Emergency Management Specialist (Deliberate Future Operational Planner)

Federal Emergency Management Agency•Springfield, IL

3d•Onsite

About The Position

The FEMA Integration Team Emergency Management Specialist (Deliberate Future Operational Planner) will work with state and local partners in Springfield, Illinois, or Dimondale, Michigan, to lead collaborative, deliberate, and future operational planning. The role focuses on strengthening readiness and long-term disaster response capabilities through interagency coordination, strategic plan development, and technical guidance. The specialist works with emergency managers during normal operations to build relationships, align plans, and identify available resources, and provides training and expert guidance on FEMA programs, grants, mitigation strategies, and policies. This is a full-time Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery Employee (CORE) position supporting disaster response and recovery. Employees have recurring emergency management responsibilities and are subject to recall around the clock. Deployments may involve irregular hours, extensive travel with little advance notice, work away from the official duty station, and relocation to emergency sites with physically austere and operationally challenging conditions. The position has promotion potential to IC-13, subject to performance, experience, continuing organizational need, and management approval. The position requires one year of specialized experience at the level below the grade sought. At IC-12, that experience must include developing comprehensive emergency or strategic plans, collaborating with interagency partners on unified planning, and analyzing complex planning challenges and capability gaps. At IC-13, it must include leading plan development, providing technical leadership and coordinating with partners, and leading analysis of planning challenges, capability gaps, and operational risks. There is no educational substitution for the experience requirement. Selected employees must attend a three-week, in-person training course in Emmitsburg, Maryland, within six months of onboarding; FEMA covers travel expenses.

Requirements

One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the IC-11 level for consideration at IC-12, or at least the IC-12 level for consideration at IC-13.
For IC-12: experience developing and drafting comprehensive emergency operations, deliberate, or strategic contingency plans; collaborating with interagency partners to establish and align unified planning processes; and analyzing, researching, and resolving complex planning challenges and capability gaps.
For IC-13: experience serving as a lead planner for comprehensive emergency operations, deliberate, and strategic contingency plans; providing technical leadership and coordinating planning efforts with partners; and leading analysis of complex planning challenges, capability gaps, and operational risks.
U.S. citizenship.
Successfully pass and maintain a Public Trust—Moderate Risk background investigation.
Register for Selective Service, if required.
Be able to obtain and maintain a Government credit card.
Be able to deploy with little or no advance notice anywhere in the United States and its territories for an extended period.
Attend a three-week in-person training course in Emmitsburg, Maryland, within six months of onboarding.
Submit a resume detailing job titles, employers, employment dates, duties and accomplishments, related skills, and hours worked per week; federal experience must also include series, grade, and dates at each grade.

Responsibilities

Develop, review, and integrate deliberate, functional, strategic, and contingency emergency response plans.
Coordinate with state and local partners to establish a unified emergency management approach and align planning processes.
Provide technical policy guidance and assistance to senior leadership and external partners to resolve complex readiness issues.
Lead the collection, analysis, and reporting of incident information to maintain regional situational awareness.
Assess preparedness programs, identify capability gaps, and apply lessons learned to strengthen long-term response readiness.
Provide ongoing training and guidance on FEMA programs, grants, mitigation strategies, and policies.
Deploy to support emergency management operations when required.