PERSONALQUALITIES, LEADERSHIP&THE ORGANIZATION
MARCH6-7,2023
ERICLANG,
FIRECHIEF
RICKTALBERT
FIRECHIEF(RETIRED)
SPONSOREDBY:
FLORIDAFIRECHIEFS’
ASSOCIATION
HOSTED BY:
NORTH PORT FIRE RESCUE
Greetings ESLI Participants,
Thank you for your interest in the Emergency Services Leadership Institute program. We look forward to welcoming you to Personal Qualities, Leadership, and the Organization, to be held on Monday March 6, 2023 and Tuesday March 7, 2023. Class times are from 0830 – 1700 Hrs. The location is the North Port Fire Station 86 and the address is 19955 Preto Blvd, Venice, FL 34293. Continental breakfast will be provided from 0730 – 0815 Hrs. and class will begin promptly at 0830 hrs. This module is designed to better prepare you to deal with the management and leadership challenges that face you as a leader and focused on the fire and emergency medical services of today and the future.
In the link below, you will find a program outline, which includes program information, a brief course description, and a list of competencies that will serve as the program’s expected outcomes. Please review this prior to class. This competency-based interactive program is designed to avoid a strict and scripted 'lesson plan' format. We want to enhance the 'deliverables' that you can take back to your respective organization to immediately begin the process of implementation. To this end, we encourage you to peruse the subject content areas, and to bring to class your department policies and ideas relating to any of these topics. This will allow us to address ‘real life’ topics and better assist us in providing real solutions.
Specifically, we ask that you review and answer the twenty-five question Agency Evaluation Form. Additionally, we ask that you bring and be prepared to discuss your organization’s Mission, Vision, and Value (or Philosophy) Statements, your Career Development Policy (Contract language), your Succession Development Plan, and any other contemporary guiding documents, as noted in the program outline, that we may share and discuss. In addition, consider real life leadership examples that you would be willing to discuss.
This program is structured to allow various teaching methodologies including lecture, class discussion, class presentation, group exercises, role-playing, and case study analysis/discussion. This content is best shared in a dynamic manner encouraging questions, discussion, differing opinions, all while seeking best practice models
Again, thank you for your interest in this program and we look forward to seeing you in near future.
Respectfully,
Eric Lang, Fire Chief Rick Talbert, Fire Chief (retired)ESLI - 2023
TITLE: PERSONAL QUALITIES, LEADERSHIP, AND THE ORGANIZATION
• Topics:
▪ Organizational Design and Development
▪ Mission, Vision and Values
▪ Supervision, Management, and Leadership Defined
▪ Strategic Planning
▪ The Transition from ‘Buddy’ to ‘Boss’
▪ Supervision, Management and Leadership Defined
▪ Transformational versus Transactional Leaders
▪ Contemporary Issues in the Fire Service
▪ Team Design and Facilitation
▪ The Importance of Effective Inter-Organizational Communication
▪ Reward and Incentive Programs
▪ Employee Career Development
▪ Succession Planning and Development
▪ Leadership and Ethics
▪ Dynamics of Change Management
▪ The Impact of New Technology on the Workforce
▪ The Impact of Education and Academic Achievement
▪ Understand Trust and Performance
▪ Toxicity in organizations
▪ Trust based organizations
▪ Blind spots of leaders
▪ Employee Health and Wellness
▪ Mental Health Challenge and Peer Support Resources
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This ESLI Module will concentrate on the relationship between the personal and professional characteristics of a leader and how a leader can impact people and the organization. The importance of the transition from those who follow versus those who supervise and truly lead. This module will take a serious look at a variety of issues that impact the contemporary organization and will focus on the strategic outlook and planning that may help to deal with the successes and pitfalls an organization may face.
The relationship between team development and sharing a common vision will be explored, in the context of today’s fire and emergency services The goal is to develop leaders who create a vision of how to grow each organization of our fire service into the future, ultimately leading high performing organizations. The vision of this program has been to create leaders of the future.
The course will highlight the importance of accurate and regular communication in an ever changing and diverse workforce. Leaders will investigate the many factors and influences that result in both good and bad communications Participants will understand how leaders can improve our communications by refining listening skills and understanding limitations individuals may have on what impacts communication.
The importance of a comprehensive, yet easy to understand, employee career development template will be addressed as a ‘roadmap’ for advancement that considers tenure, academic achievement, certification, rank, and job performance. A range of leadership styles will be compared and discussed, as will understanding the difference between transactional versus transformational decision-making. An important component of this module deals with change management and the balance that must be made, along with the potential impact to the organization, when facilitating change.
Ethics based decision making that will encourage perpetual sound ethical behavior at work and in your personal life will be part of the discussions. Examples of maintaining the highest degree of ethical behavior should be modeled
Today modern technology is ever changing and it has an impact on the fire service and our leaders. Participants will discuss the positive and negative aspects of leading and leveraging technology. Students will consider what level of technology may be best for each organization. The impact, challenges, and advantages of fostering a pro-education environment will be presented, as will the benefits of focusing on employee wellness and fitness in terms of personal health and the associated benefits to the organization, consistent with current guidelines. The mental health, wellness and happiness of individuals and how it may impact both leaders and members of the organization will be explored.
COMPETENCIES
A participant will
• Understand the differences in supervising, managing and leading.
• Be able to identify leadership characteristics and have a better understanding of different leadership philosophies.
• Understand the transition from those who follow versus those who supervise.
• Be cognizant of their leadership strengths and weaknesses.
• Be aware of personal leadership improvement strategies.
• Understand organizational design and structure.
• Understand the developmental process of a functional mission, vision and value statements that reflects the organization and addresses an organization’s needs.
• Understand the importance of defining, and communicate an organization’s mission, vision, and value statements.
• Be able to analyze organizational needs and establish alignment between actions and a measurable strategic plan specifically designed to address organizational goals.
• Understand the concept of strategic planning and its relationship to organizational initiatives, and programs.
• Be able to develop and implement an incentive program and a reward system.
• Be able to develop a career and succession development model that is relevant, understood, accepted, and consistently applied.
• Understand the opportunities and pitfalls in communicating as a leader.
• Understand and be able to make adjustments relative to changing technological in the fire and emergency service.
• Be cognizant of change management models to better prepare them to adapt to rapid technological and functional changes associated with fire and emergency services.
• Understand the importance of training and academic education and the impact that it has on a changing workforce and the organization as it relates to recruitment, retention, promotion, and career development.
• Be able to develop a team-based working environment with limited controls and resultoriented outcomes.
• Understand relationships between trust and performance, emotions and strategy and apply models that support positive outcomes.
• Understand the concept of empowerment and possess the skills and knowledge to enable employees with a focus on responsibility and accountability.
• Be able to develop a comprehensive wellness and fitness program and understand the benefits of the personal and organizational impact of these programs.
• Facilitate discussion on improving individuals well-being to create happier healthier employees.
• Assure Peer Support and Mental Health references are available and guidance is given to establishing mental health professionals and resources for fire and emergency services personnel.
Instructor/Facilitator Bio’s
Eric Lang, Fire Chief
Eric Lang has served as the Fire Chief at Key Biscayne Fire Rescue since 2012. He started his career with Key Biscayne Fire Rescue in 1993; when he was presented with a unique opportunity to be one of the founding members at the inception of Key Biscayne Fire Rescue. During his tenure as the Fire Chief, the department has been accredited by the “Commission on Public Safety Excellence” for the 5th time in 2018; as well as improving the ISO rating for the department.
He has served as the Accreditation Manager, Fire Marshal; and has participated in various deployments as part of the State Emergency Response Teams. In 2019, Chief Lang served as the President of the “200 Club of Greater Miami”; a non-profit organization that provides a benefit to fallen firefighters and police officers’ families. He is an instructor for ESLI courses and has also been a conference presenter Lang is a graduate of ESLI and the National Fire Academy, received his undergraduate degree from Barry University in Public Administration, and his MBA from University of Miami in Business Administration.
Most recently Eric was nominated in to the first class of the Hall of Fame for the Firefighter Combat Challenge.
Fire Chief Rick Talbert (Retired)
Rick Talbert is a forty-two-year veteran of the fire service. A second-generation firefighter, he most recently served as the Fire Chief/Administrator for the South Walton Fire District (SWFD). Rick’s responsibilities included and the protection of 84 square miles of Northwest Florida’s Emerald Coast, operating out of five fire stations, SWFD is a 0ne- hundred-eighty-member career fire and rescue service that provides fire suppression, fire-based advanced life support EMS transport, Beach Safety Lifeguards, Fire and Life Safety and E-911 Communications. Chief Talbert has served in leadership positions in municipal government, private industry as well as his most recent role in an independent fire district. Rick served as an elected Fire Commissioner (Seat 3) for the South Walton Fire District-2019-2021.
Rick is a credentialed fire officer (CFO), a graduate of Eastern Florida State College, National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer program and the University of Maryland’s Staff and Command program. A member of the Florida Fire Chiefs Association since 1994, he was recognized by the State of Florida as Florida Fire Chief of the Year in 2009. Talbert has participated and chaired various committees and initiatives to include association president in 2006-2007 and Vice Chair of the Florida Fire and Emergency Services Foundation 2010-2018. Rick was recently granted President Emeritus status from the FFCA Board of Directors in 2023.
Rick is currently a senior consultant with the J. Angle Group® and provides Strategic Planning, Master Planning and Agency Evaluations for fire-rescue agencies in Florida. He also is a Senior
Cadre Leader and Mentor for Florida’s famed Smoke Diver and Stress Inoculation Program at the Florida State Fire College.
Rick and his wife Laura enjoy RV travel, hiking and biking and currently reside in the historic town of McIntosh, Florida.