Who do you turn to for assistance and guidance when you encounter an unfamiliar situation? When you aren’t in the midst of a fire attack on the fireground or deciding on tactics to free a person in a technical rescue scenario, you can take stock of your contacts and you can phone a friend, drop a text or fire off an email and wait for a response.
Last month, I attended The Fire Chiefs Virtual Summit, which was hosted by Firehouse Magazine’s parent company, Endeavor Business Media. There, I had the opportunity to talk with chiefs from departments large and small during roundtable and networking events. The topics covered budgets to EMS, training to COVID-19, and everything in between. One topic that wasn’t scheduled for discussion but generated heated debate multiple times was mentoring. It wasn’t just for fire chiefs; it went down the career ladder to help to prepare aspiring officers and to strengthen the decision-making and skill sets for firefighters.
Just like rookies who leave the academy after a couple of months of learning from textbooks and lectures and rapid-fire practical skills testing, new chiefs and officers need to work with experienced colleagues to increase their knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs).
Several of the chiefs at the Summit shared how the concept of mentoring within their agency was an investment back into the department and its most valuable assets: the firefighters. That said, today’s chief wears so many hats (fireground commander, budget-keeper/revenue-generator, labor negotiator, politician, and a keeper of the health and well-being of his/her members). The Summit participants shared concerns over how they struggle to find the time and right opportunities to work with mentees and those who mentor them.
In “From One Leader to Another, Volume II,” which is a collective series of reports from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, Master Sgt. Leslie Renken wrote about mentorship: “Our survival as the top military force depends on this cycle to be never ending and for leaders to understand that developing the next generation of leaders must be a priority to all. … Without this investment and the continual development of strong outstanding leaders, our Army will not continue to lead the way for others to follow or to be feared if crossed.”
Our military sees the value in mentoring, whether it is a brave young man or woman who volunteers for a four-year term or someone who aspires to have a 20-year career. Like the fire service, the military needs to stay battle-ready and technically proficient during times of peace.
Like the military, the fire service sees turnover in its ranks. This challenges both career and volunteer departments, which sometimes see hundreds of years of combined service hang up their helmets for the last time. To combat that loss of experience, ask yourself: What steps are you taking to capture their experiences and knowledge? You can’t begin the critical task as they clean out their lockers. You must start asking questions early and often.
So, how do you invest in your department and/or your colleagues?
For those of you who have a few months or years on the department: Observe those who make up your crew and seek out those whose contributions you would like to emulate. Show them how interested you are and start soliciting feedback while being upfront and sharing your long-term goals. Remember, you don’t necessarily need to latch on to someone from your agency. And don’t forget to say thank you—that goes a long way to keeping the relationship strong.
Those of you who have experience: Seek out younger members and initiate the mentee process. Ask about their backgrounds, what goals they aspire to achieve and what their plans are. You then can help them to develop a roadmap to get to the next destination in the journey. Whether they want to follow in your footsteps and go down another path, take the time to inspire them and pass along the wisdom that you have picked up—don’t just file it away in your head.
In his book, “Turn the Ship Around!”, U.S. Navy Capt. L. David Marquet wrote: “You as a mentor have to establish that you are sincerely interested in the problems of the person you are mentoring.”
