BY RICHARD B. GASAWAY
During a recent conversation with a fire department chief, he was describing how important he was to his department. He was rather self-absorbed in the issue of his importance to the organization. How did I know this? He referred to himself as indispensable to his department.
Over the years, my hearing has diminished a bit from exposure to sirens and air horns. Thus, I wasn’t completely sure I’d heard him right. So I asked (with skepticism in my voice), “You’re indispensable?” At that point, I was assured that I heard him right as he launched into a crisp, clear tirade about how nothing gets done unless he does it and how no one in the department knows how to do the things he does.
At that point, I couldn’t help myself. I just had to ask the obvious follow-up question: “What would happen to the department if you got hit by a truck on your way home from work today?” What he described wasn’t pretty. He had a long list of things that only he knew how to do or was willing to do. They were all important to the success of the department. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought he was trying to ensure his job security by keeping tight reins on the organization’s most important information and tasks.
As a leader of a fire service organization, you owe it to your department, your members, and your community to have the forethought and planning to ensure that if you left the organization (for whatever reason) business would go on “as usual.” That’s not to say you wouldn’t be missed, but there should always be someone else in the department who knows how to do what you do.
Some bosses think that if they reveal the “secrets” of their work, they will become vulnerable for replacement. Although this is an extremely selfish point of view, it is one way to ensure your job security. Bosses who take this view are denying the organization an essential component to long-term success.
“CHIEF SHOULD BE COACH, NOT QUARTERBACK”
Developing future leaders is one of the essential job responsibilities of a chief. It also makes your job as the chief easier. A long time ago, I was told by a wise person that one of the secrets of successful leaders is that they surround themselves with people who are smarter and more talented than they are.
The premise of this secret is the chief doesn’t have to be the smartest, hardest working member of the fire department. In fact, once you rise to the level of chief, one of the most critical tasks you perform is to develop and support your subordinates. Stated another way using a football analogy, the chief should be filling the role of the coach, not the quarterback.
You know that developing the skills and experience to be a successful chief takes years. If you’ve had the benefit of working for a chief who took on the role of coach and you were the pupil, you know how valuable that experience was in your development and how it likely sped up your ascent to the top of your organization. If you were unfortunate enough not to rise to the top of your organization with the help of a coach, you know the journey was painful and there were lots of hard mistakes made along the way that could have been avoided if there were a good coach to help you avoid making bad decisions.
None of us are immortal. The day will come when we will be replaced. If you haven’t given much thought to succession planning, you should start-today!
TIPS FOR DEVELOPING REPLACEMENTS
Here are some steps you can take to help develop your replacements. First, take inventory of the things you do as the chief. Keep a log and see where your time goes. Successful chiefs spend much of their time with their rising stars, developing and coaching them. If you find that most of your time is going toward completing routine tasks, that’s a pretty good indicator that you’re not developing your subordinates.
Second, make an “A list” of the officers and supervisors who have the most potential to assume a senior leadership role in the department. Then talk with them about their interest in advancing in the organization. This is an important step. If they have no interest in taking on additional responsibilities or advancing, then don’t waste your time and energy trying to force them to do it.
If they aren’t interested, it may benefit you to ask some open-ended questions to learn why. Maybe they’re really busy at work or their kids are involved in activities that take up all their spare time. In other words, their lack of interest may be related to a situation that may change over time, and it would be good to know that.
Third, make a “B list” of the nonofficers with leadership potential. These are the members who are full of energy and ideas. Even if these people are among the newer members of your department, don’t discount them for being inexperienced. They can still make significant contributions to the success of the department, lighten your load as the chief, and learn a great deal about how to be a leader along the way. I have observed that what newer members lack in experience they make up in enthusiasm. They really want to do a good job. Taking some time to teach and coach can pay valuable dividends.
Finally, realize that the more you give away (knowledge and duties), the more successful your department will become and the easier your job will be. Initially, expect the demands on your time to go up as you spend time teaching and coaching. The time spent developing others is an investment that will pay dividends. The services your department provides are critical to your community, and having a succession plan helps ensure the continuity of service. What would happen to your department if you got hit by a truck on your way home from work today?
