Description

The Washington State Department of Agriculture has been serving the state for more than 100 years. Through service, regulation and advocacy, we keep agriculture viable and vital in Washington State, while protecting consumers, public health, and the environment. We work extensively with farmers and ranchers, but our responsibilities – from ensuring food safety to environmental protection – touch the lives of millions of people locally, nationally, and abroad.

The agency includes 780 employees approximately and grows close to 1,000 employees at the peak of seasonal work. To learn more and view additional openings, please visit our Employment Page.

Please Note: These positions are open until filled.

ABOUT THE POSITION:
If you are someone who enjoys positive work with tremendous variety, you will love working as a WSDA Talent Acquisition & Training Specialist. WSDA hires a broad range of talented employees to accomplish its mission, which is impossible without our Human Resource Team.

This position provides guidance and consultation, acts as a point of contact for Human Resources, providing talent acquisition and training services to WSDA employees, managers, executives and customers. This position consults on and offers advice and direction regarding a broad range of human resource matters such as training, outreach, recruitment-related policy, data tracking, reporting, and analysis. This position acts as a liaison for The Learning Center (TLC) system and other learning resources for the assigned divisions and assists with the coordination and facilitation of New Employee Orientation to support new WSDA employees with a positive start.

This position is based out of Olympia, WA. As WSDA embraces modern work environments and processes, this position is eligible for flexible work hours and to telework up to full-time.

The Human Resources (HR) Department is responsible for ensuring WSDA is compliant with all state and federal labor laws and regulations, collective bargaining agreements, policies and best practices. The staff within the HR department provides direction and consultation to managers, supervisors and staff regarding all facets of human resource administration.

Duties

Some of what you will do:

• 
  Conducts full cycle recruitment and retention services.
• Provides consultation to managers; provides guidance and assist with effective recruitment practices to address program needs and timelines.
• Coordinates with human resource consultants to ensure accuracy of assigned paperwork, position descriptions, salary, approval to hire documents, etc.
• Drafts job announcement intended to draw the interest of a broad and diverse field of applicants and increase the number of applications received.
• Promotes WSDA as an employer of choice that welcomes a broad, diverse pool of qualified candidates for vacant positions.
• Develops, builds, and maintains successful collaborative working relationships with internal and external entities including organizations, community leaders, and individuals.
• Screens applicants for required and desired qualifications.
• Conducts reference and background checks.
• Drafts appointment letters for new hires for appointing authority signature.
• Collaborate with hiring managers to assist in ensuring a positive recruitment experience for applicants.
• Manages recruitment records.
• Keeps the Online Hiring System up-to-date and maintained, including archiving recruitments and ensuring all candidate dispositions are correct.
• Consults and advises agency users and hiring managers regarding best practices and problem resolution.
• Researches, analyzes, consults and makes recommendations and implements appropriate recruitment solutions to fill high-volume and hard to fill vacancies.
• Ensures human resources content on internet and intranet are current and all hyperlinks are correct on agency Employment page.
• Facilitates New Employee Orientation; schedules NEO; to include enrolling employees, creating a timeline, and scheduling presenters.
• Acts as a point of contact for access to The Learning Center (TLC) system including class maintenance/creation, course maintenance/creation, determining/validating appropriate setup and access, troubleshooting end user support issues; acts as the liaison between WSDA and DES to report system errors or issues.
• Develops, updates, and presents training modules related to HR topics.
• Consults with management in the identification of training needs, courses, and other areas of employee development.
• Defines employee training needs and recommends training-related solutions to address skills gaps.
• Gathers and provides training data and periodically presents reports on training to HR and Agency leadership.

Qualifications

Required:

• Bachelor’s degree with focus on business, human resources, social or organizational behavioral sciences, or related field. Equivalent education/experience may substitute on a year for year basis.

• Two (2) years of experience working with state government in talent acquisition, training, human resources, or a closely-related profession.
• Possess the following core competencies as outlined by State Human Resources at time of hire: Treats Others with Respect and Courtesy, Dependability, Accountability, Judgment and Problem Solving, Leadership, Communication, Relationship Building, Ethics and Integrity, and Embracing Diversity and Cultural Differences.
• Valid driver’s license.

• 
  Possess the following core competencies as outlined by State Human Resources at time of hire: Treats Others with Respect and Courtesy, Dependability, Accountability, Judgment and Problem Solving, Leadership, Communication, Relationship Building, Ethics and Integrity, and Embracing Diversity and Cultural Differences.
• Ability to operate with strong analytical, conceptual, and problem-solving abilities; effectively organize multiple assignments to produce work products that are accurate, thorough and on time.
• Knowledge of federal and state laws, EEOC, HRC, civil service and labor employment law such as the Fair Labor Standards Act.
• Base level proficiency using Microsoft Excel
• Intermediate level of proficiency using Microsoft Word and Outlook

Desired:

• Experience with current Washington State’s training and/or recruitment systems (The Learning Center, Neo Gov).
• Knowledge of federal and state laws, EEOC, HRC, civil service and labor employment law such as the Fair Labor Standards Act.
• Professional experience leading recruitment-related marketing/outreach activities in scientific, IT, or other hard-to-fill fields.
• One (1) year of experience utilizing an electronic applicant tracking system.
• Ability to create, manage, and record complex recruitment plans.
• Experience reaching out to diverse communities and attracting diverse candidates.
• Skilled in strategic thinking, analytical abilities, organizational skills and communication/interpersonal skills with a focus on results.
• Ability to extract report information from various HR databases, including an applicant tracking system, and analyze it.
• Knowledge of Federal and state labor and employment laws; EEOC, HRC regulations.

Supplemental Information

HOW TO APPLY:
You must complete your careers.wa.gov profile and answer the supplemental questions. In addition to completing the online application, and supplemental questions applicants must attach the following documents to their profile in order to be considered for this position:

• 
  A letter of interest to describe why you are the best candidate and how you meet the specific qualifications for this position;

By submitting these materials, you are indicating that all information is true and correct. The state may verify information. Any untruthful or misleading information is cause for removal from the applicant pool or dismissal if employed.

The Department of Agriculture celebrates our differences and we are committed to a workplace that supports equal opportunity employment and inclusion regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity diversity, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. We will also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state and local laws.

Persons with a disability, who need assistance with their application or need this announcement in an alternative format, may call (360) 664-1960 or toll free (877) 664-1960. TTY users should first call 711 to access the Washington Relay Service.

You are welcome to include the name and pronoun you would like to be referred to in your materials and we will honor this as you interact with our organization.