Public Utilities Department Head

Job Summary

Collier County is seeking an experienced executive to serve as Public Utilities Department Head, responsible for leading one of the County’s largest and most complex operating departments.

The Public Utilities Department Head plans, directs, and oversees the Department’s programs, services, staff, and resources. The position provides executive-level leadership and accountability for water, wastewater, and solid waste operations; major capital programs; regulatory compliance; fiscal management; and countywide emergency preparedness, response, and recovery.

The position is also responsible for integrating utility finance, rate setting, and customer service functions, including long‑range financial planning, cost‑of‑service and rate development, revenue sufficiency, bonding and capital financing strategies, and oversight of billing and customer service operations, to ensure financial sustainability, service reliability, affordability, transparency, and public trust.

The Department delivers essential services through the Collier County Water‑Sewer District and the Solid & Hazardous Waste Management Division and includes University Extension Services and local coordination with Public Health operations to support community health and environmental protection.

• Serves more than 88,000 water and wastewater customer connections
• Operates two (2) water treatment plants, two (2) regional water reclamation facilities, and three (3) sub‑regional wastewater treatment plants
• Produces approximately 11 billion gallons of drinking water annually
• Treats approximately 8.5 billion gallons of wastewater annually
• Delivers approximately 6.3 billion gallons of irrigation‑quality water annually
• Provides countywide solid waste services, including curbside collection, to more than 148,000 residential accounts, recycling, landfill and transfer station operations, and storm‑related emergency debris removal

The Department manages a combined annual operating budget of approximately $429 million across the Water‑Sewer District and the Solid & Hazardous Waste Management Division, a workforce approaching 600 employees, and utility infrastructure with an estimated gross book value of $1.9 billion.

The Department is also delivering a multi‑year, regionally significant $750 million Northeast Utility Expansion Program through 2031, requiring extensive coordination with regulatory agencies, local governments, contractors, and community stakeholders.

• Bachelor’s degree required; master’s degree in engineering, public administration, business administration, finance, or a related discipline preferred
• Minimum ten (10) or more years of progressively responsible experience in public utilities, public works, or infrastructure operations; additional experience may substitute for a degree
• Proven experience leading large, enterprise‑scale utility organizations, including responsibility for operating budgets, capital programs, workforce management, and customer‑facing service
• Demonstrated experience in utility financial management, including rate development, cost‑of‑service analysis, long‑range financial planning, and enterprise fund administration
• Experience overseeing solid waste management operations, including landfill operations, long‑term airspace management to extend landfill life, evaluation of alternative solid waste disposal or diversion methods, and executive‑level management of regulatory agency relationships related to permitting and compliance
• Experience overseeing utility billing, customer service operations, and customer communications, including service reliability, affordability considerations, and public‑facing issue resolution
• Demonstrated knowledge of public finance and bonding, including revenue‑backed debt, capital financing strategies, and coordination with financial advisors, bond counsel, and rating agencies
• Demonstrated experience with emergency preparedness and response, including storm operations and debris recovery
• Experience with FEMA Public Assistance, emergency contracting, and post‑disaster recovery
• Proven experience overseeing major capital infrastructure…