Thought Leadership

This past Friday and Saturday, I attended the 32nd Executive Fire Officer and Leadership Symposium at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, Maryland. It was the first time I'd returned to NFA since about 2005 or 2006. This was my first time, however, returning as a freelance writer and not an active fire officer with the Chesterfield (Va.) Fire and EMS Department, where I served for 26 years. Nonetheless, I still got the same “chills down my spine” as I drove onto campus (After having my car inspected by campus security), that feeling I was returning home to what I and many others consider “the home of the American Fire Service.”

As we begin the year 2023, “wish lists” for the coming year will be a popular topic for many writers and I’m no exception. Hopefully, we’ve learned some things in the past twelve months and can use those lessons to make 2023 a safer year for firefighters. So, without wasting any time, here are my “5 Wishes for the Fire Service” in 2023.

I recently had one of those “I never thought of it that way,” moments about diversity and inclusion in an organization, particularly fire departments, because I did serve with the Chesterfield (Va.) Fire and EMS Department for 26 years before retiring as a battalion chief. See if any of what I'm about to share with you “strike's a similar chord.”

But a question that stays stuck in my brain is “What impact is all this technology having on actual fire service delivery?” And it's that question that motivated me to write this piece today.

When I received my first promotion to the rank of company officer, it was made truly clear to me by my organization, the Chesterfield (Va.) Fire and EMS Department, that as an officer the organization would expect more from me. And that expectation was reaffirmed with each subsequent promotion to captain and then to battalion chief.

By: Robert Avsec, Executive Fire Officer And there was life before COVID-19 and for many fire departments that life was a struggle that life that already included: All fire departments, especially those that provide EMS in their community, are on the front-lines in the COVID-19 pandemic response. Lack of adequate funding and stress-free lending for personnel and equipment; Finding and ...

And West Virginia Governor Jim Justice and most West Virginians were not thrilled either. Three weeks after Gov. Justice ordered an investigation by the director of the West Virginia Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety (DMAPS), he announced that all 34 correctional officer cadets from the class and three academy staff members would be fired, and four instructors suspended without pay.

Why did it take a week for the incident to become public knowledge? More to the point, what kind of environment and culture exists at the training academy run by the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DCR) that gave everyone in that photo the “comfort level” to display one of the most recognized symbols of racism and hatred in the world for their class photograph? That’s the real question.

By: Robert Avsec, Executive Fire Officer The short answer is: Human capital. I received the following message from a colleague who was a fire chief until recently. A real bright and shining star in the fire service leadership world, IMHO. I had sent this person information about a course development project for which I was seeking developers to work on. ...

By: Robert Avsec, Executive Fire Officer This past week, I posted the following on my Facebook account: That’s me, at my first job at Allied Ambulance Services, circa 1979. Hard to believe that it was 40 years ago today, August 13th, 1979, that I arrived in Richmond, Virginia to start my first job in public safety working as an EMT ...