Program Manager, Urban Strategy Team

About the City of Amsterdam

Working in the most beautiful city in the Netherlands—who wouldn’t want that?It’s possible at the City of Amsterdam. Amsterdam is an attractive global city in a rapidly changing environment, characterized by great complexity and a unique appeal. In recent years, that appeal has brought many new residents to the capital, along with unprecedented dynamism and economic and cultural prosperity. The success is undeniable: every year, more and more people come to Amsterdam to live, work, and visit. The city operates at the regional, urban, and local levels. The City of Amsterdam aims to respond more quickly and effectively to the challenges facing the city. The focus is on delivering results for residents and businesses in the city and on improving collaboration among the various departments within the municipality.

The Position

As Program Manager of the Urban Strategy Team, you will advise the municipal management team and the city council on strategic issues related to energy transition, urbanization, inequality of opportunity, and sustainability.You will work on initiatives with significant societal impacts over a 3- to 10-year timeframe, affecting multiple departments within the City of Amsterdam, as well as on issues with a societal and/or political-administrative context.

Also on your agenda:

• You will help shape projects and assignments and collaborate on them with your clients from the municipal management team;
  
• You will manage the implementation of a diverse portfolio of strategic projects within the city’s strategic agenda, in coordination with advisors from various departments and policy areas;
  
• You will build a network within the organization and bring together relevant knowledge;
  
• You will provide functional leadership to the project teams working on various projects;
  
• You establish a link between strategic objectives and the lobbying agenda.
  

The City Strategy Team

The Urban Strategy Team is a division within the Administrative and Management Advisory Department, alongside the Administrative Advisory, Public Affairs, and Administrative Projects divisions, as well as the Mayor’s Office. The advisors of the Directorate advise the City Council and the Municipal Management Team (GMT) on politically sensitive, strategic, and cross-domain issues, including the city’s growth, the relationship between citizens and the government, regional and local cooperation, and the coordination of relations with the national government and Europe. The Urban Strategy Team contributes to the development of urban strategic policy and carries out approximately fifteen projects annually related to the aforementioned themes.

Everyone is Welcome

The City of Amsterdam is a great employer that ensures all employees feel seen and valued. They embrace the diversity among their employees, as these differences lead to better results for both our organization and the city. In doing so, they strive to build a workforce that reflects Amsterdam’s working population. So, whoever you are: you are warmly welcome at the City of Amsterdam!

Your Profile

As Program Manager of the Urban Strategy Team, you are confident in your advisory role. You have a keen understanding of the various roles within public administration and the organizational impact of strategic decisions. In addition, you are an enthusiastic person who enjoys working with a diverse group of colleagues. You also bring the following:

• A completed university degree;
  
• At least ten years of experience in strategic consulting and team leadership, including at least five years in a consulting role at a strategic consulting firm;
  
• Knowledge and experience in the areas of energy transition, urbanization, inequality of opportunity, and sustainability;
  
• Proven experience in managing highly educated professionals;
  
• Proven experience in drafting, communicating, and presenting recommendations at the executive and/or boardroom level;
  
• You should have the following skills:
  
• Environmental Awareness - Demonstrates a solid understanding of professional, organizational, social, and political developments, as well as other environmental factors, and knows how to effectively apply this knowledge to one’s own role or organization;
  
• Analytical skills - Can distinguish between main and secondary issues, break down a problem into its components, and establish logical connections between the various aspects;
  
• Decisive - Makes decisions when the situation calls for it. Takes the initiative and provides clarity;
  
• Results-oriented – Uses specific goals as a guide for one’s own behavior and sticks to them until the goal is achieved.
  

The Offer

As a Program Manager on the Urban Strategy Team, you’ll work 36 hours a week and enjoy excellent benefits:

• A gross monthly salary of up to €7,269 (pay grade 14) based on a 36-hour workweek, depending on education, knowledge, and experience.
  
• A one-year employment contract, with the possibility of a permanent contract thereafter, if you do not currently have an employment contract with the City of Amsterdam, or if you have only a temporary contract.
  
• If you already have a permanent employment contract with the City of Amsterdam, you will retain it and be transferred.
  
• The Amsterdam School, the City of Amsterdam’s in-house training center, offers training courses, professional development programs, and on-the-job coaching.
  
• An individual flexible budget (IKB) equal to 17.05% of your salary, which you can use for purposes such as additional pension contributions or extra days off.
  
• A pension plan with ABP, the pension fund for the public sector and education.
  
• A travel allowance of €0.10 per kilometer, up to a 45-kilometer one-way commute if you work in the office, and/or a work-from-home allowance of €2 net per workday that you work from home.
  
• A monthly contribution toward health insurance.
  
• Hybrid work: partly at home and partly at the office.
  
• Home office supplies to help you set up a safe and healthy workspace.
  
• A cell phone and a laptop.
  

The Procedure

The City of Amsterdam is being assisted in this recruitment process by the executive search firm Colourful People. For more information, please contact Henna Seedorf, Partner at Colourful People, at 06-24274368. You can apply by uploading your cover letter and resume via the Colourful People website no later than February 27, 2023. The first interviews will take place from March 13, 2023, through March 17, 2023, and the second interviews from March 20, 2023, through March 24, 2023. The City of Amsterdam strongly encourages candidates from diverse backgrounds to apply. An assessment may be part of the application process.