senior engineering technician

director of public works

project coordinator

program assistant

investigator

City Of Minneapolis

My work life, for the most part has been centered around making some type of technical repairs. Whether it be electrical or mechanical, this has been my life's' work. I began as a young child, fooling around with small gas engines. Then as time passed, I became interested in the NHRA. The opportunity to get educated, began when vehicles transitioned to solid state components, and then computers. Most of my education had been learned from my father (Air Force aviation mechanic) who had a repair shop. For a long time working on cars was just a hobby, then I started working on other vehicles when shops would turn them away or the repairs were too expensive for whomever. After about 8 or 9 years of management, I decided to get some formal training, because I made more money on the side than I got paid as a manager. I have worked in other areas, because I really didn't like to get dirty. While attending technical school, I would work on school bus driver's vehicles during school, in the evening I worked a some aftermarket. My jobs have always had some direct contact with the public, until I began to work for entities that were fleet based.Most of my working life has consisted of overlapping workloads,night and day.I put down the wrenches for a few years and drove Class A. At one point in time, I became a single-parent father. I was trying to juggle 3 small children and continue to work my two jobs. Things got a little hectic so I had to take time to care for my family the best way I could. I received help from my family members, then I was able to resume my regular routine in working dual occupations. An opportunity came to apply for the City of Minneapolis. I took action to apply as a truck driver, also  the benefits were good and I had three children to be concerned about. I started out in the Solid Waste Dept. for the City. While there I received three offers to become a automotive repair technician. This opportunity took me straight to top pay-scale(no steps). We were working plenty of over-time, which paid well, there was not a need to have to work overtime anymore. The thing that I liked best about working for this municipality was how it brought new challenges everyday. This occupation is an excellent position to have, because nothing about the work is redundant, it was always something new or a different riddle to be solved. With over a hundred different makes and models, which ranged from emergency response to heavy On & Off Road, to passenger, to the non self-propelled equipment. There is always something going on. My children were returned to their mother and I just continued to work. Working at the City of Mpls, gave me the time I needed to return to school after 21 years. The schedule was flexible enough where I coordinated my classes within my work schedule. I received my AA Degree in May of 2012.My intent is to pursue my BA in HR/Labor Relations. I had been a very active member within the union and volunteered to become a Union Steward. There were Leadership that was required prior to becoming a steward. I took courses on Saturday's at the University of Minnesota. I have only had a few jobs, but the skills that I received from school and work are transferable. I believe that I would be a excellent candidate for this position, because of my education, years of overall technical repair, managerial skills and working with the Union, its' members, and the contractual language that a person would need have an understanding of how that works.

In summary: I possess the qualities that this position calls for, the management, great employee and vendor rapport, administrative skills, inventory knowledge and experience, the technical analyzing; diagnosing, troubleshooting steps, skilled repairs, and IDEAS.

Treasury Operations -

Speak with customers by telephone, and in person to provide information about services.
Take and enter orders, cancel accounts, or obtain details of complaints, and record service.
Determine charges for services requested, collect deposits or payments, or arrange for billing.
Refer unresolved customer grievances to designated departments for further investigation.
Resolve customers' service or billing complaints.
Assisted the department through e-bill registrations, having signed up the most customers in one month since the start of the program in August of 2011, saving the Cities mailing costs in excess of $100,000 a year. 
Served as trainer for new employees as requested by our managers.

Business Licensing - 

Communicate with customers by telephone, or in person to answer questions and provide services they require. 
Take and enter orders, cancel accounts, or obtain details of complaints
Check to ensure that appropriate changes were made to resolve customer problems.
Determine charges for services requested, collect deposits or payments, or arrange for billing.
Processed all bonds and insurance, and verify all renewal dates. 
Determine cancellations and send out reminders when necessary. 
Communicated with the Minneapolis Police Licensing and State of MN Liquor Control Board. 
Sent public hearing notices to residences, and businesses that may be affected.
Prepared applications for presentation to the city council for approval. 
Assisted the inspector with block event applications, confirming and acquiring approval with    Minneapolis Police, Fire and Public Works to proceed with their events.
Complete contract forms, prepare change of address records, and issue service discontinuance orders.

The City unsuccessfully tries to retain staff through high pay, inflated titles/rank and bonuses that are significantly higher than the actual work/authority level of each position.  In many departments/offices, it’s not uncommon for most of the staff to be “managers/supervisors,” if only in name.

If you you appreciate high pay, good benefits and lots of shameless flattery, AND you don’t care about advancing your career through promotion and acquiring greater decision-making authority over your discipline, then this is the place to be.  

Also, if you’re a “Straight-White-Male,” beware that enterprise level management positions are difficult-to-impossible for them to get - as all the open executive level leadership roles over the past couple years have not been filled by this diminishing minority at the City of Minneapolis.

The manager I worked for is terrible. In addition to being incredibly racist and bigoted,  and allowing their favorite person to follow right in their footsteps,  they are always right. If anyone dare point out that they didn't know what they were talking about,  my manager would throw a child-like hissy fit, slamming doors,  yelling, stomping their feet.  If we were lucky,  they would stew quietly while fuming inside.  There would always be an explosive follow-up, however.  
They were a micromanager, they did not encourage advancement (they would consistently tell other departments that they couldn't have me), and they were literally the worst to staff,  treating them like trash. Employee morale was at an all time low.  I 100% do not recommend working in the department I worked for,  nor do I recommend working for the City because they allow the manager to continue working there,  knowing what a truly awful person they are.

Working for the city in the appropriate role and capacity was extremely rewarding, and I was given a great deal of autonomy to develop a program as I saw fit. That being said, management is fairly disconnected from the work of their staff and overall I found there was resistance to change and innovation on behalf of more tenured staff. There are many opportunities to affect change,  though you need to be diligent to see things through. Benefits were fantastic, work days were fairly self structured, and overall it was a very stable workplace. My biggest issues came with the management of my department and inability to provide sufficient leadership and direction.

Great job working as an electrician for Traffic Engineering and great people to work with except for a few. Those few are the ones who are hired on permanently and do not posses the knowledge, skill, (and sadly) or certifications to perform their work. Most of the new construction of infrastructure is done by private contractors with no accountability for inspections much less, the work being done properly and according to specifications or code. There is very little proactive maintenance and the majority of the work is reactive to repair crumbling and failing infrastructure.

As an applications programmer, I am responsible for:
•     Providing support and issue resolution for the 911 system 
•     Performing analysis to troubleshoot issues for call takers and police dispatchers
•     Creating reports using SQL for confidential investigation on call takers and police matters
•     Contributing to team discussions by presenting ideas and sharing knowledge. 
	•     Collaborating on problem resolution, team decisions and project planning. 
	•     Participating in application of system software patches
	•     Installing updates for CAD 911 application 
•     Unit testing Office 2013 and debugging when necessary

What is the best part of working at the company?
They treat you like …. especially if your a woman. Working in the …. hole isn’t worth your life either, being shot at and then told not to protect yourself, 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Being shot at, yelled at and being treated horrible. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Horrible no advancement unless your sleeping with the boss or related

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Some days easy others absolutely horrible

This job will come with a great group of staff and management. As the election season ramps up there is mandatory overtime, however management will work with you to create the most preferred schedule. There is a positive and upbeat work environment with lots of unintentional team building throughout the election. 
This work does require computer skills that may be difficult for some, but management can work with you to help you learn. 


My experience working for the City of Minneapolis was deeply disappointing due to poor management practices and a toxic workplace culture. Harassment is not only tolerated but often ignored by supervisors, who tend to side with the aggressor rather than supporting those who come forward. Concerns brought to leadership were met with defensiveness or dismissal, creating an environment where accountability is lacking and employees do not feel safe or valued. I would not recommend this organization to individuals seeking a respectful or professionally managed workplace.


Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Senior engineering technician 5 salaries reported	$37.30 per hour
Director of public works 4 salaries reported	$32.19 per hour
Project coordinator 3 salaries reported	$90,908 per year
Program assistant 6 salaries reported	$35.71 per hour
Investigator 4 salaries reported	$42.24 per hour

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