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The Santa Clara Valley Water District is the comprehensive water management agency of Santa Clara County. The District supplies clean and safe water, manages local groundwater basins, implements infrastructure and flood protection projects, and provides watershed stewardship. It serves approximately two million people--1.8 million residents and 200,000 commuters--in 15 cities and unincorporated areas in the 1,300 square-mile county. The District’s Board of Directors is looking for a proven leader with the ability to effectively manage a large, diverse organization. The District has five divisions: CEO and Support Operations, Administration, Water Utility, Watershed Operations and Capital Program Services. The District has 825 employees and an adopted operating and capital budget for FY 2008-09 of $411 million. The Board is looking for an individual that is flexible and committed to maintaining a level of excellence in the face of financial, human resources, and public relations challenges. The new CEO should be a person willing and able to take proactive approaches to challenges to keep the District at the forefront of the industry, and should be able to translate the best practices of the administrative and business sectors into a public agency. The new CEO should also be able to creatively facilitate solutions both inside the District and as a stakeholder in various forums. The CEO must be inclusive and committed to diversity. Finally, the CEO should be committed to meeting the District’s mission and Board’s expectations for environmental leadership. Candidates who possess an open style of management and have strong interpersonal skills are being sought. Having a background in and understanding of the water industry is preferred but not required of candidates. Candidates should have experience working in complex organizations including government and/or the private sectors. Candidates also must have the ability to work well with a myriad of community interests, resource agencies, and governments. The salary for the CEO is open and is dependent upon qualifications. The District also offers an attractive benefits package.
The Santa Clara Valley Water District is the comprehensive water management agency of Santa Clara County. It supplies clean and safe water, manages local groundwater basins, implements infrastructure and flood protection projects, and provides watershed stewardship. It serves approximately two million people-1.8 million residents and 200,000 commuters-in 15 cities and unincorporated areas in the 1,300 square-mile county.
The District is a water wholesaler that serves the cities of Campbell, Cupertino, Gilroy, Los Altos, Milpitas, Monte Sereno, Morgan Hill, Mountain View, Palo Alto, San Jose, Santa Clara, Saratoga and Sunnyvale, the towns of Los Altos Hills and Los Gatos, and the unincorporated areas of Santa Clara County.
The District has a seven-member Board of Directors: five members are elected from the same geographical districts within the county as the members of the Board of Supervisors and two are at-large members. Pursuant to current State law, the two at-large positions will sunset in December 2009, resulting in a five-member elected Board of Directors.
The District’s mission is:
“A healthy, safe, and enhanced quality of living in Santa Clara County through watershed stewardship and comprehensive management of water resources in a practical, cost-effective, and environmentally sensitive manner.”
The District has three primary functions: 1) to provide clean, safe and reliable water; 2) to maintain healthy creek ecosystems, and 3) to protect residents, homes, and businesses from flooding.
The District has developed and relies upon a diversified portfolio of water supply sources. Approximately half the water used in the county originates hundreds of miles away in the Sierra Nevada and is delivered through the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta or the Hetch Hetchy system. The rest comes from local rainfall, much of which is captured in the District’s ten local reservoirs.
Healthy creek ecosystems are maintained through natural watershed stewardship efforts, including restoring rivers and creeks, constructing and enhancing wildlife habitat, and preventing waterway pollution, all in an environmentally sensitive manner.
Finally, the District has invested approximately $1.2 billion toward flood protection projects, resulting in the protection of more than 95,000 parcels from flooding. Flood protection efforts are ongoing, with another 73,000 parcels still vulnerable to flooding.
In 2000, voters approved the Clean, Safe Creeks and Natural Flood Protection Plan, which established four outcomes that the District must meet by the time the measure sunsets in 2016. Those outcomes include: flood protection for homes, schools, businesses, and transportation; ensuring clean, safe water in our creeks and bays (including trash and debris removal); encouraging healthy creek and bay ecosystems (including removal of nonnative plants and creation of additional habitat); and establishing publicly-accessible trails, parks and open space along waterways.
There are a number of issues facing the District, many of which focus on insuring the future of the District’s facilities and its resources.
Flood Control and Water Conveyance Infrastructure – the District owns and operates a vast array of infrastructure designed to carry water and protect homes, schools, businesses and transportation networks from flooding. This critical infrastructure—some of which was built in the 1930s, and includes treatment plants, dams, pipelines, canals, pumps, levees and channels–is aging, and requires multi-jurisdictional coordination and significant funding for maintenance and refurbishment.
Water Conservation – In 2007, dry conditions throughout the state and pumping restrictions in the Delta resulted in a reduced imported water supply. The Delta conveys water originating in the Sierra snowpack to about 25 million Californians, including Silicon Valley, but the court-ordered restrictions on pumping have dramatically reduced water supplies. At the same time, with little local rainfall, local water demand increased by 6 percent, and groundwater basins are only now recovering from additional pumping to meet that demand. Although rains in early 2008 promised to restore hydrologic conditions to near average, the District experienced the driest March and April on record; locally and statewide, 2008 is shaping up to be another dry year. Consequently, the District is asking everyone in the county to reduce their water use by an additional 10 percent.
Water Recycling–The District provides recycled water for limited uses such as landscaping and irrigation. Given the scarcity and uncertain reliability of imported water supplies, the District has been actively exploring the addition of an Advanced Water Treatment facility and expanding recycled water. As such, the District is partnering with surrounding cities and other agencies to promote water recycling.
Diversity – Like most of California, Santa Clara County’s demographics are changing. The District must be prepared for the growing diversity in its workforce, inclusive in its communication with customers, and reflective of the community it serves.
Succession Planning – Nationally, the water industry is facing the impending retirement of many highly-trained employees and a concurrent shortage of highly skilled staff to take their place. The District has a pilot project in Fiscal Year 2009 to address staff retirements and develop a systematic process for evaluating future staffing needs.
The District’s Board of Directors is looking for a proven leader with the ability to effectively manage a large, diverse organization. The District has five divisions: CEO and Support Operations, Administration, Water Utility, Watershed Operations and Capital Program Services. The District has 825 employees and an adopted operating and capital budget for FY 2008-09 of $411 million. Sources of revenue include groundwater charges, wholesale water sales, income from investments, and some property taxes and grants.
The new CEO must be an effective communicator, both inside the District and out in the community. The CEO will keep the Board well informed on issues facing the water district. The Board, seven individuals who possess a variety of perspectives, is very engaged and has high expectations with respect to being informed in a timely manner.
The Board is looking for an individual that is flexible, adaptable, and committed to maintaining a level of excellence in the face of financial, human resources, and public relations challenges. The new CEO should be a person willing and able to take proactive approaches to challenges to keep the District at the forefront of the industry, and should be able to translate the best practices of the administrative and business sectors into a public agency. The new CEO should also be able to creatively facilitate solutions both inside the District and as a stakeholder in various forums. The CEO must be inclusive and committed to diversity. Finally, the CEO should be committed to meeting the District’s mission and Board’s expectations for environmental leadership.
Candidates who possess an open style of management and have strong interpersonal skills are being sought. Having a background in and understanding of the water industry is preferred, but not required of candidates. Candidates will have worked in complex organizations in government and/or the private sector. Candidates also must have the ability to work well with a myriad of community interests, resource agencies and governments.
The salary and benefits for the position are negotiable. Benefits may include:
Retirement – CalPERS 2.5% @ 55. District payment of 8% PERS contribution.
Medical/Dental/Vision – paid by the District for employees and eligible dependents.
Following the closing date, resumes will be screened according to the qualifications outlined above. The most qualified candidates will be invited to personal interviews with Bob Murray and Associates. A select group of candidates will be asked to provide references once it is anticipated that they may be recommended as finalists. References will be contacted only following candidate approval. Finalist interviews will be held with the District. Candidates will be advised of the status of the recruitment following selection of the CEO.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call Bob Murray or Amanda Urrutia-Sanders at: (916) 784-9080
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