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Permalink Reply by John Crabbe on June 29, 2010 at 2:10pm

Just wondering what is in store for our department.

No one can predict the future for you there, things can be great, good, mediocre, or downright bad. To ask what you are in for will vary by who is actually named the chief. You could have the book smart type of person who rocketed through ranks to become a chief officer, but has no real experience handling issues. You can have a "yes man" chief who is more concerned about the politics than they are the personnel. You could end up with someone who has a great way of balancing both, but everything varies. Besides the work ethic, the personality can also be a factor, are they one to just do the job and never be seen out of the office? Will they concern themselves with the crews and crew issues? It is tough to say.

From personal experience we had a similar experience when the chief and asst chief retired within months of each other. The political atmosphere was not very pleasant and the mayor wanted cuts. An outside chief was brought in on an interim basis, there were cuts made, but the thing was, he was up front and honest about them. He got the union involved, kept communications up and so forth, he would stop by each firehouse and each crew, he helped on personal issues for several members and so forth.

So the issues can go back and forth, what can be addressed is how you and dept, will take the change. Are you willing to give a chance, do you help out or just expect the chief to make all the calls? There is much you can do as a dept and as FF's to help with the transition. Putting up a guard because of low morale issues, doesn't help make a good relationship. Are you willing to work or butt heads? Have you worked on educating the elected officials in fire dept issues and tasks so they also have a better understanding of YOUR dept, so an outside chief isn't "shotgunned" with questions on how to address issues? There is much you can do to make a working relationship better, when a new chief is announced help them to help you. Sometimes an outside chief can offer perspectives and views an insider doesn't consider, but an outsider also doesn't know how you operate. It also helps to know your political envronment and to stay active with community issues, because the ones running the community, are the ones most likely hiring here too.

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