Director, Data Engineering

New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM) helps New Yorkers before, during, and after emergencies through preparedness, education, and response. NYCEM is responsible for coordinating citywide emergency planning and response for all types and scales of emergencies. We are staffed by more than 200 dedicated professionals with diverse backgrounds and areas of expertise, including individuals assigned from other City agencies.

The Office of the Chief Operating Officer (COO) is comprised of Human Capital Management (HCM), Information Technology (IT), Support Services, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The Office of the COO is focused on implementing agency initiatives and strategies and incorporating them into daily operations to meet agency objectives and goals.

The NYCEM Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Unit produces reliable location-based information through the integration, analysis, and visualization of essential data distributed in the form of maps, datasets, summary metrics, and associated applications.

Guided by the recommendations from the City's after-action report following the extreme rain event associated with Post-Tropical Cyclone Ida in September 2021, NYCEM is embarking on an Emergency Data Improvement Initiative to more readily and accurately integrate the field data collected after an emergency by various entities assisting in canvassing, response, and recovery operations; to improve data sharing amongst agencies; and to develop new data products for emergency response. The heart of this effort is the establishment of an interagency Emergency Data Governance Committee (EDGC), chaired by NYCEM, with the mission of identifying gaps and obstacles in acquiring and managing the data needed for operational response and situational awareness; critiquing and testing proposed solutions; and establishing standards and protocols for data management and governance. Both organizational and technological solutions will be examined by the committee.

NYCEM has an exciting opportunity for a motivated data professional to join the GIS unit as the Director of Data Engineering. NYCEM is creating a data integration team comprised of data engineering and geospatial experts to help implement EDGC recommendations. The selected applicant will both develop an interagency data strategy and manage the data integration team. Reporting to NYCEM's Executive Director of GIS, the selected applicant will:

• Lead a team of data engineers working on the agency's Emergency Data Improvement Initiative (EDII).

• In conjunction with NYCEM subject matter experts,

o Work with City and non-City stakeholders to understand their data needs.

o Create use cases and write project requirements.

o Develop an interagency data strategy for emergency response and recovery.

• Manage workplan for the data integration team, whose purview is to:

o Develop and maintain ETL pipelines, with a focus on writing scalable, clean, and fault-tolerant code to handle disparate data sources.

o Create databases for emergency events on demand, setting up processes to join base data with event data, handle frequent updates, share data with other city agencies and outside organizations based on security protocols, and log data errors.

o Collaborate with other city agencies to improve base data. As needed, convert base data into more useable form for emergency needs.

o Perform exploratory data analyses as needed.

• Make decisions on the best technologies to use, with a goal toward building a sustainable, robust framework.

• Foster team collaboration and set up processes for code review and documentation. Perform staff evaluations and promote professional development.

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING:

• The selected candidate will be assigned to an on-call Emergency Operations Center (EOC) team and will be expected to work non-business hours during some emergencies. These non-business hours include nights, weekends, holidays, and extended week hours outside of a 9AM-5PM schedule. The selected candidate will also participate in trainings to build skills and competencies in emergency response; will participate in drills and exercises associated with the on-call EOC team; and may volunteer to assist with Ready NY emergency preparedness presentations to external groups. EOC teams are on call for three weeks at a time, with six weeks off in between.
• CDBG- (2) This position is CDBG-DR funded and has three (3) years of guaranteed funding, which will start once the position is filled. There is a possibility of extension beyond the two years.
• IN ORDER TO BE CONSIDERED FOR THIS JOB, PLEASE SUBMIT A SEPARATE COVER LETTER IN THE ATTACHMENTS SECTION OF THE APPLICATION PORTAL.

Minimum Qualifications

1 . A four-year high school diploma or its educational equivalent and eight years satisfactory full-time professional experience in one or a combination of the following: emergency management, fire or police services, public safety, public health, public administration, urban planning, engineering, or another specialized area to which the appointment is to be made. 18 months of this experience must have been in an executive, managerial, administrative, or supervisory capacity. Supervision must have included supervising staff performing professional work in the areas described above; or

2.A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college and four years of satisfactory full-time professional experience in one or a combination of the areas listed in "1" above, including the 18 months of executive, managerial, administrative, or supervisory experience, as described in "1" above; or

3.A master' s degree from an accredited college in emergency management, public administration, urban planning, engineering, economics, political science, the physical sciences, or related field, and three years of satisfactory full-time professional experience in one or a combination of the areas described in "1" above, including the 18 months of executive, managerial, administrative, or supervisory experience, as described in "1" above; or

4.Education and/or experience equivalent to "1", "2", or "3" above. However, all candidates must have a four-year high school diploma or its educational equivalent and the 18 months of executive, managerial, administrative, or supervisory experience, as described in "1" above.

Preferred Skills

• Four or more years of experience in the field of data engineering, with increasing levels of responsibility. Experience in managing or mentoring data engineers.

• Proficiency in scripting processes with Python and SQL, automating processes using GitHub Actions, and utilizing containerization software like Docker.

• Experience with cloud-based data warehouses like Google BigQuery and ArcGIS Online

• Familiarity with spatial data formats and experience working with spatial data in Esri products, Carto, PostGIS, or GeoPandas.

• Familiarity with NYC data sets and geocoding processes.

• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.

• Strong presentation skills.

• Strong interpersonal skills.

• Experience working with technical and non-technical staff.

• Strong initiative and ability to perform with minimal supervision.

• Prior experience with emergency management operations and/or NYC municipal government operations is a plus. Studies have shown that women, people of color, and other under-represented groups are less likely to apply for jobs unless they believe they are able to perform every task in the job description. We are interested in finding the best candidate for the job and will consider any equivalent combination of knowledge, skills, education and experience to meet qualifications. If you are interested in applying, we encourage you to think broadly about your background and skill set for the role.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education's website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/.

Residency Requirement

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.

Additional Information

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.