Economic Development and Tourism Manager

 Economic Development and Tourism Manager

GENERAL DEFINITION OF WORK:                                                                                              FLSA – Non-Exempt

Work involves the expansion of existing programs and the establishment of new economic development and tourism initiatives in the County.   Responsible for the public information, business contact and outreach programs of the Economic Development and Tourism Department. Responsible for the supervision of employees in the Economic Development and Tourism department. Work is performed under the general supervision of the County Administrator.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS/TYPICAL TASKS:

(These are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work performed. The omission of specific duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related, or a logical assignment to the position.)

• Develop, plan, organize, and implement tourism marketing strategies for the County.
• Oversee, manage, and update the County’s tourism websites and social media platforms. 
• Provide services, resources, and programs to meet the evolving need for tourism growth revitalization and reinvestment throughout the County.
• Attend conferences, seminars, workshops, classes, lectures, etc., as appropriate, to enhance and maintain knowledge of trends and developments in the field of tourism development; attends professional, civic, and social gatherings, as appropriate, to represent and promote interests of County and to collect information pertinent to advancement of interests of the County. 

• Support tourism functions through research, writing, editing, photography, video production, and graphic design.
• Work with and attend meetings of local, regional, state and federal organizations.
• Coordinate support activities for business development and tourism related special events.

• Preparation and monitoring of departmental budgets; helps secure funds and other resources and assists in controlling expenditures.
• Assist in the development and execution of activities and events associated with the leisure, group tour, sports event, meeting, and special events markets.
• Ensure compliance with all applicable local, State, and Federal codes, laws, rules, regulations, standards, policies, and procedures related to economic development activities and projects.
• Work closely with the Board of Supervisors, the County and Town departments, engineers, local tourism industry organizations and stakeholders, and other officials to develop business expansion projects, new business relocations, new tourism attractions and amenities, review department operations, resolve problems, receive, and provide recommendations.

• Serves as liaison with appropriate local, state, and federal agencies, serves as liaison with the general public on economic matters as appropriate.
• Establish, promote, and maintain effective lines of communication with employees, the public and government officials.
• Conduct presentations to businesses, governments and related organizations as required.
• Contact and meet with developers and consultants; responds to business prospect requests for information.
• Compose and/or prepares a variety of technical reports, correspondence, press releases, records and other documents as required.
• Develop and implement long-term community development plans, including goals for business growth, entrepreneurship, infrastructure improvement, and workforce development.
• Participate in initiatives through the Northern Shenandoah Valley Regional Commission, Virginia Tech, Partnership for Economic Development, GO Virginia, Virginia Tourism Corporation, Shenandoah Valley Tourism Partnership, Shenandoah Valley Travel Association, and Front Royal/Warren County Chamber of Commerce.
• Facilitate workforce development efforts with the Warren County Public School System and the team at Laurel Ridge Community College.
• Preparation and administration of grants for community development and tourism projects.

• Coordinates and directs the activities of personnel assigned to the Department of Economic Development & Tourism; reviews and evaluates employees’ performance; selects new employees. 
• Performs other related duties as required.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

Comprehensive knowledge of the principles and practices of economic development, marketing, tourism attraction strategies, small business development, and comprehensive knowledge of the principles of public and business administration. Knowledge of the available resources of the County. 

Strong interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to build relationships across sectors. Competency in Microsoft Office, GIS, and other economic development software. 

Ability to organize workflow and coordinate activities for short-term and long-term projects.  Ability to exercise considerable independent judgment and discretion in establishing, applying, and interpreting policies and procedures. Ability to gather, analyze and interpret data and to make sound recommendations from the information. Ability to supervise subordinate personnel. Ability to prepare budgets, reports, correspondence, memorandum, etc., conforming to all rules of punctuation, format, and grammar. Must be able to use and interpret personnel, marketing terminology and language. 

Ability to work with businesses, volunteer groups and other stakeholders to further strengthen the mission of the county’s community development and tourism program.  Ability to plan, manage and execute large-scale tourism-related events. Ability to plan, assign, and coordinate the work programs of office and technical staff. Ability to prepare clear and comprehensive financial, administrative, and industrial reports. Ability to communicate ideas clearly and concisely, both verbally and in writing. Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with County officials, employees, the media and the general public. Proficiency in content management systems and social media platforms.  Proficiency in primary Microsoft Office suite applications (e.g., Word, Excel, Outlook, Power Point). 

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

Any combination of education and experience equivalent to a four-year degree from an accredited college or university with major course work in Marketing, Business, Economic Development, or related field. At least 3-5 years of experience in marketing, community development, business administration, or related field, preferably in a public sector or local government setting. Considerable experience in tourism, economic development, and marketing including administrative responsibility.  Experience with grant writing, business outreach, strategic planning and project management. Experience administering comprehensive marketing campaigns to include print, website, and digital formats. CEcD is preferred but not required. 

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

This is sedentary work requiring the exertion of up to 30 pounds of force occasionally, and a negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to move objects; work requires traversing, positioning, re-positioning, entering data and repetitive motions; ability to communicate and exchange ideas and information effectively so that others understand and for preparing and analyzing written or computer data, and determining the accuracy and thoroughness of work; observing general surroundings and activities; the worker is not subject to adverse environmental conditions.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

None.

Reasonable accommodations will be provided to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job, unless to do so would impose an undue hardship on the County.

The County is an equal opportunity employer that does not discriminate against applicants or candidates because of their disability, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, race, age, religion, national origin, ethnicity, veteran status, or any other protected status under the law.