Consulting Manager - Disaster Management & Recovery

at  EisnerAmper Gulf Coast

EisnerAmper is one of the largest accounting, tax, and business advisory firms, with nearly 4,000 employees and more than 350 partners across the world. We combine responsiveness with a long-range perspective; to help clients meet the pressing issues they face today, and position them for success tomorrow.
Our clients are enterprises as diverse as sophisticated financial institutions and start-ups, global public firms and middle-market companies, as well as high net worth individuals, family offices, not-for-profit organizations, and entrepreneurial ventures across a variety of industries. We are also engaged by the attorneys, financial professionals, bankers and investors who serve these clients.
Our reach extends globally, with offices in the United Kingdom, Israel, India, the Cayman Islands, Singapore, and Ireland.
The Consulting Manager - Disaster Management & Recovery is responsible for various assigned tasks related to client engagement, services, and projects in support of FEMA Public Assistance (PA) programs, Hazard Mitigation grant programs (HMGP) and/or BRIC grant programs, and other department initiatives and strategies.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in Emergency Management, Public Safety, disaster management, accounting, business, public administration, or a related field, or equivalent combination is preferred.
• Project Management Institute’s (PMI) Project Management Professional (PMP) certification, or emergency management Certified Emergency Manager (CEM), or grants management professional certifications preferred.
• 5+ years of advanced experience in FEMA Public Assistance (PA) program, disaster recovery, emergency management, and state, local and/or federal level disaster recovery programs in consulting and advisory services, including 3+ years in a management or supervisor role.
• Experience working on federally funded disaster related projects such as FEMA Public Assistance, FEMA Individual Assistance, Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR), FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, or American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) is preferred.
• Experience managing multiple projects of various sizes, including the development of a project plan, managing a team, and creating and managing project budgets.
• Experience as a PDMG is a plus.
• Experience working on other federally funded disaster related projects such as FEMA HMA (HMGP, BRIC, PDM) is preferred.
• A strong policy background in the FEMA PA Program, including a comprehensive understanding of the Stafford Act, Title 2 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 200, and post-award grant management activities and compliance requirements.
• Knowledge of Hazard Mitigation Programs, especially 406 HMP and 404 HMGP.
• Supervisory experience and a proficiency in project management principles is required.
• Experience executing risk management strategies that ensure continuity of operations and providing guidance to executive stakeholders on claims management following a disaster.
• Strong verbal communication skills, including the ability to present verbally to high-level stakeholders.
• Proven ability to provide excellent customer service and maintain client/professional relationships/partnerships.
• Maintains understanding of applicable FEMA PA policies, requirements, and evaluation protocols and demonstrated knowledge and understanding of FEMA’S response and recovery mission.
• Working knowledge of Grants Manager or Grants Portal.
• Completion of Emergency Management or disaster recovery coursework, such as FEMA Emergency Management Institute (EMI) coursework.
• Proven ability to review and validate project applications, supporting documentation, and inspection reports to ensure completeness, eligibility, and compliance with applicable FEMA policies.
• Benefit Cost Analysis and project closeout experience working with FEMA PA, FEMA HMGP, HUD, or other federal/state programs a plus.
• Critical thinking skills are essential.
• Project management skills with the ability to manage multiple projects and tasks with a strong attention to detail and accuracy.
• Capacity for quickly understanding new concepts, workflows, and systems.
• Excellent interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills.
• Demonstrates a positive attitude and proactive nature.
• Exhibits a high degree of professionalism and maintains the highest level of confidentiality.
• Works in a highly organized manner, independently or within a team, in a fast-paced, innovative, and continuously changing environment with minimal supervision.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Evaluates client needs, recommends project approaches, and understands engagement scope, manages activities for completing work, and assists with oversight of overall quality control of client deliverables.
• Provides advisory and complex problem-solving services to disaster recovery and emergency management clients leveraging experience in disaster recovery programs.
• Serves as a FEMA PA policy subject matter resource providing training and guidance to the team and clients.
• Performs supervisory responsibilities of a team including serving as a performance career coach to staff, provides prompt feedback to Directors, Senior Managers and Partners regarding staff performance, and completes annual staff evaluations.
• Delivers client services, including but not limited to:
• Manage simultaneous development of FEMA PA Project Worksheets for category A-G disaster-related activities including Special Considerations, and FEMA Cost Estimates (CEFs)
• Provide technical cost estimating, and disaster recovery and/or management services while supporting technical professionals
• Participate in damaged site assessments, assisting with writing damage descriptions, scopes of work to repair/replace damaged public infrastructure and develop cost estimates for the federal funding of projects
• Advise clients on FEMA PA policy and documentation requirements
• Review and validate contracts, contractor invoices, payroll and other financial records
• Provide policy guidance expertise for FEMA PA, FHWA ER, FEMA HMGP, HUD CDBG-DR or other grant programs
• Optimize and maintain project records and reports
• Complete tasks on time and within project budgets
• Provide guidance on Section 404 and 406 Hazard Mitigation Programs
• Serve in PDMG role
• Assists the team through all phases of a program including work planning, mobilization, execution, and closeout consistent with established program delivery processes to meet the scope, schedule, budget and other contract requirements.
• Applies technical knowledge of the grant lifecycle from quantification of damages; submission of application; assistance with policies, procedures, processes, or deadlines; understanding of eligibility requirements and allowable costs; maximization of reimbursements of disaster recovery expenses; submission of reimbursement requests and project worksheets; written performance of status reports, closeout activities, communication with reimbursing agencies, and preparation of reporting.
• Assists with client situations; identifies and interprets federal regulations and uses knowledge and experience to determine method of project implementation.
• Actively engages in business development activities such as participating at conferences, responding to request for proposals, including the identification and review of funding opportunities, and development of proposals.
• Leads and participates on proposal writing teams including writing and coordinating submissions.
• Stays abreast of o various local, state, and federal reimbursing agencies.
• Ensures that the scope of work is completed to the satisfaction of the client and key stakeholders, while simultaneously ensuring that quality, financial, risk management, business and policy expectations are met.
• Communicates and works with the team on a variety of issues potentially including progress and status, scope, schedule and budget as well as progress of deliverables, client reviews, technical input, and comment resolution.
• Participates in the collaboration with external agencies, if required, and other stakeholders as needed to enable successful development and implementation of complex project workflow and processes.
• Ensures compliance with applicable policies and procedures, laws and regulations, and keeps current on compliance-related areas.
• Participates in the preparation of deliverables/reports for review by the Senior Manager and/or Director that include any noted issues, trends and other micro/macro level risks identified through the execution of project activities.
• Maintains required CPE hours for firm and licensing standards.

OTHER DUTIES:

• Provides courteous and prompt service to all internal and external parties. Prioritizes and addresses requests and assignments in a professional and cooperative manner.
• Identifies opportunities and recommends methods to improve service, and work processes. Assists in the implementation of quality improvement initiatives.
• May assist co-workers in the completion of tasks and assignments to ensure continuity of service and demonstrating team work skills. Actively supports teamwork throughout the organization.
• Perform other services as assigned.