Emergency Management Officer na San Diego County Water Authority, CA

About the Department

The Operations & Maintenance Department
The Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Department is responsible for operating the Water Authority's aqueduct delivery system; ensuring facility security and emergency preparedness; and maintaining and managing the fleet and various other assets. Specifically, the department controls water deliveries to meet member agency demands; manages dam and reservoir operations; ensures water quality; oversees water treatment plant and power generation operations; maintains all vehicles and heavy equipment; provides electro-mechanical support; implements the Asset Management Program (AMP); complies with all applicable environmental regulations; manages emergency incident command and control; and develops and manages computerized Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) and system maintenance programs.

The Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate is a seasoned emergency management professional with a proven track record of leading preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation programs in a complex, multi-agency environment. They are well-versed in SEMS, NIMS, and incident command principles, with the ability to translate these standards into effective plans, training, exercises, and real-world operations.

They excel at building collaborative relationships—bringing together member agencies, government partners, and community stakeholders to coordinate emergency management activities and ensure regional readiness. With strong analytical skills, they can assess risks, evaluate policies, and develop innovative solutions that strengthen organizational resilience.

This candidate is equally comfortable in strategic planning sessions, Emergency Operations Center activations, and field-based coordination during incidents. They have exceptional communication skills, are adept at presenting complex information to diverse audiences, and can guide decision-makers during high-pressure situations.

In addition to technical expertise, the ideal candidate is a natural leader who fosters trust, drives cross-agency cooperation, and maintains composure under pressure—ensuring the Water Authority and its partners are prepared for any emergency.

Position Duties

The Emergency Management Officer plays a critical leadership role in keeping the San Diego County region safe and resilient. This position oversees the development and implementation of comprehensive emergency management programs, including disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation. As a regional coordinator, the Officer leads the San Diego County Water Agency Emergency Collaborative (WAEC) and works closely with member agencies, government partners, and community stakeholders to ensure seamless emergency coordination. The Emergency Management Officer will report directly to the Director of Operations and Maintenance with lead direction from the Risk and Safety Manager. 

The role also supports the Water Authority’s Emergency Operations Center, helping maintain readiness and guiding response efforts during incidents. This is an exciting opportunity for a proactive, strategic thinker who thrives in high-impact, collaborative environments and is committed to strengthening regional emergency preparedness and resilience.

Representative Duties

The duties listed below are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work that may be performed. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related or a logical assignment to the class.

• Develops, administers and maintains a wide variety of programs, procedures and initiatives related to emergency management, such as emergency plans, response operations, relief, recovery, mitigation, and preparedness plans, including but not limited to; Olivenhain Dam Emergency Response Plan, Local Hazard Mitigation Plan, and the Water Authority’s Integrated Continuity Plan. 
• Coordinates emergency and disaster preparedness activities to include a range of consultation, coordination, developmental, planning, and evaluation duties with internal and external stakeholders’ region wide. 
• Collaborates and contributes to the development of tabletop exercises, regional drills and full-scale exercises with internal, local and regional partners and stakeholders. 

• Serves as a Water Authority representative with city, county, state, and federal emergency management organizations and agencies; develops, maintains and coordinates mutual aid agreements to support the Water Authority’s overall emergency management program and member agencies.
• Under direction, leads the San Diego County Water Agency Emergency Collaborative (WAEC); coordinates WAEC activities, meetings and regional engagements. 
• Ensures the Water Authority’s emergency management programs are in compliance with applicable regulations, policies and guidelines.
• Coordinates, supports and maintains the Water Authority’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) readiness, activation, and staffing; ensures the EOC remains in a constant state of readiness; oversees training, logistics, staffing, and procedures; serves as the Water Authority EOC representative or liaison during EOC activation for emergency response. 
• Tracks and ensures compliance with National Incident Management System (NIMS) and Standardized Emergency Management System (SEMS) training for employees. 
• Advises, assists, and coordinates the work of employees in emergency preparedness plans and operations and EOC activation.
• Serves as a point of contact for San Diego County Office of Emergency Services; coordinates with appropriate emergency management preparedness agencies such as but not limited to; the California Office of Emergency Services (Cal-OES), and California Water/Wastewater Agency Response Network (CalWARN).

• Administers emergency preparedness and disaster recovery grants; researches federal, state and local grant opportunities; develops grant applications and proposals; monitors grant progress, tracks grant expenditures and ensures compliance with grant requirements. 
• Manages Water Authority related disaster claims for relief and reimbursement to Cal-OES and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in compliance with applicable laws and regulations as a result of disaster declarations affecting the Water Authority and maintains thorough and complete records of reports and reimbursements.
• Establishes and maintains effective communications and collaborative working relationships with Water Authority staff, local, state and federal agencies, emergency management representatives from other agencies, civic and business groups in order to ensure effective communications, preparedness, coordination and response to emergency situations; and provides guidance and expertise to County officials, other agencies, and the general public regarding emergency management operations.
• Prepares and delivers emergency management-related presentations and briefings to Water Authority staff, Board, member agencies, local, state, and federal elected officials and their staff and other regional emergency management stakeholders.
• Evaluates federal, state and local legislation, including other related regulations and best practices that govern emergency management functions, recommends action required for compliance, and monitors to ensure compliance; interprets and conveys emergency management related policies, procedures, laws and regulations to Water Authority management and employees. 
• Conducts research and analyses pertaining to emergency management operations, programs, and other related functions; identifies problems and issues, determines analytical approaches, evaluates alternative courses of action and makes recommendations regarding such areas as Water Authority policy and priorities, facilities, emergency preparedness, security, member agency coordination; conducts assigned projects/programs and management studies; prepares reports of study conclusions. 

• Ensures that all emergency radio systems utilized by Water Authority and member agencies are operational; participates in radio tests, collecting and compiling radio test data, and radio system agency to agency communication checks are performed when requested by member agencies. 
• Provides guidance and subject matter expertise to executive leadership, emergency response personnel and local officials on methods for executing effective emergency operations. 
• Develops and maintains emergency management materials in physical and mobile friendly formats including brochures, flyers, and promotional materials; distributes information; ensures information is updated on the Water Authority’s intranet. 
• Trains all Water Authority staff on the Water Authority’s emergency management plans, disaster service worker status, and response expectations; and provides Water Authority Emergency Response ID and phone cards.
• Prepares program budget recommendations; monitors expenditures and ensures expenditures remain within budgetary limitations as they relate to emergency management programs.
• Performs records management functions, such as administering physical or electronic document management programs.
• Maintains current knowledge of new trends and innovations in the field of emergency management; participates in professional development activities; reads publications relevant to area of assignment. 

For further details regarding the duties, responsibilities, and qualification guidelines for each class specification, please click on the following links: Emergency Management Officer

Minimum Qualifications

The qualification guidelines generally describe the knowledge and ability required to enter the job in order to successfully perform the assigned duties. Any combination of experience and training that would provide the required knowledge, skills and abilities will be considered.

A Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with major course work in emergency management, business or public administration, or a closely related field supplemented by five years of increasingly responsible experience in developing or administering emergency management, emergency response or recovery programs, preferably in a governmental agency.

An Associate Emergency Manager (AEM) or Certified Emergency Manager (CEM) certificate issued by the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM), or similar is desired.

Licenses and Other Requirements

• A valid California driver's license and the ability to maintain insurability under the Water Authority's Vehicle Insurance Policy.
• ICS-100, ICS-200, ICS-300, IS-700 and IS-800 must be obtained within six months of appointment. 

Other Qualifications

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