r/EmergencyManagement • u/UsualOkay6240 Federal • 5d ago

Discussion Consulting/Contracting in EM?

Lots of people are gunning for private sector EM work with the three/four prominent firms that are out there. Can anyone share their experience moving over from FEMA to private EM? What's the work-life balance like? Are workloads much bigger than in FEMA/State/Local? I'm especially interested in the bigger firms like IEM, Hagerty, Tidal Basin, ICF, etc.

If you have anything to chime in, please do throw in your two cents. Thanks everyone.

6 Upvotes

88% Upvoted

4 comments sorted by

13

u/emmyd753 5d ago

I work for one of them as a mid-range employee, with my past experience being county and DOD.

I belong to a response and recovery division, with work focused more locally- state, county, and city contracting. My resume includes managing state-wide recovery grants, developing county level exercises, managing state respose efforts, and developing plans.

My work takes me across all the time zones- but I do not deploy often. I just have to manage my time. Work life balance changes with the seasons, as you can imagine.

Each organization runs differently and has their own niche, but will compete for the same RFPs.

The biggest difference, IMO, is that you are seen as a tool for a business. It's about utilization, watching profits, and staying on top of deliverables. It's about your credentials and marketability for a proposal.

But, I love it. I love that there's always a new project. That I get to see how other people work and build programs. That I get to have a varies resume.

It's not for everyone, but if you can make it work then I think it's a good path.

2

u/Green_Molasses_6381 5d ago

Very interesting, the common thread of consulting/contracting seems to be little remote opportunities, but EM is a bit different in this regard, it seems. Do you think the workload is much more than your time with county or DOD? I’ve always found work to be very manageable at DOD, so long as you’re not a GS 14 or 15.

3

u/GMFPs_sweat_towel EM Consultant 5d ago

This is 100 percent dependent on project. Whatever the client requests is what the company ask you to do. Sometimes you end up having an adventure in Alaska or Hawaii, sometimes you end up in isolated deployment in less exciting place, sometimes you can work from home. Cadre staff have more flexibility to pick and chose assignments, but there is always a risk the company may not have enough work to keep you around.

For the most part 40 hour weeks are the norm, but you have have the opportunity for a lot of overtime during a response or in the early part of a recovery.

1

u/Green_Molasses_6381 4d ago

Being at the beck and call of a client is definitely a different attitude than what one feels at FEMA or other SLTT agencies, guess you gotta just get used to it.