ASSISTANT FIRE CHIEF

DESCRIPTION

THE COMMUNITY

Idyllically located on the Pacific Coast just south of Los Angeles and adjacent to Orange County, Long Beach is a vibrant city of approximately 450K residents. Known for its diverse and inclusive community, Long Beach features a unique blend of urban sophistication, cultural richness, and coastal charm. The City encompasses about 51 square miles, offering an array of parks, beaches, and recreational opportunities. Residents enjoy mild climate year-round perfect for outdoor activities such as biking, running, water sports, and much more. Long Beach is home to world-class attractions including the Aquarium of the Pacific, the historic Queen Mary, and the annual IndyCar Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. Long Beach will be the largest venue city for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Long Beach also boasts a thriving economy supported by industries such as aerospace, education, health services, manufacturing, tourism and professional services. With two advanced educational institutions, California State University Long Beach and Long Beach City College, and robust K-12 schools, the City is a hub for learning and innovation. Transportation options abound. The Long Beach and Metro transit systems along with the City’s own airport provide convenient access throughout the broader Southern California region. Long Beach is recognized as one of the nation’s most walkable and bike-friendly cities.

THE CITY GOVERNMENT

Long Beach operates as a charter city governed by an elected Mayor and nine City Council members elected by district. The City Manager, appointed by the Mayor and City Council, oversees the daily operations of 15 departments and a proposed FY26 annual budget of $3.7B. The City employs over 6,000 full-time and part-time staff; dedicated to providing exceptional public services with the vast majority being represented by eleven employee associations.

• City Departments
• Proposed FY26 Budget
• 2030 Strategic Vision
• Elevate '28 Infrastructure Investment Plan
  
  

The City of Long Beach fosters an environment where every employee is celebrated for their individuality and unique talents they bring to their role. Reflecting the diversity of the community within the workforce is a key priority embraced at every level of the organization-from management to policy creation. City Leadership actively promotes equity and inclusion by partnering with staff and community stakeholders to advance fairness in all initiatives. Transparency remains a cornerstone of these efforts with demographic data, including workforce diversity and pay equity by race and gender, shared publicly to ensure accountability and progress.

FIRE DEPARTMENT

The Long Beach Fire Department has over 550 budgeted positions and seasonally increases to over 700 total sworn and professional staff. LBFD operates an annual expense operating budget of approximately $189.8 million and $56 million in revenue. The mission of the Fire Department is to protect lives, property and the environment, while improving the quality of life and safety of the community. The Department has five bureaus: Executive, Business Operations, Fire Prevention, Operations and Support Services.

Additional information on the Department can be found at https://www.longbeach.gov/fire

EXAMPLES OF DUTIES

THE POSITION

The Assistant Chief of Fire Prevention position is assigned to the Fire Prevention Bureau and reports directly to the Deputy Chief of Fire Prevention. The Assistant Chief of Fire Prevention plays an essential role in the overall leadership, management and completion of initiatives and programs in the Fire Prevention Bureau. The Assistant Chief is the lead facilitator for relationships, services delivery and capital planning for fire operations located in the Port of Long Beach complex with the management of the City’s fire preventions services.

This is a salaried position with a base hourly rate of $121.344 (base annual pay of $253,262.268). Other skill pays allowed by the Long Beach Management Association MOU will be part of the compensation package, in addition to the listed base pay.
General Leadership in Support of the Fire Department and City Strategic Initiatives
As a member of the Fire Department Command Staff, general leadership responsibilities are assigned to this position. In close collaboration with the Deputy Chief of Fire Prevention and the rest of the Fire Command Staff, the position will be responsible for the following:

• Organizes and implements departmental operations within allocated personnel and financial resources.
• Identifies areas for organizational improvement and for consideration with the implementation of departmental rules, goals, objectives, policies/procedures, and work standards.
• Proactively disseminates information to inform Fire Department colleagues of emerging issues, new initiatives, or collaborative partnerships that impact the Fire Department.
• Finds opportunities to teach, educate and mentor Fire Department staff to promote ongoing development and professional growth.
• Develops relationships within the City and with external agencies to promote, innovate and enhance delivery of fire services to the community.
• Attends and makes presentations before the City Council, at boards and commissions, professional organizations, community organizations and employee groups.
• Represents the department at regional meetings for regional interoperable initiatives.
• Composes routine correspondence and reports independently.
• Encourages an environment of equal opportunity and promotes safety.
• Responds to emergency calls as necessary and may assume command and direct activities.
• Aligns Bureau initiatives with broader City-wide initiatives including preparation for the 2028 Olympics, enhanced cost recovery of public services, and alignment with the Strategic Vision 2030.
• Promotes a culture of respect, continuous learning, and inclusivity to leverage the talents and skills of all personnel.
• As the Bureau lead in the absence of a Deputy Chief.
• As on-call Fire Chief on a rotating basis.

REQUIREMENTS TO FILE

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

This recruitment is open to Fire Department currently in the rank of Battalion Chief.

Additionally, full completion and submittal of all required application package documents including a cover letter, resume, and completion of the supplemental question is necessary to participate in the evaluation process for this position.

Desirable Qualification:
Post secondary education such as a Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree is desirable.

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities:

• Knowledge of the principles, practices and techniques of fire service organizational effectiveness, administration, and operations.
• Ability to access and review the City Charter and City of Long Beach policies, procedures and processes.
• Knowledge of managing personnel and financial resources in accordance with City policies and procedures.
• Knowledge of federal, state and regional legislation, mandates, grants, policies or partnerships that impact fire services.
• Ability to assist in budget preparation, management, and oversight.
• Ability to assist the bureau’s Deputy Fire Chief with determination and implementation of the bureau’s priorities and goals.
• Ability to delegate authority and responsibility for the achievement of bureau goals, objectives, and priorities.
• Ability to collaborate with Command Stand and lead supervisors, analyze information, request data, examine alternatives, draw logical conclusions and recommend or implement a course of action.
• Ability to identify and explore new concepts for fire service delivery consistent with community and other stakeholder feedback.
• In developing and applying concepts for effective process improvement and change management techniques.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective, transparent, and cooperative working relationships with City/ department staff, officials of public and private agencies, City Council, commissions, community groups and the general public.
• Ability to positively communicate up and down the chains of command within the organization and those the Fire Department with accuracy and effectiveness for the purpose of maximizing the effectiveness and efficiency of interdepartmental operations and activities.
• Ability to proactively develop relationships and enhance community engagement with the City of Long Beach’s diverse communities and its members.
• Ability to apply leadership skills to motivate sworn and professional staff and enhance employee morale.
• Ability to promote accountability and uphold performance standards within the organization.

SELECTION PROCEDURE

This recruitment will close at 11:59 PM Pacific Time on Monday, February 9th, 2026 . To be considered, please submit an online application, including a cover letter, resume, and response to the supplemental questionnaire in PDF format. Applications that fail to include all necessary documents will be considered incomplete and will not be taken into consideration. Applications will be reviewed for depth and breadth of experience, and for level and relatedness of education. The most qualified candidates will be invited to participate in further selection procedures. Applicants who do not meet the minimum requirements, including submission of all required attachments, will not be considered. For questions regarding this recruitment, please call (562) 570-7008.

SAVE THE DATES:
Interviews have been scheduled to take place in-person on February 23rd and 24th. Candidates must be available for both interview dates.

The City of Long Beach is an Equal Opportunity Employer . We value and encourage diversity in our workforce. The City of Long Beach is committed to creating a workplace where every employee is valued for who they are. Having our workforce reflect the diversity of our community at various levels of the organization is a continuous goal embraced by our departments, management staff, and policymakers. To support efforts of fairness and diversity, City Leadership is committed to incorporating equity and inclusion into our work by supporting staff and community partners. We are committed to promoting transparency by publishing updated demographic information for employees, including workforce diversity data and pay by race and gender.

The City of Long Beach will consider qualified applicants with a criminal history pursuant to the California Fair Chance Act . You are not required to disclose your criminal history or participate in a background check until you receive a conditional job offer. If the City of Long Beach has concerns about a conviction that is directly related to the job after making a conditional job offer and conducting a background check, you will have the opportunity to explain the circumstances surrounding the conviction, provide evidence to mitigate concerns, or challenge the accuracy of the background report. Find out more about the Fair Chance Act by visiting https://calcivilrights.ca.gov/fair-chance-act .

The City of Long Beach is committed to maintaining fairness and transparency in our hiring practices. We believe in providing equal opportunities to all applicants and ensuring that every applicant is evaluated based on their qualifications and merit. If you believe that you have been unjustly disqualified based on minimum qualifications for an unclassified job opportunity, you have the right to appeal the decision. Find out more about the Applicant Appeal Process by visiting Applicant Appeal Process (longbeach.gov) .

The City of Long Beach intends to provide reasonable accommodations in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. If a special accommodation is desired, or if you would like to request this information in an alternative format, please call (562) 570-7008.

The City of Long Beach offers its employees opportunities to grow personally and professionally.As a permanent employee, you are eligible to receive fringe benefits that include:

Retirement:California Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) defined benefit retirement plan, which is coordinated with Social Security. Benefit of 2.0% or 3.0% (depending on hire date) @ 50 for Classic members. Those CalPERS safety employees hired on or after January 1, 2013, who are new members to CalPERS shall receive 2.7% at 57 as defined by PEPRA subject to the compensation limitations set by PERS. Both the City and the employee contributes toward CalPERS retirement contributions. The city also participates in Social Security.

Health and Dental Insurance:The City offers the choice of HMO and PPO plans. The city pays major portion of the premium for employee and dependents depending on the health/ dental plan selected.

Life Insurance:City-paid term life insurance policy equal to three (3) times annual salary to a maximum of $500,000.

Disability Insurance:City-paid short-term and long-term disability insurance.

Management Physical:Annual City-paid physical examination.

Vacation:Twelve (12) vacation days after the first year of service; 15 days after four years, six months of service; 20 days after 19 years, six months of service.

Executive Leave:Forty (40) hours Executive Leave per year. The City Manager has discretion to grant an additional 40 hours each year.

Sick Leave: One day earned per month; unlimited accumulation; conversion upon retirement to cash credit toward health and/or dental insurance premiums, or to pension credits.

Holidays:Eleven (11) designated holidays per year, plus four personal holidays to be used at the employee's discretion.

Deferred Compensation Plan:Optional for employee contribution to a supplementary retirement savings program available through Mission Square Retirement formerly ICMA-RC Retirement Corporation).

• Classic CalPERS Members: The City will contribute a maximum of up to two percent (2%) of base salary* for all qualified Classic CalPERS members.
• Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act (PEPRA) CalPERS Members: Effective the second full pay period following City Council adoption, the City contribution will increase from two percent (2%) to three percent (3%) of base salary* for all qualified PEPRA CalPERS members.

Flexible Spending Account (FSA):Optional election for employees to reduce taxable income for payment of allowable childcare or medical expenses.

Flexible/Hybrid Work Schedule:Available (subject to City Manager approval).

Paid Parental Leave: The City provides one hundred and sixty (160) hours of Paid Parental Leave at 100% of salary, for the birth, adoption or foster placement of a child, regardless of the gender, marital status or sexual orientation of the parent.

Closing Date/Time: 2/9/2026 11:59 PM Pacific

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• City of Long Beach

• 5625707057

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