Times are changing drastically in the volunteer fire and rescue service in our country. A new rising position specifically funded to represent volunteer interest is growing, especially in counties and large municipalities with a combination career/volunteer systems. In many areas of the country, the volunteer fire service is taking the path of hiring a salaried individual to direct, coordinate or assist with the administration and/or operations of one or more volunteer fire or rescue companies.
This new level of leadership position is becoming more common, especially in large communities or counties where numerous volunteer fire companies have a quasi-governmental relationship with the local jurisdiction. This position is not the same as the “paid” volunteer chief of a department, but rather is often hired to be an ombudsman to represent the interest of the volunteer fire service to the governmental entity.
Identifying the Need of a “Paid” Volunteer Leadership Position
Why is such a position needed in today’s volunteer fire and rescue service? We cannot forget, though volunteer departments are mostly independent corporations, fire districts or other independent formalized organizations, in some way all have to deal with government. The larger the volunteer department or the number of individual volunteer departments and the larger the form of government, the greater the need for an individual that is committed to working directly with government.
Many in the fire service often overlook the fact we are political organizations that deal in a political environment. From response areas to funding, most volunteer companies have some relationship to local politicians. For volunteer leadership to attend daytime meetings, numerous evening meetings, or play a role in developing budgets or policies can be very time consuming. Different volunteer members delegated assignments such can lead to inconsistency of representation or unclear opinions.
In many jurisdictions, there is a critical need for an individual to help coordinate the activities of many fire departments that are organized as a group, such as a county fire association or mutual aid pact. Attendance at committee meetings, regional or state work groups or public outreach often requires a specific individual. Timely and accurate communications between multiple companies can be difficult. Maintenance of records or minutes is often a critical void. Coordinated distribution of materials, memorandums and bulletins can be a tremendous challenge. Volunteers that administer critical information can frequently change and increase the probability of communications issues and inconsistency.
A central point of contact, impartial individual to seek guidance or advice, or an individual that can be utilized as a resource can be of tremendous value. The larger and more complex the organization, the more critical the need for an employee that can research issues, provide background documentation or give experienced advice on an issue and have no direct effect on his or her position. The ability of just having someone to air issues or provide the opportunity to vent can be a great benefit to volunteer fire company leadership.
Developing the “Paid” Volunteer Leadership Position
What is the position title? The options are as varied as the needs. In many cases, the “paid” volunteer leadership position starts out as a non-uniformed position such as a coordinator or administrator. Another option is to appoint a “volunteer director” which may connote the position would have a certain level of responsibility. Such a position can also be a uniformed position with operational responsibilities.
In some instances, a “volunteer chief” is hired by the governmental entity to provide both administrative and operational support. Positions such as director or chief can be a perceived threat and create animosity with volunteer officers. If the position has operational authority, the operational role must be fully understood by both volunteer officers and the paid leadership so the command level authority of the paid position does not lead on scene confrontation.
Though this type of a position is hoped to be the volunteer “voice,” in reality, the position is often hampered by getting different opinions of the same issue from different sources. Large volunteer organizations composed of variety of company member demographics often have difficulties in projecting a common message. Volunteer companies located in large municipalities may have a very different opinion on issues than neighboring volunteer departments from predominately rural areas. Decisions are often split without true consensus. This creates conflict for the individual hired to represent the “overall opinion” of the organization. Issues become even more complicated if volunteer companies with a minority opinion circumvent the chain of command and go directly to the government entity.
Who Hires and Funds the “Paid” Volunteer Leadership Position?
Will the new position be a county or municipal budget request? Will the position be funded by monies available in a volunteer association budget? If the county or municipality provides funding, will the funds go directly to the volunteer organization to hire an individual at will, or will the funds be designated to hire a governmental employee?
Both of these scenarios sound similar, but are very different. A person who is employed by a governmental entity such as a county or city will normally have full benefits of a governmental employee and subject to personnel rules and regulations of that government. This position may also be required to report directly to a high ranking government official, subject to employee evaluations. Though the person may be hired to “represent the volunteers” and report to an association or organization board, this diverse reporting will result in the employee essentially having two chain of command, sometimes creating direct conflict.
Having worked in this environment, I can attest to the difficult tight-rope walk of such a position. A person hired into such an environment essentially works for two masters. The position can represent the issues and concerns of the volunteers, but cannot act adversarial or, even worse, disrespectful to governmental leadership. The position must understand the political environment, both with the government and the “firehouse” politics of the volunteer companies.
As a government employee, the position has a direct responsibility to the governmental entity to also report negative actions within the volunteer organization that could have an effect on the government, either financially or publicly. I have witnessed “paid” volunteer positions simply eliminated when there becomes direct conflict with the governmental entity.
For the volunteer organization to have independent funding to hire their own employee provides a greater oversight of the position and is less restrictive in dealing with the governmental entity. The position has greater flexibility to speak on behalf of the volunteer organization without fear of a negative employment evaluation, or worse, termination. However, if the funding source for the position is coming from a governmental entity, caution must still be taken in making public comments or in direct dealings with the government entity as not alienate the entity that could result in simply eliminate the line funding in the next fiscal budget.
Who Do You Hire?
Once a funding source is identified to hire some form of “paid” volunteer leadership, the job announcement with requirements, experience, qualifications and the knowledge, skills and abilities needed in the position must be developed. Will the position need experience in the volunteer fire and rescue service? If so, the type of experience, years of experience and other relevant chief officer or administrative officer experience need to be included. Or, if the position is more administrative in nature, will management experience be more critical? Will the position require a degree? If so, are there certain target education tracts such as fire science or public administrative required or preferred?
What type of communications skills are needed? Will the position speak on behalf of the volunteer cadre at government and public assembly meetings? Will the position have to deal with media or write press releases? Will some governmental or political background preferred. Will budgeting and fiscal management be part of the background needed? In today’s environment, computer, social media, data and IT skills have become a priority.
A formal job description should be developed and posted with the position announcement. An extensive list of the duties and responsibilities should be included with examples of work. Qualifications and requirements should explicitly outline education, experience levels, and any certifications. Any variations allowed for experience versus education or certifications should be noted. Specific education levels or certifications are preferred, and that information should also be contained in the announcement. Salary range, work hours, and benefits are informational items needed by the applicant to help determine if the applicant is even interested in applying.
Personality and Communications
One of the most difficult traits to target is the personality of the individual. Dealing with a multiple of volunteer fire companies with various levels of leadership AND dealing with political leadership and public customer service issues can be a tremendous challenge to even the most highly qualified job candidate. The volunteer fire and rescue service is a very personality driven organization. A pastor who also served as a volunteer fire officer noted that volunteer fire companies are churches with trucks. Members are committed, dedicated, and passionate about their department. Often several generations of the same family have been members.
It is said you can tell a chief, you just can’t tell him or her much. This position will be dealing with the chief level officers as well as the highest level of government. These individuals are in leadership roles that their authority or decisions are rarely questioned or refuted. The person hired must be able to convince without being argumentative or disrespectful. The art of compromise is a necessary trait that cannot be determined by reviewing an application.
The position may well become the focal point for volunteer companies to seek guidance on budgetary issues, developing a business plan or establishing administrative procedures. The position may be subject to questions regarding company by-laws, Robert’s Rules of Order or other administrative procedures. The position will most likely become a “father confessor” and unbiased listening post to volunteer leadership that need to vent internal company issues. In these situations, confidentiality is of the utmost importance.
After the selecting the top candidates, the interview will become the most important part of the process. The interview panel can get a personal glimpse of the candidate. A series of pertinent questions presented to the candidate in front of an interview panel could give some insight into the ability of the candidate to work under pressure, their personality type, and ability to respond. A second interview may be advantageous to enable the interview panel to better access the individual in a more personal and informal setting.
The “paid” volunteer leadership position can be of tremendous benefit. But ultimately, the individual hired for the position will receive criticism of “not being volunteer enough,” “forget where you came from” or “in bed with the county/career staff/union/city manager," or any number of other individuals or entities that the position must handle. Dealing directly with fire chiefs, organization leadership, government hierarchy, and career staff representatives will become an almost impossible task. The position will have a “target on your back” with shots coming from many directions.
It will take time to evaluate the need and development the parameters for some form of “paid” volunteer leadership position. Indebt justification will be needed if funding is to be provided from a county or municipal government. A clear chain of command and supervisory oversight must be well established before a position is advertised. The right type of position with the right individual should become an ombudsman for the volunteer fire and rescue service and a positive step forward to help promote and maintain the volunteer fire and rescue service in any given community.
Clarence “Chip” Jewell is in his 50th year as an active volunteer and retired in 2017 as the Deputy Chief/Director of the Frederick County, MD, Division of Volunteer Fire & Rescue Services, a combination fire and rescue service consisting of 25 independent fire and rescue companies, 600 active operational volunteers, 1700 total volunteers and over 400 career personnel.
Clarence Jewell
Clarence “Chip” Jewell is in his 54th year as an active volunteer. He is a life member of the Libertytown, MD, Volunteer Fire Department and the Junior Fire Co. No. 2 in Frederick, MD. Jewell retired in 2017 as the deputy chief/director of the Frederick County, MD, Division of Volunteer Fire & Rescue Services, a combination service that consists of 25 independent fire and rescue companies, 600 operational volunteers, 1,700 volunteers and more than 400 career personnel. He has a bachelor's degree in fire science from the University of Maryland/University College. Jewell is a management-level instructor for the Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute. He is active on several committees of the Maryland State Firemen’s Association.
