Assistant Director of Library Programs and Engagement

Position Description

Invitation to Compete #20-26: Assistant Director of Library Programs and Engagement

Central Library, 1000 4th Ave, Seattle, WA 98104

Regular, FLSA-exempt, benefitted, full-time (80 hours per two week pay period)

Salary Range: $118,180.80 - $195,040.08 Annually

This recruitment is open to the public and to The Seattle Public Library’s employees and will remain open continuously. Candidates wishing to be considered in the first review should submit their application, cover letter, and resume in NEOGOV by 5:00 p.m. on April 24, 2026. Please read the How to Apply section of this bulletin for more information. Please note that the application period may close at any time after the first consideration date.

About The Seattle Public Library

The Seattle Public Library’s mission is to bring people, information, and ideas together to enrich lives and build community. We envision the Library as the central hub of an equitable and connected city where knowledge flourishes, and people find inspiration and a sense of belonging. Since 1891, we have grown from a single reading room to a world-class library system with 27 locations, including the iconic Central Library.

The Library works every day to foster and support a healthy city and a healthy democracy. We do this work guided by the principles of intellectual freedom and equity, and with a service focus on literacy, the love of reading and learning, patron privacy and confidentiality, transparency, accountability to the public, strong partnerships, and innovation.

The Library is an active and committed partner in the City of Seattle's Race and Social Justice efforts, which seeks to end racial disparities and achieve racial equity in City government. RSJ embeds racial equity and social justice principles into programs, budgets, and culture.

Library employees are highly regarded by the public for their knowledge, quality of service, empathy, compassion, and caring. As a workplace, we value transparent communication, partnership, and engagement. We are enriched individually and organizationally by our diversity. We are looking for a leader who will continue our development of an inclusive workplace that delivers a sense of belonging to Library staff and patrons.

If you share our values and meet the qualifications, the Library invites you to apply for the Assistant Director of Library Programs and Engagement position.

About the Position

The Assistant Director of Library Programs and Engagement will oversee the current Equity Learning and Engagement Services (ELES) team. The Assistant Director position will join the Library Experience and Engagement (LEED) Leadership Team, will be part of the LEED Management Team, and will report directly to the LEED Director. This position will help shape and implement the goals of LEED as guided by the Library’s Strategic Plan.

This position is currently one of three Assistant Director positions that report directly to the Director of LEED. This position will oversee, guide and direct staff in the operations of the Library’s system wide programs and services to Seattle’s diverse community.

Job Responsibilities

Any of the following duties may be performed. These examples are not necessarily performed by all incumbents, however, and do not include all specific tasks an incumbent may be expected to perform.

Develop future Library programs and services. Continually assess the public’s needs and interests, and work collaboratively with administration, managers, staff, external partners and the community to develop responsive program and service strategies that meet traditional and non-traditional use patterns in new and innovative ways. Provide leadership and participate fully in the development of the Library’s programs and service deliverables. Acquire and analyze information and develop reports and recommendations assessing current services and supporting development of new services and program initiatives.
Plan, develop and implement race and social equity principles into Library programs and service deliverables. Work in conjunction with other city departments, the community, external partners, and Library staff in creating an organization free of institutionalized racism.
Maintain and enhance Outcomes Based Planning and Evaluation (OBPE) through Service Design. Utilize Human Centered Design principles in the development and implementation of an OBPE framework that drives Community engagement activities, programming, and new service initiatives while continually assessing and reviewing existing engagement activities and core services. Manage the Outcomes Reporting process and supervise reporting on outcomes to the Board, the Seattle Public Library Foundation, Friends, library staff and community partners.
Administer staffing. Develop and implement staffing models and plans to support programs and service goals. Provide general staffing administration and support managers in the coordination and supervision of staff. Participate in and/or support the recruitment, selection and onboarding of new staff members. Engage in teambuilding and model and develop the competencies of managers and staff. Monitor and track staffing activities and maintain needed systems and records. Develop staffing budgets, reports and studies as needed. Coordinate staffing activities and development with Human Resources, Labor, Library Administration, managers, and other partners.
Manage, develop and innovate operational systems. In collaboration with the Assistant Directors of Library Experience, evaluate and continually improve systems for the management of essential operations, analyzing resource needs, and directing staff effectively to support Library objectives. Coordinate unit and individual work plans with overall divisional priorities and objectives. Plan for and develop regular status reports, conduct analytical studies and evaluations. Assist the Director with annual and long-range planning, including setting goals and recommending strategies.
Manage projects. In collaboration with the Assistant Directors of Library Experience, assist managers and the LEED Management Team in setting short- and long-term objectives, planning and implementing unit and individual projects. Attend project-related meetings and ensure timely communication between divisions, teams, structured groups, administrators, and other partners. Make presentations to individuals and groups.
Manage budgets. Assist with developing operations, staffing, project and other budgets and coordinating them with overall division budgets. Monitor expenditures and develop financial reports and studies in collaboration with the Finance team. In coordination with the director of LEED, develop an annual budget for Programs & Engagement. Compile and analyze statistics, outcomes and impacts along with other relevant data in support of budget requests.
Maintain and enhance the Seattle Public Library Foundation (SPLF) and Friends of the Library relationships. Manage Foundation and Friends funds and provide reports on programs and services funded by these two non-profit groups, and maintain channels of communication with the Foundation CEO, Friends President and staff to develop donor interest, advocacy, and support.
Partner with community organizations and represent the Library to the public. Participate in community activities, collaborate internally to identify and build on collaborative opportunities, establish, support and maintain relations with community partners, and support managers and staff in responding to public concerns and interests.
Recommend and participate in the development of Library policies, guidelines and practices. Stay abreast of changes in the library profession that will support the service delivery changes proposed by the Library. Seek out best practices of other library systems and entities, as appropriate, and analyze their potential application at the Library. Maintain a continual practice of process improvements to gain efficiencies in work processes. Develop and maintain a collaborative process that seeks input from affected partners such as frontline staff and cross divisional peers.
Develop, coach and mentor. Develop and support the mentoring and professional development of Programs & Engagement direct reports and LEED staff.

Qualifications

Education and Experience:

Five years of library management experience; experience with urban public libraries and Central/Branch system structures is highly desirable.
A bachelor’s degree or a combination of education and/or training and/or experience which provides an equivalent background required to perform the work of the class will be considered. Master’s degree in library and information science preferred.
Excellent leadership and management skills, including a successful track record of managing library services and a unionized staff through significant change. Must be familiar with current professional trends and issues in public library services and management.
Demonstrated experience in recruiting, developing and mentoring a diverse staff that reflects the communities served by SPL and experience removing barriers to advancement for people of color and other marginalized groups.
Demonstrated experience developing supervision and management expectations. Ability to both formally and informally coach direct reports and other staff within the library system.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including written and formal communications, presentation skills, skill with group and team dynamics, and the ability to motivate, persuade and negotiate with diverse individuals and groups.
Demonstrated experience in equity analysis of library programs and services and an understanding of race and social equity issues. Ability to apply this analysis to affect change in program and service deliverables from an equity perspective.
Knowledge and experience communicating the Library’s intellectual freedom role to patrons, partners, community members, and staff. Ability to recognize, communicate and lead staff through the inherent tension between upholding intellectual freedom principles while working towards the elimination of institutionalized race and social inequities.
Knowledge of and experience with principles and methods of organizational administration, including staffing administration, budgeting and analysis, communications, and records management. Ability to apply such principles, policies and procedures in the performance of job duties.
Knowledge and understanding of personnel and labor relations principles, policies and procedures. Experience supervising and administering in a union environment.
Knowledge of organizational theory and various leadership models. Demonstrated experience of innovation in library programs and services and experience with change management, project management, human centered design, and various leadership methods.
Knowledge of and experience in implementing, providing and evaluating a broad range of library programs and services including outreach and engagement, and program and service design. Ability to assess and recommend new and improved policies, processes and procedures relating to these functional areas.
General knowledge of collection development, and how to integrate collections into programs and services.
Knowledge of and experience in communicating the value of a broad range of library access services such as collection access, and library technologies and operations, in collaboration with the Assistant Director of Library Experience and the Collections and Access Service Managers.
Knowledge of and experience in Outcomes Based Planning and Evaluation or similar evaluation planning systems. Ability to understand and analyze a variety of data types and prepare and edit reporting to a variety of audiences.
Knowledge and experience with principles and methods of project management from ideation to scale, including planning and evaluation, budgeting, scheduling and monitoring, coordinating multiple projects, and project communications.
Must be able to use information management tools, including office PCs and communications, word processing, spreadsheet, database and project management applications, and analytical methods required for managing large, complex and multiple projects.
A commitment to meeting the needs of diverse communities and staff consistent with the Library’s Internal Organizational Values, mission and strategic direction.
Ability to establish and maintain positive working relationships with staff and the public.

Additional Information

How to Apply

Candidates wishing to be considered in the first review should submit their application, cover letter, and resume in NEOGOV by 5:00 p.m. on April 24, 2026.

NEOGOV online application
A cover letter that describes how your experience and skills align with the stated job responsibilities and qualifications. Please let us know why you are interested in this position.
Current resume that summarizes relevant education, professional experience, training and skills.

Applications that do not include a cover letter, resume, online application, and completed supplemental questions will not be considered.

Applicants will be screened for competitiveness, completeness, and written communication skills. Initial screening will be based on a review of application materials. The employment history detailed in your application materials MUST validate/support your responses to the supplemental questions. If your responses cannot be validated, you will not proceed to the next steps of the review/selection process. The most competitive candidates will be invited to participate in a series of one or more interviews.

Benefits and Salary Information

The full salary range for this position is $118,180.80 - $195,040.08 annually.

The City of Seattle offers a comprehensive benefits package including vacation, holiday, and sick leave as well as medical, dental, vision, life, and long-term disability insurance for employees and their dependents. More information about employee benefits is available on the City's website at: https://www.seattle.gov/human-resources/benefits/employees-and-covered-family-members/most-employees-plans Information about retirement plans can be found at: https://www.seattle.gov/retirement

Additional Information

If you have questions regarding this bulletin or employment at The Seattle Public Library, please send an email to job.applications@spl.org. The Library promotes diversity and inclusion in employment. If accommodations are needed during the selection process, please contact us. Please keep in mind that job offers are contingent on a review of criminal history as well as verification of information provided by the applicant as part of the application process.

The City of Seattle offers a comprehensive benefits package including vacation, holiday and sick leave as well as medical, dental, vision, life and long-term disability insurance for employees and their dependents.

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