Zone Commander North Eastern

Zone Commander, Clerk Grade 11/12, Goonellabah

• Exciting opportunity to lead an operational team of staff and volunteers in preparing and responding to emergencies.
• Work in a volunteer-based agency supporting communities of NSW.
• Fulltime ongoing role.
• Location: based in Goonellabah with regular travel to units.

About the opportunity

We are seeking a dynamic and experienced leader to guide a high-performing multidisciplinary team. This role is pivotal in driving strategic outcomes through collaboration, innovation, and operational excellence across diverse functions.

Reporting to the Assistant Commissioner North and West Operations, you will lead professionals from various disciplines and reporting lines, fostering a culture of trust, accountability, and continuous improvement to prepare communities for floods, storms and tsunamis and provide operational response and recovery to community. During emergency operations you will be required lead teams in roles such as Operations Commander or Incident Controller.

The Zone Commander is responsible for ensuring community safety through operational capability and readiness by developing and maintaining mature capability plans.

About the NSW SES

Our Mission: NSW SES saving lives and creating safer communities.

Our Vision: A trusted volunteer-based emergency service, working together to deliver excellence in community preparedness and emergency response.

The NSW SES serves the community as the lead agency for Floods, Storms and Tsunamis. We are recognised as the most versatile and widely used emergency service organisation in NSW. Our volunteers are highly skilled, experienced, and well- trained in the wide variety of roles they perform.

With over 10,000 volunteers we are committed to protecting and supporting the diverse communities of NSW. Learn more here

About you

To be successful in this role you will:

• Have demonstrated experience in providing leadership and building cohesive teams across diverse disciplines and backgrounds in various geographic locations
• Have an ability to lead and influence team members from across the agency to deliver services to our volunteers and the communities of NSW aligning efforts with organisational goals
• Build and maintain strong relationships with complex internal and external stakeholders.
• Manage resources, budgets, and stakeholder relationships to ensure sustainable delivery.
• Monitor performance metrics and drive continuous improvement across all areas.
• Have a strong understanding of leading and engaging a volunteer workforce to support communities, before, during and after emergency events
• Have extensive experience in leading and managing the preparation and response to emergencies (or similar transferable skills)
• Become a qualified Incident Controller Level 3 within 12 months
• Have the ability to travel, work on-call and out-of-hours as required.

What we can offer you

• You will enjoy a 35-hour work week
• Attractive salary range of $149,739 to $173, % field allowance plus 11.5% superannuation and leave loading
• Our work is meaningful and rewarding. The SES's mission is saving lives and creating safer communities and you can be an important part of our work.
• We have attractive leave entitlements including parental, sick, flex and recreation leave.
• Opportunities to build invaluable relationships across emergency service agencies and committees and other Government and community organisations
• We care about our people. We have Mental Health & Wellbeing programs and services to support our people and operational and leadership training and development opportunities to develop our people. Some of these include:
• Fitness Passport
• LinkedIn Learning
• Member Assist Program for free confidential counselling support
• Flu vaccine program.

You Belong Here

• We care about people as individuals and are committed to diversity, inclusion, and new ways of working. We encourage applications from people of any age, gender, ethnicity, cultural background, faith, disability, sexual orientation or gender identity.
• We want our people to reflect the diverse community we serve and are committed to creating an inclusive and flexible workplace. We want to know what this looks like for you so we can support your success at work.
• If you require reasonable adjustments, we are committed to supporting you throughout the recruitment processes and in the workplace, If you feel you may require an adjustment during the recruitment process, please contact for confidential advice on options.

How to apply

Your application should include as separate attachments:

• A cover letter (maximum of one page) briefly responding to the essential requirements and your interest in the role;
• Responses to the targeted question (maximum of one page); and
• An up-to-date resume of no more than four pages detailing your skills and experience relevant to the role

Targeted Question

• This role involves leading a diverse workforce that includes volunteers who contribute their time and expertise across various functions. Can you describe your approach to engaging, motivating, and sustaining commitment among volunteers, particularly in complex or high-pressure environments?

Want to know more?

If you want to know more about this opportunity, please contact Cassie Orton, Staff Officer, or

The role description is available here

Talent Pool

A recruitment pool may be created for ongoing and temporary roles of the same role or role type that may become available for filling over the next 18 months. Further information here

Applications close: Sunday, August 31, 2025 at 11:55pm