Why Should We Evaluate on the Performance of the Fire officer? Does It Necessary?

Chapter 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS SCOPE

INTRODUCTION

Rationale of the Study

Why should we evaluate on the performance of the fire officer? Does it necessary?

I conducted this study to overview why we should assess on the Fire Officers performance. As a fire officer, they are a direct front line representative for their respective department. They greet the public at many different instances, from the wide-eyed child that wants to grow up and be a firefighter. There is a significant balance needed to be able to handle these incidents and keep the balance between the brass and the crew members, along with keeping a keen focus on our customer service delivery. They are the problem solvers, the reassuring voice, the unyielding sign of confidence and determination while ordering troops into a raging inferno, while the spectators stand agape with wonder.

The officer must also serve as a leader to the members of the company as well. While there are essential characteristics for emergency scene skills, officers should possess other leadership traits as well.

Strong Tactical Focus: Fire officers who serve as Incident Commanders need to have a thorough blend of tactical competency and “street smarts”; assigning companies to specific tasks based upon the situation at hand comes from a strong knowledge base and detailed comprehension of the response area

Discipline: Officers must set the example; doing the right thing the first time, every time, sets a level of acceptable behavior within the company, while allowing enough ability to be flexible when need be.

Inspiration: An officer should inspire their company members to strive to do their best. Being able to motivate the company members will enhance their skills during an emergency, increasing the level of service they provide.

Know Your Troops: Each member brings a variety of skills to the team; a good officer should identify each member’s strong points and allow them to apply them to the incident.

Be Involved: The officer should be visual, and have their hands in every aspect of the company’s daily assignments. Getting involved in equipment checks, maintenance and repairs, inspections and station operations helps to solidify the Esprit de corps, or the morale of the company.

Accept feedback: A wise Chief Officer once told me that we are given two ears and one mouth for a reason. Being a good listener is vital for an officer; decisions during emergencies require as much information as possible to arrive at the correct decision. Listening skills requires full attention to the details before beginning to develop a response to the information.

Be Decisive: At times fire officers can suffer from “Paralysis by Analysis,” taking so much time to make any decision, while time on the emergency scene is critical. It is wise to practice “Tactical Patience”; taking a breath, so to speak, to get all the size-up information right to make the right call the first time. But, make the call so the companies can get to work. Being able to make sound decisions and show assertion while doing so will increase confidence in the members of the company.

Walk the Walk: Credibility comes from the decisions that the officer makes. Wearing their personal protective equipment (PPE), stepping off the apparatus with a tool in their hand, operating with everyone’s safety in mind, and “getting dirty” with hands-on training are just some of the things the officer can do to show the troops that they are in good hands.

Theoretical Background

Since the problem of encountered fire is considered one of the reasons for the draining out of government revenues and considering that the government is the primary sector affected economically, it is therefore high time now to evaluate the performance of fire officers to extinguish fire.

De Luca (1989) stressed that adequate training is absolutely is vital to success. No one is a natural born fire fighter, equipped from birth with the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed to perform this most demanding and difficult of jobs.

Luage (2002) also emphasized in his masteral thesis that efficiency in work can be traced to proper training and education, but according to Adams (1994) it still needs an exact number of man power. Due to shortage of manpower, sometimes fire crew has to work alone.

It is indeed difficult for the fire crew to accomplish their mission. They are in a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” situation. Leonard (1974) said “they must make decisions under the very worst condition.” But they will be guided more if the team has adequate training for inadequate training can be very costly when it becomes the focus of liability suits, or when the lack of training leads into a potentially avoidable injury or death. Blintiff (1990) stressed that “education is the key especially with all the new technology and training.”

Review of Related of Literature

This chapter includes ideas, generalizations or conclusions, methodologies and others. Those that were included in this chapter helps in familiarizing information that are relevant and similar to present study.

THE PROBLEM

Statement of the Problem

      The assessment on the performance of the fire officers should be implemented because of one dominant reason:

This study aims to prove that the assessment on the performance of the fire officer should be executed because as a Fire Officer they should be the problem solvers.

Factors:

1. What is the profile of the fire Officer in terms of:

        1.1 age

        1.2 gender

        1.3 civil status

2. What is the level of knowledge in the fire officer, as perceived to respond?

        2.1 level of knowledge

        2.2 level of awareness

        2.3 level of competence

3. What are the problems encountered by the fire officer in their efforts to extinguish fire which affects on their performance?

        3.1 tools

        3.2 skills        

        3.3 experience

4. Is there a significant difference in the assessment of the performance of fire officer as perceived to respond?