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This article originally appeared in the March 2014 edition of Fire Engineering magazine.

Why are we here? Why does the fire department exist? What are we trying to achieve each time we show up for our duty shift or are toned out to an emergency? Many fire departments have a mission statement that usually consists of a short explanation of what the department does to protect the life and property of the…

As a fire chief or any organizational leader, you set the tone, the vision and the direction that the organization is going to move in. As the person at the rudder of the ship, it is also necessary for you to recognize when change is necessary, and more importantly how to steer the ship through that change without ending up on the rocks.

Policy, procedure or SOP changes can be written and put into place quite easily,…

     The frustrated members of many fire departments, can often be seen gathering in small groups of like-minded people, discussing why they can’t make any improvements or solve the many problems they see, why their department can’t be progressive, and why their particular organization will never be what they want it to be. They constantly see great ideas in the fire service, best practices that other departments are initiating, leadership in other…

        “An organization’s culture is made up of its folklore, its rituals, its group norms, and its meeting protocols. All of these cultural ingredients influence the organization’s adaptability. The culture of an organization is not usually written down or formally documented, but it still powerfully determines what is considered acceptable and unacceptable behavior” (Heifetz, Grashow, & Linsky, 2009). With fire service culture, you have two choices; you…