New County Department Dedicated to Homelessness

The County of Los Angeles is establishing a new department dedicated to addressing homelessness. The Department of Human Resources’ Executive Recruitment Team has been commissioned by the Board of Supervisors to identify a new Director for this department. As a valued stakeholder, we are seeking your insights into the skills and competencies you would like to see in our new Director.

This voluntary, anonymous survey will take approximately 5-10 minutes to complete and must be completed in one sitting. Please complete your survey by Friday, April 18, 2025.

If you have any questions about the survey’s content, please contact Mishel Brown at MBrown@hr.lacounty.gov. Should you have any technical questions regarding the survey system, please contact SurveyInsights@hr.lacounty.gov.

Thank you for taking the time to complete this important survey.

From the list below, select up to three skills that you consider to be the most important for the Director of the new County department dedicated to homelessness?

Which of the following best describes the ideal background of this Director?

Transformational reformer of multi-layered organizations and systems
Visionary leader with a proven record of driving exceptional program outcomes
Housing and/or behavioral health expert
Innovator from outside traditional government systems

What should be the primary focus of the Director’s work during the ﬁrst year? Rank the following in their order of priority.

Topics	1	2	3	4	5
Strengthening partnerships with cities and local organizations	Strengthening partnerships with cities and local organizations, 1	Strengthening partnerships with cities and local organizations, 2	Strengthening partnerships with cities and local organizations, 3	Strengthening partnerships with cities and local organizations, 4	Strengthening partnerships with cities and local organizations, 5
Addressing immediate service gaps for people experiencing homelessness	Addressing immediate service gaps for people experiencing homelessness, 1	Addressing immediate service gaps for people experiencing homelessness, 2	Addressing immediate service gaps for people experiencing homelessness, 3	Addressing immediate service gaps for people experiencing homelessness, 4	Addressing immediate service gaps for people experiencing homelessness, 5
Advocating policy reforms at the state and federal levels	Advocating policy reforms at the state and federal levels, 1	Advocating policy reforms at the state and federal levels, 2	Advocating policy reforms at the state and federal levels, 3	Advocating policy reforms at the state and federal levels, 4	Advocating policy reforms at the state and federal levels, 5
Securing long-term funding for sustainable solutions	Securing long-term funding for sustainable solutions, 1	Securing long-term funding for sustainable solutions, 2	Securing long-term funding for sustainable solutions, 3	Securing long-term funding for sustainable solutions, 4	Securing long-term funding for sustainable solutions, 5
Developing and implementing prevention strategies	Developing and implementing prevention strategies, 1	Developing and implementing prevention strategies, 2	Developing and implementing prevention strategies, 3	Developing and implementing prevention strategies, 4	Developing and implementing prevention strategies, 5

Please rank the following leadership qualities in order of importance for the Director of the new department.

Topics	1	2	3	4	5	6
Visionary thinking	Visionary thinking, 1	Visionary thinking, 2	Visionary thinking, 3	Visionary thinking, 4	Visionary thinking, 5	Visionary thinking, 6
Ability to inspire and motivate teams	Ability to inspire and motivate teams, 1	Ability to inspire and motivate teams, 2	Ability to inspire and motivate teams, 3	Ability to inspire and motivate teams, 4	Ability to inspire and motivate teams, 5	Ability to inspire and motivate teams, 6
Strong decision-making ability	Strong decision-making ability, 1	Strong decision-making ability, 2	Strong decision-making ability, 3	Strong decision-making ability, 4	Strong decision-making ability, 5	Strong decision-making ability, 6
Operational management skills	Operational management skills, 1	Operational management skills, 2	Operational management skills, 3	Operational management skills, 4	Operational management skills, 5	Operational management skills, 6
Financial acumen	Financial acumen, 1	Financial acumen, 2	Financial acumen, 3	Financial acumen, 4	Financial acumen, 5	Financial acumen, 6
Transformational leadership	Transformational leadership, 1	Transformational leadership, 2	Transformational leadership, 3	Transformational leadership, 4	Transformational leadership, 5	Transformational leadership, 6

In which of the following sectors should the Director ideally have prior experience? (Select up to three)

Public Sector / Local Government
Nonprofit Homeless Services
Health or Mental Health Systems
Housing Development or Planning
Criminal Justice / Reentry Services
Philanthropy / Fund Development
Data / Performance Management
Emergency Management / Crisis Response

Please rank the following competencies in order of importance for the Director of the new department.

Topics	1	2	3	4	5
Ability to manage complex, multi-agency projects	Ability to manage complex, multi-agency projects, 1	Ability to manage complex, multi-agency projects, 2	Ability to manage complex, multi-agency projects, 3	Ability to manage complex, multi-agency projects, 4	Ability to manage complex, multi-agency projects, 5
Communication and public speaking skills	Communication and public speaking skills, 1	Communication and public speaking skills, 2	Communication and public speaking skills, 3	Communication and public speaking skills, 4	Communication and public speaking skills, 5
Expertise in trauma-informed care and practices	Expertise in trauma-informed care and practices, 1	Expertise in trauma-informed care and practices, 2	Expertise in trauma-informed care and practices, 3	Expertise in trauma-informed care and practices, 4	Expertise in trauma-informed care and practices, 5
Knowledge of local and regional homelessness trends	Knowledge of local and regional homelessness trends, 1	Knowledge of local and regional homelessness trends, 2	Knowledge of local and regional homelessness trends, 3	Knowledge of local and regional homelessness trends, 4	Knowledge of local and regional homelessness trends, 5
Understanding of the housing market and real estate development	Understanding of the housing market and real estate development, 1	Understanding of the housing market and real estate development, 2	Understanding of the housing market and real estate development, 3	Understanding of the housing market and real estate development, 4	Understanding of the housing market and real estate development, 5

How familiar should the Director be with funding streams (i.e., Measure A, HUD, and state homelessness funds)?

No familiarity required
General awareness
Hands-on experience managing similar funds
Prior leadership over budgeting and allocation for such funds

Please share any additional thoughts regarding the qualifications needed for the Director of the new department dedicated to homelessness. (Response limited to 500 characters)

Character limit: 500.