Director of Employee Safety
About the Organization - Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy
Since 1981, the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy (Parks Conservancy) has served as the nonprofit partner of the National Park Service, collaborating with the Presidio Trust, partners, donors, and the community to support the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA). The GGNRA stretches across three Bay Area counties north and south of the Golden Gate Bridge and includes iconic places such as Muir Woods National Monument, Fort Point National Historic Site, Alcatraz Island, Crissy Field, Mori Point, Lands End, and the Presidio of San Francisco.
The Parks Conservancy engages at the intersection of national park sites, local communities, social justice, and climate resilience. Collaborating with partners, our staff are dedicated to enhancing public awareness and providing volunteer and educational opportunities in the parks. We are park builders, caretakers, ambassadors and educators, all working to connect people to parks in support of our vision Parks for All Forever. Join us.
About the role - Director of Employee Safety
As a key member of the Operations Branch, the Director of Employee Safety serves as a thought partner in the Operations Branch’s overall risk management responsibilities. While focusing on responsibility for employee safety and managing risk for all programs and sites, the Director will work across disciplines, supporting all Branches of the Parks Conservancy as assigned by the Chief Operations Officer. The Director of Employee Safety is responsible for fostering a safety-first culture organization-wide. Together with the National Park Service at the GGNRA and the Presidio Trust, many activities are multi-agency, and close coordination is needed for managing risk and employee safety. GGNRA is a complex national park hosting approximately 18 million visitors annually and includes over 82,000 acres of land and 91 miles of shoreline. GGNRA lands span three counties: Marin, San Francisco, and San Mateo.
The Director of Employee Safety will develop and manage internal safety and risk management systems and protocols, prioritizing staff well-being. Collaborating with the organization’s branches, they will lead efforts to align operations with strategic goals, standardize safety and security programs, work with department leads and employees to implement programs, lead incident response activities, and reduce overall operational risk. Adaptability, attentive listening, and empathetic communication are crucial for engaging a diverse workforce with wide-ranging responsibilities. Ideal candidates will demonstrate a strong passion for safety, health, and wellness, championing belonging, justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion values throughout program development and leadership.
Essential Functions and Responsibilities:
- Assess, lead, and advise on the organization's employee safety and risk management systems and processes, programs, and data and reporting, providing guidance across all branches.
- Collaborate with branches, departments, and external partners to establish and enhance comprehensive employee safety, health, and security programs, ensuring alignment with organizational goals.
- Drive the identification, development, and implementation of employee safety initiatives, policies, and procedures, including areas such as situational awareness and risk assessment, personal protective equipment (PPE), employee training, incident management, disease outbreak, remote worker communication, and emergency response.
- Lead the development, oversight and organizational coordination of Emergency Action Plans (EAPs), and Incident Response Plans (IRPs), serving as an all-hazard advisor in the organization's preparedness and response efforts. Supports and advises the Executive Team on all aspects of emergency and incident response; often assuming incident management leadership, including participating on NPS-led incident teams.
- Act as a resource for budgeting, procurement of materials (e.g., PPE), training, performance measures, recognition programs, and job descriptions related to safety, health, and security initiatives.
- Evaluate, improve, and implement required employee safety programs and plans, ensuring compliance with Federal and Cal OSHA regulations, including the Incident and Injury Prevention Program (IIPP), Workplace Violence Protection Program (WVPP), and Emergency Response protocols, while addressing the organization's specific needs and external partner requirements.
- Develop employee safety and security protocols to support staff safety at their workplaces, including those that include interactions with park visitors, offering resources and guidance for various encounter scenarios across all operational settings. Establish and lead an employee safety committee to learn more about operational risk issues and operations and collaborate with employees on risk-based solutions.
- Serve as the organizational lead and point of contact for all employee safety incidents; receiving notification from Branch leads for all incidents involving staff and volunteers, conducting root-cause analyses within 48 hours, implementing immediate actions to address causal factors, and facilitating the dissemination of lessons learned throughout the organization.
- Coordinate and implement a proactive and cost-effective organization-wide risk management program, aimed at safeguarding organizational assets and minimizing losses from employee injuries, accidents, or liability exposures.
- Manage and supervise employee safety training activities, including prioritizing training requirements based on risk exposure, probability and severity appropriate to the job responsibilities; manage scheduling, coordination, delivery, and record-keeping, while consulting with executives, managers, and employees to identify training needs and enhance workplace safety measures. Additionally, liaise with appropriate agencies such as NPS, Cal-OSHA, and Fire Protection Services to ensure regulatory compliance and foster collaborative relationships.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
- Experience (minimum 5 years education/experience) in a safety role focusing on occupational health, which may be informed by but not limited to outdoor adventure or education, parks or conservation, ecological restoration or visitor services.
- Experience (minimum 3 years) in risk assessment, management, and mitigation related to employee safety and security, and incident management.
- Knowledgeable in federal and California OSHA safety standards, compliance and reporting. Desire and able to build/sustain relationships with a variety of people, inclusive of different backgrounds, ethnicities, genders, sexualities, ages, and viewpoints.
- Ability to work well with a wide range of employees and their duties, including retail, natural resource stewardship, plant nurseries, warehouses, field work, events in the parks, and youth education.
- Ability to collect and analyze employee safety data and information, and to tailor and present meaningful data dashboards and reports to a variety of audiences.
- Ability to understand and address employee safety concerns at all levels and grow knowledge of organizational and operational infrastructure risks and strengths, and apply that knowledge to build a comprehensive system of employee safety.
- Ability to select and utilize contractors for more specialized programs, training needs, and operating areas.
- Ability to work closely with multiple partner organizations, including the National Park Service, the Presidio Trust, state and county parks, water districts, public libraries, schools and others.
Compensation and Location
The Parks Conservancy provides its employees with a competitive salary that is benchmarked with other non-profit organizations in the Bay Area. Benefits include a competitive suite of medical, dental, and vision plans, up to 3 weeks’ paid vacation plus one week of personal days, plus holiday (11) and sick days (12).
This position is full-time, and you must already be based in or willing to relocate to the San Francisco Bay Area. This position requires at least 3 days per week onsite (ideally 3 days), either in office (Fort Mason) or visiting our employees on location at our incredible park sites (for example, Alcatraz, Muir Woods, and Crissy Field).
The hiring range for this position is an annual salary of $115,000-$125,000 (Grade 21). The final salary within this range will be determined based on relevant experience.
Health and Safety:
It is the goal of the Parks Conservancy to create and maintain a safe and healthy workplace. We work to mitigate hazards and risks that may cause harm to employees, consistent with state and federal laws. Employees play an active role in creating a safe and healthy workplace and are expected to comply with all applicable health and safety rules.
Physical Requirements and Work Environments:
These physical demands are representative of the physical requirements necessary for an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job:
- This position is located at the Parks Conservancy’s headquarters in Fort Mason, San Francisco. Work is performed in an office setting; including a mix of telework and on-site.
- Work is primarily performed sitting and standing. Regularly sits or stands at a desk 6-8 hours per day.
Work requires frequent and regular travel to work locations across the San Francisco Bay Area, including Alcatraz, Muir Woods, Golden Gate Bridge, Lands End, Crissy Field, Presidio, San Mateo and other outdoor worksites.
The Application Process:
The Parks Conservancy has engaged Equitable Hiring Group to support this hiring process. Individuals who apply by January 15, 2025 will be given priority; therefore, we encourage you to submit yours soon!
When you apply, we kindly ask you to remove your schools from your resume. There is no need to reformat your resume and leave your degree as is; simplify it to “B.A. Economics,” for example. Just remember to remove any undergraduate and graduate school name references where possible. This “bias-reduced” process is aimed at opening this opportunity to more candidates, reviewing applicants on performance assessments instead of resume proxies (e.g., where you went to school).
This evaluation process will follow practices shown to reduce bias in decision-making and may be different from other application processes you have experienced.
The overall evaluation process will look to follow this anticipated timeline:
- Late September: Selected candidates asked to complete short answer questionnaire.
- Early October: Video interview with the hiring manager.
- Mid-October: Finalist candidates will be asked to complete a timed, paid, trial assignment.
- Mid-October: Video Panel interview with Parks Conservancy Staff.
- Late October: Finalists will participate in a multi-team member in-person panel interview.
- Candidate references will also be checked at this step.
- Early November: Offer extended.
If you have any questions about the opportunity, please email abe@equitablehiringgroup.com.
The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this classification. They are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified. All employees may be required to perform duties outside of their normal responsibilities from time to time, as needed.
The Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Recruitment, placement, and promotions are conducted without regard to an individual's race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, physical handicap, veteran status or sexual orientation, or any other classification protected by Federal, State, and local laws & ordinances. We will consider qualified candidates with criminal history in a manner consistent with the requirements of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply.
