Program Consultant - Emergency Management and Occupational Safety.

City of Austin

9d•$97,450 - $125,200•Onsite

About The Position

The Program Consultant for Emergency Management and Occupational Safety provides strategic leadership and management oversight for Austin Transportation and Public Works Emergency Management and Occupational Safety programs. This position is responsible for establishing department-wide strategies that strengthen operational readiness, employee and public safety, regulatory compliance, emergency preparedness, organizational resilience, and continuity of operations. Serving as the senior departmental leader for these functions, the Program Consultant provides direction to professional staff responsible for emergency management and occupational safety programs; establishes priorities and performance expectations; evaluates program effectiveness and organizational risk; and advises the department's Executive Team on significant safety, emergency preparedness, and operational risk matters. The position works across a large and diverse operational environment and must effectively balance regulatory requirements, employee safety, public safety, emergency preparedness, operational needs, and the department's responsibility to provide essential transportation and public works services to the Austin community. Emergency Management and Operational Resilience The Program Consultant provides strategic oversight of the department's emergency preparedness, response, recovery, and continuity activities. The position ensures the department maintains appropriate plans, procedures, training, resources, and organizational capabilities necessary to respond effectively to incidents and emergencies while maintaining critical operations. The Program Consultant oversees departmental preparedness for a broad range of hazards and operational disruptions, including severe winter weather, wildfire, flooding, extreme heat, emergency evacuations, infrastructure impacts, and other events requiring coordinated or extended response. The position also represents Transportation and Public Works in interdepartmental and interagency emergency planning and response activities and develops strong partnerships with City departments, regional agencies, and external partners in support of the City's coordinated One City approach to emergency management. Occupational Safety and Risk Management The Program Consultant also provides strategic leadership and management oversight of the department's Occupational Safety program, establishing a proactive safety culture across diverse field, construction, maintenance, transportation, and administrative operations. This position provides direction and accountability for the development, implementation, evaluation, and continuous improvement of department-wide safety programs designed to reduce workplace injuries, incidents, hazards, and operational risk while ensuring compliance with applicable Federal, State, local, and City safety requirements. The Program Consultant will work closely with executives, managers, supervisors, employees, and safety professionals to reinforce accountability at all levels of the organization and advance a culture in which safety is integrated into operational planning and service delivery. Strategic Leadership Successful performance in this role requires the ability to lead through influence, establish clear expectations, and bring together operational, technical, and administrative stakeholders around shared organizational priorities. The Program Consultant will be expected to translate complex emergency management and occupational safety requirements into practical strategies that support the department's mission. The position will identify emerging risks, recommend solutions to executive leadership, establish program priorities, evaluate performance, and ensure resources are strategically aligned with the department's highest operational and safety risks. The position must also be capable of providing calm, decisive leadership during rapidly changing conditions and significant incidents while maintaining effective communication with executives, operational leadership, employees, partner agencies, and other stakeholders. Essential Employee: This position is considered an “Essential” role and is essential to the operations of the City based on the preparation, response, and recovery phase of extraordinary situations or emergency conditions. As an employee that has been designated as “Essential” the expectation will be to work at a designated work site during declared extraordinary situations or emergency conditions to serve the community. Essential Employees during emergencies play a role in ensuring the public health, safety, and welfare of our community and ensuring City operations continue.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in engineering, architecture or related field plus five (5) years of related work experience including two (2) years as a project manager.
OR Nine (9) years of work experience in engineering, architecture or related area including two (2) years as a project manager.
A Master's degree in a related field may substitute for two (2) years of experience requirement.
Extensive knowledge of contract provisions and their implementation to the contract.
Knowledge of the mediation process.
Knowledge of real estate practices.
Knowledge of manual and automated financial systems.
Skill in negotiating with multiple parties.
Skill in effective oral and/or written communication.
Skill in evaluating contract agreements.
Skill in establishing and maintaining good working relationships with other City employees and the public.
Skill in writing and interpreting legal descriptions of leases, real estate, easements and similar properties.
Skill in negotiating with property owners to accomplish objectives.
Skill in designing and maintaining complex spreadsheet and database models and utilizing word processing and presentation software.
Skill in giving public presentations.
Skill in completing projects within the required scheduling, and the ability to make prompt decisions and develop new and relative ideas for providing a quality product and quality customer service with little or no supervision.
Skill in determining need, gathering, analyzing and presenting data to provide accurate information for management's use.
Ability to exercise a good judgment, tact and diplomacy in all pubic dealings.
Ability to understand and use standard application development design, report and project management tools.
Ability to perform objective analyses and re-engineering of business processes to maximize quality service and cost-effectiveness.
Ability to coordinate demolition, inspection, security, title clearance, soil testing, site location, property management, and preparation of files for federal auditing with little or no supervision.

Nice To Haves

Senior-level leadership experience establishing strategic direction, managing complex programs, developing staff, delegating responsibilities, and providing oversight of emergency management.
Experience leading or overseeing emergency management programs, including emergency preparedness, response, recovery, continuity of operations, operational resilience, training, exercises, and the development and implementation of emergency plans and procedures.
Experience leading or overseeing occupational safety programs, in a field-based operational environment, including hazard identification and mitigation, regulatory compliance.
Experience providing consultation and strategic recommendations to executive leadership, regarding organizational risk, emergency preparedness, occupational safety, significant incidents, regulatory requirements, and other complex or sensitive operational matters.
Experience using data, trends, performance measures, and incident analysis to evaluate program effectiveness, establishing organizational priorities, and develop recommendations and corrective strategies that improve safety, preparedness, and operational performance.
Demonstrated experience developing collaborative relationships and coordinating across organizational boundaries, including partnerships with public safety agencies, emergency management organizations, regulatory entities, governmental partners, contractors, operational departments, and community.
Demonstrated ability to lead and make sound decisions in complex, rapidly changing, or high-pressure environments, with advanced verbal and written communication, problem-solving, organizational, and interpersonal skills and the ability to effectively communicate expectations, and risks.

Responsibilities

Resolve escalated project claims, disputes and contentious issues.
Manage, review, approve and process contracts and documents.
Manage and initiate review and/or design of engineering/architectural projects, including related documentation.
Assigns projects, establishes schedule, monitors performance of staff, provides guidance and leadership, and ensures project completion within timelines.
Inspect and monitor projects for legal, regulatory and initiative compliance.
Develop standard operating procedures, policies, and ordinances. Develop and monitor performance criteria.
Manage project budget and schedule.
Administer consultant, licensed professional, and Legal Department services.
Provide technical advice and assistance to city management, field personnel, contractors, etc.
Attend City Council, board meetings, etc. as City staff representative.
Coordinate the analysis of site selection.
May be responsible for the full range of supervisory activities: selection, training, evaluation, counseling, and recommendation for dismissal.
Provides strategic oversight of the department's emergency preparedness, response, recovery, and continuity activities.
Ensures the department maintains appropriate plans, procedures, training, resources, and organizational capabilities necessary to respond effectively to incidents and emergencies while maintaining critical operations.
Oversees departmental preparedness for a broad range of hazards and operational disruptions, including severe winter weather, wildfire, flooding, extreme heat, emergency evacuations, infrastructure impacts, and other events requiring coordinated or extended response.
Represents Transportation and Public Works in interdepartmental and interagency emergency planning and response activities and develops strong partnerships with City departments, regional agencies, and external partners in support of the City's coordinated One City approach to emergency management.
Provides strategic leadership and management oversight of the department's Occupational Safety program, establishing a proactive safety culture across diverse field, construction, maintenance, transportation, and administrative operations.
Provides direction and accountability for the development, implementation, evaluation, and continuous improvement of department-wide safety programs designed to reduce workplace injuries, incidents, hazards, and operational risk while ensuring compliance with applicable Federal, State, local, and City safety requirements.
Works closely with executives, managers, supervisors, employees, and safety professionals to reinforce accountability at all levels of the organization and advance a culture in which safety is integrated into operational planning and service delivery.
Leads through influence, establishes clear expectations, and brings together operational, technical, and administrative stakeholders around shared organizational priorities.
Translates complex emergency management and occupational safety requirements into practical strategies that support the department's mission.
Identifies emerging risks, recommends solutions to executive leadership, establishes program priorities, evaluates performance, and ensures resources are strategically aligned with the department's highest operational and safety risks.
Provides calm, decisive leadership during rapidly changing conditions and significant incidents while maintaining effective communication with executives, operational leadership, employees, partner agencies, and other stakeholders.