Leadership: Fire control command

The National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) Leadership Framework sets out the importance of leadership in creating a healthy, enjoyable workplace culture and managing performance to improve service delivery. The framework has four quadrants of leadership: personal impact, outstanding leadership, service delivery and organisational effectiveness. Fire and rescue service leaders are expected to:

• Engage others
• Lead across boundaries such as functions and other organisations
• Adapt to change
• Use their emotional intelligence
• Deal with the present and anticipate future trends
• Empower leadership at all levels
• Develop and promote a learning organisation
• Embrace inclusion, diversity and innovation
• Demonstrate compassion while ensuring accountability and improvement

The framework is based on operational and professional expertise. All fire control personnel who may fulfil the role of fire control commander are leaders of the fire control function. Leadership is about the difference made to people affected by the performance and outcomes of the decisions, actions and behaviours of the fire control commander.

Fire and rescue services should consider their organisational culture and its influence on the command of fire control, as the leadership relationship begins prior to the receipt of an emergency call. The organisational culture can influence behaviours during all states of fire control activity and in all situations. This may affect how fire control commanders lead their teams and how personnel respond. Fire and rescue services should also ensure that relevant policies refer to the factors of leadership set out in the NFCC Leadership Framework.

An effective fire control commander should understand the influence of the following factors on their leadership:

• Awareness of personal limitations
• Valuing and supporting others
• Displaying and instilling confidence
• Demonstrating and building trust
• Encouraging open, two-way communication
• Using authority and different styles of leadership
• Setting expectations and standards
• Safety leadership
• Competence

Successful leadership means:

• Adopting the appropriate leadership style to suit the situation
• Having the confidence and ability to make decisions with incomplete or ambiguous information when under pressure
• Using technical knowledge and interpersonal communication skills to gather and understand information, and to develop and maintain situational awareness
• Using technical knowledge and interpersonal communication skills to develop and implement a plan
• Forming teams of the right people with the right expertise to safely resolve an incident or event
• Using interpersonal communication skills to establish trust between the fire control commander and the people and teams they engage with
• Using technical knowledge and interpersonal communication skills to inspire and motivate others
• Collaborating and co-operating effectively with others
• Valuing the contribution of others and looking after their welfare
• Demonstrating safety leadership by setting standards of performance and behaviour
• Displaying confidence and using their personal resilience to effectively manage stress and fatigue
• Being responsible and accountable for decisions taken and plans implemented when in command
• Not being afraid to make or highlight mistakes and using them to learn and improve