Director of Water Services

Position Summary The selected candidate is expected to participate in an initial planned leadership transition with the incumbent Director to ensure continuity of operations, transfer of institutional knowledge, and orderly assumption of full executive responsibility. During the overlap, duties and decision authority will be assigned by the County Mayor or designee and communicated to employees and stakeholders. The Director of Water Services provides executive, technical, financial, and operational leadership for Sevier County’s public water utility. The position is accountable for safe and reliable water service, regulatory compliance, customer service, workforce leadership, financial sustainability, asset management, emergency preparedness, capital planning, and the operation, maintenance, and expansion of water treatment, storage, pumping, transmission, and distribution facilities. The Director advises the County Mayor, Water Committee, County Commission, and other governing authorities on utility policy, rates, infrastructure needs, risks, and long-range strategy and represents the County with customers, regulators, engineers, contractors, funding agencies, and community partners. Job performance will be evaluated by the Vice Mayor based on the effectiveness of leadership, operational performance, regulatory compliance, financial stewardship, and achievement of departmental goals. Essential Duties Plans, organizes, directs, and evaluates all Water Services operations to provide safe, reliable, responsive, and cost-effective service to all customers. Ensures compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation requirements, permits, operator certification requirements, water-quality monitoring and reporting, drinking-water standards, and other applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations. Serves as, or ensures the availability of, the appropriately certified operator of record and qualified operational coverage required for the County’s water treatment and distribution systems. Develops and implements strategic plans, annual work plans, operating policies, standard operating procedures, key performance measures, service levels, and continuous-improvement initiatives. Leads utility-wide asset management, including condition assessment, preventive and predictive maintenance, criticality and risk analysis, lifecycle planning, inventory control, work-order management, and prioritization of renewal and replacement investments. Develops and administers annual operating and multi-year capital budgets; monitors revenues, expenses, cash requirements, reserves, debt, grants, and enterprise-fund performance; recommends corrective action and sustainable funding strategies. Conducts or oversees cost-of-service and rate analyses and recommends rates, fees, connection charges, and financial policies that support affordability, equity, regulatory compliance, debt obligations, and long-term system sustainability. Directs master planning, engineering, design, permitting, easement acquisition, procurement, construction, inspection, closeout, and commissioning of water infrastructure projects; coordinates consultants, contractors, developers, and funding agencies. Oversees water-supply planning, source protection, treatment performance, storage, pumping, pressure management, distribution system integrity, leak detection, water-loss control, meter accuracy, backflow prevention, flushing, and water-quality maintenance. Maintains and exercises emergency response, continuity of operations, drought and shortage response, cybersecurity, physical security, mutual-aid, and incident communication plans; participates in emergency response and supports 24-hour operational readiness. Promotes a strong safety culture and ensures compliance with OSHA/TOSHA requirements, confined-space, trenching and excavation, traffic control, lockout/tagout, respiratory protection, chemical safety, veh…

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