HARRY R. CARTER, Ph.D., MIFireE

In the faraway days of my youth, I can remember thinking what a cool thing it would be to serve as Chief of our local fire department. There I would be, I thought, out in front of a row of burning buildings, leading the troops in a pitched battle against the Red Devil. I can still remember the fires in downtown Freehold, New Jersey back in the early 1960’s. They served as the stimulus for my interest in the fire service.

There was the Great Fire of 1962 that destroyed quite a bit of the downtown area, including my orthodontist’s office, my favorite bakery, and the local theater. And again in 1964 when the bowling alley, and a number of stores where my parents shopped, fell before the onslaught of raging fire. I can still see the Chief out front, bravely making the critical decisions, upon which the future of our community relied.

It all seemed so simple back then. Smoke appeared on the horizon, the fire horn sounded, everyone drove like the wind, the Chief gave the orders; and the fire went out. Or at least that was how it seemed. Knowing what I now know, I am sure there was more.

Then there was the annual Christmas celebration where the Chief directed the members of the Hook and Ladder Company in rescuing Santa from the roof of the County Courthouse. Oh, to be transported back to those good old days. Life in many respects seemed a lot simpler back then.

During the early years of my fire service career, I served in the United States Air Force Fire Service. During that time, I began to notice that there was a bit more to being a Fire Chief. For one thing, we seemed to do a great deal of training. And the chief had to be a master in that arena. Another thing I quickly discovered was that our services were needed at all hours and under all sorts of weather conditions. I guess I must have missed that part during my dreams of success as a Fire Chief.

As the years zipped by, I noticed that there were many parts to the total equation I have come to know as being a Fire Chief. During my journey up the command ladder in the Newark Fire Department, I noted that each step up had a few more non-fire related tasks attached to it. I began to wonder what it would be like at the top.

As a Captain, I became responsible for company-level training, district fire inspections, pre-fire plans, preventive maintenance, as well as the usual array of firefighting tasks. There were reports, forms, and fire cards to complete.

I found during my many years as a Battalion Chief that I had to accomplish such widely differing tasks as completing employee evaluations, submitting acting out of rank forms, monitoring district-level hydrant inspection programs, and keeping track of the personnel assigned to my battalion.

Up arriving at the Division Command level, the paperwork mountain began to assume epic proportions. There were the budget requests, as well as the yearly, quarterly, and monthly planning documents. Quarterly training schedules had to be produced, distributed, and monitored. OSHA, EPA, and Department of Labor regulations crept into my vocabulary.

Many memories persist from my years as a Chief-level officer in the Adelphia Fire Company. Far more time was spent at the computer than at emergency scenes. Time was also spent developing subordinate officers, and at township-level chief’s meetings.

It seems as you go up the ladder to the command level of your organization, more time is spent at meetings. I also want to state for the record that the old days when every decision was made solely by the Fire Chief are long gone; if in fact they ever existed at all. There is so much to do as a chief that duties must, of necessity, be shared.

What do you need to know if you are going to be able to function as a Fire Chief today and in the future?

Take a look at this list. I hope you see where I am headed.

• Develop your people skills (this is your most important skill)
• Broaden your administrative skills
• Become computer literate
• Attend various local, county, state, and national seminars
• Build a library of books, periodicals and white papers
• Join professional associations
• Commit time to the National Fire Academy
• Train regularly
• Learn about the various laws which impact upon our daily operations

There are many of you out there who labor under a fear of technology. Wake up and smell the coffee. To be a successful Fire Chief, you must be computer literate. Even the City of Newark eventually installed computers in the quarters of the field command personnel.

This all takes me back to the first computer I bought for myself back in 1985. I was intrigued by the television commercials that showed the housewife taking the computer out of the box, plugging it in and writing a best-selling novel. This did not happen to me. It was a week before I could spell my name and actually save it.

However, in the years since, I have moved steadily higher in the computer food chain. I now have megs and gigs beyond anything imaginable in my computer childhood. You need to jump on board the computer train, or risk being left in the last century. There are many places to gather this electronic acumen. Local adult schools and community colleges have a wide array of courses available. My wife spent several weeks at the local high school stepping into the computer world. I will long remember her joy at being able to send e-mail messages to our children. Make the move, and become computer literate: it will make you a more productive person.

In order to become a better chief, I would advise you to leave town. I am not suggesting this along the lines of the old-west form of get out of town now partner. I am referring to the "travel to seminars and conferences" sense of leave your town. You must climb up out of your day-to-day rut and see what the rest of the world is doing.

A good place to start would be at the Firehouse Expo, which is held in Baltimore each July. Listen to the words of those who have something to share. Be sure to ask questions, take notes, and exchange business cards. Another great opportunity comes each year with the Fire Department Instructor’s Conference, in Indianapolis. And the annual Fire Rescue International Conference is coming up in New Orleans next week.

I have been traveling to seminars of one kind or another since around 1971, shortly after I left the U.S. Air Force. Whether the topic was fire, EMS, business, or some motivationally-related topic, there was always a lesson to be learned.

I am of the firm opinion that if you are going to lead others, you must know a great deal, and not just in the technical side of the fire service. You need to learn about how people think, act, and are motivated. And you can usually do this by interacting with others at seminars. You must also give your personnel the respect they deserve. Treat them with respect and they will give that respect back to you a hundredfold.

No one ever learns everything they need to know about anything. I have been in this business for over thirty-seven years, and I am still learning. You learn by reading, experiencing, doing, critiquing, and re-reading. But how can you learn if you do not have a library, or at least access to a library? There are a number of firms engaged in selling books to the fire service

You will also need to join one or more of the major professional associations that exist to improve the expertise and influence of their members. Spend the time and money to step outside of your daily life and move to a higher plain. If your budget is limited, seek to join, state or county associations that will meet your needs. You need to meet with other people and see how they do things. You must also learn the latest lessons in your field.

This leads us to the next obvious suggestion. If you can manage to devote the time, please make it a point to attend a National Fire Academy course. Which one you choose is up to you. I urge you not to worry, for they are all good. They will challenge you to grow and allow you to make contacts with fellow travelers in the world of fire service leadership. Some of my greatest learning has come from professional networking interactions. You learn by sharing.

Constant training is a critical element in any plan you might put together to become a better Fire Chief. This training should cover the gamut of skills that both you and your staff will need to provide a competent, professional service to the citizens in your community. This plan should be based on a periodic cycle, so that over a two to three year cycle, all of the necessary topics are covered.

It will take some time and effort to get this done. Help may be available from county, regional or state fire training authorities. Reach out and see who is there to help you.

An essential part of your personal, professional development program will involve the improvement of your administrative skills. As the Chief, you will need to be able to prove who your fire department is and what it does. Years ago my fire company in Adelphia survived a State Public Employee Occupational Safety and Health (PEOSH) inspection thanks to my record keeping system.

As fire officer and fire chief you are charged to prove what you have done. You should use the existing system in your department. If it is pen and paper, use it faithfully and seek to computerize it. Lastly, we would urge you to become intimately familiar with all of the laws that might have an impact on you, or your fire department. While the requirements will vary from state to state, it is incumbent upon you to map out the legal lay of the land wherever you live.

From what I have been reading lately, there are a lot of Chiefs who apparently got their jobs by accident or political guile. No one is ever beyond help. However, if you fail to work at making yourself a better officer, there is no miracle that will do it for you.

If it seems like no one likes you, you are probably a poor leader. But remember, the opposite might also be true. People might only be tolerating you because you let them do what ever they want, whenever they want. And they would hate to have someone replace you who would actually make them work for a living.

So go for it. Read periodical and books, go to conferences, and please pay attention to the world around you.

The commentary in this column does not necessarily reflect those of Firehouse.Com, Firehouse Magazine, their employees or parent company Cygnus Business Media. Harry R. Carter, Ph.D., MIFireE, is an internationally known municipal fire protection consultant and contributing editor to Firehouse Magazine. He recently retired as a Battalion Commander with the Newark, New Jersey Fire Department. His commentary appears regularly on Firehouse.Com. For more commentary and information, visit Carter's web site at www.harrycarter.com Harry has published several books available for online ordering, including Firefighting Strategy and Tactics and Management in the Fire Service