Deputy Fire Chief – Strategic Services

Deputy Fire Chief – Strategic Services

The Savannah Fire Department seeks an accomplished, forward-thinking, and collaborative executive to serve as its next Deputy Fire Chief – Strategic Services. This is a unique opportunity to help shape the future of one of Georgia's premier fire departments while supporting a vibrant, historic, and rapidly growing coastal community.

As a key member of the Fire Department's executive leadership team, the Deputy Fire Chief – Strategic Services serves as the executive leader responsible for advancing organizational effectiveness, strategic planning, administrative services, and continuous improvement initiatives. Partnering closely with the Fire Chief, this leader provides executive oversight of the systems, programs, personnel, and resources that support emergency operations while ensuring alignment with the department's mission, strategic objectives, and the City of Savannah's Government Performance Standards (GPS).

The ideal candidate is a confident yet humble leader who builds trust through integrity, accountability, and authentic relationships. They possess exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, inspire high-performing teams, and foster a culture of collaboration, innovation, and excellence. This executive thrives in a dynamic environment, embraces organizational change, and uses data-driven decision-making to improve performance while serving as a responsible steward of public resources.

Leading the Strategic Services Division, the Deputy Fire Chief provides executive oversight of workforce management, logistics, capital planning, fire prevention and community risk reduction, accreditation, ISO readiness, technology systems, data analytics, records management, and organizational performance. This leader champions innovation, drives continuous improvement, and develops long-range strategies that strengthen operational readiness and position the department for future success.

As Savannah continues to experience significant growth and increasing service demands, the Deputy Fire Chief – Strategic Services will play a pivotal role in modernizing organizational systems, enhancing operational support, and ensuring the department remains agile, resilient, and prepared to meet the evolving needs of the community. Through visionary leadership, strategic partnerships, and a commitment to excellence, this executive will help build the organizational foundation that enables firefighters and emergency responders to serve the community safely and effectively.

This position offers the opportunity to leave a lasting legacy by shaping the future of the Savannah Fire Department through strategic leadership, organizational excellence, innovation, and a steadfast commitment to public service.

• Serves as a member of the Fire Department's executive leadership team, assisting the Fire Chief in providing strategic direction, executive leadership, and overall management of the organization.
• Serves as Acting Fire Chief in the absence of the Fire Chief and assumes responsibility for department-wide operations, administration, and executive decision-making.
• Provides executive leadership to assigned divisions through subordinate command staff by establishing expectations, promoting accountability, and ensuring organizational effectiveness.
• Directs and evaluates assigned personnel, including performance management, leadership development, succession planning, and professional development.
• Develops, implements, and evaluates organizational strategies, policies, procedures, and department-wide initiatives that support departmental objectives and the City of Savannah's Government Performance Standards (GPS).
• Participates in executive planning activities including workforce planning, budgeting, capital planning, organizational development, and long-range strategic initiatives.
• Promotes collaboration, communication, and coordination across departmental divisions to ensure organizational alignment and effective service delivery.
• Represents the Fire Department before elected officials, City leadership, partner agencies, professional organizations, and community…