Chapter 6: Effective Supervision Flashcards
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p93
What are the three most important decisions will make as a manager?
- Whom you hire
- Whom you promote
- Whom you allowed to remain on your team
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p93
How should the department should be judged/evaluated. How does the company officer influence that tally?
The department should be judged by the ratio of functional fire companies to nonfunctional fire companies.
The company officer then has the responsibility of taking a fire company from being average, to becoming functional.
Collectively company officers can make or break a department.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p93
What’s the key to limitless success of the department?
If the organization provides the company officer with the necessary leadership tools, motivation, and support, the potential of the organization becomes limitless.
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Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p94
What are the three primary responsibilities for company officers?
- Deliver a service outside of the firehouse: (fire suppression and prevention activities, rescue, EMS)
Officer must build the product of a functional fire team of members who are willing, able to do a good job, with good team chemistry, etc. If the product is shoddy it’s the company officer who produced it. - Develop a product inside of the firehouse: Build the team inside and deliver it outside.
- Manage fire department business at the company level: Varies from department to department. Management and administrative functions are important for a variety of reasons. He can’t be a professional without committing to quality work in every area that’s required.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p94
What does a fire officer needs in order to do his job proficiently?
Chosen culture
sound leadership philosophies
operational philosophies
supervisory tools
If anything is missing the company officer has to pick up the slack in the firehouse and fill in the gaps.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p95
How does Thompson approach leadership?
- Clear vision for what he expects from each position in the organization.
- Vision is communicated in terms of leadership in the operational philosophy.
- Outcome driven, rely on and empower members to take ownership for achieving those outcomes.
- Provide broad parameters for achieving success, each rank develops their own vision of success in philosophy at the organizational level. Must incorporate vision and philosophy of ranks above them (organization)
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p95-102
List of qualities for the functional company officer: 5
- Do good and no harm
- Knowledgeable, skills, abilities
- Character
- Emotional maturity
- Ambition
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p96
Do good and no harm
Hippocratic oath, basic but true. Obviously stuff like hazing and bowling less obvious is choosing not to train, allowing company to take prepared shortcuts, failing to correct obvious behavior or performance issues.
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Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p96
When you have officers that are good people, who have knowledge, skills, experience and abilities to be successful. But in reality have a substandard team, what is the most common explanation?
The most common explanation is complacency and the lack of officer preparation
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p96-97
Knowledgeable, skills, abilities
Firefighting is a technical hands-on activity. Unconscious incompetence is dangerous.
Officer needs to bring something to the table.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p97
Character
Respectable character, (person’s mental and moral qualities). Good character is doing the right thing because it’s the right thing to do. Officers are held to a higher standard.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p98
TCFD’s 20 leadership and personal traits incorporated into the hiring process
- Dependability
- Professionalism
- Ambition
- Decisiveness
- Endurance
- Enthusiasm
- Initiative
- Integrity
- Sound judgment
- Justice
- Technical knowledge
- Tact
- Unselfishness
- Loyalty
- Compassion
- Preparedness
- Respect
- Courage
- Humility
- Empathy
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p99-102
Emotional maturity
Emotional maturity has a tremendous influence on the firehouse environment and on the fire ground. Emotion and reason can be viewed as opposing forces in decision-making. Emotional intelligence as tactic memory. Confront emotions to make better decisions.
Company officer with emotional maturity demonstrates the ability to follow through. – The company officer commits to continuing to do what is right even when he doesn’t feel like it.
Company officer with emotional maturity doesn’t get overly emotional about complement or criticisms – They are secure in their position.
Company officer with emotional maturity possesses a spirit of humility. – Humility parallels maturity doesn’t draw attention to themselves realize others have contributed to their success can openly give credit to the company
Company officer with emotional maturity basis decisions on characters not feelings. – Value guide their decisions, able to progress beyond merely reacting based on emotion.
Company officer with emotional maturity expresses appreciation. – Sees the big picture realizes the positive influence they have on the company/community.
Company officer with emotional maturity knows how to put the needs of others before themselves. – A mature person is one whose agenda revolves around others, not self. Pathway to leadership is getting past your own desires and focusing on meeting the needs of those for whom you work, and those who look to you for leadership.
Company officer with emotional maturity seeks to understand before acting. – Doesn’t presume they have all the answers. Think before acting, not ashamed to seek advice from company.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p103
Ambition
Most challenging to correct. You’re asking for trouble placing someone who lacks ambition into a position to practice leadership. CO who lacks ambition is not leading, they are just letting things happen. Only hire and promote those with ambition, cant be taught. Motivate officers lacking ambition by making the experience personal. Using mentors or coaching techniques, make connection between the roles and responsibilities of the position and the consequence associated with low performance. Help officers see what success looks like.
Best place to start is by clearly defining what it takes to succeed at the company level then defining the knowledge skills abilities tools to achieve that success.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p104
Why is it important that respect be given to new recruits and engaged in learning their new profession versus being told to stay quiet and speak when spoken to?
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Because the latter damages ambition of new recruits and shouldn’t be acceptable. Respect is a two-way street you must give respect if you want respect.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p105
Thompson survey of 100 firefighters asking what they felt they needed to be successful and satisfied, their perceived needs.
Purpose trust/honesty/fairness respect/encouragement/appreciation personal and professional security leadership training and development comprehensive firefighter welfare and support programs separation between work and family, has needed opportunity to make a difference chance to leave a legacy \_\_
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p105
leadership versus supervisor
TCFD company officers are viewed as either supervisors or leaders. Because not everyone has what it takes to be a leader. Everyone can be taught about leadership, and can practice leadership but not everybody has what it takes to be a leader.
But all company officers must be good supervisors that’s their job. While not a leader they can still be successful.
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Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p106
Motivator vs Demotivator
Motivator should be strict, encouraging, and most of all honest. Young firefighters need true assessment of their strengths and weaknesses in order to improve. Encourage in an effort to bring out the best in people.
Demotivation is more about the fear of being honest. Having an ego, or or the fear of being proven incompetent. People who demotivate belief or harass
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p106
How to be an effective communicator
Effective communication is about listening, thinking before you speak, and delivering your messages with sincerity and honesty.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p106
As a company officer why should you always think before you speak, and not share everything you think?
Don’t get so comfortable around her crew that you feel you can say whatever you want – because you can’t.
Your crew hangs on your every word, so your unthinking candor can be good or bad.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p106
Officers can often be put into situations when doing the right thing is not always the popular thing. This is why it’s so important to take advantage of easy supervisory victories. Such as:
Caring about your crew’s family
Participating with the crew and not isolating yourself
Maintaining your knowledge and skill level
Investing in your crew success
Passing on accurate information
Trusting and forgiving-
these are low-risk ways you can commit to your crew and gain their trust and earn the respect.
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p107
what does your crew looked at the company officer for?
When your crew is looking for these items, it’s important you present them in what manner?
For: direction consistency reassurance redirection
A commanding presence when you speak and listen.
Speak with compassion, confidence, and calmness.
Never forget listening is the most important part of Communicating, and the best way to get to know your company
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p107
“Four-way test of things we think, say, or do”
From the Rotarians
Is it the truth?
Doesn’t respect all concerned?
Will it build goodwill and team chemistry?
Will it be beneficial to the team?
Chapter 6: Effective Supervision p107
What are the two things that separated effective supervisors from leaders?
- The courage to push the fire company to achieve excellence
- The ability to inspire individuals to be the best professional versions of themselves
