Director, Public Warning

City of New York•Brooklyn, NY

1d•Onsite

About The Position

New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM) helps New Yorkers before, during, and after emergencies through preparedness, education, and response. NYCEM is responsible for coordinating citywide emergency planning and response for all types and scales of emergencies. We are staffed by more than 200 dedicated professionals with diverse backgrounds and areas of expertise, including individuals assigned from other City agencies. The Response division is NYCEM's 24/7 operations arm and is responsible for monitoring and responding to incidents across the five boroughs. Response Bureau personnel are the agency's frontline staff for alerting the public and City agencies, initiating on-scene NYCEM response, and providing ongoing coordination during emergencies. Response also supports interagency coordination and planning for special/planned events throughout the city. The Watch Command unit operates 24/7, monitoring citywide radio frequencies; local, national, and international media; and weather forecasts. They function as the central notification point for NYC, transmitting notifications to agencies and Notify NYC messages. Watch Command serves as a dispatch and operations center for the agency, dispatching Citywide Interagency Coordinators, providing requested logistical and coordination support, and providing situational awareness updates to City agencies on ongoing incidents. Within Watch Command, the Public Warning Unit issues Notify NYC messages and Wireless Emergency Alerts to alert the public about emergencies, inclement weather, major disruptions, and other impactful information The Public Warning unit operates 24 hours per day and seven days per week out of Watch Command, NYCEM’s operations center. Public Warning staff work in conjunction with the Interagency Coordination and Monitoring staff to monitor citywide radio frequencies; local, national, and international media; and social media to identify incidents impacting NYC and are responsible for the corresponding dissemination of Notify NYC alerts and notifications. The NYCEM Public Warning unit is also responsible for activation of the City’s Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) and Emergency Alert System. The Public Warning unit is seeking a Director, Public Warning to provide guidance and managerial oversight of the Public Warning unit. The ideal candidate is experienced and knowledgeable in operating and managing emergency alerting systems, as well as have strong interpersonal and supervisory skills, while also being able to juggle multiple priorities in a fast-paced unit. The Director will oversee the entire Notify NYC program, including its staff and all alerting systems, and will ensure the program’s continued growth. The Director will also ensure all aspects of day-to-day unit operations are addressed, operational and administrative issues are identified, corrected and contingencies are in place to ensure operational continuity.

Requirements

A four-year high school diploma or its educational equivalent and eight years satisfactory full-time professional experience in one or a combination of the following: emergency management, fire or police services, public safety, public health, public administration, urban planning, engineering, or another specialized area to which the appointment is to be made. 18 months of this experience must have been in an executive, managerial, administrative, or supervisory capacity. Supervision must have included supervising staff performing professional work in the areas described above; or
A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college and four years of satisfactory full-time professional experience in one or a combination of the areas listed in "1" above, including the 18 months of executive, managerial, administrative, or supervisory experience, as described in "1" above; or
A master' s degree from an accredited college in emergency management, public administration, urban planning, engineering, economics, political science, the physical sciences, or related field, and three years of satisfactory full-time professional experience in one or a combination of the areas described in "1" above, including the 18 months of executive, managerial, administrative, or supervisory experience, as described in "1" above; or
Education and/or experience equivalent to "1", "2", or "3" above. However, all candidates must have a four-year high school diploma or its educational equivalent and the 18 months of executive, managerial, administrative, or supervisory experience, as described in "1" above.
Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States without employer support to be eligible for selection.
The selected candidate will be required to be in person in the office location three days per week, with exceptions for extenuating circumstances.
IN ORDER TO BE CONSIDERED FOR THIS JOB, PLEASE SUBMIT A SEPARATE COVER LETTER IN THE ATTACHMENTS SECTION OF THE APPLICATION PORTAL.

Nice To Haves

Strong interpersonal and supervisory skills.
Strong analytical skills.
Operational proficiency and experience with Emergency Alerting Systems.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Access, and PowerPoint)
Strong project management skills.
Strong writing and communications skills.
Experience with public safety communications systems.
Strong understanding of National Weather Service (NWS) products and hazard definitions.
Ability to work in dynamic, high-stress environments.

Responsibilities

Ensure seamless 24/7 operation of all NYCEM Public Warning Systems, including the Notify NYC Program, Wireless Emergency Alerts, and the Emergency Alert System.
Provide guidance and managerial oversight to the Public Warning Unit during daily public safety incidents that require dissemination of public messaging.
Manage all employee professional development initiatives including unit and bureau-based training, agency drills and exercises.
Perform quality assurance / quality improvement reviews and activities to ensure that the unit continues to operate effectively and efficiently, at the professional level established by agency leadership.
Develop and implement the unit’s strategic plan including the evaluation of unit operations to develop best practices.
Ensure all aspects of day-to-day unit operations are addressed, operational and administrative issues are identified, corrected and contingencies are in place to ensure operational continuity;
Oversee administrative staff issues including, but not limited to: scheduling, timekeeping, overtime management, training, and performance evaluation;
Implement new operational or administrative policy and procedural guidelines, standard operating procedures, newly deployed equipment systems and emerging technologies;
Coordinate with the Director of Watch Command, the Director of Field Response, and the Assistant Commissioner for Response to ensure that Public Warning operations and activities are operating cohesively and effectively with the division’s other units;
Coordinate with other members of NYCEM Senior Staff to ensure that Public Warning and the Notify NYC program continues to effectively support daily Agency operations and programs;
Assist when necessary with covering vacancies or providing emergency Public Warning Specialist coverage
Other duties as assigned by Response division leadership