Lead With Purpose. Serve With Impact.
The City of San Bernardino is seeking a strategic and compassionate leader to help guide one of the region’s fastest-growing municipal animal services departments. This is a unique opportunity to shape policy, strengthen regional partnerships, and elevate lifesaving outcomes in a dynamic and evolving environment.
As a future member of our team, you’ll be joining a city with deep roots, cultural diversity, and exciting momentum. Located in the heart of Southern California’s Inland Empire, San Bernardino is the county seat and largest city in San Bernardino County, home to more than 222,000 residents. Its rich history — shaped by Native American, Mexican, and Spanish influences — continues to inspire the city’s evolving identity.
San Bernardino offers access to major transit corridors, natural beauty, and a wide range of housing and lifestyle options. It’s a place where public service careers are supported by a strong sense of community and purpose — and where motivated professionals can grow, contribute, and be part of something meaningful.
Established as a standalone department in 2019, Animal Services protects public health and safety while providing humane care for lost, abandoned, injured, and seized animals. The Department operates through four divisions: Administration, Field Services, Regional Partnerships, and Shelter Services.
Recent regional expansions have significantly increased the Department’s footprint, positioning San Bernardino as a key leader in regional animal welfare planning, including efforts toward a future replacement shelter facility. The Department is focused on performance improvement, community engagement, and modernizing service delivery.
The Deputy Director of Animal Services serves as second-in-command to the Director and provides executive-level oversight of operations, including field enforcement, shelter services, licensing and compliance, fiscal administration, and regional agreements.
This role is instrumental in advancing strategic priorities, supporting budget oversight, guiding policy development, and leading staff across multiple divisions. The ideal candidate is a collaborative, forward-thinking public sector leader committed to operational excellence and compassionate service.
Challenges & Opportunities
The Deputy Director of Animal Services will step into a Department experiencing significant growth and regional expansion. With the addition of new partner cities, the Department has nearly doubled its service footprint — creating both operational complexity and opportunity for innovation.
Key Challenges And Opportunities Include
- Managing Regional Growth: Strengthening service delivery across multiple jurisdictions while maintaining consistent standards, compliance, and performance outcomes.
- Operational Scaling: Enhancing staffing models, field response capabilities, shelter capacity, and veterinary coordination to meet increasing demand.
- Performance Improvement: Advancing return-to-owner rates, adoption outcomes, licensing compliance, and overall lifesaving goals through data-driven strategies.
- Capital & Strategic Planning: Supporting long-term planning efforts, including future shelter development and nonprofit fundraising initiatives.
- Community Trust & Engagement: Continuing to build strong relationships with residents, partner agencies, volunteers, and advocacy groups in a highly visible service environment.
This is an exciting opportunity for a leader who thrives in a growing organization, values continuous improvement, and is ready to help shape the next chapter of Animal Services in the City of San Bernardino.
The Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate is a strategic, collaborative, and mission-driven public sector leader who brings both operational expertise and a genuine commitment to animal welfare and community service.
This Individual Is
- An Experienced Operational Leader who can manage complex, multi-division service delivery environments, including field enforcement, shelter operations, and regulatory compliance.
- A Skilled Administrator with strong fiscal acumen, experience overseeing budgets and grants, and the ability to align resources with strategic priorities.
- A Regional Partner who can effectively manage interagency agreements and foster strong working relationships across jurisdictions.
- A Data-Driven Decision Maker who uses performance metrics to improve return-to-owner rates, adoption outcomes, licensing compliance, and overall lifesaving goals.
- A Confident Communicator comfortable representing the Department before executive leadership, community groups, partner agencies, and in high-visibility situations.
- A Balanced Leader who understands the intersection of public safety, enforcement, community expectations, and compassionate animal care.
The successful candidate will demonstrate sound judgment, political awareness, emotional intelligence, and the ability to lead through growth and organizational evolution while maintaining the highest standards of integrity and professionalism.
For more information on this position please
click here to view the job description.
Education and Experience:
Graduation from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor's degree in social science, behavioral science, public or business administration, animal husbandry, biological science, or closely related field; AND four (4) years of progressively responsible experience in field and investigations programs or shelter and veterinary services, with at least two (2) years in a management capacity, or an equivalent combination of training and experience.
Licenses, Certifications, And Equipment
A valid California driver's license at the time of appointment, and the ability to maintain insurability under the City's vehicle insurance program may be required for certain assignments.
Knowledge Of
- Principles and practices of public administration, including budgeting, purchasing, contract administration, strategic planning, maintenance of public records and customer satisfaction.
- Financial procedures and regulations including those related to federal and/or state grant programs, governmental fund management, and sources of funding for meeting animal services program and service delivery needs.
- Field enforcement, medical procedures, shelter maintenance, operations and departmental administration.
- Federal, state and local laws, regulations and court decisions applicable to assigned areas of responsibility including licensing, animal welfare, health and safety.
- Principals of animal behavior and care; occupational hazards and standard safety practices necessary in animal services.
- Organization, functions, legal requirements, and practices of the City Council, and other boards/committees/working groups.
- Computer software applications related to licensing, billing and administrative functions.
- Research methods and analysis techniques.
- Principles and practices of effective management and supervision.
- City human resources policies and procedures, personnel rules, and labor contract provisions.
Ability To
- Evaluate department programs and services and makes changes or recommendations for improvement and develop budgets that maximize available resources for optimal outcomes.
- Communicate effectively orally and in writing to diverse audiences; present ideas and concepts persuasively in speaking before groups or in writing for publication.
- Prepare clear, concise, and comprehensive correspondence, reports, studies and other written materials.
- Exercise tact and diplomacy in dealing with sensitive and complex issues and situations; effectively represent the City in negotiations and other activities on a variety of difficult, complex, sensitive and confidential issues.
- Understand, interpret, explain and apply federal, state and local policies, laws, regulations, and court decisions applicable to areas of responsibility.
- Exercise sound, expert independent judgement within general policy guidelines.
- Establish and maintain effective and collaborative working relationships with others.
- Supervise, evaluate, motivate, coach, mentor, and develop assigned staff.
- Establish and maintain collegial working relationships with the City Manager, City Council, City Staff, volunteers, interest groups, the community at large, regulatory and other governmental agencies, granting organizations, media, and others encountered in the course of work.
- Deal constructively with conflict and develop effective resolutions.
- Maintain the highest standards of integrity and professional ethics in complex dealings with diverse stakeholders.
Recruitment Timeline
First Application Review Deadline: Sunday, March 22, 2026, at 11:59pm
First Interview: Week of March 30, 2026, or agreed upon date by both HR recruiter & Dept
(TENTATIVE)
Department Interview: Week of April 3, 2026, or agreed upon date by both HR recruiter & Dept
(TENTATIVE)
- All dates are subject to change at the discretion of the personnel officer**
All applicants are required to submit an online application through the City’s official website at www.sbcity.org.
This recruitment will remain open until filled or until a sufficient number of qualified applications have been received.
Applications must be fully completed and clearly demonstrate that the minimum qualifications for the position are met. All information provided is subject to review, investigation, and verification. While resumes may be uploaded as supplemental documentation, they will not be accepted in place of a fully completed City application.
Following the initial screening, the most qualified candidates whose backgrounds best match the needs of the City will be invited to continue in the selection process. Meeting the minimum qualifications does not guarantee advancement. Candidates will remain under consideration until a final selection is made and an offer is accepted. The City of San Bernardino reserves the right to close the recruitment at any time and may determine that none of the applicants, including those who meet the minimum qualifications, are suitable for the position.
Successful Candidates Shall Be Required To
- Pass a reference and background verification. References will not be contacted until mutual interest has been established.
- Degree verification
- Pass a pre-employment medical exam, which includes a Drug screen.
- Starting salary based on education and/or experience and internal equity.
E-Verify Participation
The City of San Bernardino participates in the E-Verify program. In compliance with federal law, all employers are required to verify the identity and employment eligibility of individuals hired to work in the United States.
Accordingly, the City will provide information from each new employee’s Form I-9 to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration to confirm authorization to work in the United States.
For more information about E-Verify, please visit the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website at www.uscis.gov
Disclaimers
The City of San Bernardino is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. The City follows a nepotism policy, which may impact hiring decisions if an applicant has relatives currently employed by the City.
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the City provides reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities. Each request is evaluated on a case-by-case basis. To request an accommodation, please contact the Human Resources Department directly at (909) 998-2060.
This bulletin is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute a contract, expressed or implied. Its contents may be modified or withdrawn without prior notice.
For questions regarding this recruitment, contact Human Resources at 909-998-2060 or email Lizette Fernandez at Fernandez_Li@sbcity.org.
