The Sticky Truth About Crew Cohesion

 

Image by Elena Mullagaleeva from Pixabay

The Sticky Truth About Crew Cohesion

e. L. Pelletier – February 1, 2021

 

“Yup, I’m Sure of It. I Hate Him!”

~ Doc Holiday, Tombstone (1993)

 

In case you didn’t notice, the world has changed. January 2020 friends new and old greet each other with handshakes, fist bumps, and hugs; today, we cover our faces with masks and keep six feet distance between ourselves. It’s not an easy adjustment for anyone, but it’s one we have to work within. The new normal presents new and possibly deadly obstacles for leaders to overcome in wildland fire service, communications, interpretations, and crew cohesion.

Only 7% of a message is received through verbal communication, according to a study in the 1950s by Albert Mehrabian. His research also showed that 55% of the communication was in nonverbal body language, often being facial expressions. The 38% remaining was communicated in tone and inflection for those keeping score at home. Let’s tie that into today’s current dilemma; we wear a mask covering 50% of our face. On top of that, the masks often muffle and distort sound, essentially reducing the ability to communicate effectively. As a leader in your organization, you cannot hide behind the challenges and say, “we’ll see what happens.” You need to prepare for the situation and take the necessary steps to mitigate it.

 

“How?” You may be asking. Have you ever read something to get help on a specific topic only to find it just highlighted all the problems you already knew existed? Or worse, not only did they highlight your pain, but then plugged a book or seminar to get the answers! I have no book to sell or seminar to plug. We will get into building crew cohesion in the next few paragraphs, but first, we must work through communications at the primary level. Here is the solution:

• Explain the policy on masks and COVID-19 mitigation protocols.
• Ask if anyone has ever played the telephone game? Play the telephone game (modified for social distancing).
• Have a laugh.
• Ask permission from the group to allow for misunderstandings from time to time but reinforce that you all will get through it as a crew. Now is an excellent time to take out the IRPG and see who the bookworm(s) are in the group and ask which of the 10 Standard Fire Orders the telephone exercise demonstrated.

Besides being a good ice breaker, it also is a team activity that usually ends with a positive response.

 

Many leaders either don’t know or have forgotten to ask for permission from the people they oversee. I learned about this skill about five years ago, and it has forever changed the way I interact with my teams and the level of cooperation I receive from them. Go to the whiteboard, draw a line down the middle and put "Good" and "Bad" at each column's top. Then with a simple statement, “We have all suffered through bad leadership, trainings, meetings, briefing, and experiences. I don’t want that to happen here with us. What are some things that drive you crazy or make you frustrated during meetings?” Then listen to their comments. Again it’s a good icebreaker because it should be an opportunity to create a bit of a chuckle. Laughing is good; silence is bad.

Some agencies overhead at the regional, district, or local level pick the new hires; you may not have much of a say in the crew you get. Not having a role in determining the team may be a good thing. When I was the chair of an organization's professional development committee, the president called me and advised me that because it’s my first year as chair, she would select the committee. My gut reaction was that she micromanaged me because she didn’t trust me. Respectfully, I asked her why she felt the need to choose the committee, and she explained that many new chairs often select people that are similar to themselves and end up with seven to nine clones of the chair. She is very wise; often, that is what happens with new leaders. I asked her if I could present her with the list of people I wanted to invite to the committee, and she could have final approval; she agreed. The result was five of the seven people on the committee were on my list, and the committee accomplished great things for the organization that year. Don’t be offended if you don’t have a say in selecting your crew but don’t be afraid to ask to have input.

Often people come into leadership roles and think it’s their opportunity to implement all their ideas. While innovation may play a role, it is not the primary purpose of a leader. The crew is a part of a larger organization than just itself, the leader, be it Crew Boss, Engine Boss, or Squad Boss, Senior Firefighter, is to facilitate the crew. They have someone you have to answer to, someone that gives them tasks to accomplish. To efficiently achieve and provide an excellent report to your supervisor, the crew will need an engaged and invested unit. Allowing the team members to make contributribution builds morale, keeps dialog open, and fosters innovation.

 

Flash forward to the middle of May, and the crew arrives for the fire season. Is this the first time you’re making the connection of a name on a piece of paper and the person standing before? In the Art of War, by Sun Tzu, he says you can only ensure you are prepared. You cannot guarantee others will be ready. If your goal is to have a top notch, cohesive crew, you have to start before showing up. Read their resumes, find them on social media, take a valued interest in them, so on their first day in the cache, you already feel like you know them. People like talking about themselves. A good leader will know enough about their crew that conversation is easy to initiate. It might sound out there, but once the hiring process is complete, take a couple of minutes and send a personalized card to the new hire. It may seem like a simple task, but it’ll have a lasting impact on the crew member.

 

Another important reason to know as much as possible about each crew member beforehand is to help see through any bravado or shyness that is often displayed in a new group setting. In his book, Surrounded by Idiots, Thomas Erickson points out people generally have two behavior styles, their natural one, and their adaptive style. The natural behaviors will come out in time as the crew gets more comfortable with each other and their trust level grows. The adaptive behavior will be what is demonstrated when they walk in. It’ll be based on what they perceive the crew to be and their place in it. It is why it’s so vital to do your research and be prepared ahead of time. It’ll be a lot easier to set up the crew for success if you can get past the figurative masks people wear and see the real person.

A goldfish is said to have nine seconds' attention span; humans' attention span is eight. If that isn’t frightening enough for leaders who want to keep order, the average time to form a first opinion of someone is 1/10th of a second, according to recent research by psychologists Janie Willis and Alexander Todorov at Princeton. Hopefully, this didn’t trigger too much anxiety but instead stirred thoughts in your head of making a good impression as you meet the crew. Here is one tip I learned the hard way, check your fly! I once stood before 12 firefighters, facilitating RT-130 Refresher with my fly down. The regional Fire Management Officer (FMO) had sent two people. I got a phone call about my professionalism and was told that I should know how to dress by thirty-two years old.

Before moving on from first impressions, I want to point out something else that may have been overlooked above. Leaders must make an excellent first impression on their crew. The days of “I’m the boss, so you have to respect me” are long gone. Leadership is all about garnering the respect of people. Also, as a leader, DO NOT be too quick to judge. You have to be aware of yourself and fight the natural urge to form an opinion of someone at first glance.

It may be difficult to completely know each crew member before they arrive, but having an idea of who they are will give you a head start on the grief and growth process. Whether it’s three people or eighteen people who make up the crew, there will be a period of growth, and with that will come grief for the leadership. Some people have been in wildland fire for decades and will feel they have to prove something. Others that have a handful of years of service may think they should be the engine, squad, or crew boss. Then, of course, are the rookies who have always wanted to be a firefighter because it looks so exciting and cool (if they only knew that the thirty-second clips on the news or the action in the movies were preceded by hundred hours and miles of backbreaking work). As a leader, you have to help each person integrate into the team and develop their own skill sets and mindfulness.

 

One of the most challenging personalities that a leader will have to face and decide how to handle is the alpha dog mentality. In S-131 Firefighter I training, everyone learns about the span of control, representing five to seven firefighters. What is sometimes forgotten or overlooked is why it’s essential to maintain a span of control and not overstep our role. What happens if you bring a new puppy home and everyone is excited and starts calling for the dog to come? It gets overwhelmed, doesn’t know whom to listen to, what it should or shouldn’t do, and is confused. The same thing happens with people. It is imperative to have a chain-of-command you do not figuratively trip over it. If direction or correction needs to be made, make sure the proper person is giving it. If a crew member on squad A needs to be asked to do something, let it come from the squad boss, not the crew boss. The exception being praise and positive reinforcement; acknowledgment from a level or two above goes a long way as a morale booster.

Sometimes there may be an alpha dog (or two or three) in the bunch. If you maintain a span of control, you can more easily pull the crew member to the side and point out that while they have a leadership ability, it needs to be appropriately demonstrated. You remind them of the span of control and encourage them to be a part of the solution.

Leadership in the crew dynamic is not easy. Crew cohesion can feel like a million-piece jigsaw puzzle cover to the box missing. Successful leaders will take it piece by piece, though, and put it together. They will continually work on their interpersonal skills, keeping their egos in check, and building and fostering tomorrow's leaders.

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e. L. Pelletier held a career seasonal position with FWS and BIA. He left the wildland fire service to pursue other avenues and is passionate about leadership and self-development. We appreciate Eric's willingness to share his thoughts with our audience. The thoughts are those of the author.