REGION PROGRAM DIRECTOR - ESS - 60012811 - ESS Program - Suncoast Region

Florida; Sarasota (FL); On-site; USD 86,000 - 105,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

No state income tax

Annual and sick leave benefits

Nine paid holidays and PersonalHoliday

State Group Insurance options

Job summary

Florida Department of Children and Families seeks a Region Program Director for the Suncoast ESS program. The role leads ESS operations across multiple counties, driving performance, data-driven decisions, and high-quality service delivery.

The position requires current DCF employment, a minimum of three years in senior management, and willingness to travel regionally plus to headquarters. A bachelor’s degree is preferred and consideration includes select exempt service.

Qualifications

• Current DCF employee.
• Minimum three years of senior-level management experience, including leading large teams through organizational change, interpreting and applying rules, policies and regulations, and managing multi-site operations.
• Ability and willingness to travel throughout the region and to DCF Headquarters as needed.

Responsibilities

• Reports directly to the Deputy Assistant Secretary for ESS Operations.
• Leads and manages multi-site ESS operations across 11 counties.
• Drives performance using data analysis and trend evaluation.
• Oversees accuracy, timeliness, and service quality for SNAP, TANF, and Medicaid eligibility.
• Leads organizational change and implements statewide initiatives.
• Supervises regional leadership teams and support workforce engagement.
• Ensures compliance with all applicable rules, policies, and regulations.
• Collaborates with senior executives, program offices, and community partners.
• Coordinates regional projects and special assignments.

Skills

Senior-level management

Data-driven decision making

Travel willingness

Leadership across multiple sites

Public speaking

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Job description

Requisition No: 885428

Agency: Children and Families

Working Title: REGION PROGRAM DIRECTOR - ESS - 60012811 - ESS Program - Suncoast Region

Pay Plan: SES

Position Number: 60012811

Salary: $95,000 minimum annual. The DCF Salary Policy will apply.

Posting Closing Date: 11/01/2026

THIS IS ANINTERNALAGENCY OPPORTUNITY.

Only current DCF employees will be eligble.

FL Department of Children and Families

Suncoast Region Program Director

for the

Economic Self Sufficiency Program

This is a Select Exempt Service (SES) Position.

Salary: $95,000 minimum annual. The DCF Salary Policy will apply.

This is a full-time position working 40 hours per week.

The candidate will work from an office location daily in one of the regional facilities in Tampa, Largo, Sarasota or Ft. Myers.

Suncoast Region Headquarters is located at 9393 N. Florida Avenue, Tampa, FL 33612

Required Qualifications

• Must be a current DCF Employee.
• Minimum three years of senior-level management experience, including:
  • Leading large teams through organizational change.
  • Interpreting and applying rules, policies and regulations.
  • Managing multi-site operations.
  • Utilizing strong analytical skills and data-driven decision-making.
• Ability and willingness to travel throughout the region and to DCF Headquarters as needed.

PREFERENCE WILL BE GIVEN TO APPLICANTS WHO HAVE THE FOLLOWING:

• Experience with government assistance programs, including program eligibility policies and procedures.
• Experience managing budgets, contracts and financial responsibilities.
• Experience developing operational strategies for large-scale service delivery environments.
• Experience setting and monitoring performance measures and quality assurance standards.
• Experience identifying and evaluating teams and processes to develop and implement solutions.
• A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.
• Note: Be prepared to provide a copy of your degree/diploma or request official transcripts from your school in a sealed envelope. All documents must be in English, clear, and legible, showing all signatures and pertinent details. Foreign degrees must be validated by a third party to meet the US equivalency requirements. All costs are the responsibility of the applicant.

About The FL Department Of Children And Families

The Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF)isthe state of Florida’s social services agency providing services for child safety, fostering, adoption, domestic violence, adult protective services, refugees, homelessness, mental health, substance abuse, childcare providers, human trafficking and government assistance. The agency’s mission is to work in partnership with local communities to protect the vulnerable, promote strong and economically self-sufficient families, and advance personal and family recovery and resiliency.

Within DCF,the Economic Self Sufficiency (ESS) Programhelps to promote strong and economically self-sufficient families by determining eligibility in Florida for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Medicaid for individuals and families on the road to economic recovery.

To learn more please visit https://www.myflfamilies.com/.

About The Role

The Regional Director leads all ESS operations across the Suncoast Region (Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee, Sarasota, DeSoto, Charlotte, Glades, Lee, Hendry, and Collier counties). This senior role focuses on service delivery, operational improvement, efficiency, and high‑quality client service.

What You Will Do

• Reports directly to the Deputy Assistant Secretary for ESS Operations
• Leads and manage multi‑site ESS operations across 11 counties
• Drives performance using data analysis and trend evaluation
• Oversees accuracy, timeliness, and service quality for SNAP, TANF, and Medicaid eligibility
• Leads organizational change and implement statewide initiatives
• Supervises regional leadership teams and support workforce engagement
• Ensures compliance with all applicable rules, policies, and regulations
• Collaborates with senior executives, program offices, and community partners
• Coordinates regional projects and special assignments

The Ideal Candidate For This Position Will

• Develop and maintain effective working relationships and foster a collaborative work environment among staff to ensure outstanding customer service and the achievement of program goals.
• Have strong leadership and management skills with the ability to effectively lead and motivate a large workforce.
• Possess excellent active listening, oral and written communication skills to include the ability to effectively articulate and convey information so that it is readily understandable.
• Be comfortable speaking in public and to diverse individuals at all levels.
• Be solutions oriented with the ability to use critical thinking, judgement and discretion to make sound decisions, solve problems and make effective recommendations.
• Be able to understand, interpret and apply a comprehensive knowledge of applicable laws, agency policies and procedures.
• Possess strong computer application skills with the ability to effectively utilize applications related to business operations and human resource administration.

Benefits Of Working For The State Of Florida

Working for the State of Florida is more than a paycheck. The State’s total compensation package for employees features a highly competitive set of employee benefits including:

• No state income tax for residents of Florida.
• Annual and Sick Leave benefits.
• Nine paid holidaysand onePersonal Holiday each year.
• State Group Insurance coverage options, including health, life, dental, vision, and other supplemental insurance options.
• Retirement plan options, including employer contributions(For more information, please click www.myfrs.com ).
• Flexible Spending Accounts.
• Tuition waivers.
• And more!

For a more complete list of benefits, visit www.mybenefits.myflorida.com.

Candidate Profile (application) fields must be completed in its entirety.

• Include supervisor names and phone numbers for all periods of employment.
• Account for and explain any gaps in employment so that the hiring process is not delayed.
• Experience, education, training, knowledge, skills and/or abilities as well as responses to pre-qualifying questions must be verifiable to meet the minimum qualifications.
• It is unacceptable to use the statement “See Resume” in place of entering work history.

If you are a retiree of the Florida Retirement System (FRS), please check with the FRS on how your current benefits will be affected if you are re-employed with the State of Florida. Your current retirement benefits may be suspended or voided, and you will be required to repay all benefits received depending upon the date of your retirement.

The position will perform all job tasks in accordance with laws, rules, regulations, policies, and requirements applicable to state and federal laws or procedures.

We hire only U.S. citizens and lawfully authorized alien workers.

Participation in the State of Florida Direct Deposit Program is required as a condition of employment per F.S. 110.113, and enrollment must be completed within the first 30 calendar days of your appointment.

SELECTIVE SERVICE: Male candidates born on or after October 1, 1962, will not be eligible for hire or promotion into an authorized position unless they are registered with the Selective Service System (SSS) before their 26th birthday or have a Letter of Registration Exemption from the SSS. Verification of Selective Service registration will be conducted prior to hire. For more information, please visit the SSS website: http://www.sss.gov.

BACKGROUND SCREENING REQUIREMENT: It is the policy of the Florida Department of Children and Families that any candidate being considered for employment must successfully complete a State and National criminal history check as a condition of employment, and also be screened in accordance with the requirements of Chapter 435, F.S., and, if applicable, Chapter 408, F.S. Employment may be terminated based on the background investigation results if the candidate begins employment before the background results are received, reviewed for any disqualifying offences, and approved by the Department. Background investigations shall include, but not be limited to, fingerprinting for State and national criminal records check through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and may include local criminal history checks through local law enforcement agencies. Employees will be retained in state and national Record of Arrest and Prosecution (RAP) Back Program, providing real-time arrest hit notifications.

BENEFIT RECOVERY SCREENING Candidates applying to positions in the Economic Self Sufficiency Program will have a Benefit Recovery check completed before completing the hiring process.

If you experience problems applying online, please call the People First Service Center at [phone].

Candidates requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must notify the agency hiring authority and/or People First Service Center (1-866-663-4735). Notification to the hiring authority must be made in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.

The State of Florida supports a Drug-Free workplace. All employees are subject to reasonable suspicion drug testing in accordance with Section 112.0455, F.S., Drug-Free Workplace Act.