Pyro_PK
05-18-2009, 12:50 PM
It appears that the practice of hiring Fire Chiefs from outside of the respective departments that they will be running is becomming a common problem across the country. It has slipped by me in the past, but since my department suffered through this over the last year and a half, it became more of a focal point. Our Last Chief now has gone on to greener pastures to graze from, and despite the chaos that he created and left behind, our Mayor STILL intends on making the same mistake again.
How about OTHER departments in our state? How many of us now HAVE or have HAD their chief hired from outside their department and even their state? How has it worked out? Good, Bad or Indifferent?
The reason I am bringing this up is, because although this may be a new practice being used around the State of Arkansas, from what I have learned here and from correspondence with other departments, this practice tends to have a devastating effect upon those departments... administratively, operationally and it is horrific on the morale of the department's personnel.
I have YET to find a department that was HAPPY with getting a new leader that did NOT come from their own rank and file. SURELY.. SOMEWHERE... someone did it right. But in my opinion, the only way to get it right is to hire from inside the department the new chief will lead. Only the current members know what the problems are and how to fix them.
There are no sets of Universal Fire Department Blueprints you can just order online to use on any given city and expect them to work ANYWHERE. Every village/town/city/metropolis is unique... Their populace is unique... and their problems and the means to fix them are unique. There is no better choice for the leader of a fire department, than one of its OWN. One that has lived there, worked there and earned the right of leadership through their passion for, dedication to, and the risking of their lives for the people of that city.
How about OTHER departments in our state? How many of us now HAVE or have HAD their chief hired from outside their department and even their state? How has it worked out? Good, Bad or Indifferent?
The reason I am bringing this up is, because although this may be a new practice being used around the State of Arkansas, from what I have learned here and from correspondence with other departments, this practice tends to have a devastating effect upon those departments... administratively, operationally and it is horrific on the morale of the department's personnel.
I have YET to find a department that was HAPPY with getting a new leader that did NOT come from their own rank and file. SURELY.. SOMEWHERE... someone did it right. But in my opinion, the only way to get it right is to hire from inside the department the new chief will lead. Only the current members know what the problems are and how to fix them.
There are no sets of Universal Fire Department Blueprints you can just order online to use on any given city and expect them to work ANYWHERE. Every village/town/city/metropolis is unique... Their populace is unique... and their problems and the means to fix them are unique. There is no better choice for the leader of a fire department, than one of its OWN. One that has lived there, worked there and earned the right of leadership through their passion for, dedication to, and the risking of their lives for the people of that city.