Fire Data Communications Specialist

Description

What We Offer
The County of Ventura offers an attractive compensation and benefits package. Aside from our base salary range, an employee with this position will also be eligible for the following:

• A general salary increase (GSI) of 3.5% effective January 19, 2025.
• Educational Incentive - An educational incentive of 2.5% for completion of an associate degree, 3.5% for completion of a bachelor’s degree, OR 5% for completion of a graduate’s degree.
• Flexible Workweek - A compressed work schedule (e.g., 9/80 workweek) may be available for some positions.
• Vacation Accrual - New regular, full-time employees shall accrue approximately 14 days of vacation a year for the first 10,400 hours or 5 years of service; vacation accruals increase at 5, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 20 years of service topping out at 26 days a year and 400 hours of vacation hours banked.
• Vacation Leave Redemption - After 14,560 hours of continuous County service an employee may elect to "cash in" or redeem up to 80 hours of vacation accrued in the same year after using 80 hours of vacation in the preceding 12 months.
• Sick Leave - Full time regular employees accrue 3.08 hours of sick leave per pay period with an advance at hire of 40.04 hours which will be balanced at the completion of 13 bi-weekly pay periods.
• Health Plans - You are afforded an annual flexible credit allowance for purchasing medical, dental, and/or vision insurance from a group of authorized plans.
• Flexible Spending Accounts - Pre-tax benefit towards eligible medical, dental and vision care expenses.
• Pension Plan - Participation in County’s defined benefit pension plan, which has reciprocity with CalPERS.
• Holidays - 12 paid days per year which includes a scheduled floating holiday.
• Additional Benefits - Tuition Reimbursement, Disability Plans, Employee Assistance Program, Life Insurance, Wellness Program.

The Position
Under general direction , provides professional, timely, and reliable service, ensuring that the voice and data for all VCFD emergency communication systems are working properly. Acts as liaison between the customer and the vendors to ensure VCFD receives adequate and proper equipment and services from manufacturers and service providers. Directs and manages expansive upgrades and replacements to VCFD’s current systems while providing design recommendations for future systems.

The successful candidate will have expert-level telecommunication systems knowledge and skills. They will serve as the technical engineering resource for the team and may lead the work of other professionals or technical maintenance staff. This position requires substantial experience with telecommunications equipment and related networks.

The Data Communications Specialist is represented by the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) and is eligible for overtime compensation.

The eligible list established from this recruitment may be used to fill current and future Regular (including Temporary and Fixed-Term) vacancies for this position or similar positions only. There is currently one (1) Regular vacancy within the Fire Protection District.

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
OPENING DATE: Tuesday, August 13, 2024
CLOSING DATE: Continuous and may close at any time; therefore, the schedule for the remainder of the process will depend upon when we receive a sufficient number of qualified applications to meet the business needs.

Examples Of Duties

Duties may include but are not limited to the following:

• Supports countywide Public Safety Radio Network (PSRN) and conducts traffic analysis and capacity planning for county-wide microwave back-haul infrastructure; services and supports county-wide simulcast radio system, radio dispatch consoles at Fire Communication Center (FCC), base station radios and receivers at multiple sites.
• May act as a consultant on IT projects and in systems design as a Telecommunications Subject Matter Expert (SME). Assumes project management responsibilities as required to support extended projects, or projects requiring vendor/employee/contractor resources, to complete assigned projects.
• Conducts research and development in support of IT projects utilizing extensive industry experience and technical expertise, including identifying radio, emergency telephone, and microwave communications system enhancements, develops and delivers technical solutions to rectify on-going system issues, problems, and deficiencies.
• Supports E9-1-1 and NG9-1-1 telecommunications system. Services and supports all analog and digital circuits; conducts traffic analysis and capacity planning for analog and digital circuits. Services and supports Fire Communications Center (FCC) Viper Call-Taking system, including eighteen (18) operation positions.
• Supports various telecommunication interfaces to the Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD). Services and supports Fire Station alerting system, including interfaces, encoder equipment, and decoder equipment located at 47 Fire Stations.
• Support numerous backup systems to ensure Continuity of Operations Programs (COOP). Services and supports the Backup Dispatch Center (BDC), including the radio dispatch consoles, geo-redundant Viper Call-Taking System that includes eight (8) operation positions. Services and supports County-wide stand-alone back-up radio system located at FCC, BDC, and various remote radio sites.
• May be directed to provide functional supervision of peers, technical maintenance staff, and/or contractors/vendors.
• Prepares and presents status reports, informational briefings and/or other verbal or written material on assigned projects.
• Other related duties as required.

Typical Qualifications

These are entrance requirements to the examination process and assure neither continuance in the process nor placement on an eligible list.

EDUCATION, TRAINING, AND EXPERIENCE:
Extensive professional-level local and wide area network communications experience, including design, engineering, installation practices, and maintenance, which demonstrates competency in requisite knowledge and abilities.

NECESSARY SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Ability to obtain and maintain a valid California driver's license
• Experience with computer-aided dispatch (CAD) systems, geographic information systems (GIS), and other emergency management software
• Must obtain a General Radiotelephone Operator License (GROL) and a radio tower climbing certificate within six (6) months of employment

DESIRED:

• Experience with a public safety or emergency services environment, such as dispatch, law enforcement, fire services, or EMS.
  

SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION:

• Network support efforts may require working in confined spaces, lifting equipment weighing up to 40 pounds; involve the full range of body movement including reaching, bending, grasping and climbing; requires color recognition and identification.
• Work may involve travel throughout the county and may involve outdoor activity in all types of weather conditions and may include the need to work outside of normal business hours.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, & ABILITIES
Thorough knowledge of:

• the practices related to data communications network design;
• functions of ‘state of the art’ local and wide area networks and component equipment;
• analytic techniques utilized in network design and support as well as project management.
• the uses and limitations of communications equipment in a public safety environment;
• the application of RF propagation theory;
• analyzing, designing, installing, establishing, and maintaining complex telecommunication solutions.

Comprehensive ability to:

• understand and work with blueprints and other design documents, and maintain accurate records of work performed;
• establish and maintain cooperative working relationships;
• effectively establish contingency plans;
• communicate effectively both verbally and in writing;
• demonstrate tact and diplomacy;
• research regulations and/or technical reference materials;
• plan, organize, and supervise the work of others;
• analyze situations accurately, exercise sound judgment and decision-making, and adopt an effective course of action;
• maintain confidentiality of information.

Recruitment Process

FINAL FILING DATE: This is a continuous recruitment and may close at any time; therefore, apply as soon as possible if you are interested in it. Your application must be received by County of Ventura Human Resources in Ventura, California, no later than 5:00 p.m. on the closing date.

To apply online, please refer to our website at www.ventura.org/jobs. If you prefer to fill out a paper application form, please call (805) 654-5129 for application materials and submit them to County of Ventura Human Resources, 800 South Victoria Avenue, L-1970, Ventura, CA 93009.

Applicants must provide sufficient information under the Education/Work Experience portion of the application and supplemental questionnaire in order to determine eligibility. A resume may be attached to supplement your responses in the above-referenced sections; however, it may not be submitted in lieu of the application.

SUPPLEMENTAL QUESTIONNAIRE - qualifying: All applicants are required to complete and submit the questionnaire for this examination AT THE TIME OF FILING. The supplemental questionnaire may be used throughout the examination process to assist in determining each applicant's qualifications and acceptability for the position. Failure to complete and submit the questionnaire will result in the application being removed from consideration.

APPLICATION EVALUATION - qualifying: All applications will be reviewed to determine whether or not the stated requirements are met. Those individuals meeting the stated requirements will be invited to continue through the screening and selection process.

TRAINING & EXPERIENCE EVALUATION - A Training and Experience Evaluation (T&E) is a structured evaluation of the job application materials submitted by a candidate, including the written responses to the supplemental questionnaire. The T&E is NOT a determination of whether the candidate meets the stated requirements; rather, the T&E is one method for determining who are the better qualified among those who have shown that they meet the stated requirements. In a T&E, applications are either scored or rank ordered according to criteria that most closely meet the business needs of the department. Candidates are typically scored/ranked in relation to one another; consequently, when the pool of candidates is exceptionally strong, many qualified candidates may receive a score or rank which is moderate or even low resulting in them not being advanced in the process.

ORAL EXAMINATION - 100%: A job-related oral examination will be conducted to evaluate and compare participating candidates' knowledge, skills, and abilities in relation to those factors which job analysis has determined to be essential for successful performance of the job. Candidates must earn a score of seventy percent (70%) or higher to qualify for placement on the eligible list.

NOTE: The selection process will likely consist of an Oral Exam, which may be preceded or replaced with the score from a Training and Experience Evaluation (T&E), contingent upon the size and quality of the candidate pool. In a typical T&E, your training and experience are evaluated in relation to the background, experience and factors identified for successful job performance during a job analysis. For this reason, it is recommended that your application materials clearly show your relevant background and specialized knowledge, skills, and abilities. It is also highly recommended that the supplemental questions within the application are completed with care and diligence. Responses such as “See Resume” or “Refer to Resume” are not acceptable and may disqualify an applicant from further evaluation.

If there are three (3) or fewer qualified applicants, a T&E or an Oral Examination will not be conducted. Instead, a score of seventy percent (70%) will be assigned to each application, and each applicant will be placed on the eligible list.

Candidates successfully completing the examination process may be placed on an eligible list for a period of one (1) year.

BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION: A thorough pre-employment, post offer background investigation which may include inquiry into past employment, education, criminal background information, and driving record may be required for this position.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY
The County of Ventura is an equal opportunity employer to all, regardless of age, ancestry, color, disability (mental and physical), exercising the right to family care and medical leave, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religious creed, sex (includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and related medical conditions), and sexual orientation.

For further information regarding this recruitment, please, contact Denise Carrizosa by email at Denise.Carrizosa@ventura.org or by telephone at 805-389-9793.

YOUR BENEFITS AS A COUNTY OF VENTURA EMPLOYEE

International Union of Operating Engineers

(LOCAL 501, IUOE)

To learn more about Benefits, Retirement, and the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), see links below.

• Benefits website or you may call (805) 654-2570.
• Retirement FAQ's
• Memorandum of Agreement

Union Code: EOS

Closing Date/Time: Continuous

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• County of Ventura

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