Administrative Brief
COMMISSION INFORMATION MEMORANDUM
VOL. 29 NO. 31 October 11, 2007
ADMINISTRATIVE BRIEF FROM LARRY MULLIKIN
Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood...Make big plans, aim high in hope
and work.
Daniel H. Burnham
,US architect & city planner (1846 - 1912)
That quote forms the basis of much of the work that has been occurring within the Salina Fire
Department. The Department has been involved in an extensive strategic planning process that
was approved by the City Manager on August 23, 2007. At the heart of the plan is a “Core
Statement.” The Core Statement defines the basic principles behind the entire process. Put
another way, it’s the foundation or bed rock of the plan. The statement says:
The Salina Fire Department will become the Premier Fire Department using the following
principles: 1) establishing an environment where the needs of the citizens come first, 2)
where working as a team is valued above individual effort, 3) deploying the latest
technologies in administrative and operational settings, 4) evaluating modern concepts in
management and personnel development, 5) establishing an environment where new
ideas are considered and implemented, and 6) promoting the research and development
of new concepts, approaches, and technology.
How does that influence daily operations? What benefit is gained for the effort expended? The
answer to those two questions will fill the remainder of this brief.
The best example contained in the plan of how the Core Statement influences the daily
operations is the new mission statement. For many years the fire department has had what I
would consider a typical mission statement. The statement comprised 75 words and two
paragraphs written by the department describing what the fire department does and how it does
it. No one could recite it. No one could remem ber it. There is a lingering question, “what is
important to those we serve and shouldn’t that be the basis of our mission?”
The fire department sends out surveys to a sampling of incidents from the preceding months.
The surveys ask the citizens to tell us how we did in a number of areas and request comments.
When the citizens wrote comments, the comments stated that 1) we had responded quickly to
their problem, 2) the performance of the cr ew was outstanding and professional, 3) we had
saved their lives or property, and 4) we were caring and compassionate at a time they were
frightened. When we were looking at revising our mission statement, the survey comments hit
us like a ton of bricks. The citizens had already written our mission statement for us. The citizens
told us what our mission was. The mission statement that evolved can be easily understood and
recited. Our mission statement today simply reads:
The mission of the Salina Fire Department:
Respond Quickly
Perform Professionally
Save Lives and Property
Be Caring and Compassionate to All
Make sure “Everyone Goes Home”
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The last mission statement is for selfish reasons. It reminds every firefighter that our focus is to
work as safely as possible in a dangerous environment. Work as a team. Watch out for each
other. The concept is really part of a nation wi de campaign to reduce firefighter fatalities at
emergencies. The “Everyone Goes Home” slogan is carried throughout the fire department. If
you are interested in looking at the national program, you can see it at
www.everyonegoeshome.com. The program is engrained in our strategic plan, in our daily
training and in our operations. Immediately following are two excerpts from a typical survey.
Since this may have been a medical call, I have blanked out the name.
For the second question with regards to the benefit gained for effort expended, that can be
expressed in terms of dollars, workforce satisfaction, and efficiency.
In terms of dollars, strategic planning provides a path through the use of management studies
and accreditation to reach the lowest ISO grade possible for the City. Currently, the City of
Salina carries an ISO Grade 3. ISO Grade 1 is the best rating. ISO Grade 10 means there is no
organized fire protection in the community. The graph immediately following shows the number
of cities in Kansas with ISO grades.
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Currently, Salina is one of 34 cities with a Grade 3. By improving to a Grade 2 it will put Salina in
a very elite number of cities in Kansas. An ISO Grade 2 will mean lower fire insurance cost to
homeowners and business operators. The lower cost of insurance makes it more attractive to
locate in Salina.
In terms of workforce satisfaction,
strategic planning can play a critical
role in helping employees become
engaged in designing and developing
new methods to deliver better services.
Morale is often cited as a barometer of
employee satisfaction, but morale is
really a symptom of an under lying
problem; much the same way a fever is
a sign of sickness. If employees, in our
case firefighters, are engaged in
promoting and improving the
department, it’s pretty hard to be
dissatisfied. If someone is dissatisfied,
generally they want to be part of the
problem instead of part of the solution.
Unchecked dissatisfaction leads to employee turn over, low productivity, and lack of initiative; all
of which, affect the citizens directly in one way or another.
Lastly, when determining the efficiency of a fire department, the line between good, better and
best is hard to determine. Often the difference is small, but the benefit to the citizens is huge.
Most communities have established or used benchmarks of one sort or another. Response
times, dollar losses, number of incidents have been routinely used and offer a very narrow view
of a complex service. The strategic plan calls for the fire department to evaluate systems and
processes, as well as human factors in providing a quality service that do not lend themselves to
benchmarks.
To establish the Salina Fire Department as one of the best in Kansas, the department will
embark on the multi-year accreditation process. To receive accreditation will require the
department to analyze every component of record keeping, training, operating and deployment in
delivering fire services. Once accredited, the process to achieve a drop in ISO grading should
be much easier. Accreditation requires dozens of benchmarks and system checks to be in place
to ensure maximum efficiency and process oversight. Maximum efficiency is achieved by having
the best practices in place and a workforce that is passionate about their careers. Passion
comes from involvement and the ability to make a difference.
The fire department has established the Planning and Improvement Team (PIT) as an effort to
engage all ranks of the department in policy, practice or operational procedure development and
implementation. Fire personnel are encouraged to submit ideas for consideration to the PIT.
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PIT evaluates the ideas and approves some of them for detailed development that concludes
with a proposal to the fire administration. PIT is not driven or directed by the fire administration
but does allow fire personnel to pursue their passions in service delivery.
Finally, the Open House for the remodel of Fire Station #2 will have passed when you receive
this memorandum. It is with sincere appreciati on that every member of the fire department
would like to thank the City Manager and City Commission in providing quality facilities and
equipment with which to perform our job for the citizens of our community.
MONDAY'S MEETING
Enclosed are other items on the agenda. If any Commissioner has questions or cannot attend
the meeting, please contact me.
Jason A. Gage
City Manager