The Ideal Candidate

The Village seeks a dedicated, highly collaborative, and passionate leader to serve as its next Fire Chief. The Fire Chief is a visible member of the Village President’s Senior Staff and requires well-developed leadership abilities and management skills that are based upon loyalty, trustworthiness, professionalism, consensus building, and problem-solving.

The Village Seeks

• Leadership: Be dedicated to becoming an effective servant leader and building collaborative and positive relationships with employees, colleagues, and community stakeholders. Have strong and confident communication skills, excellent relationship-building abilities, an accessible leadership style, and a calm demeanor. Be one who can establish trust quickly with others. Have thorough knowledge of the principles of personnel management including recruiting, training, promoting, and coaching.

• Experience: Specifically, in the areas of fire operations, emergency management, capital vehicle and equipment planning, and large-scale events planning. Business acumen and experience with effective budgetary control and conservative fiscal management are crucial.

• Innovation: Bring fresh ideas to the organization and offer unique perspectives and experiences. Have knowledge of how to effectively manage change and generate buy-in from staff.

• Energy: Provide enthusiasm and bring focused energy to all projects and a passion for service to the community. Be one who is highly motivated and can develop and articulate a long-term plan for the fire department with the charisma to lead the team to an even higher level of excellence. Be a highly motivated, visionary, goal-oriented leader with a proven ability to gain cooperation and communicate clear direction.

Minimum Qualifications

• Associate degree in Fire Science or a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.

• 5 or more years of progressively responsible experience, in a public, private, or federal fire department of similar or larger size, at a company officer position or Department of Defense equivalent.

• Advanced Fire Officer or Chief Fire Officer Certification as established by Illinois Administrative Code.

• Fire Investigator certification as established by the Illinois Administrative Code.

• ICS 100, ICS 200, ICS 300 and ICS 400 (also offered as Command and General Staff), ICS 700, IS 703b, IS 706, and ICS 800 certifications.

• Valid Non-CDL Class B Illinois driver’s license or the obtain one within 30 days of hire.

• Must be able to respond to calls-for-service and emergencies within 15 minutes of initial dispatch.

• Valid Basic Emergency Medical Technician license issued by the Illinois Department of Public Health.

• Current American Heart Association Basic Life Support certification or the ability to obtain it within 30 days of hire.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree, from an accredited college or university, in Fire Administration, Fire Science, Public Administration, Emergency Management, or similarly related field.

• 10 or more years of progressively responsible experience, in a public, private, or federal fire department of similar or larger size, at a command officer position or Department of Defense equivalent.

• Executive Fire Officer (EFO) certification from the National Fire Academy (NFA) or Chief Fire Officer certification from the Center for Public Safety Excellence (CPSE).

Compensation and Benefits

The annual salary range for this position is $75,000 to $100,000 depending on qualifications. The Village also offers a competitive benefits package including health insurance, retirement, and paid time off. Village residency is preferred but not required.

How to Apply

The position is open until filled. Interested applicants should provide a cover letter, resume, and contact information for five (5) professional references to christopher.walton@savoy.illinois.gov. Only electronic applications will be accepted.