Deputy Fire Chief

Overview

At Richmond Fire-Rescue (RFR), we are committed to protecting lives, property, and the environment through high-quality emergency response, prevention, preparedness, and effective community partnerships. As a progressive fire service, we are guided by our values of People, Excellence, Leadership, Teamwork, and Innovation in everything we do.

Richmond Fire-Rescue is seeking an experienced and collaborative Deputy Fire Chief to join its senior leadership team. In this key leadership role, you will help guide a high-performing organization dedicated to serving the community, providing leadership in areas such as fire operations, emergency preparedness, labour relations, administration, and staff wellness and development. Working closely with the Fire Chief and the senior leadership team, you will support operational excellence, continuous improvement, and the delivery of high-quality fire and emergency services while helping to shape the future direction of the department.

Responsibilities

Reporting to the Fire Chief, the Deputy Fire Chief is a key member of Richmond Fire-Rescue's senior leadership team, providing strategic and operational leadership across fire suppression, emergency management, prevention, training, and administrative functions. This role helps shape the future direction of the department while ensuring the effective delivery of services that support community safety, operational readiness, and organizational excellence.

Leadership and Service Delivery

• Provide leadership and oversight for fire operations, emergency preparedness, prevention, and administrative functions, ensuring effective service delivery and operational readiness.

• Lead and support strategic initiatives that enhance community safety, strengthen organizational resilience, modernize service delivery, and address emerging risks.

• Provide guidance, mentorship, and support to senior officers and staff, fostering a collaborative, accountable, and high-performing workplace culture that values employee wellness and professional development.

• Identify opportunities to improve programs, processes, and operational effectiveness while aligning departmental priorities with corporate objectives.

Emergency Response and Incident Command

• Serve on a rotational basis as the on-call Duty Chief for department operations and in the City’s Emergency Operations Centre.

• Respond to significant incidents and emergencies, providing command leadership and ensuring safe, effective, and coordinated incident management.

• Support emergency preparedness, risk management, and business continuity initiatives to strengthen community and the City’s organizational resilience.

Labour Relations and Corporate Leadership

• Support labour-management relations within a unionized environment, including recruitment, promotions, personnel management, discipline, grievance resolution, and collective agreement administration.

• Collaborate with union leadership and internal stakeholders to address workplace issues in a respectful, constructive, and solutions-focused manner.

• Contribute to strategic planning, policy development, budgeting, and organizational improvement initiatives, and prepare reports and recommendations for senior leadership, committees, and Council.

• Ensure compliance with applicable legislation, regulations, bylaws, collective agreements, and workplace safety requirements, including WorkSafeBC standards.

Requirements

• Undergraduate degree in public safety, public administration, business administration, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

• NFPA 1021 Fire Officer IV certification, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

• Incident Command System (ICS) 400 certification or equivalent.

• Valid Class 5 BC Driver's Licence and ability to successfully complete a Police Information Check.

• Five to seven years of progressively responsible senior leadership experience in a fire service or emergency management organization.

• Experience leading complex emergency response operations within an Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) environment.

• Strong knowledge of fire service operations, emergency preparedness, incident command systems, community safety, risk management, and mitigation practices.

• Experience with budget planning and financial administration in a local government environment.

• Demonstrated experience leading in a unionized workplace, including the application of human resources and labour relations principles.

• Strong leadership, communication, decision-making, and crisis management skills.

• Proven ability to build collaborative relationships with employees, unions, partner agencies, elected officials, and the community.

• Demonstrated success developing inclusive, high-performing teams and leading organizational change and continuous improvement.

• Commitment to operational excellence, community engagement, public safety, and public trust.

If you are a decisive, visionary leader ready to make a lasting impact on public safety, we invite you to apply. Bring your leadership, strategic perspective, and operational expertise to Richmond Fire-Rescue as Deputy Fire Chief and help shape the future of community safety, emergency preparedness, and organizational excellence in the City of Richmond. Submit your resume along with a brief statement highlighting a leadership achievement you are most proud of and how it has prepared you for this role.

This posting will remain open until the position has been filled.