Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Chris Parliman on October 19, 2008 at 9:52pm

Tiger, thank you for the response. What I was thinking about for recruitment was some thing along the line of setting up a recruitment program with the help of FASNY, is there any type of training for volunteer fd's to get? I will also take suggestions on making a web site, how can I get more information on te scholarships for volunteers?

thanks
Chris

Permalink Reply by Tiger Schmittendorf on November 2, 2008 at 1:16am

Chris -

What kind of training are you looking for? Hands-on recruiter training?

Permalink Reply by Tiger Schmittendorf on January 12, 2009 at 5:44pm

Hi Andrea -

I apologize for not having time right now for a more extensive reply to your question, but I'll leave you with this from my Top 10 Commandments for Recruitment and Retention:

The First Commandment: KEEP IT SIMPLE.
Think of your recruitment challenge in simple terms. If each of your existing members recruited just one new member – what effect would that have on your roster? You do the math.

Word of mouth is still the best form of recruiting. Think about it: Who makes a better reference/referral than firefighters themselves?

The reality is that this isn't a 5-minute conversation and I have no magic wand solution that's going to work for everyone. If your department is serious about getting some help - and helping themselves, let's chat.

Stay safe. Train often.

Permalink Reply by Tiger Schmittendorf on January 23, 2009 at 9:04pm

That's a good approach - focusing on retention before recruitment. If more departments would adopt that attitude, they'd have to spend less time and energy on recruitment. Notice I said less - not "none."

It's a good idea financially, if for no other reason. How much does it cost to recruit and train a newbie compared to the small investments needed to keep our trained and experienced teammates happy?

While we have to remain focused on retention, inevitably we need to be always on the lookout for our next replacement.

And you're absolutely right about sharing the responsibilities for R and R. I'm convinced each fire department needs a human resources officer these days.

The Sixth Commandment:
Whose job is it to recruit new members? Everyone’s - not just the chief or the membership committee. Work as a team to build a bigger, better team.

Drop me an e-mail to tiger@tigerschmittendorf.com and I'll send you all 10 commandments.

Keep up the hard work.

Stay safe. Train often.

Permalink Reply by ECB on February 28, 2009 at 6:26pm

I think that it is a great idea to have a place for sharing ideas. To discuss what works and what does not. We are in the infancy stage of building a retention and recruitment program, and welcome ideas. Of course, we have the opportunity to go directly to the source (Howdy Tiger!) but anyone that believes that they know all there is to know, knows very little at all. Looking forward to sharing thoughts and ideas.

Permalink Reply by Jack on July 11, 2009 at 9:25am

Chief Schmittendorf,

I enjoyed your latest article "From X-Box to the Box Alarm". I have a couple of questions if you don't mind regarding the I-Generation. Seems that the few potential members that we have had from this generation have for the most part stopped participating all together. Or they show up on an irregular basis. And you are correct that they tune into "WIFM" radio (What's In it For Me). They don't want to put in the time to learn and train, yet get upset and pout when they are not allowed to do things on a scene. Any suggestions on how to reach this generation not from a recruitment standpoint but from a acknowledgement and respect stand point for rules, regulations and training.

I Thank-you in advance for any insight that you may have.

Hondo