Assistant Chief Officer Bushfire Mitigation

About us

As an emergency service agency, Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) is responsible for ensuring the safety of people and property across Queensland through the provision of effective prevention, preparation, response, and recovery activities across a range of emergency situations.

QFES is the primary provider of fire, rescue and emergency management programs and services throughout Queensland. The department encompasses the Fire and Rescue Service, disaster management services, the Rural Fire Service (RFS) and the State Emergency Service and supports other volunteer groups providing emergency response to Queenslanders.

Purpose of the role

The RFS, as bushfire experts, lead and manage a range of operational and organisational functions primarily directed at supporting approximately 33,000 volunteers and rural fire brigades. These brigades provide fire management, mitigation, and response services for rural and semi-rural communities and some urban fringe areas across the state.

In addition to responding to fires and supporting other brigades and emergency services during emergency disasters, volunteer brigades undertake a range of planning and preparation activities. These activities ensure communities are well prepared for the bushfire season and include community education, hazard reduction, and mitigation activities aimed at reducing the risk from fire to people and property. The Permit to Light Fire system ensures the controlled use of fire in the landscape across the state is largely implemented by volunteer fire wardens.
The position of Chief Superintendent, RFS is responsible for ensuring timely and appropriate provision of support to volunteers and brigades, and protecting and serving the community by providing operational oversight in response to large-scale rural fires and other emergency incidents (in particular, those of a complex nature), and ensuring the safety of staff, volunteers, and the community through provision of enabling infrastructure, forward planning insights, and capability development.

Key requirements

Mandatory requirements
- Hold a current valid Blue Card (from Blue Card Services).
- Minimum C Class Driver's licence (non-restricted).

QFES Applicants
- Internal applicants must provide evidence that they are eligible for appointment in accordance with the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Employee Award -State 2016.

External Applicants
- External applicants must have suitable contemporary fire and organisational management experience within an emergency service or fire management agency to the satisfaction of the Commissioner, QFES.

Highly desirable requirements
- Postgraduate qualification relevant to the role and senior officer rank, while not mandatory will be highly regarded.
- Demonstrated ability to provide operational leadership and management control of large-scale rural fire incidents.
- Demonstrated strategic leadership skills with a capacity to understand the needs of volunteers, in a geographically diverse organisation with changing environmental, social, and demographic pressures.
- Demonstrated management and leadership skills to continually improve service delivery and organisational capabilities in line with government priorities to meet future demands through the effective management of human and physical services delivered through a regional service delivery model.
- Experience with the concepts, strategies and issues associated with managing rural fire service / bushfire prevention and or control organisation particularly in a volunteer environment, including knowledge of or experience in resource management appropriate to volunteers for the prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery phases in community support.
- Demonstrated ability and understanding of best practice policies and procedures when managing a diverse workforce incorporating volunteers, where strategic oversight and coordination has been utilised to assist with the continuity of service delivery and development of operational teams.

Special requirements
- The incumbent may be a member of the Incident Control Centre, Regional Coordination Centre or a Liaison Officer as directed by their RFS Supervisor.
- Be an active member of the Local and District Disaster Management Groups and/or equivalent Disaster Management authorised committee and represent the RFS and QFES to support the development of initiatives and activities that support the disaster management strategies of Queensland.
- Hours of duty applicable to this role are pursuant to the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Employees Award - State 2016 and QFES Certified Agreement 2022.
- Work hours are flexible to meet functional demands - for example, positions that require flexible arrangements for working with volunteers and other shift workers.
- It is expected that the incumbent may participate in an out-of-hours on-call roster during emergency operations. This may require work outside of normal h