Policy & Programming

Associate Policy Analyst – Transportation and Land Use (APA92017)

Job Category:                       Associate

Experience Required:          Minimum 2 years

Salary Range:                       $54,000 to $66,933

The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) is seeking to hire an Associate Policy Analyst to conduct research and analysis related to land use, housing, and transportation, and other topics to support development and implementation of the agency’s regional plan.  CMAP is our region’s comprehensive planning organization.  The agency and its partners are developing ON TO 2050, a new long-range comprehensive regional plan to help the seven counties and 284 communities of northeastern Illinois implement strategies that address transportation, housing, economic development, open space, the environment, and other quality-of-life issues.  See www.cmap.illinois.gov for more information, and details regarding benefits are at www.cmap.illinois.gov/about/careers#benefits.

Position Description

The ideal candidate for this position will demonstrate knowledge about the interactions between infrastructure, land use, economic development, and regional public policy.  The ideal candidate will also show aptitude for translating general policy recommendations into specific project and policy recommendations.  The Associate Policy Analyst will assist or be responsible for quantitative and qualitative analysis across a range of topics to help finalize and implement ON TO 2050.  Potential projects may include: analysis of emerging state and federal regulations, tracking regional trends and transportation performance measures, researching strategies to promote reinvestment in disinvested areas, assessing the land use impacts of transportation investment, participating in development of a new vision for the expressway system, and/or further exploring the connections between land use and tax policy.

Across these projects and tasks, the policy analyst will be expected to emphasize the recommendations of GO TO 2040 and the refinements identified for ON TO 2050.  Preference will be given to those who possess strong technical skills with strengths in managing research and collecting and analyzing data, and communicating these findings to a broad range of audiences.  All candidates should demonstrate an interest in the complex challenges addressed by long range planning. 

Responsibilities

• Manage or support agency projects that analyze transportation, land use, housing, freight, infrastructure, economic, and other relevant public policy issues facing northeastern Illinois and develop regional scale as well as applied planning and policy solutions to meet these challenges.

• Collect and analyze data on transportation, demographic, land use, economic, and other regional trends.
• Develop methods of quantitative assessment of transportation projects and policies, particularly focused on land use and economic impacts.
• Write reports, policy updates, and issue briefs that explain data trends, synthesize qualitative analysis, and relate their potential impact on changes in federal, state, or local public policy.
• Engage stakeholders through project-specific interviews, presentations to relevant CMAP committees, and participation in regional groups, where appropriate.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Demonstrated understanding and/or interest in the complex connections between transportation, development, the metropolitan economy, and regional governance and policy.
• Ability to apply empirical evidence toward practical purposes, superior research and quantitative skills, and take creative approaches to problem solving.

• Excellent writing skills and the ability to communicate effectively on issues of public policy and planning.
• Ability to manipulate and analyze large data sources in spreadsheets, databases, and GIS, generate findings from these data, and communicate results to a non-technical audience.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex research projects and produce reports and issue briefs that are factual, original, compelling, and persuasive.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills and an ability to complement existing projects via independent or team-based work.
• Familiarity with the governance structure in northeastern Illinois is desired.

 

Education and Experience

An undergraduate degree in Public Policy, Economics, Public Administration, or a related field is required; Master’s strongly preferred.  A minimum of two years of relevant prior work experience in a research-driven policy, planning, or analytical role is required.  Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, with adaptability to other software.  Demonstrated skills with databases, spreadsheets, and Arc/GIS geographic information systems.

How to Apply

Please submit cover letter and résumé via the web at www.cmap.illinois.gov/about/careers.  Please refer to Job Code (APA62017).

Posting End Date

This posting will close on September 29, 2017 at 5:00 p.m. CST.  All applications must be completed and submitted within that timeframe.

The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

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Job Category:                       Assistant

Experience Required:          0 – 2 years

Salary Range:                       $45,000 to $55,803 

The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) is seeking to hire an Assistant Analyst to join the Policy & Programming Division.  CMAP is our region’s comprehensive planning organization.  The agency and its partners are developing ON TO 2050, a new long-range comprehensive regional plan to help the seven counties and 284 communities of northeastern Illinois implement strategies that address transportation, housing, economic development, open space, the environment, and other quality-of-life issues.  See www.cmap.illinois.gov for more information, and details regarding benefits are at www.cmap.illinois.gov/about/careers#benefits.

Position Description

CMAP is seeking to hire an Assistant Analyst within the agency’s modeling group to focus on the collection, preparation, and analysis of data related to agency research and analysis activities.  Examples of projects include: geocoding transportation performance data for use in preparing evaluation metrics, improving the spatial level-of-service accuracy of transportation modeling networks, and analyzing transportation system performance data from modeling tools and other sources.  These and other projects assigned are critical to maintaining the quality and integrity of CMAP planning datasets.

In addition, assignments will be given that contribute to CMAP’s capacity to respond to regular requests for data and information by staff and regional planning partners.  These include the preparation of maps and data that support CMAP’s Local Technical Assistance Program and Performance-Based Programming staff, as well as ad-hoc requests from the Executive Office and Policy Development staff.  Additional assignments include contributing to the implementation of CMAP’s GO TO 2040 Regional Comprehensive Plan by assisting in the tracking of specific regional planning indicators. 

Responsibilities

• Identify, collect and prepare datasets for urban planning and policy analysis
• Prepare computer procedures to automate analyses and evaluations
• Conduct quality assurance/quality control on methods and procedures
• Prepare analysis summary results and visualization products
• Thoroughly document work products for use by other CMAP staff
• Other duties as assigned

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

The successful candidate must have strong technical skills in managing and processing datasets to support urban planning analysis and evaluation.  In particular, a successful candidate must demonstrate:

• Understanding of fundamental methods of quantitative analysis in urban planning
• Understanding of data management and processing techniques
• Knowledge of Census and other government data products

Additional desirable skills include:

• Experience using statistical analysis software such as R, SAS, SPSS or Stata
• Experience with Python scripting
• Familiarity with Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
• Familiarity with database software such as Access, SQL Server or PostgreSQL
• Exposure to travel demand modeling software such as Emme, Cube, or TransCAD

Education and Experience

A master’s degree in a social science discipline or equivalent with emphasis on quantitative analysis is preferred.  A bachelor’s degree with progressive professional experience is acceptable.

How to Apply

Please submit cover letter and résumé via the web at www.cmap.illinois.gov/about/careers.  Please refer to Job Code (AAM2017).

Posting End Date

This posting will close on September 29, 2017 at 5:00 p.m. CST.  All applications must be completed and submitted within that timeframe.

The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning is an Equal Opportunity Employer.