Fire Program Manager

Important messages

We are committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free work environment, starting with the hiring process. If you need to be accommodated during any phase of the evaluation process, please use the Contact information below to request specialized accommodation. All information received in relation to accommodation will be kept confidential.

Assessment accommodation

✔️We also offer:
•Northern Allowances (rates and conditions subject to change and vary depending on number of dependents):
▻ Isolated Post Allowances: Approximately $14,011 per year to $23,352 per year
▻ Vacation Travel Assistance: approximately $1,402 per year for each eligible member of the household
•Housing: Federal government housing may be available
•Relocation Assistance: Applicants may be eligible for relocation assistance and may wish to review the Relocation Directive: https://www.njc-cnm.gc.ca/directive/d6/en
•Training, Development & Education Opportunities: Multi-year career development plans which include opportunities for education assistance funding and training opportunities
•Pension & Benefits: Advantageous pension regime and health benefits. For more information, see: https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/topics/pension-plan.html

Duties

You’ll never be bored!

As one of the largest protected swaths of boreal forest and the largest national park in the country, you can bet there’s a lot to the fire management program at Wood Buffalo National Park.

You’ll lead a team of over 20 employees, which includes fire technicians, resource officers, storespeople, radio operators, crew leaders, and crew members. You’ll work alongside and support, as needed, four different functional managers who also report to the site superintendent.

Your passion for the great outdoors and fire science, coupled with a love of collaboration and connecting with people, will lead the way. You’ve spent some time honing your critical thinking skills, and you demonstrate leadership and good judgment in all that you do.

Your curiosity and interest in people will help you build and maintain relationships with neighbouring governments, partners, and stakeholders, as well as with your team.

You’ll be in charge of managing the financials and human resources for the fire program. You’ll also get to hire new team members and spend time training and developing current ones.

During the busy fire seasons, your decision-making and conflict-resolution skills will come in handy. Your time will be spent making sure things are running smoothly, primarily managing and resolving issues and ensuring the resources are in place to manage and respond to wildfires as needed.

In the off-season, you’ll spend your days planning for the upcoming season and determining the priorities and strategies of the fire program.

Ultimately, your main duty will be making sure the fire program at Wood Buffalo National Park is safe, compliant, and efficient.

A mix of work history, experience, knowledge, abilities, and soft skills (personal suitability) will determine how well someone can do in this role.

To have higher success in a role like this, usually you’d have about two years of experience in a management position within Parks Canada. However, if you have a decent general knowledge of policies and guidelines as well as time management and critical thinking skills, and you’re a coachable person - you could be considered a candidate who could grow into the role in a relatively short period of time.

Work environment

This is a place of opportunity – to learn new things, to try things you’ve maybe never done before, and to experience surreal landscapes.

You’ll be working for Wood Buffalo National Park, which is the largest national park in Canada, the world’s largest dark-sky preserve, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The park is a cultural landscape for Cree, Dene, and Métis peoples of the region. The park works with eleven Indigenous communities, who continue to use the land for activities like hunting, trapping, fishing, and medicinal plant and berry picking.

You’ll lead the Fire Management team in many initiatives, including planning wildfire risk reduction work, advancing fire science, assessing and responding to wildfires as necessary, monitoring and updating fire risk, collaborating with other governments and stakeholders, supporting the national fire program, and more.

Here you’re sure to enjoy the camaraderie that comes from working closely with colleagues. There are significant opportunities for collaboration between functions and lots of things to learn from co-workers whose work differs greatly from yours. There are many chances and possibilities for career growth within Parks Canada, and that will extend to you in this role.

You’ll do work that matters and have tangible examples of the differences you and your team are making. The work will be interesting and, at times, hectic… but truly never a dull moment.

You’ll be based in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, and will work primarily in an office environment but can expect some travel into the park and to Fort Chipewyan, AB, as and when needed.

Fort Smith is in Treaty 8 territory and the traditional territory of the Indigenous peoples of Salt River First Nation, Smith's Landing First Nation, and the Northwest Territory Métis Nation.

Parks Canada is a federal government agency responsible for protecting and presenting the outstanding natural and cultural resources found throughout Canada. We do this through a system of national parks, national marine conservation areas, and national historic sites across Canada.

Positions to be filled: 1

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

Contact information for 3 references.

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

🎓EDUCATION
Graduation with a degree from a recognized university with specialization in environmental or natural sciences, forest management, or other discipline relevant to the position.

An acceptable combination of education and experience may be considered if you do not have a university degree. For example, a technical diploma with relevant experience and career advancement in a resource management organization that includes at least three years of supervisory and/or management experience.

Degree equivalency

📌EXPERIENCE
• Experience working in a leadership role in delivering wildfire management services;
• Financial management for procurement, contracting, planning and reporting;
• Hiring, performance management and training/development of team members;
• Partnering and engagement to support organizational outcomes;
• Managing a program that is related to conservation (e.g. fire management, ecological restoration, species at risk, visitor safety, impact assessment);
• Consulting, conferring, reaching agreement on, or obtaining commitment on matters of considerable complexity or significance.

If you possess any of the following, your application must also clearly explain how you meet it (other qualifications)

📍Parks Canada will give special consideration to the following criteria:
•Experience with wildfire management planning including wildfire risk reduction and prescribed fire;
•Experience working at strike team/task force leader or unit leader within operations, logistics or planning sections or higher;
•Completion of Advanced Fire Behaviour (S-490), Incident Command System 200, Incident Command System 300;
•Indigenous knowledge, including of the language and culture of the area;
•Experience living and/or working in a northern or remote community;
•Knowledge of the environmental characteristics of the Park and its surrounding area.

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

English essential

Information on language requirements

📌KNOWLEDGE
• Fire management strategies and tactics;
• Canadian Forest Fire Danger Rating System and application within fire management;
• Human resources, specialized facilities, and emergency equipment required for planning, organizing and managing a wildfire program, including development of operating procedures and schedules;
• Major issues and challenges related to wildfire management and visitor safety management;
• The role and requirements of Impact assessment in wildfire management;
• The landscape, ecology and history of Wood Buffalo National Park.

📌ABILITIES
• Ability to plan, implement, and manage projects, especially pertaining to fire management;
• Establish a clear vision for staff and motivate employees to achieve their best performance;
• Collaborate, negotiate and resolve conflicts;
• Work independently and in cross-functional teams using a multi-disciplinary approach;
• Provide advice to management;
• Communicate effectively orally and in writing to technical and non-technical audiences in a timely manner.

📌PERSONAL SUITABILITY
• Makes things happen;
• Personally connects with people;
• Demonstrates integrity;
• Exercises sound judgement.

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

📌OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENTS
• Willingness to wear a Parks Canada uniform and prescribed protective equipment;
• Willingness to work and/or travel in varied terrain, weather conditions, isolated locations and by various means of transportation;
•Willingness to work irregular hours (up to 14 hour days), overtime, weekends and/or statutory holidays and provincial/territorial holidays, when required. (primarily during fire season (May to September) when fire danger is high, fires are occurring, occasionally up to 19 days in a row when on fire deployments.

Conditions of employment

Reliability Status security clearance

📌CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT
• Obtain and maintain a Reliability level security clearance;
• Valid Class 5 Driver’s License;
• A pre-employment medical examination of an individual and his/her dependants may be required. Work capacity fitness testing standard for Parks Canada wildland fire personnel – moderate level fitness test (field pack test) 3.22km w/ a 25lb backpack in 30 min or less);
• Standard first aid, CPR/AED.

Other information

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the designated groups when you apply.

Information on employment equity

A written exam maybe administered.

Interviews will be conducted.

Reference checks will be conducted.

Travel cost for individuals who are not Federal Public Servants will not be covered.

Proof of education must be submitted with application to rhtsono-swnwthr@pc.gc.ca. Failure to provide a copy of the certificate with your application will result in your application not being assessed further.

Please submit your completed application, including all of the above-mentioned documentation. Failure to do so may result in your application being rejected.

The Public Service of Canada is committed to developing inclusive, barrier-free selection and appointment processes and work environments. If contacted in relation to this process, please advise the Parks Canada representative in a timely fashion of the accommodation measures which must be taken to enable you to be assessed in a fair and equitable manner. Information received relating to accommodation measures will be addressed confidentially.

The Parks Canada Agency is established as a separate employer in the Federal Public Service under the Financial Administration Act. Persons appointed to the Agency continue to be part of the Public Service. The Parks Canada Agency operates under its own human resources framework outside of the Public Service Employment Act and in line with values of fairness, competence and respect, and its operating principles.

In accordance with paragraph 8(2)(a) of the Privacy Act, information or material, whether provided directly by the candidate or otherwise obtained by the selection board, used during the selection process for the purpose of assessing a candidate may be used as part of the selection review and recourse processes. Such relevant information may be provided to third parties, such as other candidates or their representatives, who have a legitimate reason to be aware of that information.

Persons who have a priority entitlement as defined by the Parks Canada Agency Priority Policy and Guidelines will be considered first.

Tips for applicants:
• Please provide complete and thorough details of your education and experience.
• Do not assume that the screening board has any previous knowledge of your background, qualifications, or work history. You must be specific and provide concrete examples/details for each Experience element, as applications will be screened only on the information provided.
• Failure to provide sufficient information may result in your application being screened out of the competition.

Persons who have received pay in lieu of unfulfilled surplus period, a Transition Support Measure (TSM) or an Educational Allowance and are re-appointed to the Parks Canada Agency are required to reimburse an amount corresponding to the period from the effective date of such reappointment or hiring, to the end of the original period for which the TSM and education allowance was paid. Please contact Vina Turner, Human Resources Manager, if you are one of these individuals to find out how this applies to your particular situation.

Persons who are in receipt of a Canadian Government Public Service pension and are considering this employment opportunity with the Parks Canada Agency, should contact the PWGSC Public Service Pension Centre (1-800-561-7930) in order to determine the impact of an appointment on their pension benefit entitlements.

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.

Contact information