This position is open to Internal King County Information Technology (KCIT) employees and eligible Priority Placement participants ONLY. Only current KCIT employees and eligible Priority Placement participants applications will be considered. 

King County Department of Information Technology (KCIT) is seeking a Communications Specialist (visual communications) to work with the Design & Civic Engagement section in KCIT. This position will serve as an interface between internal clients and various audiences, linking emerging technologies with King County’s work programs’ evolving needs in the field of digital and visual communications.
 
As one of the Visual Communications Specialists, this position will use design expertise to interpret technical and non-technical information, policy information, and Geo-referenced data into appropriate visual formats that can be easily understood by a variety of audiences. Audiences include general public, technical staff, KC inter-jurisdictional partners, and King County decision-makers, such as department directors, King County Council, and the Executive's Office. This position will collaborate with a variety of staff in the Design and Civic Engagement team, and throughout King County including project/program managers, planners, engineers, scientists, web developers, and GIS/data professionals. While most of the publications will be digital, the job also requires file preparation and management of internal and external printing services as needed.

King County
As the only county in the United States named after Martin Luther King Jr, one of the most influential civil rights leaders in our nations' history, King County is a vibrant community with residents that represent countries from around the world. It is a region with increasing diversity that cherishes the artistic and social traditions of many cultures. Together, we're changing the way government delivers service and winning national recognition as a model of excellence. We continue to build on an enduring legacy of shared values of equity and social justice, employee engagement, innovative thinking and continuous improvement. With this commitment, King County has adopted a pro-equity agenda aimed at advancing regional change and is developing the systems and standards necessary to achieve better outcomes for all of our residents, regardless of their race or income. All of these qualities make this King County one of the nation's best places to live, work, and play.
 
King County Department of Information Technology
KCIT is providing the building blocks for many of the region's most critical services.  As the business solutions partner, we collaborate with the 18 County departments to develop products and services that better serve the needs of our customers and our community. To learn more about KCIT, please visit: http://kingcounty.gov/depts/it.aspx
 
Benefits
King County values a work life balance. We offer an outstanding benefits package, 10 paid holidays, life insurance, an employee assistance program and much more. Please visit our website to learn about King County's commitment to employee's health and well being: http://www.kingcounty.gov/employees/.

Work Schedule
The normal workweek for this position is Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Alternative work schedules may be considered. This position is not eligible for overtime pay.

TEMPORARY TELECOMMUTING REQUIREMENT
The work associated with this position will be performed remotely, at least through July 5, 2021 in compliance with King County’s telecommuting mandate. Employees will be provided with a County issued laptop and must maintain a workspace with an internet connection where they can reliably perform work and remain available and responsive during scheduled work hours.  Employees must reside in WA state and within a reasonable distance to their King County worksite to respond to workplace reporting requirements.  There will be situations where the employee is required to report to a County worksite.  Please note that when an employee conducts work that is likely to bring them in contact with another individual, safety precautions are required by the department in alignment with the Public Health Directive from the Seattle & King County Public Health Officer.

To support employees during this time King County has a robust collection of tools and resources to support working remotely. The individual selected for this opportunity will be joining an innovative and progressive team. King County is doing its part to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and remains committed to reducing our carbon footprint.  

Questions
If you have questions regarding this recruitment, please contact Brian Roberts (broberts@kingcounty.gov).

• Apply design principal and use creativity and imagination to identify methods, applications, and info/data needed to produce visual communication products. Products include presentations, posters, newsletters, maps, Arc GIS StoryMaps, flyers, infographics, interpretive illustrations, indoor/outdoor signage, technical and non-technical reports, exhibits and social media campaigns for various platforms and devices. 
• Multi-tasking skills to manage and produce several large and small projects concurrently, developing schedules and cost estimates as needed.
• Work independently and collaboratively with other designers. Manage time and phase projects according to needs of the customers.
• Collaborate with a variety of customers and program managers throughout King County departments as regular duty, and work with outside consultants as needed.
• Coordinate with internal and external service providers, such as the King County Print Shop and sign vendors for small and large format color output and digital printing, ensuring quality production, on-time delivery, and efficiency.
• Act as a consultant to assist clients in planning their visual communication projects. Consult with customers about appropriate use of King County logo and other design standards to maintain King County’s brand identity, and ADA accommodations standards.
• Operate and troubleshoot design and production software and system as needed.
• Archive completed projects in timely and logical manner for easy access in the future.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

• Eight or more years experience in graphic design and visual communication related fields
• Expert level of Adobe Creative Suite, including Illustrator, PhotoShop, InDesign, Acrobat Professional
• Expert level of Office 365, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive
• Expert Level of Mac system operation
• Familiar with ArcGIS to export spatial data to design software
• Experience with Arc GIS StoryMap creation
• Skilled at handling multiple competing priorities while working on complex, highly visible, and time or politically sensitive projects  
• Skilled in establishing positive collaborative relationships with peers and being part of a team
• Relate well to internal and external customers, build effective and constructive relationships
• Flexible to put extra effort to meet important deadlines (occasionally)
• Willingness to learn new skills and work on challenging tasks/projects/systems

• Experience working in a public sector organization
• Project or program management experience
• Bachelor’s or higher degree in design or informatics related fields preferred.    
• A work sample portfolio is required

Forbes recently named King County as one of Washington State's best employers.

Together, with leadership and our employees, we're changing the way government delivers service and winning national recognition as a model of excellence. Are you ready to make a difference? Come join the team dedicated to serving one of the nation's best places to live, work and play.

Guided by our "True North", we are making King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive. We value diversity, inclusion and belonging in our workplace and workforce. To reach this goal we are committed to workforce equity. Equitable recruiting, support, and retention is how we will obtain the highest quality workforce in our region; a workforce that shares and will help advance our guiding principles--we are one team; we solve problems; we focus on the customer; we drive for results; we are racially just; we respect all people; we lead the way; and we are responsible stewards. We encourage people of all backgrounds and identities to apply, including Native American and people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQ+, people living with disabilities, and veterans.

King County is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer
No person is unlawfully excluded from employment opportunities based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), age, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or other protected class. Our EEO policy applies to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, selection for training, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation.

To Apply
If you are interested in pursuing this position, please follow the application instructions carefully. If you need this announcement in an alternate language or format, would like to request accommodation or assistance in the application or assessment process or if you have questions please contact your recruiter listed on this job announcement.      

This position is open to Internal King County Information Technology (KCIT) employees and eligible Priority Placement participants ONLY. Only current KCIT employees and eligible Priority Placement participants applications will be considered.

Application Requirements
A completed King County Application with an attached resume and portfolio are required for consideration.

In addition to filling the current vacancy, this position may be used to fill future vacancies.

(For internal use only: Classification: Communications Specialist III - 2501300)