The latest in corporate must-reads is called Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap … and Others Don't by Jim Collins. After extensive research to determine the differences between good companies and great companies, Collins determined that “good is the enemy of great.” Most companies and organizations are content to settle for “good” rather than make the extra effort to be “great.”

Collins and his research team looked at 28 large corporations and their competitors and analyzed a wide variety of factors to determine the “great” companies — Walgreen's, Gillette and Kroger, among others — and found that the great companies all had strong leadership, staffing and vision. They looked internally to determine what they could be best at and how they could sustain new growth.

These companies were under the direction of what Collins calls Level 5 leaders, people without inflated egos. He explains, “Level 5 leaders channel their ego needs away from themselves and into the larger goal of building a great company.… Their ambition is first and foremost for the institution, not themselves.” They have a strength and humility about them; such leaders aren't chest-thumpers or fearsome CEOS.

The findings in Collins' book can be applied to fire departments large and small. How can a fire department become a great fire department? Excel at community involvement, be proactive in fire safety and public education, and most importantly, encourage education and safety of its personnel.

When you think of “great” fire departments, the large, highly visible departments may come to mind, but hundreds of others excel at their missions. This was obvious when we received the nominations for the Fire Chief of the Year awards this summer. Several of the fire chiefs nominated were not familiar names, but they received strong shows of support and respect from the leaders in their county or state.

Also critical to a great organization is having the right people. “How do we motivate people? If you have the right people, they will be self-motivated. The key is not to de-motivate them,” Collins suggests, adding to pay special concern to “plastic people — who'd been trained to quietly submit to the dictates of a domineering CEO.”

Many times my husband, a corporate executive, has said he would much rather rein in a motivated employee than have to prod one to get started. The right employee will challenge you, will ask questions and will share your ambitions for the organization.

A few months ago, I met a chief from a small volunteer department in northern Wisconsin. After serving as an assistant chief, he more or less just assumed his new role when his predecessor left. As a new fire chief he easily could have been overwhelmed by NFPA standards and OSHA requirements, but instead his staff stepped up. For example, one of his first responders is in charge of training drills and monthly mutual aid training. This chief is surrounded by people to share the workload and consequently he has a strong department.

Collins also gives a little advice: Start a “stop-doing” list. Most busy people have a to-do list, but one Level 5 executive started stop-doing lists to “unplug all sorts of extraneous junk.” One item could be as simple as not checking e-mail all day so as to not micro-manage your staff.

A number of fire departments are in various stages of flux, whether adapting to new fire chiefs — San Diego is one to watch — or handling the change thrust on them — Sept. 11 devastated FDNY. And with a new generation of fire chiefs and officers evolving, with fire science bachelor's degrees, Executive Fire Officer Program participation, Chief Fire Officer Designation and even Harvard Senior Executive Fellowships, the fire service is moving to a new level of professionalism. These leaders are rising to meet new fire service challenges. Will they settle for a good fire department or work toward a great one?