Comments on: The Fixers http://firehousezen.com/2009/11/12/the-fixers/ Deeper Discussion on Fire & Emergency Services Leadership Thu, 29 Jul 2010 16:14:37 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: FIREhat http://firehousezen.com/2009/11/12/the-fixers/comment-page-1/#comment-436 FIREhat Mon, 16 Nov 2009 19:57:18 +0000 http://firehousezen.com/?p=710#comment-436 Let me ruffle some feathers: Our biggest failures are attributable to our historical and cultural lack of emphasis on academic education. Our people cannot strategically communicate what it is we do because they, by and large, lack the communication skills needed to articulate a real mission statement. Because that is the foundation on which we base our arguments for what we need, we are crippled at the outset. Until the fire service gets over its historical view of itself as a refuge for people who "just don't like school" we will continue to fall further and further behind in communicating our mission and needs. Fire chiefs with technical certificates from community colleges or bachelor's degrees from internet colleges that give credit for "life experience" won't hack it in the competitive evolving marketplace. As much as we want to act NIMSy and warm and fuzzy, we are in a competition with a whole lot of other fields, organizations, and actors. If we don't evolve we will be left behind by the sophisticated and demanding public noted above. Let me ruffle some feathers: Our biggest failures are attributable to our historical and cultural lack of emphasis on academic education. Our people cannot strategically communicate what it is we do because they, by and large, lack the communication skills needed to articulate a real mission statement. Because that is the foundation on which we base our arguments for what we need, we are crippled at the outset. Until the fire service gets over its historical view of itself as a refuge for people who “just don’t like school” we will continue to fall further and further behind in communicating our mission and needs. Fire chiefs with technical certificates from community colleges or bachelor’s degrees from internet colleges that give credit for “life experience” won’t hack it in the competitive evolving marketplace. As much as we want to act NIMSy and warm and fuzzy, we are in a competition with a whole lot of other fields, organizations, and actors. If we don’t evolve we will be left behind by the sophisticated and demanding public noted above.

]]> By: “It’s What We All Do” « Backstep Firefighter's Blog http://firehousezen.com/2009/11/12/the-fixers/comment-page-1/#comment-435 “It’s What We All Do” « Backstep Firefighter's Blog Mon, 16 Nov 2009 11:46:32 +0000 http://firehousezen.com/?p=710#comment-435 [...] “The Fixers” Firehouse Zen Hero jakes rescue teen from Dorchester fire Boston Herald “Firefighters pull girl from [...] [...] “The Fixers” Firehouse Zen Hero jakes rescue teen from Dorchester fire Boston Herald “Firefighters pull girl from [...]

]]> By: truck6alpha http://firehousezen.com/2009/11/12/the-fixers/comment-page-1/#comment-423 truck6alpha Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:29:13 +0000 http://firehousezen.com/?p=710#comment-423 Bill, Thanks for your comments; I am certainly in agreement. I have pointed out on many occasions that we do a lousy job of positively marketing ourselves. Of course, when it comes to negative publicity, we excel. I think part of the problem is so many viewpoints on how to provide service as well as our willingness to try to help solve every problem that comes along. The dichotomy is that those same independent organizational identities and the same willingness to solve problems regardless of the resources (or lack thereof) are what people see as positives as well. I've said before that if you gave a truckie a coat hanger, a roll of duct tape and a TV remote, they could build a super-computer. "Firefighter" obviously doesn't describe all it is we do. I'd bet that if you asked the public what it is firefighters do (other than sit in rocking chairs and play checkers), they'd say "fight fires" and that would be about it. Of course, these are the same people who call us at 0400 for a water emergency, so I guess my question would be, if you answered that all we do is firefighting, why are you calling us? Realistically, if you were to pin someone down and force them to answer what it is we do, they could recite a half a dozen items because they've seen us do these things for their neighbors or have had to use our services themselves. Years ago, I learned that the most effective advertisement is the one that captures the full essence of the product in the fewest words. If you have a detergent and you want to shill it on a billboard, you don't want three paragraphs on what it does, you want to see "CLEANS GREAT". The fire service can't stop its internal fighting long enough to agree on "CLEANS GREAT" vs. "CLEANS BETTER". So really, you captured the jist of the article when we need to figure out just what it is we do and to do it as simply as possible. We've got probably some of the smartest people in the business reading this blog (or so I like to think). What say you? Thanks again, Mick Bill,

Thanks for your comments; I am certainly in agreement. I have pointed out on many occasions that we do a lousy job of positively marketing ourselves. Of course, when it comes to negative publicity, we excel.

I think part of the problem is so many viewpoints on how to provide service as well as our willingness to try to help solve every problem that comes along. The dichotomy is that those same independent organizational identities and the same willingness to solve problems regardless of the resources (or lack thereof) are what people see as positives as well. I’ve said before that if you gave a truckie a coat hanger, a roll of duct tape and a TV remote, they could build a super-computer.

“Firefighter” obviously doesn’t describe all it is we do. I’d bet that if you asked the public what it is firefighters do (other than sit in rocking chairs and play checkers), they’d say “fight fires” and that would be about it. Of course, these are the same people who call us at 0400 for a water emergency, so I guess my question would be, if you answered that all we do is firefighting, why are you calling us?

Realistically, if you were to pin someone down and force them to answer what it is we do, they could recite a half a dozen items because they’ve seen us do these things for their neighbors or have had to use our services themselves.

Years ago, I learned that the most effective advertisement is the one that captures the full essence of the product in the fewest words. If you have a detergent and you want to shill it on a billboard, you don’t want three paragraphs on what it does, you want to see “CLEANS GREAT”. The fire service can’t stop its internal fighting long enough to agree on “CLEANS GREAT” vs. “CLEANS BETTER”.

So really, you captured the jist of the article when we need to figure out just what it is we do and to do it as simply as possible. We’ve got probably some of the smartest people in the business reading this blog (or so I like to think). What say you?

Thanks again,

Mick

]]> By: “It’s What We All Do” – Backstep Firefighter http://firehousezen.com/2009/11/12/the-fixers/comment-page-1/#comment-422 “It’s What We All Do” – Backstep Firefighter Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:07:29 +0000 http://firehousezen.com/?p=710#comment-422 [...] “The Fixers” Firehouse Zen Hero jakes rescue teen from Dorchester fire Boston Herald “Firefighters pull girl from [...] [...] “The Fixers” Firehouse Zen Hero jakes rescue teen from Dorchester fire Boston Herald “Firefighters pull girl from [...]

]]> By: Bill Carey http://firehousezen.com/2009/11/12/the-fixers/comment-page-1/#comment-418 Bill Carey Thu, 12 Nov 2009 21:50:17 +0000 http://firehousezen.com/?p=710#comment-418 Years ago a mid-Atlantic fire department began referring to its employees as 'Emergency Response Technicians'. The bureaucratic euphemism was to incorporate all that firefighter/EMTs and firefighter/paramedics do and present it by way of slogan/brand name recognition to a taxpaying public that had no capacity to give it understanding. Instead of developing the idea farther and explaining it, it was simply a give-take action. The employer gave it and the employee had no choice but to take it. A well-known fire service instructor took that slogan and used it as part of his instruction at FDIC one year, stating "What kid want's to grow up and become an ERT?" when talking about certain values and philosophy. I've always believed that the fire service, nationally, does a poor job of marketing itself; if we were a business, we'd be broke. We seem to believe that the ability to market our customer service only comes about when, 1. people need us, 2. one of us dies, and 3. every October. We need to first have our members define themselves, before they try and do it in front of the public. It's not so much the 'title' as it is being able to explain what we do in the simplest ways possible. This is hard, even for some PIOs and chief officers. When John Doe's house id burning, he really doesn't care that we also do hazmat, tech rescue, conspace, inspections, emergency transports and service calls. He's not flipping through the yellow pages looking for the one with the interior attack advertisement. He, like everyone else who pulls th handle or dials 911, is looking for one thing only. Somedays its to put out a fire, other days its to find out why the apartment upstairs is flooded. The more we focus on being comfortable with out identity, and limitations, the better we;ll be able to explain what it is exactly that we do. Years ago a mid-Atlantic fire department began referring to its employees as ‘Emergency Response Technicians’. The bureaucratic euphemism was to incorporate all that firefighter/EMTs and firefighter/paramedics do and present it by way of slogan/brand name recognition to a taxpaying public that had no capacity to give it understanding. Instead of developing the idea farther and explaining it, it was simply a give-take action. The employer gave it and the employee had no choice but to take it. A well-known fire service instructor took that slogan and used it as part of his instruction at FDIC one year, stating “What kid want’s to grow up and become an ERT?” when talking about certain values and philosophy. I’ve always believed that the fire service, nationally, does a poor job of marketing itself; if we were a business, we’d be broke. We seem to believe that the ability to market our customer service only comes about when, 1. people need us, 2. one of us dies, and 3. every October. We need to first have our members define themselves, before they try and do it in front of the public. It’s not so much the ‘title’ as it is being able to explain what we do in the simplest ways possible. This is hard, even for some PIOs and chief officers. When John Doe’s house id burning, he really doesn’t care that we also do hazmat, tech rescue, conspace, inspections, emergency transports and service calls. He’s not flipping through the yellow pages looking for the one with the interior attack advertisement. He, like everyone else who pulls th handle or dials 911, is looking for one thing only. Somedays its to put out a fire, other days its to find out why the apartment upstairs is flooded. The more we focus on being comfortable with out identity, and limitations, the better we;ll be able to explain what it is exactly that we do.

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