As chief learning officers, we grapple with a crucial reality: despite investing billions annually in technical training, performance often falls short. Drawing from my extensive research on firefighters, a powerful lesson emerges: merely teaching people to “do” without fostering their ability to “think” can doom both individuals and organizations to failure.
The American fire service stands in a class of its own. With 25 years in the field, I’ve witnessed firsthand how we train firefighters as highly skilled “doers” but miss out on cultivating their critical thinking. This deficiency in leadership, emotional intelligence, and creativity hampers effective collaboration in emergencies.
This is not unique to firefighting. In healthcare, tech, and beyond, lack of proactive leadership training is prevalent. Organizations tend to reactively, or even neglect, the development of human performance skills, often waiting too long to provide necessary support. In the fire service, entrenched cultural norms can hinder learning for newcomers.
My recent doctoral research underscores a crucial truth: To build high-performing teams, we must revamp professional development to emphasize leadership and interpersonal skills—not just technical qualifications, but a deeper understanding of oneself and others.
Key Insights From My Research
Interviews with company officers and fire chiefs revealed critical themes:
- Self-taught leaders excel: Those who seek knowledge independently feel more capable and effective, highlighting that relying on personal initiative reflects an organizational shortcoming, not a strategy.
- Knowledge transfer is lacking: Promotions often occur without ensuring leadership wisdom is passed down. Inadequate knowledge transfer erodes culture and increases safety risks.
- Interpersonal skills are crucial: Officers stress the need for skills in motivation, empathy, and trust-building, which improve culture and focus teams on missions.
- Misunderstanding autonomy: Fear of mistakes limits growth. True potential is unlocked when individuals act independently.
Alarmingly, leadership development is often an afterthought, favoring technical test-taking skills over leadership prowess and stress management. While some pockets of excellence exist, this approach deteriorates organizational culture and performance.
Does this sound familiar?
Implications for CLOs Across Industries
The fire service reflects a broader organizational challenge: while technical skills are vital, overlooking the mission and vision leads to disconnectedness. In emergencies, where rapid change reigns, leadership, and human performance become paramount. Organizations focusing solely on technical skills risk strategic misconceptions.
For CLOs, the imperative is clear: Leadership development must start early, extend widely, and align directly with progression and advancement frameworks.
Four Actions CLOs Should Take Today
1. Integrate leadership education from the beginning.
Leadership isn’t just for management. Firefighters demonstrate that early leadership training boosts performance upon promotion.
Action: Design entry-level programs incorporating decision-making, emotional intelligence, and communication alongside technical training. Ensure leadership development is an ongoing process.
2. Systematize knowledge transfer.
Without structured knowledge-sharing, insights are lost with retirements or promotions. Firefighters in Camden, N.J., reported inconsistent lesson-sharing.
Action: Develop mentorship programs, facilitate after-action reviews, and support peer-learning networks. Make knowledge transfer a core skill.
3. Mandate continuous education.
Like in medicine and law, ongoing education should be standard. Many fields let leadership training lapse post-onboarding.
Action: Require yearly leadership and human skills training with ties to promotions and evaluations. Leaders should consistently “level up.”
4. Emphasize performance under stress.
True leadership emerges in emergencies. Training to lead under stress is essential.
Action: Incorporate stress navigation and decision-making into leadership curriculum using simulations and real world scenarios.
The Shift: From Blue Collar to Gray Collar Learning
My research advocates for a shift to blend technical proficiency with situational awareness. CLOs should adopt this mindset, recognizing that today’s workforce requires both action and thought. Organizations should prioritize culture alongside certifications.
Final Thoughts
The lesson from the fire service is clear: technical skills alone won’t build resilient teams. CLOs must invest early in leadership development to foster faster learning organizations.
Develop leadership from the outset and promote continuous education alongside technical skills. Train for unseen challenges—think of it as organizational fire prevention for the future. The success and growth of future leaders depend on it.
Part of the “Evidence Matters” series by the USC Rossier School of Education and Chief Learning Officer, bridging research and practice.
