Occupation · SOC 11-9161
Emergency Management Directors
Plan and direct disaster response or crisis management activities, provide disaster preparedness training, and prepare emergency plans and procedures for natural (e.g., hurricanes, floods, earthquakes), wartime, or technological (e.g., nuclear power plant emergencies or hazardous materials spills) disasters or hostage situations.
Median wage
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Projected growth
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—
Annual openings
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per year
Employed (US)
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Job Zone 4
Typical preparation
Considerable preparation
Stackable credential programs
210 mapped
Core skills
Service OrientationSpeakingComplex Problem SolvingJudgment and Decision MakingReading ComprehensionActive ListeningWritingMonitoring
Knowledge areas
Public Safety and SecurityAdministration and ManagementLaw and GovernmentCommunications and MediaEnglish Language
Technology & tools
Project management softwareDesktop publishing softwareMap creation softwareData base user interface and query softwareGeographic information system
Representative tasks
Consult with officials of local and area governments, schools, hospitals, and other institutions to determine their needs and capabilities in the event of a natural disaster or other emergency.Develop and maintain liaisons with municipalities, county departments, and similar entities to facilitate plan development, response effort coordination, and exchanges of personnel and equipment.Coordinate disaster response or crisis management activities, such as ordering evacuations, opening public shelters, and implementing special needs plans and programs.Maintain and update all resource materials associated with emergency preparedness plans.Prepare emergency situation status reports that describe response and recovery efforts, needs, and preliminary damage assessments.Prepare plans that outline operating procedures to be used in response to disasters or emergencies, such as hurricanes, nuclear accidents, and terrorist attacks, and in recovery from these events.Develop and perform tests and evaluations of emergency management plans in accordance with state and federal regulations.Collaborate with other officials to prepare and analyze damage assessments following disasters or emergencies.Design and administer emergency or disaster preparedness training courses that teach people how to effectively respond to major emergencies and disasters.Inspect facilities and equipment, such as emergency management centers and communications equipment, to determine their operational and functional capabilities in emergency situations.Keep informed of activities or changes that could affect the likelihood of an emergency, response efforts, or plan implementation.Keep informed of federal, state, and local regulations affecting emergency plans, and ensure that plans adhere to those regulations.Review emergency plans of individual organizations, such as medical facilities, to ensure their adequacy.Conduct surveys to determine the types of emergency-related needs to be addressed in disaster planning, or provide technical support to others conducting such surveys.Attend meetings, conferences, and workshops related to emergency management to learn new information and to develop working relationships with other emergency management specialists.Propose alteration of emergency response procedures, based on regulatory changes, technological changes, or knowledge gained from outcomes of previous emergency situations.Develop instructional materials for the public and make presentations to citizens' groups to provide information on emergency plans and their implementation processes.Apply for federal funding for emergency-management-related needs, and administer and report on the progress of such grants.Train local groups in the preparation of long-term plans that are compatible with federal and state plans.Provide communities with assistance in applying for federal funding for emergency management facilities, radiological instrumentation, and related items.Study emergency plans used elsewhere to gather information for plan development.Develop and implement training procedures and strategies for radiological protection, detection, and decontamination.Inventory and distribute nuclear, biological, and chemical detection and contamination equipment, providing instruction in its maintenance and use.
Competency framework
Skill expectations by proficiency level.
emerging
Emergency preparedness plans — review and organize under direct supervision to support plan maintenance activities in a local government office.Resource inventories and databases — update and verify under guidance to ensure current materials are accessible for emergency response teams.Stakeholder needs and capabilities — assist in gathering data through structured interviews with local school and hospital officials under supervisor direction.Emergency situation status reports — draft preliminary sections describing initial response observations under close review by senior directors.Standard operating procedures — follow established protocols during tabletop exercises and simulated emergency scenarios in a training environment.Geographic information system tools — input and retrieve location data under instruction to support situational awareness during preparedness planning.Written damage assessment forms — complete assigned portions of preliminary assessments under supervision following a declared emergency event.Interagency coordination meetings — attend and document key outcomes to support liaison activities between county departments and municipal partners.Project management software — use assigned modules to track task completion and deadlines within an emergency management planning team.Public safety regulations and government codes — read and summarize relevant sections to inform plan development under the guidance of experienced directors.
developing
Emergency operations plans — develop draft components for specific hazard scenarios such as hurricanes or chemical spills with limited oversight from senior staff.Liaison relationships with municipalities and county departments — maintain through regular contact to facilitate coordinated planning and equipment-sharing agreements.Resource materials associated with preparedness plans — systematically update and version-control across multiple jurisdictions using database management tools.Status reports on disaster response and recovery — prepare complete documents including needs assessments and preliminary damage data for submission to state agencies.Tabletop and functional exercises — coordinate and facilitate in accordance with state and federal regulatory requirements to evaluate plan effectiveness.Evacuation and shelter activation decisions — implement established special needs plans and public shelter protocols under the authority of senior officials during declared events.Damage assessment findings — compile and analyze data collaboratively with municipal officials and emergency responders following disaster events.Interagency communication — coordinate personnel and equipment exchanges between local departments using established channels and telecommunication systems.Stakeholder capability assessments — conduct structured consultations with hospitals, schools, and government offices to identify gaps in emergency readiness.Geographic and mapping software — apply to produce situation maps that support operational planning and briefing materials for incident command teams.
proficient
Comprehensive emergency management plans — develop autonomously covering the full spectrum of natural, technological, and human-caused hazards for a county or regional jurisdiction.Multi-agency coordination — lead response activities including ordering evacuations, opening public shelters, and activating special needs programs during active emergency events.Stakeholder needs analysis — conduct advanced consultations with officials from diverse institutions to identify capability gaps and integrate findings into regional preparedness strategies.Disaster recovery status reports — author detailed assessments synthesizing response data, resource utilization, and preliminary damage estimates for elected officials and state partners.Plan evaluation programs — design, execute, and critically assess full-scale exercises in compliance with state and federal standards, incorporating after-action improvement cycles.Damage assessments — lead cross-functional teams in comprehensive post-disaster analysis, translating findings into actionable recovery recommendations for government leadership.Resource management systems — oversee and optimize all emergency preparedness databases and material inventories to ensure rapid deployment readiness across multiple agencies.Intergovernmental liaison networks — establish and sustain strategic relationships with municipalities, state agencies, and federal partners to strengthen coordinated response capacity.GIS and geospatial analysis tools — apply independently to develop predictive risk models and operational maps that inform command-level decision-making during emergencies.Complex non-routine incidents — apply advanced problem-solving and deductive reasoning to manage simultaneous multi-hazard events with limited information and high time pressure.
advanced
Regional emergency management strategy — set the long-term vision and policy direction for all-hazards preparedness across multiple jurisdictions, aligning programs with state and federal frameworks.Organizational resilience programs — lead the design and institutionalization of enterprise-wide emergency management systems that build sustained capability across public and private sector partners.Senior government officials and elected bodies — advise and persuade on emergency policy priorities, resource allocation, and legislative needs based on strategic risk assessments.Workforce development and training curricula — direct the creation and continuous improvement of instructional programs that build emergency management competency across regional teams and partner agencies.Inter-jurisdictional mutual aid agreements — negotiate and formalize at the executive level to ensure scalable personnel and equipment sharing during catastrophic events.After-action review processes — champion systematic organizational learning by institutionalizing improvement cycles following major incidents, exercises, and regulatory evaluations.Public communication strategies — lead the development of crisis communications frameworks that maintain public trust and convey accurate information through media and telecommunications channels.Emergency management innovation — evaluate and integrate emerging technologies including advanced GIS platforms, data analytics, and information security tools into operational doctrine.Budgetary and grant authority — direct multi-million-dollar emergency preparedness funding portfolios, securing federal and state grants and ensuring compliance with reporting obligations.Cross-sector coalitions — build and sustain executive-level partnerships with healthcare systems, transportation agencies, private industry, and nonprofits to create comprehensive community resilience networks.
Also known as
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