VolunteerFD.org is full of specific recruitment and retention programs (http://www.volunteerfd.org/recruitment.php), but what about the more affective stuff that makes a difference? What about the people skills and interactions that makes us a ‘brotherhood’? What keeps volunteers volunteering?
When departments look at recruitment and retention, too often they look for the ‘quick fix’ or the ‘program’ that will solve their problems, rather then looking at what the problem really is. While incentive programs, LOSAP, and retirement programs are nice, they aren’t the answer to everything.
Everyone joins volunteer departments for different reasons, but if we did it for the money, we would be career firefighters. So why do volunteers volunteer? The most honest answer is probably that we all never grew up and want to play with big red trucks, but lets look at the other possibilities.
Many departments, and their members, were developed to help their neighbors, to give back to the community, and provide a public service. The problem is, when you are responding to the ‘b.s.’ calls all the time, do you truly feel like you are helping others? It would be real easy to keep volunteers happy if we had the ‘big one’ every week. Rarely do you see people complaining after saving someone’s life or property.
I’ll be the first to admit that I joined to ‘fight fires’, but I can also admit that in 9 years, I can count the number of ‘big ones’ I’ve been to on two hands. So there has to be something else.
What about the sense of community? What about the brotherhood? Now we’re getting somewhere. When you look at volunteer fire departments, fighting fires is a small part of what we do. We have fundraisers, meetings, training, social events, and we are a cornerstone of our communities. So what makes a department successful and keep its members coming? Lets start at the top.
The management (namely officers) of a department determines more of the department’s destiny then just at a fire scene. In order to retain and recruit members, the management needs to foster an environment of enthusiasm, fairness, and concern for others.
Enthusiasm is not something that can be bought with an incentive plan. Enthusiasm is something that needs to come from each member, with the chief being the head cheerleader. When your members enjoy their time at the department, and are proud of what it stands for, they will keep coming. When a department is stagnant, and things are rough, people mimic their leader’s attitude. If they see the management talking about improvements, taking steps in the right direction, and being positive, they will help to make it happen.
Fairness is always an issue. You can walk into most departments and pick out the groups: and who is in favor, who is not. The key is for the management to be fair in requirements and praise. As soon as you make a drill ‘mandatory’ but let your buddy slide, you have lost all credibility. Once you become an officer it is your duty to be fair, and look above your dislikes or friendships.
This is doubly true in the multiple personality conflicts that occur in departments. By nature, firefighters are outgoing, hard headed, and strong willed. When you put a group together with these characteristics, disagreements are sure to happen. Management who is fair, looks at both sides of the issues, and looks for the ‘real’ problem, will end up gaining the respect of ‘the guys’ and the community at large.
One more thing on fairness: Give praise publicly, discipline privately.
Finally, concern for others. We are in this business because we care about our community. We just need to show it. Not only do we need to care about our community, but about our fellow firefighters. It used to be that when a fellow firefighter was having a hard time, the department would be there for them. It is time to re-ignite the brotherhood.
It is the little things that give members that warm and fuzzy feeling and keep them coming. When a death or illness occurs, its important to at least send a card, no matter if you like the person or not. When someone is going through a hard time, make a phone call. When someone has a big project, offer to help them. Remember the golden rule, and do what you would want done if you were in their position.
Next week I will take a deeper look into electing and being a good officer. For more information on keeping volunteers coming, check out the call response apathy thread at: http://www.volunteerfd.org/phorum/read.php?f=9&i=229&t=16