Assistant Chief Officer - Reliever - Eastern

Victoria State Emergency Service; City of Melbourne; On-site; AUD 167,000 - 191,000; Full time

Job summary

Victoria State Emergency Service (VICSES) is seeking an Assistant Chief Officer Reliever to provide strategic leadership across VICSES and ensure continuity of leadership, capability and service delivery. The role requires travel to regional offices, significant rostered duties and authority during emergencies, including Incident Controller and Agency Command functions.

The successful candidate will lead regional portfolios and projects, support the Operations Directorate with improvements and

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic and operational leadership during leave or vacancy.
• Lead regional portfolios, emergency operations, and projects.
• Support Operations Directorate with capability-building initiatives.
• Collaborate with municipalities and regional/state teams to strengthen practices.

Job description

Step into a pivotal leadership role where your expertise will shape operational excellence and emergency response across Victoria

• Salary: $166,939 to $191,084+15% Commuted Allowance+12% Superannuation
• Period: 2 Years
• Location: Chelsea Office, will relocate to the new Port Melbourne Office in late 2027/early 2028

Requirement: The successful candidate will need to be able to travel from their home or another non-work location to the Regional office or nominated ICC within 60 minutes from being notified when rostered on as theDuty Officer Outside of Ordinary Hours

ROLE SUMMARY: The Assistant Chief Officer(ACO) Reliever provides strategic and operational leadership across VICSES ensuring continuity of leadership, capability and service delivery during periods of leave or vacancy.The role leads regional portfolios, emergency operations, strategic priorities and projects across key operational areas. When not relieving the ACO supports the Operations Directorate with operational improvement and capability-building initiatives, working with senior leaders, municipalities and regional and state teams to strengthen operational practices and community resilience

The role exercises delegated authority for readiness and response decisions and undertakes senior command and control responsibilities during local, regional and state-wide emergencies including Incident Controller, Regional Controller and Agency Command functions. The ACO may also provide relieving support to State Operations.Significant travel and periods away from home are required

For more information on Commuted Allowance/IMT/Duty Officer role, please see thisfactsheet

WHO WE ARE: Victoria State Emergency Service (VICSES) is a volunteer-based emergency service. Our highly skilled and equipped Volunteers are trained comprehensively in a wide range of emergency environments. To minimise the impact of emergencies when they occur and strengthen the community's capacity to recover swiftly and safely, VICSES focuses on working with communities and partners in building resilience to achieve more aware, informed and prepared communities. We support them to understand their risk and the relevance of taking action before during and after emergency events

As the largest road rescue network in Australia, we have specialist teams that provide a 24/7 response to road accident and trauma incidents. We assist Victoria Police in search and rescue operations and play an important role in supporting the Country Fire Authority(CFA), Fire Rescue Victoria(FRV), Parks Victoria and the Department of Energy Environment and Climate Action(DEECA) during major bushfire and emergency incidents

For further information about the role please contact Cain Trist on ********@ses.vic.gov.au

Applications close Monday, October 19, 2026.

VICSES is an equal opportunity employer committed safeguarding children and vulnerable people, upholding the highest standards of integrity and community trust, and leading gender equality in the emergency management sector. All applicants are required to complete the relevant screening processes prior to appointment. VICSES also supports flexible working arrangements subject to operational and business requirements. For more information on our values benefits and recruitment process, please visitses.vic.gov.au/join-us/careers