The subject of succession may stir feelings of defensiveness, indifference or passion. The emotional volatility of the subject is rooted in its most vital element: people.

“You manage things but you lead people,” goes a popular management dictum. Management and leadership are important for an organization's effectiveness, from a process standpoint as well as from a human perspective. This is especially important as you lead your work force in succession planning, trying to build a leadership-centered organization.

Succession planning takes hard work, open communications and commitment from the entire organization. It's a dynamic process that requires an organizational culture to embrace change, and it requires management of the change process itself. But too often we are absorbed in day-to-day issues that emphasize short-term results.

To plan for consistent succession, you must assess the potential for vacancies; assess the readiness of current staff to assume these positions; develop strategies to address the needs of employees and the organization; and mentor, train and develop leadership and management skills.

Different strokes

In the 1980s people and organizations pursued excellence; today's quest is for integration and balance. This is also important when planning for succession and considering your organization's capacity for change.

The fire service is at a crossroads. We complain about a lack of professional recognition, but often we promote individuals to chief officer positions with no formal education. We can't have it both ways. The individuals within our organizations look at those who lead them to set the tone. Are you just filling a position, or are you leading while serving in the position you hold?

“Education without training is inert, and training without education is transient,” according to the International Association of Fire Chiefs' Professional Development Committee. In 2001, the U.S. Fire Administration hosted a conference about the need for higher education in the U.S. fire service. The bottom line: You must hire and retain quality people, and those people must be nurtured along a continuum of training and education commensurate with their current and anticipated future roles in your organization.

There is a fundamental difference between training and developing personnel in task-related competencies and developing leadership and management skills to effectively direct an organization into the future. Think about how many people you know who were promoted because they were good fireground officers but who had no formal preparation in management skills, let alone leadership skills.

Another important element to consider in succession planning is the 80/20 rule, which states:

• 20% of your people will produce 80% of the work;
• 20% of your people will demand 80% of your time; and
• 20% of your people will embrace change and the concept that leadership is an important individual attribute.

Choose your candidates to groom for succession from the 20% who embrace leadership, change, risk-taking and organizational excellence as a way of life, not as a means to an end.

Succession planning ensures that an organization has the right personnel to function at peak capacity. This brings us to another sometimes uncomfortable subject. Because of politics or other reasons, sometimes even the most well-run organizations must go outside to hire a chief or other department staff leader. Not promoting from within can create turmoil within an organization.

Often the outsider comes into an organization and immediately begins to “correct” the past injustices, procedures, policies and the like before fully evaluating the people and systems in place. This common error creates internal dissension and a culture of distrust — the effects of which can take years to overcome.

Different folks

Integrating coaching and mentoring into the probationary training program is an excellent way to introduce the new firefighter into a culture that embraces and thrives on these concepts. You build a culture of leadership, one in which individuals are encouraged and even expected to play an active role in the organization's development.

Basically, successful succession planning can be reduced to four components or steps:

1. Identify existing competencies relating to leadership needs as well as to the needs of your department and the community it serves.

2. Evaluate members of your department and how they fit with the mission, vision and core values of your organization.

3. Implement coaching, mentoring, recruitment and training requirements that are consistent with the department's operational needs and its mission, vision and values.

4. Develop a plan.

The most successful leaders employ a push-pull strategy to accomplish goals and objectives consistent with the organization's mission and vision. They communicate a sense of urgency to push things in the proper direction. Once members realize the importance and timeliness of the issue at hand, the leader will pull the department members toward the completion of the objective at hand.

As leaders, we must build a culture of trust through responsibility. We train the leaders of tomorrow by pushing decision-making down through the chain of command. A culture in which employees aren't afraid to take risks to better themselves and the organization is not only important, it's essential to effective succession planning. As the chief of the department, you must build your plan for succession not only on your character and competence but also on that of the people serving under you.

The brilliant 19th-century military strategist Baron Von Clausewitz once said, “Theory can give no formula with which to solve problems. It lets the mind take a look at objects and their relations and then the mind goes to higher regions of action, there to act.”

To plan for succession, you must understand not only the concept of succession planning, but also your organization's dynamics and the local government and citizens you serve. There is no substitute for education and experience. You need both. There is also no substitute for character and competence. For without leadership and organizational character and competence, all succession planning efforts for your organization will forever remain in theory only.

---

Gary Johnson is chief of the Marysville (Ohio) Fire Department, where he has served for 23 years. He holds a bachelor's and a master's degrees in business administration, is a member of the Institution of Fire Engineers, and a Chief Fire Officer designee. Johnson also serves on the publications committee of the Ohio Fire Chiefs Association, as adjunct faculty in the Public Safety Management/Applied Management Technology program for Franklin University, and as an advisory committee member for that university department.