CAREER GUIDE PLANNER SOC Code: 13-1199
Pay Band(s): 4,5,6 and 7 (Salary Structure)
Standard Occupational Description: There is no standard occupational description for the occupation of Planner as used by the Commonwealth. This occupation would be included in the Business Operations Specialist, All Others. This group is comprised of many different types of business occupations with a wide range of characteristics.
Commonwealth of Virginia Description: Develops comprehensive plans for use by government agencies, universities, and facilities. Formulates and applies mathematical modeling and other optimizing methods to develop and interpret information that assists management with decision making, policy formulation, or other managerial functions. Concentrates on collecting and analyzing data and developing strategies to provide a means of achieving a mission and organizational goals and objectives.
Planner positions in the Commonwealth are assigned to the following Roles in the Policy Analysis and Planning Career Group:
Policy and Planning Specialist I
Policy and Planning Specialist II
Policy and Planning Specialist III
Policy and Planning Specialist IV
While Planners within the Commonwealth are all located within the Policy Analysis and Planning Career Group, individuals may want to pursue other opportunities within the Commonwealth depending upon individual training, education, knowledge, skills, abilities, and interests.
Other Career Group(s) that may be of interest are:
SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE, ABILITIES AND TASKS (Technical and Functional Expertise) SkillsNote: The technical and functional skills listed below are based on general occupational qualifications for Planners commonly recognized by most employers. Typically, you will not be required to have all of the skills listed to be a successful performer. Recruitment and selection standards for an individual state job must be based on the specific knowledge, skills, and abilities for that job as indicated in the job announcement and job description in the Employee Work Profile.
1. Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. 2. Using mathematics to solve problems. 3. Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one. 4. Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making. 5. Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system. 6. Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents. 7. Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience. 8. Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes. 9. Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions. 10. Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Knowledge
Note: The technical and functional knowledge statements listed below are based on general occupational qualifications for Planners commonly recognized by most employers. Typically, you will not be required to have all of the knowledge listed to be a successful performer. Recruitment and selection standards for an individual state job must be based on the specific knowledge, skills, and abilities for that job as indicated in the job announcement and job description in the Employee Work Profile.
The Knowledge of:
1. Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications. 2. Business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources. 3. Computer technology, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming. 4. Economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data. 5. Structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar. 6. Laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Abilities
Note: The technical and functional abilities listed below are based on general occupational qualifications for Planners commonly recognized by most employers. Typically, you will not be required to have all of the abilities listed to be a successful performer. Recruitment and selection standards for an individual state job must be based on the specific knowledge, skills, and abilities for that job as indicated in the job announcement and job description in the Employee Work Profile.
The Ability to:
1. Listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. 2. Read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. 3. Apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense. 4. Communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. 5. Communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand. 6. Combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events). 7. Anticipates problems and issues. 8. Speak clearly so others can understand you. 9. Choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem. 10. Arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Tasks Note: The following is a list of sample tasks typically performed by Planners. Employees in this occupation will not necessarily perform all of the tasks listed. Tasks1. Designs, promotes and administers government plans and policies. 2. Analyzes problem in terms of management information and conceptualizes and defines problem. 3. Prepares model of problem in the form of one or several equations that relates constants and variables, restrictions, alternatives, conflicting objectives and their numerical parameters. 4. Advises planning officials on project feasibility, cost-effectiveness, regulatory conformance, and possible alternatives. 5. Evaluates implementation and effectiveness of research. 6. Develops and applies time and cost networks to plan and control large projects. 7. Prepares for management reports defining problem, evaluation, and possible solution. 8. Studies information and selects plan from competitive proposals that afford maximum probability of profit or effectiveness relating to cost or risk. 9. Defines data requirements and gathers and validates information, applying judgment and statistical tests.
INTERESTED?
Like people, occupations have traits or characteristics. These characteristics give important clues about the nature of the work and work environment, and give you an opportunity to match your own personal interests to a specific occupation. When you choose a job in an occupation that matches your own interests you have taken an important step in planning a successful and rewarding career.
The occupation of Planner has Investigative, Conventional, Realistic and Enterprising characteristics as described below:
Investigative — Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally. Conventional — Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow. Realistic — Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. Enterprising — Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
LICENSURE, REGISTRATION, OR CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
Generally this is not required for Planner positions in state government.
The American Institute of Certified Planners, a professional institute within the American Planning Association, grants certification to individuals who have the appropriate combination of education and professional experience and who pass an examination. Certification may be helpful for professional growth and career progression.
American Planning Association, Education Division provides additional information: http://www.planning.org
EDUCATIONAL, TRAINING, AND LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES
The Department of Labor provides the following information:
Planners develop long-term and short-term plans to use in reaching organizational goals and objectives, while helping officials make decisions concerning social, economic, and environmental problems.
Planners also may be involved in drafting legislation on environmental, social, and economic issues, such as sheltering the homeless, planning a new park, or meeting the demand for new correctional facilities.
Planners use computers to record and analyze information and to prepare reports and recommendations for government executives and others. Computer databases, spreadsheets, and analytical techniques are widely utilized to project program costs and forecast future trends. Computerized geographic information systems enable planners to map land areas, to overlay maps with geographic variables such as population density, and to combine or manipulate geographic information.
For jobs as planners, employers prefer workers who have advanced training. Most entry-level jobs in Federal, State, and local government agencies require a master's degree from an accredited program in urban or regional planning or a master's degree in a related field such as public administration, finance or political science. A bachelor's degree from an accredited planning program, coupled with a master's degree in architecture, landscape architecture, or civil engineering, is good preparation for entry-level planning jobs in various areas, including urban design, transportation, and the environment. A master's degree from an accredited planning program provides the best training for a wide range of planning fields. Although graduates from one of the limited number of accredited bachelor's degree programs qualify for some entry-level positions, their advancement opportunities often are limited, unless they acquire an advanced degree.
Courses in related disciplines, such as architecture, law, earth sciences, demography, economics, finance, health administration, geographic information systems, and management, are highly recommended. Because familiarity with computer models and statistical techniques is important, courses in statistics and computer science also are recommended.
In general, planners are concerned with diverse issues such as top-level strategy, planning, forecasting, resource allocation, performance measurement, and the analysis of large databases.
The State Council of Higher Education (SCHV) lists two Virginia educational institutions offering educational programs in urban and environmental planning. They are the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech.
The National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO) has on-line training modules available on their web site located at: http://www.nasbo.org/.
COMMONWEALTH COMPETENCIES
Competencies are a set of identified behaviors, knowledge, skills, and abilities that directly and positively impact the success of employees and the organization. Competencies can be observed and measured. When consistently demonstrated, competencies make employees particularly effective in their work. Competencies help lay out a road map to career success. You can use the Commonwealth Competencies to help improve your individual performance by adopting behaviors that make high performing employees successful in their jobs. In this way, you can use the Commonwealth Competencies for your further professional development.
The Commonwealth Competencies are:
1.
Technical and Functional Expertise
2.
Understanding the Business 3. Achieving Results 4. Serving the Customer 5. Teamwork 6. Interpersonal and Communication Skills 7. Leadership and Personal Effectiveness The above competencies may be applied to employees throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia. They can be rank-ordered by agencies and hiring managers to represent the needs of a specific job. The rank ordering will change depending upon the occupation, an organization's priorities, the actual job requirements, and the supervisor's preferences.
Career success is both about what you do (applying your technical knowledge, skills, and ability) and how you do it (the consistent behaviors you demonstrate and choose to use) while interacting and communicating with others. Hopefully, by studying the Commonwealth competencies, identifying your developmental opportunities, and working to refine your own competence, you can take charge of your career!
For additional information about the Commonwealth Competencies go to: http://jobs.state.va.us/cc_planningctr.htm. For the competencies, we first list the competencies and then define each. Finally, we list competency indicators; to describe what successful performance looks like. COMMONWEALTH CAREER PATH
Career opportunities in the Commonwealth are not limited to moving “up” to the next highest role and pay band, changing positions, or to becoming a supervisor. That's because most roles describe a broad group of occupationally related positions that perform a range of work that requires increased knowledge and skills. For that reason, Commonwealth roles describe the career paths within the same or higher-level role for the same or different Career Group. The broad salary range and the Commonwealth's pay practices provide flexibility in recognizing career development and advancement. (Salary Structure)
For example: Planner
Sample Career Path
Policy and Planning Specialist I The Policy and Planning Specialist I role provides career tracks for planners performing planning and analytical responsibilities ranging from entry level to journey level. Responsibilities include providing management with a comprehensive view of operations by contributing to the preparation of reports, conducting analytical and statistical research and by providing alternative solutions and assessments of the long range impact of work processes and other implications of studies and projects.
Policy and Planning Specialist II The Policy and Planning Specialist II role provides career tracks for planners performing advanced level responsibilities. Positions frequently lead project teams that develop and implement recommendations with broad impact. Project management is often a responsibility.
Policy and Planning Specialist III The Policy and Planning Specialist III role provides career tracks for the planners performing advanced level to expert level policy and planning analysis for multiple agencies. Employees are typically located in a central agency.
Policy and Planning Specialist IV The Policy and Planning Specialist IV role provides career tracks for planners serving as experts and advisors for individuals at the highest level in the Commonwealth's government, such as the Governor, Cabinet Secretaries, Legislators, and Agency Directors. Employees guide the work of professional level staff involved in developing and recommending implementation of major statewide policy, programmatic, budgetary, regulatory, planning, performance, and fiscal initiatives.
Policy and Planning Manager I The Policy and Planning Manager I role is for first-level management positions that manage the work of staff engaged in the analysis and publication of labor market data; the conduct of studies of agency organization and operations; and activities related to policy development, planning, and performance measurement. Project planning, management, and review are typical responsibilities for this role.
Policy and Planning Manager II The Policy and Planning Manager II role provides career tracks for managers responsible for managing/directing an array of planning, performance measurement, evaluation, policy, economic forecasting, or research projects critical to the agency's mission. Employees may direct agency regulatory processes to ensure development and review in accordance with law. Employees represent the agency and act as liaison on complex policy, planning, performance, regulatory, and legislative matters.
Policy and Planning Manager III The Policy and Planning Manager III role provides career tracks for managers that direct divisions involved in developing and recommending implementation of major policy, programmatic, budgetary, regulatory, planning, measurement, and fiscal initiatives with statewide impact. Employees advise the Governor, Cabinet Secretaries, agency head, and other state officials on policy options, the executive budget, and the development and implementation of legislation, plans, performance measures, and regulations.
Policy and Planning Manager IVThe Policy and Planning Manager IV role provides career tracks for executive-level managers that are responsible for advising the Governor in the prudent allocation of public resources and the development and implementation of statewide fiscal, legislative, programmatic, planning, performance, and regulatory policies. Employees have statutory and executive responsibilities critical to the overall performance and financial welfare of the Commonwealth. ADDITIONAL OCCUPATIONAL INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND AT:
Commonwealth Association of Planners O*NET (Occupational Information Network) Virginia Employment Commission Career One Stop
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