EFO Research Brief: Why Vulnerability Is a Leadership Strength in the Fire Service

Editor's note: "EFO Research Brief" is a new collaboration between Firehouse.com and the National Fire Academy's Executive Fire Officer Program to highlight the research conducted by students. Each month, we will provide a summation brief of their final research capstone spanning multiple fire service topics.  

Effective leadership is one of the most significant challenges leaders face when interacting with those they oversee. The often chaotic, dynamic, and life-or-death nature of the fire service work environment makes it even more so for leaders. Research in other industries suggests that expressed vulnerability by the leader is a key attribute of effective leadership, but what about the fire service? I conducted a generic qualitative inquiry study of fire service members with the intent to better understand if existing research on vulnerability was relevant to the fire service.

For my Executive Fire Officer (EFO) Program capstone, I also looked to answer the following research questions. First, does expressed vulnerability make a leader more effective? Next, do subordinates see vulnerability in their leader(s) as an asset or a liability? And finally, do different expectations exist for leaders of different ranks?

Existing research outside of the fire service was available in several industries and environments, including education, consulting, retail grocery, and executive-level leadership programs, to include a business school and an MBA program. These studies revealed several interesting conclusions. First, vulnerability is unpopular in most modern societies. Second, expressing vulnerability requires courage, whether one is a leader or a follower. Next, the supervisor-subordinate relationship may be complicated when expressed vulnerability is at play. Additionally, vulnerability-based trust leads to increased psychological safety. And finally, a dynamic that includes vulnerability leads to more authenticity and greater healthy conflict.

• Download the full capstone paper

Ten operations employees of Gig Harbor, WA, Fire & Medic One were interviewed as part of this Executive Fire Officer study, all having volunteered to participate. Nine were male and one was female. Seven were firefighters or firefighter/ aramedics, two were lieutenants, and one was a battalion chief. Their fire service tenure was evenly split in five-year increments (0-5, 5-10, etc.), with only one between 10-15 years, and three over 20 years. Four were lateral entry, having previously worked at other departments. Each employee was interviewed virtually with the interviews being transcribed through Zoom. Nine total questions were asked with the latitude to ask clarifying questions as needed. A scripted introduction and outro were used, with the introduction including the following definition for vulnerability; “a willingness to be transparent and emotionally exposed in a relationship with another individual, with the possibility of being hurt or attacked,” (Lopez, 2018, p. 4).

There were five themes that emerged from the answers provided during the interviews.

Traits: The most admired trait was a leader’s intention to be relational with those on their team. Some quotes in support of this trait included an interviewee’s recollection that they remembered most fondly the leader who “care[d] deeply about their people” and “are willing to establish those relationships.” Additionally, honesty from a leader was critical in terms of trustworthiness. One respondent stated that “it’s [trust] very easy to lose and extremely difficult to get back.” Another interviewee recounted a fire service officer who was lacking motivation and shared that with his crew, and the interviewee said, “I appreciate[d] the honesty and it made me trust him a little bit more.” The most disliked traits include micromanagement, arrogance, and a lack of confidence.

Expectations of a leader: Regarding expectations, all respondents expected every leader to be competent in all aspects of their current role, with higher rank came higher expectation, and greater personal investment was only expected from their immediate supervisor. The interviewees were also clear to point out that their views and opinions extended beyond formal leaders to the informal leaders as well. Some of the notable quotes from this theme included “to whom much is given, much is expected” and “the higher you go, the brighter the light.”

Vulnerability: None of the respondents viewed vulnerability as a liability, but three shared that it depended on various factors, confirming that this topic was nuanced. The focus of those who said that it depended were focused on the perception that vulnerability could convey a lack of confidence or relative weakness related to fireground operations and command presence. Most of the interviewees answered with statements that vulnerability from one’s leader was "100% an asset" and “definitely an asset.” Some of the identified benefits of a leader’s willingness to show vulnerability included that it elicits trust quickly, expresses humility, and models a desired behavior for the team. One interviewee said, “it’s very unreasonable to expect anybody to not be vulnerable.” Another respondent stated that vulnerability can be “incredibly useful, necessary even to be a good leader.”

Ways to strengthen relationships/trust: Developing relationships between the leader and the team is critical, yet surprisingly simple to accomplish with reasonable effort. Some of the examples given for how a leader could undergo building relationships include showing genuine interest in the personal life of one’s subordinate and spending time together. Spending time together is specifically simple to do if the leader is willing to get out of the office. Examples include cooking together, working out, drilling, and completing the daily or weekly chores or duties. One area of focus that emerged during the interviews was the power of overcoming shared struggles to building relationships. That can happen through challenging drills, complex projects, or the act itself of fighting fires. Another option for the leader that was not expected, but appreciated, was spending time together as a team away from the workplace.

Impact of relationship on the willingness to follow: Many of the respondents indicated that it depended as to whether familiarity with a leader improved or impeded one’s willingness to follow on the fireground. Most of the interviewees said that they would follow a direct order, assuming it was safe, legal, and ethical, because we exist in a paramilitary profession and that is part of it. Beyond that understanding, the group stated that if their prior interactions were positive, then they would follow without hesitation. But conversely, if their previous exchanges were mixed or negative, they would be slower to or more hesitant to enthusiastically carry out an order. The feedback from this question boiled down to the leader’s intent, whether trust existed, did the leader have the follower’s best interests in mind, and did the subordinate believe in the capabilities of the leader.

Lessons reinforced by research

There were many lessons to be learned or reinforced because of this research study and time spent with these firefighters. First, all leaders should be intentional about cultivating meaningful personal relationships with every member of their team. This is easy to do and can happen quickly if the leader is willing to express vulnerability. Secondly, vulnerability-based trust is critical to the effectiveness of any team, especially ones that exist in the fire service.

Next, leaders should resist any tendency to micromanage their crew. If the leader feels it necessary to micromanage, they should take time to be introspective and try and understand why. Do they lack trust in their team? Do they lack self-confidence? Are they vulnerability avoidant? The leader should take stock of what is preventing them from believing in their team, and actively seek out opportunities to change their perspective. Subordinates and citizens deserve, if not demand, the very best their leaders can give every day they report for duty. Next, spend time with your team when possible, and invest in your followers on a personal level. Additionally, instead of waiting for circumstances to provide shared struggle(s), be intentional about creating those opportunities as often as practical.  And, finally, if every leader would actively look for ways to be just a little more vulnerable in some way with those they lead, think of how the fire service culture would change and evolve.