YORK COUNTY EMA PREPAREDNESS MANAGER

Status:

Full-Time FLSA:

Exempt Salary:

$70,000-80,000

Union:

Non-Union Reports to: Deputy Director of

EMA ABOUT US

York County Emergency Management Agency (YCEMA), located in Alfred, ME, is a dynamic and progressive government agency whose mission is to lessen the effects of a disaster on the lives and property of residents, municipalities, and businesses of York County through coordination and training on the four phases of emergency management: preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation. Our diverse team is composed of a full-time staff, seven special response teams, and a cadre of several hundred volunteers all of whom work closely together to provide top-notch comprehensive emergency management services. We care deeply about helping our community through the relationships we have built with Local Emergency Management Directors, first responders, and partner agencies from all 29 municipalities in York County.

JOB SUMMARY

We are seeking a Preparedness Manager who believes that teamwork, strategic thinking, and relationship building are the keys to a successful emergency management program. In this role, you will lead the development and execution of a comprehensive preparedness program and supervise program staff. This role is heavily people-facing; cultivating partnerships with response agencies, community organizations, the media, influencers, and stakeholders is central. Being successful in this role means you use your creativity to inspire the community to be a part of emergency readiness! You should possess a strong passion for public service and be motivated by the unique challenges of emergency management where the work you do has a direct impact on the safety and resilience of our community. You appreciate an environment that is flexible, fun, encourages professional and personal development, and where superior work is recognized.

SUPERVISION RECEIVED AND EXERCISED

This is a supervisory position. You are supervised by the Deputy Director and you supervise the Planning Coordinator.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Essential Duties and Responsibilities Program Management

• Manage and develop the emergency preparedness and planning program; maintain overall supervisory responsibility for all functions under the program's scope, including marketing strategy and communication, public information and outreach, social media and website management, planning, and alerts and warnings.
• Collaborate regularly with the Director and Deputy Director to conduct assessments of program capabilities, identify gaps, and prioritize areas for improvement.
• Work closely with the Deputy Director to establish program goals, monitor staff and volunteer performance, and resolve personnel or operational issues as they arise.
• Develop and implement program evaluation frameworks including performance metrics, after-action review processes, and improvement tracking; provide clear, data-informed reports to leadership on a recurring basis.
• Establish and maintain a structured framework for plan review and revision; work with the Planning Coordinator to ensure all agency plans are current, exercised regularly, and consistent with applicable guidance such as CPG 101 and NIMS.
• Serve as the agency's subject matter expert on preparedness planning and represent the agency at regional planning meetings, working groups, and interagency coordination bodies. Staff Supervision and Development
• Provide direct supervision to the Planning Coordinator, including assignments, training, performance evaluation, and professional development.
• Deliver regular coaching, mentorship, and feedback to supervisees; identify training opportunities and support ongoing skill development.
• Foster a team culture of accountability, continuous learning, and mission readiness. Marketing Strategy and Communications
• Develop and maintain a comprehensive marketing and communications strategy that supports the agency's mission, preparedness goals, and public outreach priorities.
• Conduct needs assessments and market research to identify underserved audiences and communication barriers; analyze campaign performance through reach metrics, engagement data, and community feedback to evaluate impact and translate findings into actionable recommendations for leadership.
• Identify new partner organizations, particularly those serving vulnerable or underrepresented populations, and initiate outreach to establish productive working relationships. Public Education and Outreach
• Develop and execute a year-round public education calendar that aligns with national awareness campaigns, local hazard seasons, and community events.
• Assess the preparedness knowledge, learning objectives, and accessibility needs of target audiences prior to developing or delivering outreach and education content.
• Draft compelling written content for a range of formats and audiences, including email newsletters, feature articles, press materials, social media, brochures, flyers, and handouts.
• Design visually engaging and brand-consistent assets using tools such as Canva, Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, or InDesign; develop templates to streamline future content production.
• Record, produce, or coordinate the production of educational and entertaining videos, public service announcements, and webinars.
• Ensure all public-facing content meets federal and agency accessibility standards, including closed captioning for video, heading structure for web design, descriptive alt text for images, plain language principles, and compatibility with screen readers. Training & Presentations
• Deliver engaging, accessible, and targeted preparedness presentations and training sessions to a wide variety of groups including the public, schools, businesses, and partner agencies.
• Maintain a library of reusable, up-to-date training materials organized by audience, topic, and format for efficient future use. Website Management
• Serve as primary website content manager, creating and maintaining web pages, landing pages, and downloadable resources to support campaigns, incidents, and programmatic updates.
• Conduct regular audits to identify and correct outdated information, broken links, and inconsistencies while ensuring all content reflects agency priorities, branding, and accessibility standards. Public Information and Media Relations
• Serve as the agency's designated Public Information Officer (PIO) or support the designated PIO during incidents and routine operations, including drafting and reviewing press releases, public statements, fact sheets, talking points, and briefing materials that are timely, accurate, and aligned with agency philosophy.
• Monitor local, regional, and national news and social media to identify developing situations that may require public messaging, track agency coverage, and deliver regular media summaries and flagged issues to leadership.
• Build and maintain positive professional relationships with local and regional media representatives; respond to all media inquiries promptly and professionally, ensuring accuracy and protecting the agency's credibility. Crisis Communications During Incidents
• Activate crisis communications protocols at incident onset, rapidly drafting, approving, and distributing real-time alerts, protective action instructions, and situational updates across all agency platforms.
• Continuously monitor social media, news feeds, trending hashtags, and community forums to maintain situational awareness, identify emerging public concerns, detect misinformation, and issue timely verified corrections through official channels.
• Proactively push life-safety information across all platforms as conditions change, managing inbound public inquiries and ensuring agency messaging reaches affected communities. Activation and Deployment
• During incidents, assume the role of Planning Section Chief, providing direct leadership of all planning activities during activations.
• Activate and implement appropriate emergency plans upon notification of an incident; ensure relevant plan sections are accessible and communicated to response personnel. Other Duties and Responsibilities
• Attends and participates in all required meetings and training sessions.
• Maintains open and consistent communication with supervisor and colleagues.
• Participates in on-call Duty Officer rotation; responds to after-hours emergency calls, reports to EOC or field to support operations, prepares and distributes daily and emergency status reports.
• Completes Emergency Vehicle Operators Course and drives command vehicles.
• Works evenings, weekends, and holidays when emergency situations arise.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Core Competencies

• Strong communication skills in writing, public speaking, presenting, and listening.
• Knowledge of platforms, particularly Microsoft Office, Google, Adobe, Slack, IAmResponding, RAVE, Salamander, WebEOC, and more; capability to learn programs needed to support emergency planning and operations.
• Proficiency in emergency operations, driving large emergency vehicles, towing trailers, and using two-way radios.
• Ability to think critically and solve problems independently and with others.
• Organization and ability to manage time, relationships, schedule multiple meetings, and stay on top of multiple communications and projects.
• Ability to adapt to quickly changing situations that may adversely affect previous priorities, schedules, and routines.
• Social awareness of teammates and stakeholders, especially in supporting the potential and advancement of underrepresented members.
• Ability to effectively communicate and coordinate well with a broad population including community leaders, staff, and volunteers.
• Ability to work creatively and innovatively to ensure continuous improvement of initiatives and outcomes. Role-Specific Skills
• Understanding of how to set clear team goals, establish project roadmaps, and align daily operations with broader organizational strategies.
• Ability to delegate tasks appropriately, provide constructive feedback, foster an open communication culture, and recognize high performance.
• Ability to mediate disputes and handle operational challenges calmly.
• Capacity to make rational, sometimes unpopular, but necessary decisions with conviction.
• Self-awareness and empathy to understand team dynamics and respond appropriately to individual challenges.
• Deep knowledge of social media platforms, such as Facebook, X, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, and others.
• Understanding of each platform's algorithm, best practices, native features, and analytics.
• Ability to read and interpret outreach analytics and gather stakeholder feedback.
• Ability to plan and illustrate concepts by designing rough layouts of art and copy: arrangement, size, type size and style, and overall aesthetics; familiarity with graphic design tools like Canva, Photoshop, Illustrator, and more.
• Basic video editing skills and familiarity with editing platforms.
• Copywriting tailored to different platform tones and audiences that elicit active engagement.
• Strong strategic thinking skills; ability to connect social media activity to broader marketing and organizational goals, not just posting content.
• Comfort managing simultaneous campaigns, outreach threads, and content calendars, sometimes with immediate deadlines during critical emergencies.
• Trend awareness, staying culturally current, and knowing when to hop on a trend.
• Familiarity with the emergency planning cycle. Education and/or Experience
• Bachelor's Degree or experience in emergency management (or related) preferred; or any equivalent combination of education, training, and experience that provides the requisite knowledge, skills, and abilities for this job.
• Marketing, outreach, or communications education and/or experience desired.
• Three or more years' experience in a leadership capacity, with or without a formal title, is desired. Other Requirements
• Must demonstrate commitment to valuing diversity, contributing to an inclusive environment, and managing bias.
• Must exemplify our values of honesty, integrity, inclusion, respect, professionalism, collaboration, and learning.
• Must hold a valid driver's license.

BENEFITS

• Generous vacation/sick time
• Paid holidays
• Healthcare package
• Retirement plan options with employer match
• Paid training and development
• Onsite wellness center
• Employee assistance program
• Discounted first responder phone plans

WORK ENVIRONMENT

Work is primarily performed in an office, with occasional work in the field. While performing the duties of this job, you remain in a stationary position for extended periods, operating a computer and standard office equipment, and constantly communicate and exchange accurate information with staff, volunteers, and partners. You move about office and field sites, including sometimes over uneven or outdoor terrain, position yourself to reach, kneel, or work at varying levels, move and transport equipment and supplies, and are exposed to outdoor weather conditions. The noise level in the office work environment is usually minimal to moderate and higher in the field. When an emergency arises, you may work in a high-volume, fast-paced, high-stress disaster environment with potentially hazardous conditions. You may occasionally work hours outside of a typical work schedule and have opportunities for local or domestic travel. Reasonable accommodation may be provided to enable you to perform the essential functions.

SUBMITTAL INSTRUCTIONS

In a continued effort to increase equity in our hiring process, in lieu of a cover letter, please only submit your resume, and if the team feels your background is a match, we will follow up with a few specific questions. This position will remain open until filled.

Resumes can be sent to:

Email:

hr@yorkcountymaine.gov

Mail:

Human Resources Department York County Government 45 Kennebunk Road Alfred, Maine 04002 Applications are considered on the basis of ability, competence, and experience. It is a fundamental policy of York County EMA not to discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, age, pregnancy, disability, status as a veteran, disabled veteran, or any other category protected by an applicable federal, state, or local law. York County Government is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer.

Pay:

$70,000.00 - $80,000.00 per year

Benefits:

Dental insurance Employee assistance program Health insurance Life insurance Paid time off Retirement plan

Work Location:

In person