Mayor Eric Garcetti has announced that deputy mayor Kelli Bernard, who has served in Garcetti’s administration since he took office in 2013, will step down on May 20.

Bernard has played a central role in implementing the mayor’s economic agenda, helping to guide a post-recession resurgence of job growth and investment in Los Angeles. During her service as deputy mayor for economic development, unemployment in the city has been cut in half, more than 112,000 new jobs have been created, and policy has been enacted to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2020.

“Kelli Bernard embodies the qualities of leadership, drive and creativity that we all strive for in public service,” Garcetti said. “She has done incredible work to attract business to Los Angeles while prioritizing the needs of working people and our city’s most vulnerable populations.”

Bernard is taking a leadership position at AECOM, where she will become the company’s chief executive for the Los Angeles area.

“It has been an honor to serve this city during such an important moment in its history,” Bernard said.