They studied the W. Edwards Demings, Tom Peters and Jack Welches; they learned management by objective and wondered who moved their cheese; and they tap-danced on a lot of heads to move up. The presidents and CEOS who made their companies what they are today have retired or have been pushed out by re-engineering and takeovers.

In the same way, there's a new breed of fire officer emerging, too. These chief officers will need corporate strategies to keep a department financially stable and OSHA-compliant, on the cutting edge while serving a changing, ever-demanding customer base. As technology races forward, making smart decisions is critical to the safety of firefighters.

But can a chief fire officer be an effective leader without ever facing the flames or feeling the heat? Since fires are down — and potential big ones are sprinklered or built with fire-resistant materials — where will the next generation of firefighters learn to fight real fires?

Whether your questions are about department management or incident command, the answers can be found throughout the year in FIRE CHIEF. While many of you may have recently declared your resolutions for 2003, we've been working on ours for the magazine since last summer, which is when we start scheduling and planning articles for the next year. Our resolutions all revolve around change and you — whether you're a new or experienced fire chief; an assistant, deputy, division or battalion chief; a training, EMS, safety or company officer; or captain, lieutenant or leader of others in the fire and emergency services.

If there's one thing the fire service has seen in the past five years, it's change. Travel agencies, encyclopedia salesmen and banks have all faced drastic changes in their captive customers because of the Internet. Life is complicated, and it will only get more complicated. That's where FIRE CHIEF can help.

For example, Chief Gregory Cade demystifies strategic planning in this issue. According to Cade, every organization has a plan, “an implied strategy.” So before you answer your cell phone; take out your PDA with notes from your station visits, meetings and conferences; or sit down at your laptop and send e-mails to your staff, ask yourself, “Why am I coming to work?”

Your job is changing every day of the year, and so are we. To meet our commitments to the current and future leaders of the fire and emergency services, FIRE CHIEF Magazine is adding three new members to our editorial advisory board with this issue.

• Chief Charles “Sandy” Davis is in charge of safety for the Shreveport (La.) Fire Department and on the Fire Department Safety Officers Association board.
• Chief Robert L. Ridgeway, Gastonia (N.C.) Fire Department, is a seasoned chief in a rapidly growing region.
• Ohio State Fire Marshal Robert Rielage rejoins our Editorial Advisory Board, bringing his innovative style to the magazine.

For information about all of our editorial advisory board members, read their biographical statements on www.firechief.com. While you're at the Web site, make sure you sign up for the weekly Command Post e-newsletter. In addition to the news of the week, we tackle current events and items of regional interest that have our readers talking.

Right about now, your New Year's resolutions are probably beginning to show cracks of dissolving. If you took the time to make a resolution, you must have thought it was important enough to make a commitment to stick with it. We feel the same way about our commitment to you. Happy New Year,