct policy analysis on a wide range of tenant issues. The selected candidate will join a growing team with wide-ranging professional backgrounds and report to the Deputy Director.
Your Responsibilities:
Program Management
- Help lead the Partners in Preservation program and serve as team leader for one or more target areas. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: (1) assisting with the ongoing procurement process to select CBOs to implement the program, (2) building and maintaining relationships with selected CBOs and their tenant organizing teams, (3) facilitating regular strategy meetings with tenant organizers, and (4) coordinating both internally and externally to implement interventions in target buildings
- Help develop, manage and lead the day-to-day implementation of new, data-driven strategies and programs to educate tenants about their rights and available resources and to protect them from landlord harassment and displacement, such as Tenant Clinics. Create and manage work plans and program budgets, ensure all milestones and deliverables are met, for these projects and programs
- Build relationships with and obtain input from a wide range of stakeholders, including CBOs, legal services providers, residents, City and State agencies, Community Boards, and elected officials
Data Management and Analysis
- Assist in the development and ongoing maintenance of the Division’s data models, analyses, and databases to support data-driven preservation and tenant protection programs
- Respond to data requests and translate complex analytical concepts and findings for a variety of audiences to support policy recommendations and program goals
Policy Analysis
- Analyze proposed municipal, state, and federal legislation that relates to the team’s work, conduct research on these issues, provide comments to agency leadership, and advocate for potential solutions, which may involve seeding new projects
Communications
- Create clearly articulated and compelling materials, such as presentations, memoranda, maps, data visualizations, and deliver presentations for internal and external audiences
Management
- Manage interns and help guide the work of junior team members
Minimum Requirements
- A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college and two years of experience in community work or community centered activities in an area related to the duties described above; or
- High school graduation or equivalent and six years of experience in community work or community centered activities in an area related to the duties as described above; or
- Education and/or experience which is equivalent to "1" or "2" above. However, all candidates must have at least one year of experience as described in "1" above
Preferred Skills & Experience:
- Professional experience: A minimum of three years of professional experience in a related field is preferred.
- Project management: Proven ability to manage projects with multiple internal and external stakeholders; to receive direction and anticipate next steps; to work independently and take initiative; and to meet deadlines. Attentive to details, organized, and able to follow through.
- Data analysis and mapping: Experience managing and manipulating large datasets, including Census tables, and large data models in Excel. Knowledge or interest in learning programming languages such as R, Python, Stata, or SAS is a plus. Ability to create maps using ArcGIS or similar program.
- Policy analysis: Extensive experience conducting policy research and sharing findings in memoranda and reports preferred.
- Subject-matter expertise: Knowledge of housing issues (with an emphasis on issues affecting low-income tenants ) is strongly preferred. Familiarity with New York City government and housing issues is a plus.
- Commitment to racial equity and social justice: An understanding of the historic and systemic causes of social inequities and a proven commitment to undo these wrongs.
- Creative thinking and problem solving: Ability to think creatively, critically, and strategically, and to consider complex policy problems through both a micro-level and macro-level lens and from an equity perspective.
- Relationship-building: Ability to relate with people from different backgrounds and to present information clearly to people from different educational and literacy levels. Experience with tenant organizing or providing legal services to tenants is strongly preferred. Existing relationships with New York City community-based organizations and legal services providers supporting low-income tenants or homeowners are welcomed.
- Communication: Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills. Proven ability to produce high-quality materials in a variety of formats and experience facilitating meetings. Ability to communicate complex data and concepts to a variety of audiences in e-mails, memos, slides, and oral presentations.
- Good judgment: Ability to analyze a situation, understand when additional input is needed, resolve issues independently, and escalate when appropriate.
COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement
As of August 2, 2021, all new hires must be vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus, unless they have been granted a reasonable accommodation for religion or disability. If you are offered city employment, this requirement must be met by your date of hire, unless a reasonable accommodation for exemption is received and approved by the hiring agency.
Residency Requirement
New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview