Assistant Secretary, Fish Passage Barrier Correction Delivery

About WSDOT

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is a multimodal agency with a global reputation for excellence. Our dedicated workforce plans, designs, builds, and operates an integrated transportation system that safely and efficiently moves people and goods throughout the state. In addition to maintaining over 20,000 lane miles of state highway and 4,100 bridges, WSDOT manages the world’s longest floating bridge, leads an award‑winning Active Transportation Plan, holds the record for the world’s widest tunneling project, and operates the largest ferry system in the nation!

WSDOT is currently seeking a mission‑driven leader to serve as Assistant Secretary for Fish Passage Barrier Correction Delivery. Fish Passage Barrier Correction is a statewide, court‑mandated infrastructure program with long‑term implications for transportation system performance, environmental compliance, tribal relations, fiscal stewardship, and public trust. The Assistant Secretary provides executive leadership, strategic direction, and enterprise‑level oversight for the Fish Passage Barrier Correction Delivery and is accountable for ensuring the program is planned, governed, and delivered in a manner that achieves compliance with the federal court injunction while supporting statewide transportation objectives, and long‑term system performance.

This role sets the overall program vision, establishes performance expectations, and defines delivery frameworks that guide agency efforts across the state.

In addition, the Assistant Secretary exercises executive oversight of scope, schedule, budget, and risk, while leading enterprise‑wide stakeholder engagement and cross‑organizational coordination. The position ensures consistent, integrated program delivery over multiple biennia and aligns resources, priorities, and decision‑making structures to meet legal obligations and agency goals.

Among the varied range of responsibilities held within this role, the Assistant Secretary will:

• Provide executive stewardship and governance for the Fish Passage Barrier Correction Delivery Program, ensuring alignment with statutory requirements, executive direction, and agency priorities.
• Establish program‑wide delivery frameworks, performance expectations, and accountability structures to guide planning, design, and construction activities across regions and functional disciplines.
• Exercise executive oversight and strategic direction for program scope, schedule, budget, risk, resource allocation, and multi‑biennial planning and investment strategies, intervening as necessary to address systemic delivery barriers.
• Collaborate with other Assistant Secretaries to integrate fish passage delivery with WSDOT’s capital program, engineering standards, asset management practices, and operational priorities.
• Identify, evaluate, and manage program‑level risks related to legal compliance, environmental permitting, fiscal performance, delivery capacity, and stakeholder impacts.
• Coordinate with the Washington State Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Department of Justice on legal strategy, compliance matters, and contract remedies related to program delivery and court‑mandated requirements.
• Serve as WSDOT’s executive representative and spokesperson, including establishing and maintaining government‑to‑government relationships with affected tribes and engaging with the Legislature, Governor’s Office, agencies, and local partners.
• Oversee executive‑level program reporting and accountability, including statutory, legislative, Gray Notebook, and executive reporting to WSDOT leadership and other oversight bodies.

To be considered for this opportunity, the following competencies are required:

• Demonstrated ability to lead and direct large, multidisciplinary teams, major programs, or complex operational units at an executive or senior leadership level.
• Demonstrated ability to establish governance structures, performance expectations, and accountability systems across diverse functional areas.
• Demonstrated ability to manage under high visibility and scrutiny…