A Word From Our L-480 CMLs

Video/audio transcript:

Hi, everyone. My name is Jim Shultz. I currently serve as the Co-Curriculum Management Unit Lead with Paul Cerda for the L-480 course. I want to talk to you a little bit today about the history of the L-480 course, where it currently sits, and where we would like to take it into the future. 

The L-480 course was designed in the late 2000s—2008, 2009, and into 2010. Originally it was designed for the Type 2 Command and General Staff audience. It was designed as a course focused on leadership concepts which apply to leaders who are mid- to late-career IMT practitioners. Over time, there was a recognition that this course as it was currently designed really focused more on concepts and understanding those concepts versus the practical application of those concepts. So with that in mind, the L-481 course was designed. And in 2015, that allowed the L-480 course to really continue on its trajectory of a course which focused on that self-analysis piece of taking a deep dive into where you currently sit as a leader, how do you show up, and focusing on a plan to improve the areas which need improvement and utilize those areas in which there was strength.

So, one of the things that we continually got feedback on from this course was that, "Man I really wish that I had had this course earlier in my career." So with that in mind moving forward we're looking at morphing the target audience for this course to those who have, broadly speaking, those who have several years of experience serving in a leadership role. That could be someone who's serving as an engine captain, an assistant hotshot crew superintendent, a assistant helicopter crew manager or on the non-fire side from an IMT perspective perhaps those who are serving in, let's say, a unit leader role (logistics or finance or plans type unit leader)...so Situation Unit Leaders, Supply Unit Leaders, that target audience. That change in target audience is one of the things that we're looking to do.

Looking at some of the specifics as we move forward, we'd like to continue the self-assessment tools that this course includes, perhaps expanding that out to looking at 360 opportunities for feedback from others as well as your own self-assessment of where you sit. Continuing to look at leadership styles; how you may have applied those styles in the past. Expanding on that a little bit to some more recent kind of leadership concepts. In the realm of authentic leadership or servant leadership may be some leadership concepts that you may have heard of that we're looking to bring into this course.

We'll continue to focus on core belief and values hierarchy. 

We'll also continue to touch on stress and resilience in this course; how that impacts you as a leader. 

We'll focus more on creating a plan for addressing that inventory that you would have done early in the course.

We'll look at some methods for changing behavior and also increasing the ability to influence in an organization.

Additionally, we'd like to look at team climate and organizational culture. You may have heard like "command climate." We want to expand that a bit out and look at organizational culture, big picture. And also then team climate, command climate, affect both you as a leader and the affect that you have on that climate and the organization culture.

So, that's where we're looking to take the course.

Currently, some challenges we're looking at are associated with a vendor pool or a pool of qualified instructors to deliver this course. Right now we are looking at a number of different options. One in particular is looking to partner with academia to help us deliver this course.

So, that's kind of the summary of where we've been and where we think this course is going. We think it's a great course. We continue to get great feedback from this course on the opportunity to really focus on you, how you show up every day as a leader, how does that align with our leadership values and principles, how does that relate to your own personal values, and what are the things that you can do to improve your leadership in the organizational and fire environment?

So, we hope you'll consider taking an L-480 course as we come out of, hopefully, the COVID environment, and we look forward to seeing you out there in the classroom or on the fireline.

Thanks

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Jim Shultz is the National Training Officer for the National Park Service and the one of the L-480 Curriculum Management Co-leads. All thoughts are that of the author.