Office Manager (2 positions)

About Us

The Department of Emergency Management is responsible for leading disaster and emergency planning, preparedness, response and recovery activities on behalf of the Province of Nova Scotia.  The objective of the Department is to ensure that Nova Scotians are safe, prepared and resilient in the face of disasters and emergencies. The Department leads the coordination and co-operation of partners and resources during provincial level critical incidents, supports municipal and other partners in regional level and local events, administers the province’s 911 service, maintains critical communications infrastructure and supports operations of our regional emergency management centres.  The Department also works to ensure critical government services continue to function during and after critical events. 

The Planning and Preparedness Branch enhances preparedness, reduces vulnerabilities, and ensures a coordinated response to critical incidents and emergencies by:

• Standing up and deploying the Nova Scotia Guard
• Reviewing comprehensive emergency management programs by the province and municipalities and ensuring they are robust
• Conducting thorough risk assessments and advising on mitigation strategies 
• Administering the Disaster Financial Assistance program to ensure recovery takes place as quickly as possible
• Leading strategic policy, including the management of federal and regional agreements and management of legislation, regulations, policies, establishing standards and preparedness initiatives
• Supporting effective risk management and business continuity for the Province, municipalities, and critical infrastructure partners
• Managing the resiliency office

The Regional Operations and Infrastructure Branch

The Regional Operations and Infrastructure Branch enhances the safety and resilience of our Province by:

• Strengthening critical communications infrastructure through the establishment and oversight of the Public Safety Field Communications Agency.  The Agency’s mission is to create a Centre of Excellence in the delivery of public safety communications, dispatch, and related technologies across Nova Scotia and Atlantic Canada
• Establishing and maintaining Regional Emergency Operations Centres (REOCs) in 6 regions in Nova Scotia. The REOCs provide leadership in building regional emergency operations networks; ensuring collaborative efforts around emergency planning, training and exercising and developing regional plans for equipment and stores to support emergency response
• Coordinating response to regional emergencies
• Strengthening local and regional emergency preparedness through outreach and education to Nova Scotians at community events, schools, organizations, and through information sessions
• Fostering strong collaboration, communication, and emergency management planning with regional partners, including the development and coordination of regional Nova Scotia Guard networks
• Providing information to the Provincial Coordination Centre and the 24/7 Watch Desk staff to ensure real-time situational awareness, coordination, and support during emergencies and actioning critical information received from the Provincial Coordination Centre in the regions 

About Our Opportunity

The Department currently has two opportunities available - the Office Manager will support the management teams of either the Planning and Preparedness branch or the Regional Operations and Infrastructure branch and will perform a wide range of complex officer manager and admin support duties of a confidential nature that require good judgment and attention to detail.

The successful candidate will work under minimal direction and have a very good knowledge of office practices and procedures and a comprehensive knowledge of departmental functions.

Primary Accountabilities

The Office Manager provides office management support for the branch and reports to the Executive Director. Some key responsibilities include:

• Manages calendar appointments and assesses issues, gauging urgency and reviewing priorities and previous commitments to address scheduling conflicts.
• Manages FOIPOP requests and records management requirements.
• Manages correspondence formatting, routing, and approvals.
• Facilitates scheduling of interviews and onboarding of new staff for the management team.
• Coordinates deputy and ministerial sign-off and approval of expenditures and authorizes purchase of office supplies and related expenditures.
• Processes invoices, tracks payments and monitors forecast documents.
• Supports staff in completing some procurement processes through FlexTrack and Ariba.
• Provides backup to the other officer manager positions and the Minister/DM office as required.
• Supports the operations of the department during emergencies, in office or in the field.

Qualifications and Experience

A completed one-year business course and a minimum of four (4) years of related experience if office management is required, or an equivalent combination of training and experience may be acceptable.

As an officer manager, you must possess the following: 

• Demonstrated experience as a senior administration professional
• Demonstrated experience that shows significant attention to detail
• Demonstrated experience in accounts payable and budget forecasting
• Demonstrated experience in dealing with confidential information in a government setting
• Excellent verbal and written communication and persuasion skills

The following will be considered an asset: 

• Experience that demonstrates an exceptional ability to multi-task and manage complex projects
• Experience that shows an ability to use tact and sound judgment when dealing with a difficult person or situation 

We will assess the above qualifications and competencies using one or more of the following tools: written examination, standardized tests, oral presentations, interview(s), and reference checks.

Equivalency

An equivalent combination of training, education and experience will be considered. Applicants relying on education and experience equivalencies must demonstrate such equivalencies in their application. Equivalent experience and training include, but are not limited to:

• Minimum of 5 years of professional administration experience

Benefits

Based on the employment status, the Government of Nova Scotia offers its employees a wide range of benefits such as a Defined Benefit Pension Plan, Health, Dental, Life Insurance, General illness, Short and Long Term Disability, Vacation and Employee and Family Assistance Programs.  For information on all our Benefit program offerings, click here: Benefits for government employees.

Working Conditions

• Normal work week is 35 hours/week, 7 hours/day
• May be required to work overtime on occasion

Additional Information

Two (2) positions are available.

• One is located in our Dartmouth office,
• the other is located in our Halifax Office.

Please identify on your application if you have a preference for an office location. 

What We Offer

• Career development where you have access to career guidance, tools, resources, and ongoing training for every stage of your career
• Engaging workplace: our employees feel valued, respected, connected, and tuned in, we have forward-thinking policies and strategies
• Countless career paths