This is the final article in a series devoted to addressing the problem of captains who do not want to promote to the level of battalion chief in their fire department. The top three reasons that I have heard for not pursuing a promotion are current battalion chiefs:
- Battalion chiefs who fail to listen to subordinates.
- Battalion chiefs who take an authoritarian approach to leadership using open or veiled threats against subordinates.
- Battalion chiefs who are technically and tactically incompetent.
This should come as no surprise, but the top three qualities that the troops are looking for in a battalion chief are:
- They pay attention and listen to their subordinates.
- They know how to lead people, and they do not manipulate the troops.
- They are technically and tactically competent and proficient.
The fire service has company officers who are qualified and capable of becoming chief officers. However, they cannot be coerced into pursuing a promotion, but they can be inspired. How? By encouraging them, pointing out their good qualities as a company officer, and asking them thought-provoking questions such as:
- What prevents you from being a battalion chief?
- As a battalion chief, what kind of positive influence could you have over the company officers and firefighters in your command?
- As a technically and tactically competent battalion chief, what impact would that have on the personnel operating at the scene of an emergency?
It all begins with the department’s hiring practices. If the agency continually hires individuals who lack character, then those are the people who eventually fill the officer ranks and the department’s problems will multiply.
On the other hand, if the fire service recruits, hires, and trains people who possess strong character qualities, then they are the ones who will step up and become officers. However, there must be consistent and relevant training along their career path to prepare them for the next level. Training that not only involves classroom sessions, tactics, and hands-on evolutions, but leadership development as well. I am talking about leadership training that has depth and substance. Training that goes beyond the annually mandated classes coming from Human Resources. In other words, developing well-rounded officers capable of filling the higher ranks in the fire service.
