I’ve had two conversations recently that bear repeating. The first conversation was a formal interview with Mark McMullen, a senior economist for Moody’s Economy.com. McMullen’s area of expertise is government finance. I first interviewed him nearly a year ago when it seemed obvious that the economy hadn’t merely stumbled but was in recession. The U.S. housing market was in bad shape, driving down home prices. It was a troubling sign for fire departments that depend on property-tax revenue.

We didn’t realize just how deep the problem ran, but we’d soon find out. The number of foreclosures on homes bought with sub-prime loans indicated that lending institutions were in for tough times. Fuel prices were at record highs and several fire departments started cost-saving measures in anticipation of budget cuts or cost overruns. Then, of course, giant financial institutions toppled, banks became squeamish about lending to each other and almost anyone else, job losses ballooned, prices started on a dangerous deflationary path, and people on Wall Street and Main Street held tight to the money they had.

Early this year, McMullen said that one warning sign that fire chiefs should look for that the economy is worsening is a sharp fall in retail sales. That’s because it would be a double gut punch of lower property taxes and lower sales taxes. That, of course, happened and many municipalities are doubled over with the wind knocked out of their budgets.

My most recent interview with McMullen appears on page 88 of FIRE CHIEF’s December issue; a longer version of the interview will be posted later this month at firechief.com. He says the economy is now worse than most experts expected. Most fire departments already feel the pinch, some through staff reductions. McMullen expects the economy to bottom out in the second half of 2009. Recovery, he says, will be slow.

Here’s what struck me: In both interviews, McMullen said that fire departments are in a better position than school districts when it comes to competing for public money. He reasons that because there are fewer children in K-12 schools, there is less demand for building new schools. That, he further reasons, should free up money for fire departments. Departments, he said, should be in position to get a bigger chunk of the pie, albeit from a smaller pie.

The second conversation I had was with a progressive fire chief of a medium-size department. His city administrator asked how much the chief could trim from his budget. He told the administrator that he could cut as much as he liked. The only thing the chief needed to know was how much risk the administrator was comfortable accepting. In other words, what number of civilian deaths from fire or other emergencies could the administrator live with?

For his part, McMullen takes measurable facts and applies reason to understand a present condition and predict future conditions (fewer children need fewer school space, freeing more money for fire departments).

But public servants’ decisions, especially spending decisions, often are based on factors outside cold analysis and logic. And beyond political pressures, there is tremendous economic pressure right now to make deep budget cuts. Recent data from the National Conference of State Legislators shows that, collectively, state governments need an extra $100 billion to break even over the next 18 to 24 months.

It may be that federal money will bail out the states and that the states will funnel that money to municipalities and counties. Even so, chiefs will face a tough battle to hang on to the money they need. At the least, it will take combining cold facts with an emotional appeal, as did the chief I spoke with, to get the attention of those holding the purse strings.

The conversation between the chief and his administrator did not end in enlightened resolution. And I suspect those two will be having that same conversation several more times in the coming months. I also suspect many other fire chiefs are having similar conversations with their administrators.

If you are a chief and have not shaped your argument against extreme budget cuts, you need to do so. If you’ve had success in the budget process, please share your strategies with others in the comment section below. (Please log in or create an account to leave a comment.)

By Rob Carnahan

“You always get what you always got if you always do what you always did.” That statement is somewhat aligned with the infamous description of fire service culture being 200 years of tradition unhampered by progress. This is an indictment leveled at the fire service’s resistance to implementing techniques, practices and technologies proven in other professions and sectors.

Many reasons and justifications are given for not adapting or adopting the next best idea. Some have merit, as the fire service deals in life and death situations where proven and tested strategies need to be used. However many are just excuses for a risk-adverse nature.

Risk-adverse fire service may seem like an oxymoron, but many who have tried to promote change in this industry have seen bruises from their noble quest. It is often easier to just say no and wait for another to be the first to adopt or adapt.

Chief Ronny Coleman has aptly described U.S. fire service purchasing and operational-cultural habits in a manner that underscores the reluctance to adopt and adapt. Coleman’s thesis is that there are really few early adapter/adopters in the fire service. We tend to wait for sufficient “cover” before adopting/adapting new technology. However once a certain number of fire departments have adopted/adapted the “new” technology, it moves from being a nice to have to a got to have. At this points fire personnel assert that there is simply no way they can do their jobs without the goods or services proposed.

Coleman’s phases of adoption include:

1. 1] This will never work and if it did it will be way to expensive.
   
2. 2] It may work but we can’t afford it.
   
3. 3] It not only works, but we absolutely have to have it to do our jobs.
   

Academia describes this phenomena according to it’s people:

1. 1] Resistors to change.
   
2. 2] Late adopters.
   
3. 3] Mainstream.
   

Coleman’s manner of thinking is illustrated in the way he conducts his personal and professional endeavors which has inspired many in numerous professions. If there is a road less traveled in the fire service, you will find him on it. His influence on the mainstream is profound. His recognition and early exploration of technology enterprises from outside the confines of the fire service have fundamentally changed all of the above categories within the profession.

The enthusiasm of the early adopter/adapters allows them to see beyond the battles on the road to the main stream. For example Coleman’s recognition and early exploration of using virtual reality simulation as an instructional resource led to its use in the fire service. His work at pioneering fire inspection training techniques using simulation, led to development of the software program FIRES.

The FIRES product led to development of “Fully Involved,” which is the company officer critical decision-making training software distributed by Western Fire Chiefs Association. At the time essentially every other profession was using virtual reality simulation technology for certification and training purposes, but not the fire service. This was due in part to the aforementioned thought that it would never work and if it did it would be too expensive.

It is now a no brainer that the current generation comprising most ranks in the fire service, learn differently that the retiring baby boomers, but Coleman did something about it when others were stuck in the “this will never work and if it does we can’t afford it” phases.

In the fire-prevention arena, public education has relied on retiring technology as well. Puppet shows, fire-prevention trailers, the mainstream fire prevention programs, have pretty much stayed the same over the years. Slide Tape shows have been upgraded to computer generated PowerPoint presentation and the use of overhead projectors and transparencies is something that is read about in history books but by-in-large the curriculum available to the fire service public-education professionals is not state of the art in learning technology, either in content of in format. For instance it is unheard of in the fire service for a fire chief to hire professional gamers to spend their work day in a virtual world playing games with children whom they will never meet. Yet in just one kid’s safe virtual world four million kids frequently visit and interact with other avatars, created by kids, exposing themselves to all sorts of life enhancing, social redeeming content, and age relevant safety learning experiences. Just as learning styles of adults have changed in the past few years so has that of children even more dramatically, and the fire service must adopt and adapt to remain competitive if we are to significantly change behavior as it relates to fire safe practices of our most valued resources.

The digital generation, as educational professional call today’s elementary age children, will require a completely new educational paradigm revolution not the just an evolution as we have seen with past generations. The fire service can ill afford to lag behind in adapting learning content to the emerging media or an entire generation will not fully grasp the important fire and life safety survival messages that we have presented in the past. Although it is a few years off the digital generation will soon be those we are recruiting as the nation’s paramedics and firefighters.

The Alaska Department of Public Safety Fire Marshal’s office under former Fire Marshal Gary Powell and his deputy Jodie Hettrick, piloted a multi-year project to develop and implement a virtual world to teach fire and life safety to Alaskan rural children. This is truly revolutionary thinking for fire prevention. With funding from the FIRE Act, Raven Island, was created in the virtual world called Whyville. The technology used by Raven Island makes it possible to reach rural Alaskan’s as easy as it is to reach kids in Anchorage or Alabama with life saving knowledge and skills heretofore taught using the conventional poster, coloring contests and puppet shows. The technology is proven logistically as well educationally, and its ability to change attitudes and behavior is unprecedented. Visiting and learning in Raven Island is free to anyone who can access the Internet.

Alaska was a natural for such an endeavor, since its native children population is up to five times more likely to die or suffer injury from fire related causes than any other U.S. population group. Secondly the rural nature of Alaska’s villages and communities with their Internet access second to none made connecting much easier.

For the most part public educators in the fire service are on the leading edge as early adopter/adapters. They have often pushed the envelope of acceptable practices much to the chagrin of busy fire chiefs. It can be anticipated that fire service public educators will begin approaching chiefs suggesting that their fire prevention personnel not only be allowed to spend time in virtual worlds and other serious gaming environments to reach children to promote fire safety, but be encouraged to do so by their chief. Millions of children, tweens, teens and adults are online in gaming environment as you are reading this article. The digital generation will not only expect but will demand digital technology tools to help them do their jobs. Coleman’s example of early adopting and adaption of digital technologies for the fire service could easily be the justification for fire chiefs to say yes for using the tools new to our industry. At the very least we must remember that if we are to see attitudinal changes to fire injury and deaths in the United States, we need to do things differently than we have done them in the past.

Remember Albert Einstein described insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Rob Carnahan, CFO, is the former president of the National Society of Executive Fire Officers and the retired assistant fire chief of the Clackamas County (Ore.) Fire District. He previously serves as chief of Clackamas County Fire District No. 54. He is a graduate of the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program and of Portland State University. He has also chaired the Oregon State Board on Public Safety Standards and Training and served as an adjunct faculty member at Western Oregon University. Carnahan is a founding partner of Compelling Technologies Inc., a software developer. He has also worked as the fire program specialist for the Department of Homeland Security.

One of the more reprehensible things I’ve seen in recent years has been the damage done to chief officers’ reputations by accusations from anonymous sources. These accusations have been sent to commissioners or administrators via letter or e-mail or through strategically placed rumors, and in at least two instances have marred very innovative chiefs with unfounded allegations against their character. In both of these cases, the chiefs turned marginal departments into progressive organizations, cutting dead wood as they evolved. While difficult to prove, these anonymous character assassinations seemed to follow instances where individuals were passed over or demoted for their failure to perform.

In one instance where the wrongly accused chief decided to leave because of the lack of support he received from his commissioners, the fire district he oversaw reverted back into the two departments he had help consolidate. It has been several years since his decision to leave, and while one of the departments continued to progress under strong leadership, the other has struggled just to provide day-to-day operations and has had two catastrophic meltdowns following major fires in past years.

In the most recent example of this type of adversity, a chief held on long enough to retire, leaving a legacy within his department of two new stations, a complete turnover of the fire and EMS fleet, a significant decrease in his district’s response time, a set of written SOGs, as well as inspection and public-education programs that enhanced both citizen and firefighter safety. Unfortunately, he may not be remembered for all the progress he brought to his community, but rather for the unfounded accusations against him. Since his retirement, my friend has diligently sought another career in the fire service. He has hit these allegations head on by openly discussing them with potential employers and sharing copies of the two reports that exonerate him of all the alleged charges.

What has kept my friend going is the support he has received from within his network of fellow chiefs. Early on, he made it a point to reach out to a select circle of close friends for advice and fortunately for him has received continued support and strength through this process. What I have learned is that despite the efforts of two of the finest chiefs I’ve known, sometimes the dark side of human nature turns those we are compelled to discipline into cowardly, vindictive individuals bent only on the destruction of our best and brightest.

Occasionally I remind myself that leadership requires understanding of why we have adversity and opposition to our vision. The truth is that the greater a leader’s accomplishments, the greater the opposition or discouragement an adversary will attempt to throw at your plans. Their objective is to derail the progress or bring the chief down to their level. The trick is to expect and even anticipate this adversity and know that it is a sign that you as chief are actually doing the right thing for your organization. The best way both my friends and I have found in difficult situations is to surround ourselves with a network of true professionals whom we can call upon for frank, honest advice, and then carry through with our ideas while maintaining our professionalism and integrity.

The economy is on everybody’s mind these days, and it was apparent earlier this month at the annual meeting of the Fire and Emergency Manufacturers and Services Association and the Fire Apparatus Manufacturers Association. Every year is a new battle for federal funds, with $565 million is appropriated for 2009 FIRE Grants and $210 million for SAFER Grants. And with the new ‘b’ word (billions) flying around Washington, D.C., will future dollars be even harder to come by?

Congressional Fire Services Institute Executive Director Bill Webb posed a series of questions to FAMA/FEMSA members. These questions, according to Webb, are ones Congressional leaders and their staffers frequently ask, ones that both industry manufacturers and emergency responders need to be prepared to answer.

1. How would you define the role of today’s fire and emergency services?
   
2. What information do you have that illustrates the success of the FIRE Act?
   
3. Why the need for greater federal support?
   

How would you respond if a Congressional leader asked you these questions?

The FEMSA/FAMA meeting also featured a buyers’ roundtable moderated by retired Chief Dennis Compton. Manufacturers and distributors had the opportunity to ask panelists questions about purchasing practices from an assortment of departments from New Jersey to California and Ontario to Texas.

Jeff Piechura, chief of the Northwest Fire District in Arizona, told the attendees that, “Fire districts have a different problem with the economy. Foreclosures mean people don’t pay taxes.” He is predicting a $3 million decrease in his department’s budget because of foreclosures in his district.

Asst. Chief Don Frazeur, of the Los Angeles City Fire Department, said his department’s fiscal year is July to June, and the mayor asked for a $50 million dollar budget reduction by scrapping one full year of apparatus funding.

Bill Bjerke, physical resources supervisor for Peoria, Ariz., said that building permits have dropped off and there are a lot of open positions in the department that have not been filled. “We’re trying to cut back to our core services,” he said. “[We’re] going back to a more simple truck, much more durable and less maintenance.”

Fort Worth (Texas) Fire Department Capt. Homer Robertson told the meeting attendees, “Everyone of our products in our department has one of your faces attached to it. Relationships are very important in our department.”

Each panel member gave a final comment to end the roundtable. Robertson told the manufacturers, “The theme of trying to keep it simple is important. To have my business you don’t have to have something new each year. When you find something that works, you don’t have to change it just to change. Keeping it simple is pretty good thing for us today.”

Compton pointed out that although panel members agreed that committees do the research on specification and purchases, “Four out of six panelists stated their fire chief has the final say in a purchase.” Compton also told attendees, “You’ve got to produce reliable products. There’s only one way to build relationships and that’s to build mutual trust. Relationships are critical, and building trust and respect should be [your] passions.”

By Dennis Compton

For much of the country, the current economic environment has resulted in decreased revenue at all levels of government, including local fire departments. This puts elected officials, administrators and fire chiefs in very difficult decision-making dilemmas. Fire departments aren’t immune budget reductions. Still, elected officials are sensitive to reducing the levels of public safety in the eyes of their constituents.

Although in some of the hardest hit areas in the nation, stations are being closed and firefighter positions eliminated, in most cases, fire chiefs are being instructed to identify “non-essential” line services that can be reduced, as well as staff support areas where savings can be realized. This always puts important services such as training, fire prevention, fire and life-safety education, maintenance, clerical support, and the like in jeopardy — and this is difficult for all involved. It can result in anxiety and reduced morale throughout the organization.

How we communicate with decision-makers about our programs and services in good times can impact decisions they make in times of fiscal difficulty. Also, the manner in which we conduct ourselves within our organizations can have a significant positive or negative impact on the programs we’re responsible for. As an example, fire and life safety public education is one of the major line fire department services provided to the public — and it should always be communicated and represented as such. It is a long-term ongoing component of our public safety infrastructure and it saves lives and property. People are given information and taught skills and behaviors that will prevent fires and other life-threatening emergencies. Without delivering this program effectively, the level of public safety is reduced.

We know this to be true, but do we communicate it accurately and regularly to policy-makers during good times? Do we invite policy-makers to participate in events designed to bring public recognition to these programs? Do we develop and conduct fire and life safety programs in a way that brings ownership and credit to policy-makers, opinion leaders, and the general membership of the fire department? Do we always conduct ourselves in a way that brings credibility and a sense of pride to the programs we are responsible for, or do programs get a bad rap within the organization because of inappropriate conduct by the person(s) responsible for them? We don’t usually control the final budget decisions made during difficult financial times, but we can do things during good times to make those decisions as difficult and painful as possible for the decision-makers because of their positive relationship with the programs and with the people responsible for delivering them.

When budgets are being reduced in fire departments it is difficult for the entire organization. We do all we can to justify not reducing our service levels and resources. It is painful and stressful to dismantle portions of programs we have pride in…and even more painful to see co-workers be reassigned or lose their jobs. Whether you’re the fire chief or a public educator caught-up in this, it’s very difficult to look beyond what is happening today and begin envisioning a better situation when the fiscal climate turns around, but that’s what we have to do — as soon as we can.

The bad times I’ve been responsible for managing through have never been a one-year problem. They are usually at least three years in duration. Experts say this current downturn could last up to five years. This reality helped me be more strategic in the reductions we made the first, second, and third years. It also helped others feel that the ship (although in difficulty) still had a rudder and a direction…and that is absolutely critical.

Bad financial times can also lead to a feeling of hopelessness and helplessness because there’s no money to buy, enhance, build, or add much of anything that’s not critical. To prevent these organizational (and personal) doldrums, this can be an opportunity to strengthen the organization internally. Revising standard operating procedures that are outdated, improving training, enhancing internal communications and relations, fine-tuning programs, and even beginning to plan better overall can get attention that in good times they may not get. None of these cost very much money, if any.

The idea is to keep yourself and the people you’re responsible for moving forward. Stay as positive, productive and healthy as possible for your own benefit, for the benefit of others in the organization, and for the effectiveness of the mission. It might even help to refocus yourself a little more towards the aspects of your work and personal life that you have more control over and that tend to bring you joy.

There isn’t a magic bullet to get us through stressful, hurtful, and challenging times. From the standpoint of budget reductions, a few helpful concepts include:

• Take full advantage of good financial times because they set the stage for decisions made in difficult financial times.
  
• Do the best you can to represent the needs you have for resources to carry-out and support your programs.
  
• Always be on the lookout for alternative revenue sources, including enterprise funds where appropriate.
  
• Never forget how important you are to the safety of your community. As fire and life-safety educators, you add knowledge, change behavior, and help individuals act out their roles as members of society in preventing harm to themselves and others.
  

Chief Dennis Compton is a well-known speaker and the author of several books including When In Doubt, Lead!, Mental Aspects of Performance for Firefighters and Fire Officers, as well as many other articles and publications. He is also the co-editor of the current edition of the ICMA’s textbook, Managing Fire and Rescue Services. Compton served as the fire chief in Mesa, Ariz., for five years and as assistant fire chief in Phoenix, where he served for 27 years. He is currently the chairman of the Home Safety Council board of directors and of the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation board of directors and serves in leadership positions with several other national fire service organizations.

By Larry Rude

Each and every one of us in the fire service has the opportunity to make a difference in a very special way. On Sept. 21, code officials from the fire and building services came together in Minneapolis to make history. Almost 2,200 gathered to vote on a series of building and fire codes requiring sprinklers in newly constructed one- and two-family homes.

As a chief officer, I have been beating my drum across the country for years, explaining to people how fire sprinklers save lives. These words have been met with mixed response. Some say, “Show me the proof.” Others say, “It is too darned expensive to put fire sprinklers in a home. Builders can’t afford it and the customer will never pay the price.” I even hear, “What about the water damage? My insurance company will never pay to replace everything lost by water damage.”

Hollywood has done more to suppress the existence of home sprinkler systems then any one single industry. I sat in my living room last week and watched one of those action-packed movies. The hero, while trying to get away from his captors and save the heroine, inadvertently set off every sprinkler in the entire building. I am sure you have seen this movie and shook your head as I did. My neighbor and his wife were watching with me, and he jumped up and asked, “Is that going to happen to my house when the sprinklers go off?”

Thanks a lot, John McLane!

After three more cocktails and about an hour of explanation on fire suppression systems, my neighbor went home happy and feeling safe.

We, as fire chiefs, are also code officials. Fifty states across the county have adopted the International Family of Codes. This organization produces 15 codes designed to provide safety in our built environment. Most of you are familiar with the International Building and Fire Code, but you may not know about the International Residential Code, the International Plumbing Code, the International Mechanical Code, or many others.

Chiefs and firefighters have an opportunity that many never experience, nor even understand — and that is the ability to change or even modify existing codes, as well as add new codes to these documents. It is a shame we in the fire service are not taking more advantage of this tremendous democratic process. This process is making a difference by improving safety for everyone, including firefighters.

As a young firefighter, I didn’t truly understand the reasoning behind company-level fire inspection. All I knew was that it allowed us into the building to get a lay of the land. Fortunately I didn’t just follow directions without understanding, but asked questions. My chief, who was very involved and instrumental in the code process, took me under his wing. Now, many years later, I am testifying before industry, members of congress and code officials from every corner of the US, maintaining safety in our built environment. I find myself sharing the same views given to me with young officers and firefighters as they ask the same question, “why?”

All fire service members, including chief officers, must take a look at these opportunities and get involved with the ICC. We must be involved if we want our voices heard. Building officials have been doing this for years. As a chief, I speak about succession planning and what will happen when we old dogs leave the fire service. Well my friends, it is happening today faster than you may realize. I know of a number of fire departments that are doing away with their company level inspections. Some have cut out fire prevention activities and turned the fire code enforcement over to someone else. How do we in the fire service educate our people to take our place if we do not give them the tools and opportunities? There is no better place to develop leadership skills and prepare for executive positions than in the code development process.

Are you a Fire Chief that feels fire prevention is at the bottom of your budget line item account, and the first program that will be cut when money gets tight? Unfortunately, most of us do not keep statistics that show how many fires, deaths or injuries we have prevented just by adopting codes and standards.

Thirty years ago, I heard firefighters say, “I did not take this job to be an EMT.” Times have changed, and fire firevention and code enforcement is just another leadership path we can share with our upcoming leaders. It is all about choices for the future. If you do not make the choice, other code officials will make it for you. I cannot emphasize this strongly enough — the building and fire codes protect our members and we must stay active and participate in the code development process, and not just on single issues.

We would not ask our dentist to tune up our car or our doctor to design our fire station. So why would we let industry develop our fire codes? What legacies will you leaving behind? You have the ability to make a difference, when opportunity knocks you either listen or let it pass by. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.

Lawrence A. Rude is currently deputy fire chief with Maple Valley (Wash.) Fire & Life Safety. Rude started his fire service career in 1976 and has been a professional firefighter since 1981. Graduating from the University of Central Missouri, Rude has continued his education receiving additional degrees to include holding the Executive Fire Officer Certification from the National Fire Academy. He is currently a board member of the Safe Building Coordinating Council, a founding member of the Washington State Association of Fire Marshals chapter of ICC, a member of the International Fire Chiefs Association and the King County Fire Chiefs’ representative on the King County Technical Permit Review Committee. He has been a nationally active member of the International Code Council since its inception.

“No more taxes” is a great political mantra, but where else will the money for fire departments come from? In this struggling economy, volunteer and combination departments will need creative solutions beyond fund-raising efforts or FIRE Grants for equipment and maintenance costs.

During the recent Station Style Design Award judging, the panel had a lively discussion over a couple of training centers that were submitted in the Shared Facilities category. Many fire departments have found that sharing their facilities, particularly training centers, results in more funding and ultimately yields more bang for the buck.

One such facility is The Woodlands (Texas) Emergency Training Center, which offers a comprehensive, multi-disciplined and coordinated approach to training for all-risk hazards. “We cater to The Woodlands, but also our region,” said Fire Chief Alan Benson. “We have coordinated emergency management and also work with law enforcement, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Lone Star College.”

Center managers also found a unique funding opportunity. The training center recently hosted managers and dealers from Sperian, a manufacturer of eye protection, SCBA and other protective gear for emergency responders, for one day of live-fire training. The company paid to use the facility.

“We have a bunch of people [who] are not firefighters,” said Bill Sokol, vice president of strategic marketing for the Sperian Respiratory Group. “Top management people, members of our executive committees, vice presidents — people who support the job at various levels.”

The goal of the hands-on training was to better understand the fire service profession. Sokol said Sperian‘s brand philosophy is to design around the person first and then to the standard. “It‘s hard to understand what [firefighting is] like, so it‘s a unique way to better understand how our gear and our customers work together,” he said.

The Woodlands training personnel set-up work stations for the Sperian teams. Sokol participated in bedroom, kitchen and car fire simulations. The training center also offered a hazmat station and a 5-story rappelling rig.

Sokol said the experience was valuable from a team-building and understanding perspective, and Sperian plans to visit the facility again. “This experience validates the input of what firefighters were telling me” Sokol said. “I now understand why knobs and snaps need to be big when you are wearing 50 pounds of gear and fire is blowing over your head.”

I‘m not sure this is an area that departments could consider for a revenue source, but it does offer other non-monetary benefits — better understanding between emergency responders and product development.

The future demands beyond thinking outside the box. There are no more boxes, no lines to color inside. There’s only finding new resources for mutual benefit.

Recently I read Generally Speaking by Lt. Gen. Claudia Kennedy (Ret.), which turned out to be a really good book on leadership and an overall great read. I would recommend highly it to all FIRE CHIEF readers.

One of the chapters deals with Kennedy’s Army experiences that influenced her attitudes about fairness and equality. Kennedy was appointed as a member of the secretary of the Army’s Senior Review Panel on Sexual Harassment after several non-commissioned officers serving as drill sergeants at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland were charged with various offenses to female trainees ranging from sexual harassment to sexual assault and rape. The review panel used information from 30,000 soldiers worldwide gathered from surveys, focus groups, personal interviews and observations. Specific data analysis involved a cohort of 15,000 male and female soldiers across all branches of the Army.

The most valuable nugget I took from this chapter was the panel’s finding that the Army had a significant issue in an overall lack of respect and dignity, which created an environment where sexual harassment was tolerated and in some cases condoned. Kennedy wrote:

Not surprisingly, the Review Panel found that Army leaders were the critical factor in creating, maintaining, and enforcing an environment of respect and dignity. But too many leaders had failed to gain the trust of their soldiers.

The good news was that the panel also found many examples of good leadership around the world, where the leaders created high levels of respect and dignity in the harshest and most challenging work environments, even in deployments like Kuwait and Bosnia. The panel identified that these units had good leaders who:

• Set standards for the members of their organization.
  


• Exemplified, through their personal conduct, adherence to those standards.
  


• Enforced and maintained those standards for the other members of the organization.
  


• Demonstrated genuine care and concern for their soldiers, regardless of their rank, race or gender.
  

I think there’s good stuff here that can serve the fire service as well. I believe that these same characteristics are what we need to strive for to create an environment that prevents not only sexual harassment, but other forms of harassment and intolerance as well, from entering our work place, thus creating an environment for success. The Army units that were led by leaders with these characteristics were also high performing, operationally proficient units. Providing respect and dignity in the workplace will do that for you.

In 1873, in response to fires that nearly destroyed Chicago, Portland and Boston, New York City Fire Chief Eli Bates invited a group of chief engineers to attend a demonstration of his department‘s three new aerial ladders.

Over dinner, Chief John S. Damrell suggested the formation of a national association of fire department chiefs. Their mission would be to “bring forward an exchange of ideas and introduce new machinery that would facilitate the working of fire departments.” The result was the International Association of Fire Engineers, later renamed the International Association of Fire Chiefs.

Next week the IAFC celebrates its 135th anniversary at FRI in Denver. The mission of the association has expanded to meet the evolution of fire and emergency services, yet the original mission is still the heart of the IAFC: networking and education.

In the FRI Conference brochure, IAFC President Steve Westerman references the question continually asked of chiefs and officers, “Do you have what it takes?” While the answer to that question lies within you, as does education, there is also immeasurable value in sharing or networking with your peers.

A few months ago, the Task Force report on the nine firefighters that were killed in Charleston, S.C., in 2007 was released by the City of Charleston. Among recommendations, the report called for more attention to fireground tactics, code enforcement and leadership skills. This comprehensive report is also a reminder to every fire chief and every officer of their personal responsibility to be trained and prepared to face the challenges of today‘s fire and emergency services.

In 1998, the 125th Fire-Rescue International was held in Louisville, Ky. Besides the Annual Apparatus Maintenance Section Workshop, there were six pre-conference programs for attendees.

Ten years later, the pre-conference and conference has expanded to a full five days of educational programs. The first day of pre-conference has 14 programs offered, including several two-day workshops. Networking opportunities abound among the educational sessions, during the division and committee meetings, and during social events. The exhibit portion offers two days of apparatus and state-of-the art equipment to help your purchasing decisions.

There‘s little question that the Fire Department Instructors Conference is the premier training conference for firefighters, but if you want a conference for leaders and aspiring leaders, it doesn‘t get any better than FRI this year. Of all the Fire-Rescue International conferences I have attended — starting in 1986 — I think this year has the best line-up of educational programs I have seen.

If you are in Denver for FRI next week, please stop by Fire Chief’s booth (#3021) and say, “Hi!” Let us know if we‘re right or wrong that this is the best FRI program line-up in 135 years!

My wife, Diana, and I recently returned from a two-week vacation in Norway and Denmark. Whenever we travel, I like to stop and talk shop with firefighters whenever possible. During this trip, we had the opportunity to visit fire stations in Honnigsvag, Trondheim, Geiranger, Bergen and Stavanger. Three of these departments had career firefighters, while two relied solely on volunteers. With the exception of the equipment and apparatus manufacturers, the friendly atmosphere is no different than stopping in at a fire station in Wilmington, Fresno or Wyoming.

There is never a time when I don‘t learn something. For example, at the main station in Stavanger there is a beautifully restored 1935 Pierce open-cab engine sitting in the center bay of the apparatus floor. The engine survived the World War II and along with a post-war truck manufactured by the White Truck Company provided much of the fire protection for the city for close to 30 years. The Pierce remains the pride of the department and it is used for parades and special events. Unfortunately all that remains of the White unit are the front grill and a few photos on display in the department‘s museum.

What these visits prove is that firefighters are part of a “family” that is quickly becoming international. This year, more and more international travelers are visiting the United States on vacation and a good percentage will be firefighters and their families. With very few exceptions wherever we have traveled, we have been warmly welcomed at any fire station and treated not as stranger, but as friends. We need to be prepared to do the same if these guests visit our fire stations. There is value even in this brief international exchange.

Firefighting issues and problems are universal, and hearing a different approach to problem solving may give us some ideas to try in our own department. One such concept is air management. While we have only begun the discussion of how this fits into our accountability system, our Scandinavian and European counterparts have been tracking individual air usage for years. They record the SCBA pressure of every firefighter entering a hazardous environment, and rely on the company officer to keep the accountability sector informed of the lowest crew pressure each time they communicate with their sector officer or incident commander.

Firefighters are firefighters no matter what city, town or village they protect. Keep the welcome mat out for them. They are as eager to learn from us as we should be eager to learn from them. Wherever you go, whether to another country or another part of your state, spend some time with your fellow firefighters. Enjoy the conversation, share your knowledge when it is appropriate, network so you can call upon this expertise again, and take back at least one new idea to try on your own.