Assistant Human Resources Director

The City of Napa is seeking our next ASSITANT HUMAN RESOURCES DIRECTOR!

Are you a strategic and collaborative HR leader who thrives on driving key employee initiatives and navigating complex workplace issues? Do you have broad HR expertise, including significant experience in employee and labor relations? Are you a trusted advisor who provides clear, consistent, and practical guidance to executive team members, managers, supervisors, and bargaining unit leaders?  Have you supported a Civil Service Commission and administered Civil Service Rules?

If so, APPLY TODAY to join a highly collaborative HR team dedicated to developing our workforce, strengthening our organization, and delivering exceptional public service!

THE COMMUNITY
Nestled in Northern California’s wine country, just an hour from the Bay Area, Napa offers a blend of small-city charm and global relevance. Home to approximately 80,000 residents across 26 distinct neighborhoods, Napa features everything from historic Victorian homes near downtown to more suburban-style enclaves on the outskirts. Napa is at the heart of the region’s world-renowned wine country, home to more than 475 wineries and a celebrated culinary scene featuring Michelin-starred restaurants and farm-to-table dining.
What stands out about Napa is its quality of life. Residents enjoy a nearly year-round mild Mediterranean climate, a walkable downtown, and easy access to nature and open space. The local economy is anchored not only in tourism and hospitality but also in a range of industries, providing the community with stability beyond being a global destination. That economic diversity means Napa is more than its vineyards - it is home to healthcare, manufacturing, professional services, retail, and other industries that contribute to a dynamic local economy.

Community life in Napa is vibrant and inclusive. More than 40 percent of residents identify as Hispanic or Latino, contributing to a rich cultural mix reflected in local schools, markets, festivals and everyday life. Residents enjoy the riverfront, local trails, neighborhood parks, and an active civic fabric - from arts and music events to grassroots trail-building and river-restoration efforts. For someone considering relocating, Napa offers an exceptional combination of community-scale living, regional access, and a lifestyle oriented toward both work and play. It’s a community that values its history while continuing to grow and evolve.
THE ORGANIZATION
The City of Napa is a charter city operating under a Council-Manager form of government with a five-member City Council consisting of the Mayor and four Councilmembers. The Mayor and each Councilmember are elected to four-year terms. The Mayor is elected at large, and the Councilmembers are elected by district. The City Council and the City Manager are dedicated to the highest standards of integrity, public service, and innovative approaches to governing.

The organization provides a full range of services to the community through 11 City departments: Police, Fire, Public Works, Community Resources and Development, Finance, Utilities, Human Resources, Parks & Recreation Services, City Clerk’s Office, City Attorney’s Office, and City Manager’s Office. The City’s 2026/27 fiscal year budget is approximately $396 million, with 532 funded full-time positions. To learn more about the City’s budget, please click here.
THE DEPARTMENTPurpose Statement: The Human Resources Department serves our community by collaborating with City departments to foster a workplace culture that attracts, develops, retains, and celebrates a talented workforce committed to excellence in public service.  
Our Human Resources Department provides comprehensive services throughout the employee life cycle. We are a full-service human resources department committed to supporting our employees and partnering with our customer departments. Our team provides core human resources services including employee and labor relations; recruitment, selection and onboarding;  classification and compensation; training and organizational development; benefits; leave administration; safety and wellness; and the workers’ compensation component of risk management (in coordination with the City Manager’s Office). 
The Human Resources Department is led by the Human Resources Director, who oversees a team of nine staff members: one Assistant Human Resources Director, two Human Resources Managers, three Management Analysts, two Human Resources Coordinators, and one Office Assistant. The department works in close coordination with the City’s Civil Service Commission – a five-member body with two members appointed by the City Council, two members elected by classified employees, and a fifth member appointed by the other four members. The department has an FY2026/27 budget of $3.1 million.
THE IDEAL CANDIDATE
The City of Napa is seeking an experienced human resources leader with strong technical expertise, sound judgment, and a demonstrated ability to translate strategy into execution. The ideal candidate will be a trusted advisor to City leadership and a dynamic and engaged leader who takes ownership of complex HR matters, establishes clear priorities, drives work to completion, and ensures timely and consistent service to departments.
This key management position serves as the second-in-command to the Human Resources Director and plays a central role in the day-to-day leadership and operations of the department. The Assistant Human Resources Director will complement the Director's leadership by independently leading significant areas of responsibility, strengthening accountability and consistency across HR programs, mentoring and developing staff, and ensuring City departments receive responsive, practical, and high-quality HR support. The Assistant Human Resources Director reports directly to the Human Resources Director and acts as Human Resources Director in their absence.
The Assistant Human Resources Director will perform complex professional, technical, and analytical work across multiple human resources program areas, with a particular emphasis on employee relations, labor relations, workplace investigations, discipline, grievances, and performance management. The successful candidate will be expected to independently manage sensitive and complex matters from intake through resolution, establish appropriate timelines and next steps, maintain timely communication with affected departments, and ensure matters are brought to completion.
The ideal candidate will have significant employee and labor relations experience; excellent communication and interpersonal skills; the ability to provide clear, consistent, and practical guidance to executives, managers, and supervisors; and demonstrated skill in conducting thorough and impartial workplace investigations. The Assistant Human Resources Director will also serve as the City's "Personnel Manager", acting as staff liaison to the Civil Service Commission and administering the personnel rules under the City's Civil Service Rules and City Charter. 

The Assistant Human Resources Director will ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations while delivering high-quality, customer-focused service and developing the HR team. Through dedicated leadership, operational excellence, and continuous improvement, the Assistant Human Resources Director will help advance the City’s strategic goals and strengthen HR's service to the organization.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE
A typical way to obtain the knowledge and abilities would be:

Education: Possession of a Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with major work in human resources, public or business administration or a closely related field.

Experience: At least five years of progressively responsible professional human resources experience, including two years supervisory experience. A Master's degree may substitute for one year of the required experience. Experience providing staff support to a commission or board is desirable.

Please click hereto view a full, detail job description of Assistant Human Resources Director.

The ideal candidate for the position of Assistant Human Resources Director will have shown success in demonstrating the following competencies:

• Technical Knowledge and Skills - Expertise in utilizing competency-based methods for recruitment and selection, classification, employee development, performance management and workforce planning.
• Coaching & Developing Others - Providing feedback, instruction, and development guidance to help others excel in their current or future job responsibilities; planning and supporting the development of individual skills and abilities.
• Planning & Organizing - Establishing HR action plans to complete work efficiently and on time by setting priorities, establishing timelines and leveraging resources.
• Political Acumen - Exhibiting confidence and professional diplomacy while effectively relating to people at all levels internally and externally.
• Adaptability - Maintaining effectiveness when experiencing major changes in work responsibilities or environment; adjusting effectively to work within new work structures, processes, requirements, or cultures. Adapting quickly to change and easily considering new approaches.
• Managing Relationships - Developing and leveraging relationships within and across work groups to achieve results.
• Driving Execution - Translating strategic priorities into operational reality; aligning communication, accountabilities, resource capabilities, internal processes, and ongoing measurement systems to ensure that strategic priorities yield measurable and sustainable results.
• Critical Analysis - Collecting information from a variety of sources and validating, organizing, and/or analyzing data to determine progress, anticipating needs, or making necessary adjustments to processes.
• Acting with Integrity - Demonstrating honesty; keeping commitments made to others; behaving in a consistent manner; keeping sensitive information confidential; adhering to moral, ethical, and professional standards, regulations, and organizational policies.
• Valuing Differences - Developing and maintaining effective relationships and relating well to others from varied backgrounds and in different situations; showing understanding, courtesy, tact, empathy, concern, and politeness.

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS
The salary range for this outstanding opportunity is $171,231.29 – $206,859.30. Placement within this range is dependent upon qualifications and experience.

A career with the City of Napa offers many benefits, including an excellent total compensation package. In addition to a competitive salary, we offer:

• Vacation - New employees can accrue up to 120 hours (15 days) annually.
• Prior Years of Service Vacation Accrual Credit - Full-time service in a City, County, State, Federal Agency, or Special District may be counted towards vacation accrual tiers at the City of Napa.
• Holidays - 15 paid holidays per year.
• Management Leave - 104 hours (13 days) per year.
• Sick Leave - Accrue up to 96 hours (12 days) per year.
• Retirement Pension - City participates in the CalPERS retirement pension system.
• Health Insurance - The City provides significant contributions to medical, dental. and vision plans.
• Health In-Lieu Option - Employees may waive City medical coverage and opt for health in-lieu at $500 per month.
• Retiree Health - City contributes $274 per month for retired employees with at least 10 years of service at retirement.
• Deferred Compensation - City contributes $142 per month in 401(A) Plan and employees are eligible to enroll in 457 Plan.
• Life Insurance and AD&D - $100,000 of coverage paid for by the City.
• Cell Phone Stipend - Up to $110 per month for usage and up to $100 per year for equipment.
• Tuition & Professional Development Reimbursement - Up to $2,500 per fiscal year.
• Flexible Work Schedules - Hybrid and alternate work schedules.

Please visit our Benefits webpage to view a full list of benefits offered for this position.

IMPORTANT DATES
The deadline for submitting applications is no later than 11:59 PM on Sunday, October 4, 2026. To be considered for this opportunity, please submit your application via City of Napa’s website by using the “Apply Now” feature.

Candidates will be invited to a phone interview on Tuesday, October 13, 2026.

Candidates will be invited to an in-person panel interview in Napa on Thursday, October 22, 2026.

Finalists will be invited to a departmental interview with the Human Resources Director on Friday, October 23, 2026.

These dates have been confirmed, and it is strongly recommended that you plan your calendar accordingly.

QUESTIONS? 
Please contact the City of Napa’s Human Resources Department via email or (707) 257-9505. 

This recruitment and examination is being conducted to fill one (1) vacancy and may be used to fill future similar vacancies as they occur during the active status of the employment list. The active status of this employment list will be for six (6) months unless abolished sooner or extended beyond that date in accordance with the Civil Service Rules

MISSION STATEMENT for the City of Napa
Rooted in public service, our mission is to grow a vibrant, sustainable community for all who live in, work in, and visit the City of Napa, through thoughtful leadership and dedication to excellence. 

CORE VALUES for the City of Napa

• Integrity - Consistently demonstrating the highest level of ethical conduct with accountability and pride.

• Service - Engaging in meaningful work to care for our community through resourceful dedication and humble actions.

• Inclusion - Creating a sense of ease and belonging through respect, acceptance, and mindfulness of our collective diversity.

• Collaboration - Working together with a shared purpose while respectfully considering all voices to achieve common goals, solutions, and greater outcomes.

***NOTE:  CITY OF NAPA EMPLOYEES SHOULD USE A PERSONAL EMAIL ADDRESS DURING THE APPLICATION PROCESS***

SELECTION PROCESSThe City of Napa utilizes a Civil Service Selection System founded on merit. Such a system is competitive and based on broad outreach efforts and equal opportunity for qualified applicants to take part in a process designed to determine the qualifications, fitness and ability of competitors to perform duties of the vacant position. Many of our recruitments are targeted and specific to the needs of a current vacant position, in which case, an eligible list may be exclusively used for that current vacant position. Other recruitments and eligible lists may be more broadly used for both current and future vacancies, or for other alternate jobs with comparable scopes of work.
Candidates who have participated in a testing process for a recruitment are not eligible to re-take the same test within six (6) months. 
 What happens next?

• We will review your application and all supplemental materials to select the best qualified applicants to continue in the selection process. Application appraisal includes a review of qualifications, education, training, and experience related to the job, as well as supplemental questions if applicable.
• Applicants moving forward in the selection process may be asked to participate in any combination of the following (at any phase of the selection process): online assessment, written examination, job-related exercise, phone interview, and panel interview. These testing steps may be conducted on a pass/fail basis, and/or percentage-based scoring methodology. 
• Based on the City Charter, the final phase of the selection process is the Probationary Period, which in most cases is six (6) months but may be twelve (12) months depending on the classification.  
• When three or fewer candidates are available, the testing procedures outlined in the Job Announcement may be waived by the Human Resources Department.

Language Equity

• If you need assistance with the recruitment and selection process in Spanish, contact us at 707-257-9505. These requests will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. 
• Si necesita ayuda con el proceso de reclutamiento y selección en español, contáctenos al 707-257-9505. Estas solicitudes se evaluarán caso por caso.

Reasonable AccommodationsThe City of Napa Human Resources Department will make reasonable efforts in the examination process to accommodate qualified disabled applicants. Individuals with disabilities who would like to request an accommodation in the testing process must inform the HR Department in writing by the final filing date. A Reasonable Accommodation Request Form is available from HR and may be obtained by calling 707-257-9505, or dial 7-1-1 for the California Relay Service, offering free text-to-speech, speech-to-speech, and Spanish-language services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The City of Napa is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and we believe that a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace will maximize our talents to benefit the residents we serve.