SUCCESSION PLANNING BEST PRACTICE

FOR DEVELOPING FUTURE FIRE SERVICE

LEADERS

BY: PARFFO SEDIQ YAHAYA

The future of the fire service depends on the

ability of current leaders to develop future
leaders. There seems to be a common
complaint from many f1ref1ghters that their
department offers little or no leadership
training or development. The fire service is
dominated by tactical thought and f requently
fails to build strategic thinkers. Instead, we
tend to put excellent tacticians into strategic
leadership roles with no training, education
or nurturing, ultimately setting ourselves up
for failure .
Succession planning is the process of
identifying and preparing, through mentoring
training, education and development,
appropria1te f1ref1ghter to replace, as required,
key fire service personnel within an
organization. The need to replace key
personnel occurs at all levels and can be
predictable or unexpected. It makes sense
for a supervisor to prepare firefighter for
advancement so that a qualified firefighter is
ready to step in when the supervisor leaves
for whatever reason . It is the implicit duty of
every officer to prepare surbodinates to take
his or her place.
The idea of succession planning in fire
service is to develop independent thinking
future leaders of the fire service organization
that possess the necessary competencies,
experience and purpose of mission to
provide for seamless transition within the
organizatiion. In the long run, succession
planning strengthens the overall ca.pability of
the organization by : identifying critical
positions and highlighting potential
vacancies; selecting key competencies and
skills necessary for command and
administrative continuity.
The Chief Fire Officer can do many things to
help lay the foundation for succession
planning. Firstly, he or she needs to lead the
department to create an organizational
culture that values education and personal
development at all levels. Research has
shown that employees tend to remain with
an organization where they experience
personal and professional growth.
Organizational performance improves as
employees develop the knowledge, skills and
abilities needed to advance.
Secondly, the Chief Fir,e Officer shou ld
identify successor f1ref1ghter for different
operations and levels it n the organization.
The Fire Chief Officer should encourage his
officers to identify viable firefighters with the
potential to become the department's future
leaders.

The obvious question is how does one

identify "viable firefighters with the potential
to become the department's future leaders?".
There are several traits and behaviors tlhat
one can observe and measure to help
identify undeveloped firefighter. First, start
by looking at a f1ref1ghter basic skills. No
matter what position the f1ref1ghter holds in
the organization, some basic skills include
the ability to communicate effectively both
orally and in writing, the ability to listen, the
ability to understand concepts, and the
ability to learn . Help the potential f1ref1ghter
develop those skills through supportive
training, education and experience.
Also, when assessing or evaluating a
f1ref1ghter, look for broad traits, not specific
actions. Do not look for the best branch man,
best driver, best f1reground commander, etc,
but look for f1ref1ghter who have the ability
to adapt a.nd grow. The fire service needs
leaders who can work within organization
that are dynamic, changeable, and indefinite.
Some basic traits to look for include the
following .
(i) Leadership Potential: Look for f1ref1ghter
who have demonstrated the ability to be
responsible for others, take charge of a
situation, who other f1ref1ghters look to as a
positive role models, and have the ability to
motivate others.
(ii) Receptive to Feedback : No one likes to
be criticised, but some people are more
receptive to feedback than others. look for
firefighter who do not become defensive or
argumentative when corrected or counseled.
(iii) Ability to Learn : This is the ability to,
when exposed to new concepts, ideas,
knowledge, etc, understand and retain the
knowledge, skills and abilities needed to
make productive use of what was learned.
(iv) Conceptual Thinking : Conceptual
thinking is the most important trait to look
for when searching for raw potential.
Conceptual thinking is an inherent ability that
can best be polished through practice. Look
for f1ref1ghter who anticipate problems
before they occur, who have the ability to
define a problem and identify the obvious
and unseen causes, recognize alternative
solutions and choose the best ones, develop
a plan to solve the problem, have the ability
to set priorities, and the ability to handle
several problem at the same time.
(v) Fits the Corporate Culture : This last trait
is the second most important trait. Generally,
corporate culture is slow to change, and a
good leader with conceptual thinking skills
and the ability to adapt can change when the
corporate culture changes. However, do not
waste time on firefighter who is out of touch
with the organization's culture. If Sl.!lch
f1ref1ghter can not work with their peers at
the shift level, they will never be able to
adapt at the command and administrative
level.
In conclusion, developing tomorrow's
leaders today is the key to progressive
organizational behavior. The failure, to grow
your membership intellectually through
teaching, coaching, and mentoring is a
failure to prepare the next generation of fire
service leaders.
 REFERENCES

1. Succession Planning within the Union

Township Fire Department (2019),
Christopher Goessl.

2. Succession Planning in Chesterfield Fire

and Emergency Medical Services (2000),
Robert P. Avsec.

3. Succession Planning: Developing Future

Fire Service Leaders (2019), Paul E. Ricci.

4. Succession Planning - Part 1 (2006),

Firehouse.

5. Succession Planning in the Fire Service

(2019), Eric Saylors.