Eric Snow’s keynote presentation wasn’t a study of his performance on the court; rather it was an insightful, down-to-earth discussion about how he came to understand what it means to be a successful leader.

By Cindy Devone-Pacheco
Attendees at Friday’s general session were treated to a morning filled with various inspirational leaders ranging from the incoming leadership of the IAFC to a former NBA star. Up and coming leaders were also recognized as FireRescue magazine’s 2010 Company Officer of the Year award was presented by editor-in-chief, Tim Sendelbach, to Lieutenant [...]

In his Thursday afternoon session “The 7 Cs of Volunteer Leadership,” Tim Holman explains the seven simple words every volunteer fire officer should always have in mind—words that will help you maintain your leadership presence through the ups and downs of running a volunteer fire company.

Prevention in the fire service is often relegated to a separate division; many firefighters look at it as “someone else’s job.” In her seminar at FRI today, Mary Marchone of the NFA built a case for why prevention must be a process, not just an activity–and that it is very much the company officer’s responsibility.

As most firefighters/fire officers will tell you, the first 5 minutes of any incident can affect the next 5 hours. But what exactly should happen in those first 5 minutes? According to Fairfax County (Va.) Fire & Rescue Department Battalion Chief Chuck Ryan, if you’re the first-arriving officer, you’ve got two main priorities on your plate: sizing up the scene and developing an initial action plan. Without proper attention to these two tasks, your operation could very easily fail.

The answers to today’s problems are not clear-cut. In these times the world is no longer black or white – it is full of gray.

I had been in the fire service for some time before I had my first opportunity to attend a large production national fire service conference. Before that I thought that all fire departments were pretty much the same and what was going on in Shreveport was going on everywhere else – same services, personnel issues, [...]

“My concern speaks to what is in place for those who suffer either from long term effects from an incident or the root of the problem has nothing to do with an emergency response, as was my situation.”

Chief Bingham has 35 years in the fire service and will be presenting his session titled Fire Service Leadership Beyond 2010: New Expectation, Perceptions, and Challenges at FRI, August 26 in Chicago.

Live from the exhibit hall floor, FireRescue magazine Editor-in-Chief Tim Sendelbach offers his perspective on the sights and sounds of the conference.