Deputy Commissioner

City of Chicago Department of Law; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 100,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

The City of Chicago Department of Planning & Development seeks a Deputy Commissioner to lead the Bureau of Economic Development. You will oversee underwriting and monitoring, guide financial analysis, contract negotiations, and legislative approvals to advance Chicago’s equitable growth.

Leadership of program operations and data transparency is required, with coordination across staff, stakeholders, and elected officials. Excellent management and policy skills are essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Business Administration, Public Administration, Urban Planning or related field, plus five years of managerial or project management experience.
• Master’s degree in Finance, Business Administration, Public Administration, Urban Planning or related field preferred.

Responsibilities

• Oversee the administration of the City’s use of financial incentives and manage underwriting and monitoring groups.
• Lead and coordinate key meetings and provide staff guidance on financial due diligence, contract negotiations, and legislative approvals.
• Represent the Department at City Council and ensure data integrity and compliance across programs.

Skills

Financial analysis

Contract negotiations

Project management

Policy formulation

Strategic planning

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance or related field

Master's degree preferred

Tools

PROMA

Job description

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Job Description - Deputy Commissioner (9679-DPD-102026)

Job Description

Deputy Commissioner

Job Number:

9679-DPD-102026

Description

JOB ANNOUNCEMENT

Deputy Commissioner

Department of Planning & Development

Bureau of Economic Development

Number of Positions: 1

The City of Chicago’s Department of Planning and Development is responsible for the economic development growth of the City and its neighborhoods. This work is largely done through the Department’s Bureau of Economic Development (the Bureau), whose mission is to create equitable economic growth throughout Chicago, by investing financial resources and support in people, businesses, and neighborhoods. To do that, the Bureau administers a variety of programs including Community Development Grants (CDG), Neighborhood Opportunity Fund (NOF), Tax Increment Financing (TIF), and Property Tax Abatements. In total, the City has used these programs to make approximately $1.7 billion in investments in Chicago’s neighborhoods over the past five years.

Within the Bureau, the Deputy Commissioner is responsible for leading and overseeing the work of both the Underwriting and Monitoring & Compliance Groups. This includes all aspects of the City’s management of projects, including application review, financial analysis, contract negotiations and execution, legislative approvals, and long-term compliance monitoring. Although the Deputy Commissioner does not directly perform the related day-to-day tasks, the position requires providing frequent project-level support and guidance on certain key tasks, including the application review, financial analysis, contract negotiations, and legislative approvals. The Deputy Commissioner is additionally responsible for the operations of the Bureau’s various programs and funding rounds which are primary vehicles by which projects are selected. This work includes not only ensuring these remain high-functioning programs, but also simultaneously pursuing policy, process, and programmatic changes that improve operations and outcomes.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES

• Oversee the administration of the City’s use of financial incentives, including the managers of the Underwriting and the Monitoring and Compliance Group and the subordinate staff.
• Supervise and support critical aspects of the application review and project management process with a particular emphasis on financial due diligence, contract negotiation, and legislative approval.
• Facilitate the monthly meetings of the Community Development Commission and the TIF Investment Committee, including oversight of staff responsible for the coordination of those meetings.
• Represent the Department at City Council when seeking its approval for the use of funds for specific projects.
• Evaluate program operations and identify opportunities to make improvements by implementing new or revised policies and procedures.
• Develop and supervise the preparation of operational and administrative reports summarizing the Bureau’s activities.
• Ensure a high degree of project and program data integrity including the Bureau’s consistent use of PROMA in order to improve the Department’s data-driven decision making.
• Oversee the Bureau’s data transparency efforts, including meeting the statutory requirements of the TIF Sunshine Ordinance and the TIF Annual Reports.

Serve as Bureau liaison with Alders and other elected officials, operating departments, governmental agencies, and private consultants on specific projects, policy concerns, and operational issues.

• Engage external stakeholders for both project- and program-specific issues, including developers, community-based organizations, and residents.
• Assist the Managing Deputy Commissioner with the development, implementation and evaluation of the Bureau’s strategic vision, including the creation of annual goals and objectives.
• Direct and coordinate special projects and studies as may be required.
• Direct staff training and development activities.

NOTE: The list of essential duties is not intended to be inclusive; there may be other duties that are essential to particular positions within the class.

Location: 121 N. LaSalle St., Chicago, IL 60602, 10 th Floor

Days: Monday - Friday

Hours: 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM

Qualifications

THIS POSITION IS EXEMPT FROM THE CAREER SERVICE

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Graduation from an accredited college or university with a bachelor’s degree in Finance, Business Administration, Public Administration, Urban Planning or a related field, supplemented by five years of progressively responsible managerial or project management experience, or an equivalent combination of training and experience.

Master’s degree in Finance, Business Administration, Public Administration, Urban Planning or related field preferred.

WORKING CONDITIONS

• General office environment

EQUIPMENT

• Standard office equipment (e.g., phone, printer, copier, computers, mobile devices)
• Standard productivity suites (e.g., Microsoft Office Suite, Google Workspace, etc.)

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

• No specific requirements

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES, AND ATTRIBUTES

Positions assigned to executive leadership roles are expected to possess the following knowledge, skills, abilities, and attributes.

• Strong vision and direction for assigned division that embodies the following core values, transparency, diversity, inclusion, equity, accountability, and transformation
• Ability to understand the enterprise as a whole; recognizing how the various functions of the organization depend on one another, and how changes in any one part affect all the others; connecting the relationship of the individual divisions and issues to the department, City and sister agencies, the community, and the political, and social ecosystem as a whole
• Professional and personal history reflecting the highest standards of integrity
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with stakeholders
• Ability to lead organizational changes and implement process improvements
• Ability to make informed decisions that align with the goals established by the department head
• Demonstrated commitment to holding supervisory personnel accountable for the timely and effective execution of organizational policy by individuals under their command
• Commitment to and demonstrated experience expanding and maintaining a diverse and inclusive workforce that reflects the population it serves
• Outstanding skills in communicating and interacting with the media, community organizations, elected officials, and the general public
• Experience dealing with labor-management issues and the ability to work effectively with employee unions
• Strong administrative and leadership track record, including overseeing a sizeable staff and organization in organizational planning and development, strategic and operational planning, budget management, process improvement, data-driven decision-making, and crisis management

All employees of the City of Chicago must demonstrate commitment to and compliance with applicable state and federal laws, and City ordinances and rules; the City’s Ethics standards; and other City policies and procedures.

The City of Chicago will consider equivalent foreign degrees, accreditations, and credentials in evaluating qualifications. * May be required at entry.

SELECTION REQUIREMENTS

This is an appointed position, exempt from the Shakman decrees.

Education & Employment Verification: Please be advised that if you are selected to be hired you must provide, upon request, adequate information regarding your educational and employment history as it relates to the qualifications of the position for which you are applying. If the City of Chicago cannot verify this information, any offer extended to you will be withdrawn and you will not be hired.

Residency Requirement : All employees of the City of Chicago must be actual residents of the City as outlined in 2-152-050 of the City of Chicago Municipal Code. Proof of residency will be required.

If you would like to request reasonable accommodation due to disability or pregnancy in order to participate in the applicationprocess, please contact the City of Chicago, Department of Human Resources at [phone] (voice) or [phone] (TTY). Please be prepared to provide information in support of your reasonable accommodation request.

For Information on our employees benefits please visit our benefits website at:

For Information on our salary and title structure visit our classifications website at:

The City of Chicago is an Equal Employment Opportunity, Military Friendly, and Fair Chance Employer.

City of Chicago

Job Posting

Oct 6, 2026, 5:00:00 AM | Closing Date (Period for Applying) - External : Oct 21, 2026, 4:59:00 AM