Consumer/Family Relations Manager

Job Description:

Consumer/Family Relations Manager

Description

Introduction

THIS IS A NEW ASSEMBLED EXAMINATION. The eligible list resulting from this examination will cancel any existing list and may last approximately one year but can be extended.

Supplemental Questionnaire: A properly completed Supplemental Questionnaire must be submitted with each application. Applications and Supplemental Questionnaires must be in the possession of the Human Resource Services Department by 5:00 p.m. on the Last Day for Filing. Failure to submit the Application or Supplemental Questionnaire will result in disqualification.

Applications and Supplemental Questionnaires will only be accepted online.

Qualified bilingual persons who speak English and are also fluent in: Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Laotian, Korean, Mien, Tagalog, Amharic, Farsi, Dari, Tigrigna, Russian, Romanian or Sign Languages are especially encouraged to apply. There is an additional biweekly compensation for persons in positions designated bilingual. Qualified candidates may be tested to demonstrate language proficiency.

DESCRIPTION

THE COUNTY

Alameda County, located on the east side of San Francisco Bay, is California's seventh-largest county. The County employs 9,700 full-time employees and operates on an annual budget of $3.4 billion. Oakland, the County seat, is California's eighth-largest city. One and a half million people call Alameda County home and live in a variety of incorporated cities, unincorporated communities, and rural areas. As a major urban county, Alameda provides a full range of services to its citizens. The County is a blend of culturally and ethnically diverse communities, and its mixture of cosmopolitan and suburban areas provides the perfect environment for families and their active lifestyles. The County offers extensive cultural resources, countless recreational opportunities, and an array of fine public and private colleges and universities.

ALAMEDA COUNTY HEALTH

Alameda County Health is the local government agency that promotes and protects the health and well-being of all who live, work, learn, and play in Alameda County. We coordinate services and cultivate partnerships with community organizations and providers to help ensure access, organize, and deliver health care and services to people with Medi-Cal and without insurance, support resilient communities, and improve health for all. We focus on health equity by developing programs and systemic solutions that reduce disparities for the people and communities we serve.

Alameda County Health’s departments and programs focus on services and support that provide care for the whole person.

• The Behavioral Health Department provides mental health and substance use services for people with Medi-Cal and without insurance and supports people along their path to wellness, recovery, and resilience.
  
• The Environmental Health Department works to keep our air, water, and food safe; it regulates, protects, and promotes the health of everyone in Alameda County by enforcing environmental health codes to reduce exposure to toxins and diseases.
  
• The Public Health Department focuses on community and population-level health, preventing and addressing root causes of health inequity across a range of communicable and chronic diseases.
  
• Alameda County Health also provides services through Housing and Homelessness Services, Emergency Medical Services Agency, HealthPAC, and Healthy Schools and Communities.
  

BEHAVIORAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT

As part of Alameda County Health, the Behavioral Health Department supports people with Medi-Cal and without insurance living with serious mental illness and substance use conditions along their path toward wellness, recovery, and resiliency. We provide services through a network of contracted mental health and substance use providers and administer the State’s resources and training for behavioral health providers, case managers, and other healthcare professionals. We advocate for our patients and families and create space for personal engagement in their care.

We are outpatient specialists for mental health services for older adults and youth, substance use providers and treatment program specialists, advocates for quality improvement and patients’ rights, and psychiatric and integrated health care providers.

For more information about the Behavioral Health Department, please visit www.acbhcs.org .

THE PROGRAM AREAS

Office of Peer Support Services (OPSS) is committed to transforming the behavioral health system by engaging, promoting, supporting and empowering peers receiving services (also known as consumers or beneficiaries), and consumer-run/peer-run organizations and programs. The Office of Peer Support Services collaborates with the community to support Alameda County Peer Support Specialists become Certified Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialists; and ensuring that peer support services and trainings are available and accessible to everyone with mental health and co-occurring needs on their wellness and recovery journey.

Office of Family Empowerment (OFE) was developed to provide technical assistance and family perspectives to Alameda County Behavioral Health, including: County-run and Community Based Organizations and treatment facilities. OFE’s vision is: All Family Members in relationship with ACBH, can tap into their inherent worthiness, dignity and humanity because race, affiliation, and diverse life experiences should not determine social, emotional, mental health and legal outcomes.

THE DEFINITIONS

Consumer: A consumer is a person who has experienced mental health and/or substance abuse conditions that have disrupted his or her education, work, housing, social connections and/or quality of life. A consumer has utilized mental health and/or substance abuse services and has experienced stigma, discrimination or social exclusion.

Family: A family member is a person who provides primary support for, is a primary caregiver of, or whose daily life is impacted by, being a family member (by personal or biological definition) of a person who is living with symptoms of mental illness and/or substance abuse issues. Family members may be the biological parents, foster parents, siblings, spouses, domestic partners, children, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, or anyone whom the consumer defines as “their family members.”.

THE POSITION

Under general direction, plan, organize and administer the activities of the Consumer/Family Relations Program in the Behavioral Health Care Services Department; develop, implement and evaluate programs and services related to creating consumer/family involvement in system change, training and hiring consumer/family members, providing technical assistance and support to new and emerging consumer/family groups as defined by their expressed needs, integrating consumer/family perspectives in BHCS policies and decision-making; and perform related duties as required.

These positions are located in Behavioral Health Care Services, which provides alcohol and other drugs and mental health services through county staff, private providers and community-based organizations. Consumer/Family Relations Managers report to the Deputy Director, Behavioral Health Care Services (BHCS). The Consumer/Family Relations Managers may be assigned to plan, develop, and manage the consumer/family relations activities across a multitude of behavioral health care services programs and/or divisions, as well as with community-based organizations and the consumer/family community. Incumbents of this class provide leadership in integrating consumer/family perspectives in BHCS policies and decision-making, and for the expansion of the emphasis on wellness, recovery and optimal functioning and quality of life for people with mental illness throughout the system of care. This position differs from the next higher class of Deputy Director, BHCS in that the latter has overall planning, administrative and policy development responsibilities for BHCS.

For more detailed information about the job classification, please visit: Consumer/Family Relations Manager, (#5096).

THE IDEAL CANDIDATE

In addition to meeting the established minimum qualifications, the ideal candidate will:

• 
  Provide advisory assistance, programmatic guidance, feedback, and resources in mental/behavioral health and wellness, recovery, and resilience services.
  
  
• 
  Believe in and inspire teamwork, team spirit, and collaboration by being accessible, supportive, open-minded, empathetic, and able to effectively manage conflict by facilitating constructive interactions amongst differing stakeholders that result in diverse work teams that better serve our diverse communities.
  
  
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  Commit to developing oneself and others by continuously aspiring to gain increased competence and technical and professional skill or knowledge in the areas of mental/behavioral health and wellness, recovery, and resilience services, while modeling excellence and seeking to motivate and facilitate continuous learning.
  
  
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  Be experienced at coordinating programmatic and administrative support activities, and completing procedures, documents, forms, reports, and/or budgets that are essential to day-to-day operations.
  
  
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  Be an effective communicator who develops and maintains effective relationships with others and relates well with people of diverse cultures, interpersonal styles, abilities, motivations, or backgrounds even in times of conflict.
  
  
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  Be capable of establishing courses of action for self and others to ensure that work is completed efficiently to achieve goals and results while maximizing resources wisely.
  
  
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  Strive to build a customer-focused service organization ensuring that the perspective of the behavioral health consumer/peer and family/caregiver of the individual receiving services are a driving force behind program decisions and activities; advocate for diverse customers including mental health/behavioral health consumers/peers and family member/caregivers; and craft and implement service practices to meet both the organization’s, family, and consumer’s needs .
  
  

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

The minimum professional requirements for admission to the competitive assessment process include:

Education

Possession of a Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university in Business Administration, Public Health Administration, Health Care Administration or related field.
(Additional experience as outlined below may be substituted for the education on
a year-for-year basis)

AND

The equivalent of three years full-time experience in program administration or program planning and evaluation of mental health or social services programs or related field.
One year of the above experience must include (1) analyzing and evaluating programs and services related to creating consumer/family involvement in system change, training and hiring consumer/family members, integrating consumer/family perspectives in policies and decision-making, or (2) implementing consumer/family operated programs.

License:

Some positions in this class may require a valid California Motor Vehicle Operator's license. Applicants must possess such license prior to appointment to such positions.

NOTE: The Civil Service Commission may modify the above Minimum Qualifications in the announcement of an examination.

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

NOTE: The level and scope of the following knowledge and abilities are related to duties listed under the "Examples of Duties" section of this specification.

The most suitably qualified candidates will possess the following competencies:

Closing Date/Time: 3/12/2026 5:00:00 PM

Salary:

$49.77 - $66.70/hour; $103,521.60 - $138,736.00/year