From my blog at FireGroundWorks.

We often talk of the challenges we face in the field; the ambiguous, complex, and confusing incidents that attack our senses and tax our ability to beat them. Instead of all the talk about “what” we face, why not focus on “how” we can successfully win against it.

Maybe our top challenges should be these:

• Effective execution. Safe and effective execution is a key concern in the fire service. And it should be. Whether on a roadway, in someone’s home, or entering a house on fire, we operate in dangerous environments. It’s time that we realize that strong execution, strengthened through personnel development and sustained training, is the critical factor that makes the difference. The foundation to safe and effective execution is our acceptance that people play a crucial role in it. The human element (Hu) is what really drives our mission.
• True leaders. Finding qualified leadership through top management succession is our number one “people” issue. Leaders must train one level down. We need leaders at every level.
• Growth. Grow individual skills and team performance. Grow leaders. Grow the organization.
• An open door to more ideas. We should be receptive to new, more responsive ideas. In other words, execution in terms of speed, flexibility, and adaptability to change should be a more dominant theme throughout our organization.

What are the challenges at your fire department? How will you tackle them?

(Photo from The Fire Asylum)