Candidate Preparation Guide for the City of Miami ...€¦ · Candidate Preparation Guide for the 2014 City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue Chief Fire Officer Exam ... a response

Candidate Preparation Guide for the City of Miami Department of Miami Fire-Rescue Chief Fire Officer Exam

March 2014

Prepared By:

Copyright © 2014 by EB Jacobs, LLC. All rights to the information contained herein reserved by EB Jacobs, LLC. No part of this guide may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from EB Jacobs, LLC.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. 1

II. DESCRIPTION OF THE EXAM .............................................................................................. 2

A. Date, Time and Location ............................................................................................. 2 B. Confidentiality ............................................................................................................. 2 C. Content ....................................................................................................................... 2

1. Written In-Basket Exercise .................................................................................. 2 2. Oral Board Exercises ........................................................................................... 3

A. Incident Command .............................................................................................. 3 B. Group Meeting Role-Play .................................................................................... 3 C. Subordinate Conference Role-Play...................................................................... 4

D. Administrative Logistics .............................................................................................. 4

1. Written In-Basket Exercise .................................................................................. 5 2. Oral Board Exercises ........................................................................................... 5

A. Preparation .......................................................................................................... 5 B. Participation ......................................................................................................... 6

E. Evaluation ................................................................................................................... 6

1. Ability Dimensions ............................................................................................... 6 2. Exam Component Weights .................................................................................. 7 3. Assessors ............................................................................................................ 8 4. Procedure ............................................................................................................ 8

F. Parallel Forms ............................................................................................................ 8

III. PREPARATION AND PARTICIPATION STRATEGIES FOR ORAL BOARD EXERCISES .......... 9

A. Message Content ....................................................................................................... 9 B. Interactions with Others ............................................................................................ 12 C. Analyzing and Deciding ............................................................................................ 15 D. Managing the Process .............................................................................................. 18

IV. EXTENSION OF STRATEGIES TO THE WRITTEN IN-BASKET EXERCISE ........................... 21

A. Written Expression .................................................................................................... 21 B. Information Analysis ................................................................................................. 21 C. Judgment and Decision Making ................................................................................ 22 D. Interpersonal Relations ............................................................................................. 24 E. Planning and Organizing........................................................................................... 24 D. Resource Management ............................................................................................ 25

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V. SPECIFIC TEST-TAKING SUGGESTIONS ........................................................................... 26

A. Written In-Basket Exercise ........................................................................................ 26 B. Oral Board Exercises ................................................................................................ 27

VI. SAMPLE EXERCISES ........................................................................................................ 28

A. Sample Exercises ..................................................................................................... 28 B. Suggested Approaches to Oral Board Exercises ...................................................... 31

VII. CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................... 33

Candidate Preparation Guide for the 2014 City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue Chief Fire Officer Exam Page 1 Copyright © 2014 by EB Jacobs, LLC.

I. INTRODUCTION

The exam for promotion to the rank of City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue Chief Fire Officer will consist of two components as follows:

1. Written In-Basket Exercise 2. Oral Board Exercises

The exam will be designed on the basis of information obtained from a job analysis of the position of City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue CFO. The job analysis provides a description of the duties performed by incumbents and identifies the knowledge and abilities required to perform these duties effectively. The separation of the examination into two components is intended to more closely mirror the actual requirements of the job. This guide is being distributed to assist candidates in preparing for the exam. We are providing this information in recognition that a considerable amount of the anxiety associated with participation in exams is related to the novelty of the procedures that candidates encounter. From the information presented in this guide, candidates should be able to get a good feel for the testing situations, the types of scenarios and materials they will encounter on each exam component, and a systematic method of study and preparation they could use in preparing for the exam. We encourage candidates to review this guide carefully and to take advantage of any and all opportunities to prepare for the exam.

GOOD LUCK! NOTE: In this guide, an attempt has been made to provide as much information as is available

at this time about the intended format, content, logistics and evaluation of the exam exercises.


II. DESCRIPTION OF THE EXAM

A. Date, Time and Location

Exam dates, times, and locations are listed on the Job Announcement and subsequent official notices. For the Oral Board exercises, candidates will be randomly assigned to participate on the various exam days. Candidates will be provided with individual notification regarding the date, time, and place they are to report for the Oral Board exercises.

B. Confidentiality

Candidates will be required to sign a confidentiality statement agreeing not to disclose information regarding actual exam content or format until the exam has concluded for all candidates.

C. Content

The exam will consist of two components. The first component will be the Written In-Basket exercise. The second component is the Oral Board exercises which will be administered on a different day. 1. Written In-Basket Exercise

Candidates will be asked to assume the role of a newly promoted CFO and to respond, in writing, to a variety of job situations typical of those a CFO might encounter. Candidates will receive two documents for the exam: 1) a background information packet containing materials such as calendars, rosters, organizational charts, and a series of forms and memos typical of those items that might come across a CFO’s desk, and 2) a response booklet containing instructions and questions involving the background information. These questions will ask candidates to describe how they would respond to specific situations -- what actions they would take, what decisions they would make, and so on. Some of the In-Basket background materials will be interrelated so it will be important for candidates to review all of their exercise materials before responding to any questions. Candidates will be given general instructions and will then be given approximately 4 hours to review the background information and answer the questions in the response booklet. All responses must be placed in the response booklet and use legible handwriting. Writing can be in cursive or printed style. If your cursive style is typically difficult to read for most people then we recommend that you use printed style handwriting. Any portion of the response which the assessors cannot discern will not be evaluated as part of the response. The Written In-Basket responses will be assessed on the applicable assessment dimensions by trained assessors. The assessments will be made independently by each assessor.


2. Oral Board Exercises

Candidates will be presented with three exercises designed to elicit behaviors pertaining to the ability areas outlined below. Since the Oral Board exercises will be conducted over a multiple-day period, alternate forms of the exercises will be used as described below.

Candidates will be given approximately 45 minutes to review materials and prepare their responses to the three exercises. They will then be given approximately 10 minutes to orally present each exercise response to a board of three assessors. A different board of assessors will be assigned to observe and evaluate each of the three exercises but every candidate will be seen by the same board for each particular exercise. After the completion of each exercise, candidates will have 10 minutes to proceed to the next room for the next exercise. During this time they can prepare for the next exercise. In addition, immediately prior to entering each exercise room, candidates will be allowed one minute for a final review of any notes they may have prepared. In all, the total oral board assessment session for each candidate will last approximately 1.75 hours (including the preparation period).

Each exercise will specify the form in which candidates are to respond. A brief explanation of each type of oral board exercise is presented below. Candidates will participate in the three exercises in the order listed. A. Incident Command

This exercise requires candidates to simulate the kinds of activities involved in responding to, and taking command of an incident scene. All initial information that the candidate needs will be provided in writing during the preparation period. Candidates will be informed that they should address issues such as size up, tactics and strategies, resource allocation, safety, and what events they would plan for. Candidates will then have 10 minutes to explain how they would handle this incident. Parallel versions of this exercise will be utilized over the multiple-day Oral Board Exercise assessment period.

B. Group Meeting Role-Play

This exercise requires candidates to meet with a group of subordinates, peers, or other members of the Department. The roles of the group members will be played by the panel of assessors. The candidate may be asked to discuss a potentially sensitive issue, a supervision problem or an unpopular policy of concern to the group; explain how he/she would handle command situations; or give other kinds of oral presentations that an incumbent might reasonably be expected to give. This exercise is a role-play involving interaction between the candidate and the assessors who will also be role-playing the parts of the subordinates, peers, or other members of the Department. Candidates will be allowed 10 minutes to complete this exercise. Parallel forms of this exercise will be used over the multiple-day oral board assessment period.


C. Subordinate Conference Role-Play

This type of exercise requires candidates to conduct a face-to-face meeting with a subordinate experiencing some difficulties. These difficulties may relate to performance, discipline or personal problems. For this exercise, an individual will play the role of the subordinate and will interact with the candidate in a relatively informal manner. This exercise is designed to be a role-play involving interaction between the candidate and the role-player, and is not a formal presentation. Candidates will be allowed 10 minutes to complete this exercise. Parallel forms of this exercise will be used over the multiple-day Oral Board Exercise assessment period.

D. Administrative Logistics

All candidates will report for the Written In-Basket exercise on one day and for the Oral Board exercises on a separate day. Candidates should ensure that they arrive at the exam site on the correct days and times as listed in the exam notification email and indicated in their exam eligibility notification email. Candidates are advised to arrive at least 30 minutes prior to these times to ensure that unforeseen problems (e.g., traffic accident) will not interfere with an on-time arrival. All candidates must bring picture ID. to the test site. No one will be allowed in the testing room without picture ID. For the Oral Board exercises, candidates will arrive as part of an early morning group (i.e., first group) or a late morning group (i.e., second group) and held until their testing time. Candidates from the first group who have completed the exercises will be released, once all candidates from the second group report or the report time printed in the exam eligibility notification email for candidates in the second group has passed. This process will be repeated for each day of the Oral Board exercises. The following late policies will be enforced:

Late Policy – Written In-Basket Exercise:

Candidates who appear at the Written In-Basket exercise testing location after the time listed in their exam eligibility notification email will be considered late. Such a candidate will have forfeited his/her opportunity to compete in this exercise and in the Oral Board exercises of the promotional exam. Late Policy – Oral Board Exercises:

Candidates who appear at the Oral Board exercises testing location after the time listed in their exam eligibility notification email will be considered late. These candidates will have forfeited their opportunity to compete in the Oral Board exercises of the promotional examination process.

Cellular phones, hand-held devices or other such electronic devices that receive, store or transmit information will not be permitted in the written examination room or during any part of the Oral Board exercises process (including the waiting period). Please do not bring cellular phones to the written examination room or to the Oral Board exercises.


On each assessment day, the exercise(s) for that day will be preceded by a set of instructions. Candidates will be able to bring the reading list reference materials to the Written In-Basket exercise and Oral Board preparation period. In addition, candidates will be allowed to bring any other reference materials to the Written In-Basket exercise and the Oral Board preparation period. Candidates will not be able to take any reference materials they bring to the actual Oral Board exercises, although candidates will be able to prepare notes during the Oral Board preparation period and take those notes to the actual exercises. Candidates also will not have access to the reference materials they may bring between exercises. Between exercises and during exercises, candidates will have access only to the notes they may have prepared during the Oral Board preparation period. Candidates will be allowed to use the reference materials they bring during the Written In-Basket and to prepare for the Oral Board exercises. NO REFERENCE MATERIALS WILL BE PROVIDED AT THE TESTING SESSIONS. Candidates must bring the reference materials with them if they wish to use them. Writing in or highlighting of material in the references is only allowed prior to arrival at the test sessions. NO SHARING OF REFERENCE MATERIALS WILL BE ALLOWED. Upon completion of the Written In-Basket and Oral Board exercises, candidates will return all exam materials and may leave the exam site for the day after being released by the exam administrator.

1. Written In-Basket Exercise

All candidates will participate in the Written In-Basket exercise at the same time. Once instructions have been given, the background information packet will be distributed to all candidates (there is no preparation period). Upon completion of the exercise, candidates will return all exam materials to the exam administrator, and may leave the exam site for the day. The trained assessors who will not be involved in the oral board assessments will independently evaluate the Written In-Basket exercise on the applicable assessment dimensions.

2. Oral Board Exercises

Each candidate will report to the oral board assessment at an individually scheduled time. As noted above, candidates will be randomly assigned to appear at the Oral Board exercises.

A. Preparation

Candidates will prepare for the Oral Board exercises in a special preparation area where they will not be observed by the assessors. Candidates will be permitted to take notes on the exam materials or on note paper provided during this preparation period and may use the notes while between exercises or while participating in the actual exercises. Candidates will not be permitted to write in their reference materials during the preparation period nor to bring these materials into the exercise rooms with them when they participate in the actual exercises. Any notes made in preparation for the exercises will be collected in the last Oral Board exercise following each candidate's participation to ensure they cannot be made available to candidates who have not yet participated in the Oral Board exercises.


As noted above, candidates will have about 45 minutes to prepare for the three Oral Board exercises and they will be free to determine how they distribute that time among the three exercises. However, it is important to understand that the three exercises, by their very nature, may require varying forms of preparation. Candidates will be provided with a detailed written description of the three Oral Board exercises prior to the start of their 45 minute preparation period. Candidates will need to prepare a specific response for each of the exercises during the preparation period based on the information provided.

B. Participation

While participating in the exercises, the assessors will provide instructions and answer any procedural questions that may be raised before each exercise begins. Candidates will be given cues to indicate when each exercise is to begin and end, but it will be the responsibility of the candidate to work within the specified time frame. Candidates will be permitted to use any notes they generate during the preparation period while participating in the actual exercises. Furthermore, candidates will be permitted to take notes while participating in each exercise, if they so desire. Candidates should be aware, however, that any notes prepared or used during the Oral Board exercises will not be considered by the assessors when making evaluations. In addition, such notes will be collected in the last Oral Board exercise following each candidate's participation to ensure they cannot be made available to candidates who have not yet participated in the Oral Board exercises. Once each exercise begins, no interaction will occur with assessors other than that which is required as part of the exercise. Specifically, during the Group Meeting and Subordinate Conference Role-Plays, candidates will be permitted to communicate with the role-player(s). Likewise, the role-player(s) will be permitted to communicate with the candidates during the actual exercise.

E. Evaluation

Candidate performance in the Written-In Basket exercise and Oral Board exercises will be evaluated by focusing on behaviors related to ability areas determined to be critical to the effective performance of incumbents.

1. Ability Dimensions

Each candidate’s performance on the Written In-Basket and Oral Board exercises will be evaluated on the following ability dimensions. The specific exercise(s) on which each ability is evaluated is indicated in parentheses at the end of the ability description.


1. Oral Communication – Ability to organize information or ideas and to express them in a clear and logical manner through oral means (All Oral Board Exercises).

2. Written Communication – Ability to organize information or ideas and to express them in a clear and logical manner in writing (Written In-Basket).

3. Interpersonal Relations – Ability to establish and maintain cooperative and constructive working relationships, as well as demonstrate consideration for the feelings, needs and views of others through words or actions (All Exercises Except Incident Command).

4. Information Analysis – Ability to understand, interpret, relate and compare information from various sources to identify issues and evaluate their relevance and importance, as well as seek out needed information (All Exercises).

5. Judgment and Decision Making – Ability to generate alternative approaches to situations, consider their implications and make appropriate and timely decisions, based upon a critical analysis of available information (All Exercises).

6. Planning and Organizing – Ability to define the objectives which must be accomplished, develop a strategy for accomplishing these objectives, anticipate obstacles that might be encountered and develop contingency plans to overcome anticipated obstacles (All Exercises).

7. Resource Management – Ability to identify and make efficient use of needed resources by: allocating resources based on priorities and personnel capabilities; allocating authority and responsibility as warranted; clearly explaining assigned tasks, objectives and performance expectations; minimizing duplication of effort; and monitoring the progress and quality of work (All Exercises).

2. Exam Component Weights

The weighting for the Chief Fire Officer exam components will be as follows:

Written In-Basket exercise at 40% of the exam score

Incident Command exercise at 30% of the exam score

Group Meeting Role-Play exercise at 15% of the exam score

Subordinate Conference Role-Play exercise at 15% of the exam score Scoring will be conducted using the nominal scoring method and applying basic arithmetic and weights. The exam score will count 80% toward the final register score. Seniority scores shall be calculated as specified under Civil Service Rule 6.7, Seniority, and Labor Contract Article 10, and shall have 75 points added to the calculated seniority totals before being combined with the final exam score, and will carry a weight of 20% of the total register score using the nominal scoring method. Seniority points will be provided to EB Jacobs by the Department of Human Resources. EB Jacobs will include the seniority points provided by the Department of


Human Resources when calculating the final promotion score. However, any applicable Veterans Preference points will be applied to the final promotion score by the Department of Human Resources. Both seniority and Veterans Preference points will only be applied after candidates successfully complete all test components. For questions related to eligibility, seniority points or Veterans Preference please contact Ms. Marcella Westfall, Human Resources Generalist, at (305) 416-2143 to schedule an appointment.

3. Assessors

Two assessors will be trained to independently evaluate the Written In-Basket exercise. Written In-Basket assessors will participate in a one day training session. All Written In-Basket assessors will be active fire personnel at the equivalent level of CFO or above not in the City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue or in any Department of Fire-Rescue in the state of Florida. During this training session, assessors will be familiarized with the job duties and responsibilities of the City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue CFOs. Assessors will review the exercise and be trained to evaluate candidate responses with respect to the performance areas to be assessed. Assessors will also practice evaluating candidate responses by assessing "mock" Written In-Basket responses. Three three-member assessor panels will be trained to evaluate candidate performance during the Oral Board exercises. Oral Board assessors will participate in a 1 to 1.5 days long training session. All oral board assessors will be active fire personnel at the equivalent level of CFO or above not in the City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue or in any Department of Fire-Rescue in the state of Florida. During this training session, assessors will be familiarized with the job duties and responsibilities of City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue CFOs. Assessors will review the exercises and be trained to observe, record, and evaluate candidate behavior with respect to the performance areas to be assessed. During training assessors will also practice evaluating candidate behavior by participating in "mock" exam exercises.

4. Procedure

While each exercise proceeds, the assessors will be observing and recording candidate behavior and their relevance to each of the areas of performance to be assessed. After the assessors have had a chance to observe, record, and review the behavior of each candidate in each exercise, they will evaluate each candidate’s effectiveness with regard to each of the areas of performance. These evaluations will be made using a 5-point scale where (5) is high. The result is that for each candidate, each of the assessors will independently generate a set of performance ratings for the exercise involved.

F. Parallel Forms

Parallel or alternate forms or versions will be developed for the three Oral Board exercises. The type of exercise will remain the same, but the specific details of the exercise will vary across the different forms or versions.


III. PREPARATION AND PARTICIPATION STRATEGIES FOR ORAL BOARD EXERCISES

Effective performance of the activities involved in the Oral Board exercises begins with preparation. You can begin preparing for the oral exercises in the weeks prior to testing by reviewing and practicing suggestions provided in this guide. As indicated earlier, after you receive more detailed information at the start of your Oral Board exercise session you will have 45 minutes to prepare for the Oral Board exercises. An effective strategy to prepare and participate in the Oral Board exercises, among many that you can use, would be to focus on the nine areas below.

1. Prepare an outline of your response.

2. Ensure your response is sufficiently detailed and complete to clearly convey your thoughts.

3. Identify the key issues and establish priorities among them.

4. Identify information you would need to gather to obtain a complete and accurate understanding of the situation.

5. Identify and demonstrate an understanding of information provided and its implications.

6. Consider several options for addressing the issues and decide on an approach in a timely manner.

7. Develop a potential plan for dealing with the issues, including time frames and contingencies as necessary.

8. Identify resources that are available to you and determine how they will be used.

9. Identify steps you will take, where applicable, to ensure that interactions with, and among, others will be constructive and productive.

In the sections below we will cover these areas in more detail using the following four broad topic areas:

1. Message Content 2. Interactions with Others 3. Analyzing and Deciding 4. Managing the Process

A. Message Content

The suggestions below are useful with regard to the Oral Communication ability dimension. RESPONSE ORGANIZATION When communicating with others, it is more likely that your thoughts and ideas will come across clearly if you take the time to organize your thoughts in advance. As part of your Oral Board Test preparation period, you will be given access to the exercise materials


and blank paper to generate notes. During this time you should create an outline of the topics you plan to address during your response to each Oral Board exercise. The use of an outline will allow you to develop a clear strategy for your response. When creating an outline, it is not necessary that you identify every detail that you will convey. You should, however, include enough detail so that you are able to cover all critical elements in your response.

To practice generating outlines, assume that you supervise a subordinate who has been the subject of several complaints from civilians or internal members. When responding to this performance problem, you might generate a broad outline consisting of headings such as:

1. Discuss the incidents which led to the complaints. 2. Determine the reason for the complaints. 3. Take steps to prevent future complaints.

A more specific set of subheadings could then be generated for each of these topics. For example, "Discuss the incidents which led to the complaints" could be broken down as follows:

1. Discuss the incidents which led to the complaints.

a) Review the facts of each incident. b) Discuss how the subordinate handled each incident. c) Discuss what the subordinate did correctly. d) Discuss what the subordinate should have done differently. e) Identify your expectations for the subordinate. f) Identify the consequences if the subordinate fails to show improvement.

You could break these subheadings down still further until you have developed an outline that you feel comfortable using to guide your response.

LEVEL OF DETAIL During your responses, you will need to provide sufficient detail to support your rationale for your actions or choices. Sharing your thought process and rationale will help convey the necessary detail. This is especially true if it may not be clear why you are choosing a course of action or if it is important to know what other options were considered. Remember once you leave each assessment room, you will not be given an opportunity to provide any clarification to the assessors so you should be sure to provide sufficient detail while in the assessment room, keeping in mind the time limit for responding. CONCISENESS Wordiness and/or repetition of the same information at different points in your response can obscure the key points you would like to convey and waste valuable response time. You should present your response in a concise manner and avoid restating the same information. The outline described above can be used to increase the likelihood that you are providing unique information at different points throughout your response.


The exception to the above suggestion is when repetition is used to restate critical information during an overview or summary, or to provide increased emphasis. You can determine whether a summary is necessary or possible depending on various factors such as the time remaining in the exercise, unique information that is left to be covered, etc. Developing a summary in advance during the preparation period will ensure that you have the option to present a summary if you choose. APPROPRIATENESS FOR INTENDED AUDIENCE Lastly, you should be careful to present your response in a manner that is appropriate for the intended audience. You should avoid being overly formal or informal (e.g., use of jargon). Although assessors will have experience in fire service, it is not safe to assume that they will be familiar with all the intricacies of your agency. For example, agencies often use different terms or acronyms to describe the same resource. To be safe, use the full name of any resources mentioned rather than acronyms when providing your response. In addition, you should clarify any suggestions that may reflect policies or procedures. PERSUASIVE COMMUNICATION Persuasive communication involves convincing others to believe as you do, or to behave as you would like. This is a critical aspect of communication for a supervisor since supervisors rely on others to accomplish goals and objectives. Your effectiveness in this area can be impacted by your ability to “sell” your ideas or conclusions to your audience (e.g., a subordinate or a group of subordinates or citizens). You will need to identify the needs of your audience so that you can present your ideas in a manner that illustrates the benefits that will be shared by you and your audience, if they believe or behave as you would like. For example, when attempting to resolve a conflict, you should emphasize the importance of cooperation within the work unit to safety in the field; you can add further emphasis by describing past experiences in which members provided assistance to one another to reduce safety risks. Keep in mind that you are still responsible for clarifying the actual steps the members should take to resolve the conflict. DELIVERY TECHNIQUES When relaying your response, you should speak at an appropriate volume so that all assessors can clearly hear you. In addition, present your response at an appropriate pace; neither rushing it nor drawing it out. Although you may use the full time allotted, it is not required that you use all of the available time to perform well, as the time taken to respond will not be evaluated in isolation. The critical factor is what you do in the time you use. Some candidates may be able to finish each exercise and do very well with time left to spare, while others may use the full response period and yet not perform well. MANNERISMS, EYE CONTACT, ETC. Awkward or distracting mannerisms or actions such as pacing, fidgeting with papers or pens/pencils, avoiding eye contact, repeated use of “uh” or “um,” and long pauses can distract the assessors from your key points. These factors compete for assessors’ attention, and as a result, can detract from the effectiveness of your responses. Making


periodic eye contact can help to engage your audience and can also be used to check that your message is being clearly conveyed. SUMMARY

When evaluating the content of your response, you should consider whether you:

1. spoke clearly

2. provided information in a logical sequence

3. provided sufficient detail

4. used simple, precise words

5. effectively restated information or summarized to reinforce your message

6. presented information in a manner that is appropriate for your audience

With respect to how you delivered your response, you should consider whether you:

1. used examples or techniques to persuade your audience

2. spoke at an appropriate volume

3. spoke at an appropriate pace (neither rushing nor drawing out your response)

4. avoided displaying distracting mannerisms

5. displayed appropriate/sufficient eye contact

B. Interactions with Others

The suggestions below are useful with regard to the Interpersonal Relations ability dimension. DEVELOPING/MAINTAINING CONSTRUCTIVE RELATIONSHIPS Developing constructive working relationships is critical to your success as a supervisor/manager because you rely on others to assist in achieving your goals. The exercises may include opportunities to demonstrate or describe the establishment of constructive working relationships with subordinates, peers, supervisors or non-department members, such as community groups or civilians. Such opportunities are most likely to arise when addressing problems displayed or experienced by others. For example, you may be required to correct subordinate performance deficiencies or assist a group in dealing with an increase in arsons in a neighborhood. Your response to these types of issues should focus on what you can do to help others deal with the problems they face. For instance, when dealing with a subordinate displaying performance deficiencies, you could meet with the subordinate to determine why the subordinate is having performance problems. During this meeting, you should allow the subordinate to explain his/her actions so that you may gain the insight needed to develop a targeted and appropriate performance improvement plan.


CONSIDERING OTHERS’ NEEDS/VIEWPOINTS It is also important that you demonstrate sensitivity and concern for others’ feelings and opinions when helping them deal with problems. An increase in arsons in a neighborhood can significantly impact residents’ perceptions of the safety of their neighborhood so your comments and demeanor should demonstrate that you recognize and understand their fears and concerns. Similarly, when dealing with subordinate performance problems, you can demonstrate concern for the subordinate by providing balanced feedback rather than focusing only on negative performance. To the extent possible, your feedback should include both positive and negative examples of performance. When you make decisions, it is important that you consult with others who may be affected to ensure you fully address the situation. Other individuals may have unique information and/or insights into problems; involving them in the problem solving process will demonstrate your concern for their feelings and opinions, and increase their commitment to the decisions ultimately made. When seeking input from others, it is possible that you may not agree with their perspectives. You should, however, voice your disagreement in a tactful and respectful manner. For example, a subordinate who is displaying performance problems may make excuses to explain the poor performance that you believe are not valid. In this instance, arguing with the subordinate about the cause of the performance problems will not increase the likelihood that you will achieve your overall goal of improving performance. Instead, you could focus on getting the subordinate to at least agree that there is indeed a problem with his/her performance, even if you cannot agree about the cause of the problem. In addition to seeking input from others, you should also consider how your actions (or inaction) affect others. Any action you take as a supervisor/manager does not occur in isolation. For instance if you ignore the performance problems of your subordinate, the problems displayed by the subordinate will continue to negatively impact others, potentially contributing to morale problems and conflict among members of your work unit. On the other hand, actions taken to correct the subordinate performance problems will likely have a positive impact on the subordinate displaying the performance problems and those with whom the subordinate works. Finally, when making decisions, it is important that you keep appropriate individuals informed and provide regular updates. Appropriate individuals can include supervisors, peers, subordinates, or anyone impacted by the problem you are facing. If a subordinate’s performance has impacted other members of the work unit, it may be appropriate to inform your supervisor of the subordinate’s performance problems, relay your plans to correct the issues, and provide any relevant updates in the future concerning the subordinate’s progress. Similarly, keeping arson victims informed of relevant information and updates is a good way to demonstrate concern for their feelings. FOSTERING TEAMWORK/MEDIATING CONFLICTS The effectiveness of the work unit will be maximized to the extent that members feel they are part of a unified team working cooperatively toward a common goal. The supervisor can play a critical role by inspiring and motivating members toward a common purpose.


Focusing the group on shared goals and objectives will make minor disagreements among members seem less important and will contribute to the overall effectiveness of the work unit. There will be times when disagreements among subordinates escalate to the point that they affect the work unit’s effectiveness and safety, and it becomes necessary for a supervisor to intervene. Although it is never easy to deal with conflicts among personnel, allowing tensions to fester will eventually erode relationships and jeopardize the work unit’s long-term effectiveness. In this case, the supervisor plays a critical role as a neutral mediator, working to ensure conflicting parties communicate with one another to convey their perspectives and guiding them toward an acceptable solution. To the extent that conflicting parties perceive that they have provided input to the solution, they will be more likely to accept and abide by that solution. FACILITATING PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT As a supervisor, you are responsible for facilitating performance improvement among your subordinates by helping them develop the skills and abilities needed to perform their jobs. This includes areas of deficiency where they need to improve, as well as areas of strength that can be further enhanced. Strategies may include offering remedial training for areas of deficiency or coaching the subordinate to improve/enhance the subordinate’s performance. When coaching subordinates, you should work together to identify performance problems/goals, set performance expectations and develop a plan to improve/enhance performance. Performance expectations should be specific, measurable and achievable so that subordinates can monitor their own progress. Involving the subordinate in this process will help ensure the expectations are perceived as reasonable and attainable. As the subordinate implements the performance improvement plan, you should be sure to acknowledge both successes and failures through timely feedback. Feedback should be descriptive rather than evaluative, and specific rather than general. Remember, your role as a coach occurs in an advisory capacity and you are guiding your subordinates through the steps toward performance improvement. You should, however, be sure to consider the needs of the subordinate as well as the organization to ensure organizational goals continue to be met. Lastly, in addition to providing coaching directly to the subordinate, you should involve other resources, both inside and outside the department that may help the subordinate to develop. SUMMARY When evaluating your interactions with others, you should ask yourself the following questions:

1. What did I do to develop/maintain constructive working relationships with others?

2. What did I do to help others resolve problems?

3. How did I demonstrate sensitivity and concern for others’ feelings?

4. What did I do to allow for and consider input from others?

5. How did I voice my disagreements with the perspectives of others in a tactful manner?


6. How did I recognize how actions taken by one individual can impact others?

7. What did I do to keep appropriate individuals informed of relevant information and updates?

8. What did I do to mediate conflicts?

9. What did I do to develop the capabilities of my subordinate personnel?

C. Analyzing and Deciding

The suggestions below are useful with regard to the following two ability dimensions:

Information Analysis

Judgment and Decision Making EVALUATING THE IMPORTANCE AND RELEVANCE OF INFORMATION This ability is first used when you are reviewing the exercise materials. You should identify any key information or issues in the exercise materials that will impact your approach to the situation. For example, you may have to address a problem with a subordinate who has a quick temper when interacting with others (superiors, coworkers, peers or civilians), causing others to avoid working with this subordinate whenever possible. Identifying the issue helps define the focus of your response and the approach to be taken to most effectively restore the subordinate’s relationships with others. Once key information or issues have been identified, you should clearly convey during your response that you fully understand the information presented and its relevance to resolving the issue at hand. Some suggestions for conveying your understanding of the information presented include:

1. Summarizing the critical details at the beginning of your response, taking care to be concise to ensure that you reserve sufficient time to describe how you will address the problem.

2. Incorporating and addressing the relevant details as they apply throughout your discussion of the problem, while ensuring that you cover all relevant information.

SEEKING OUT AND ANALYZING INFORMATION FROM VARIOUS SOURCES Identifying key issues during your review of the exercise materials will help you identify gaps in information. As with any real world situation, the exercise materials will present you with a finite amount of information and you will need to determine what, if any, additional information is needed to gain a complete and accurate understanding of the situation. It is often more difficult to recognize when information is missing or omitted than it is to critically evaluate information that is presented to you, but such information can be essential to effectively resolving a situation. For example, when faced with a vehicle accident involving a tanker truck carrying an unknown liquid, it will be critical to identify the unknown liquid in order to determine the safety procedures to be implemented at the crash scene.


Identifying missing or omitted information is just the first step in the information gathering process. The next step involves determining how you will obtain the missing information. Using the same tanker truck accident example, the unknown liquid could be identified by speaking to the driver (if accessible), contacting the shipping company or referring to the shipping papers, if it is safe to gain access to the truck. Similarly, if you were to gather information to correct the performance problems of your quick-tempered subordinate, you could speak directly with the problem subordinate, speak with the subordinate’s previous supervisor(s), and/or review the problem subordinate’s personnel file (including past performance evaluations) to gain a more complete picture of the subordinate’s performance and current problems. The last step in the information gathering process is to adjust your initial plans as needed to incorporate any new information gathered. Gathering missing information will help you identify the relationships among the various pieces of information provided and determine the root cause of problems. In dealing with the quick-tempered subordinate, you may discover that the subordinate’s demeanor has changed only recently around the same time that the subordinate responded to a traumatic incident scene. In this situation, it is possible that the subordinate is having trouble coping with what occurred at the incident scene and the coping difficulty could be the cause of the quick temper. Gathering additional information would help you identify when the change in demeanor occurred and the potential cause of the change. You may identify several pieces of missing information and need to rely on multiple sources to obtain the missing information. The effectiveness of your ability to analyze information will be impacted by the quality of the information you obtain. For example, you may receive information from a subordinate regarding a performance problem with another subordinate. Rather than assuming the information from this single source is accurate, a safer approach would be to verify the accuracy of the information with another source before confronting your subordinate with the performance problems. In a test situation it is impossible to contact other people to collect additional information. Furthermore, candidates cannot make-up information. What they can do is indicate when they would seek additional information, whom they would seek it from, the type of information they would seek and how specific information would impact their decisions.

CONSIDERING ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES Once you have gained a complete understanding of the situation by carefully reviewing the exercise materials and identifying additional information that you would seek out, the next step involves generating potential solutions to address the key issues of concern. Not all solutions will be equally effective so you need to evaluate each potential solution to determine which solution best resolves the situation. To ensure that you are making relevant comparisons, the same criteria should be applied to evaluate all potential solutions. These criteria could include:

the number or amount of the resource(s) required

the likelihood that those impacted by the solution will be willing to accept the solution

the amount of time needed for implementation

the risks involved


the benefits involved

the practicality of implementing the solution

Although you may not normally verbalize your thought process when making decisions, in the testing setting, it may be beneficial to “think aloud” or “think on paper,” that is, to convey the various options you considered and your evaluation process so that the assessors can take that information into account when evaluating the effectiveness of this element of Analyzing and Deciding. SELECTING AN APPROPRIATE AND TIMELY COURSE OF ACTION Decisions should be made in a timely manner to ensure the problem does not escalate. Making timely decisions requires that you determine how much time you will devote to the analytical process before committing to a decision. To assist in making a timely decision, you should focus on identifying and collecting the information that is essential to gaining a complete and accurate understanding of the key issues presented. There may be additional information that may help bolster your chosen solution but that may not be important enough to risk any delay in implementation. Effective decision-making also depends on the manner in which decisions are made. You should take responsibility for decision-making and arrive at your solutions in a decisive manner. Once implemented, you should avoid second-guessing yourself unless new information comes to light to strongly suggest that you need to revisit your original solution. For example, you may suggest that the subordinate who displays a quick temper visit employee assistance to discuss the traumatic incident. If after some time the subordinate is not displaying sufficient improvement, you may decide to re-evaluate your original solution.

SUMMARY When evaluating your analysis of information and decisions, you should ask yourself the following questions:

1. How were key issues and information of relevance to the problem identified and

what was the nature of these issues and/or information?

2. What information was identified as missing and were steps taken to obtain it?

3. What sources were used to obtain missing information?

4. What adjustments may be made to plans once missing information is obtained?

5. Were relationships among different elements of the problem explored in an attempt to identify underlying or root causes of problems?

6. Did you attempt to verify the accuracy of information?

7. Were decisions made based on complete information?

8. What alternate solutions were identified for problem resolution?

9. How were alternate solutions evaluated to identify the best solution?

10. Was ownership taken for decisions?


11. Were decisions made in a timely manner?

12. Were decisions made in a decisive manner?

D. Managing the Process

The suggestions below are useful with regard to the following two ability dimensions:

Planning and Organizing

Resource Management

ESTABLISHING OBJECTIVES The first step in developing a framework for addressing problems is to identify and prioritize the objectives you seek to accomplish. This allows you to focus your efforts on the most critical parts of the problem. For example, when faced with an incident you might identify objectives such as life safety, incident stabilization and property conservation. On the other hand, when correcting subordinate performance problems, you might identify objectives such as identifying the problem, gaining subordinate acceptance, identifying performance expectations and gaining “buy-in” to the improvement plan. It is important that you not only identify the objectives for addressing problems but also that you prioritize these objectives. In some instances, priorities are very clear (e.g., in an incident, the first priority is life safety); in other cases, priorities may be less obvious. With a subordinate performance issue, gaining subordinate acceptance may be the first priority since until that happens, a resolution may not be possible. DEVELOPING STRATEGIES FOR ACCOMPLISHING OBJECTIVES Once objectives are identified and prioritized, the next step is to identify the specific steps that you will take to implement your plan. The objectives identified represent the milestones; however, a specific action plan must be included to explain how you will achieve your objectives. Your objectives can be achieved only if your action plan aligns with your objectives. IDENTIFYING AND DIRECTING RESOURCES You should realize that resources (e.g., internal, external, technological, financial) are available to assist you in resolving problems. Your action plan should include the identification of all relevant resources, and, once identified, you should explain how these resources will assist in problem resolution. It is important not only to assign resources to cover all activities in your plan, but also to select the resources best suited for each activity and to provide a rationale. For example, the response to a particular incident might require personnel with specialized training and/or equipment in order to be accomplished in a safe and efficient manner. In addition, resources should be assigned based on the importance and urgency of each activity. To achieve your top priority of life safety at an incident scene it may be necessary to assign the majority of the available resources to activities that help you achieve this objective first. Although resources are available to you, you should still maintain control and provide direction. You will need to determine how much responsibility for problem resolution you


will maintain and how much you will delegate to others. While the amount of responsibility that you maintain will likely be influenced by the issue you are facing, it is unlikely that you would be successful in managing the situation if you delegate all responsibility for issue resolution to someone else or if you attempt to retain all responsibility for problem resolution when that is not appropriate. When delegating activities to others, you should clearly and completely explain the tasks that you expect others to perform and identify your expectations for task completion. In other words, you should be actively involved in the tasks you are delegating. Identifying specific performance expectations is important not only when delegating tasks, but also when correcting subordinate performance issues. Once performance problems are identified, it is important to explain what improvement is required by describing specific, behavioral examples of effective performance. In this way, subordinates will be given a standard against which to compare and gauge their own performance improvement. ANTICIPATING OBSTACLES AND DEVELOPING CONTINGENCIES You should be prepared to encounter obstacles or hurdles when implementing your plans. It will help to identify potential hurdles and associated contingency plans for addressing anticipated obstacles. For instance, when dealing with an incident scene, you normally have limited resources directly available so you should be prepared with a strategy to call in additional resources. Strategies may include calling for a first alarm (or in general striking additional alarms) or requesting the assistance of external resources such as public utility companies, Red Cross, etc. Similarly, when addressing the performance problems of subordinates, it is very possible that they may not agree with your assessment of their performance. Until agreement is achieved you will not achieve buy-in for any performance improvement plan you hope to implement so you should be armed with information/documentation to support your assessment (e.g., information from other supervisors, performance records) and be prepared to respond to arguments put forth by the subordinate. MONITORING AND MEASURING PROGRESS TOWARD OBJECTIVES Since the success of your plan depends on many factors, it is important to monitor the progress and quality of work in progress and follow-up to ensure that your action plan is achieving the objectives intended. For example, incidents typically evolve based on the actions of individuals at the scene, environmental factors, etc. You should monitor the progression of the incident and make any necessary changes to account for changing conditions and/or unsuccessful actions. Or, a performance improvement plan that you developed for a subordinate may not lead to the type of improvement you had expected. In this situation, a follow-up meeting with the subordinate may be required to ascertain why the plan is not working and to adjust the plan accordingly. The previous paragraphs focused on managing the process to resolve the issues presented in the exercises/test materials. You should also manage your time during the response period to ensure that you address all of the necessary activities. You should use the time during the Written In-Basket exercise and during your Oral Board exercise preparation period to review the exercise materials and identify the elements of your response. Once identified, you should determine how much of the response period you will use to address each element of your response. In this way, you can ensure that you


provide a complete response in the time allotted. In addition, you should monitor your time while responding. You will be permitted to bring a time-keeping device to the exercises.

SUMMARY When evaluating your management of the process, you should ask yourself the following questions:

1. What objectives were identified for issue resolution?

2. How were the objectives prioritized?

3. What specific steps were used to implement the action plan?

4. What resources were used for problem resolution?

5. How and why were these resources used?

6. How did delegation occur? What instruction was provided to others?

7. What obstacles or hurdles were anticipated and/or encountered in implementing the action plan?

8. What contingency plans were identified/used to overcome anticipated or actual obstacles/hurdles?

9. How much responsibility for problem resolution was maintained relative to the amount that was delegated?

10. What follow-up activities were used to evaluate the effectiveness of plans once implemented?

11. What, if any, adjustments were made to plans based on follow-up evaluation?

12. Did you manage your time during the exercise to ensure you completed all necessary activities?


IV. EXTENSION OF STRATEGIES TO THE WRITTEN IN-BASKET EXERCISE

This section is organized around the ability dimensions that will provide the framework for the evaluation of your responses to the Written In-Basket exercise. For each ability dimension, we will discuss some tips and strategies for preparation and examples of how these strategies can be applied when providing written responses on the Written In-Basket exercise. Although the evaluation of the Written In-Basket exercise responses will focus primarily on the abilities to be assessed, a foundation and an understanding of applicable policies and technical procedures are essential for effective performance. Although you are required to respond to each item on the Written In-Basket exercise, you will find that the items are not entirely independent of each other. For example, a citizen complaint may involve a firefighter recently involved in an incident involving shouting and pushing of another firefighter at one of your stations. It is important that you consider all information in the Written In-Basket background information packet that is relevant to the item to which you are responding. The first three ability dimensions that will be explained in the context of the Written In-Basket exercise are Written Expression, Information Analysis, and Judgment and Decision Making. These three ability dimensions depend primarily on your ability to deal with information. A. Written Expression

1. Definition: The Written Expression ability dimension can be broken down into two basic components: Ability to organize information or ideas in writing.

Ability to express these ideas in a clear and logical manner in writing. This area of performance concerns the ability to convey information so that others will clearly understand you.

2. Strategy: One strategy that can enhance your effectiveness at communicating your

message is the use of an outline. When communicating to others in writing, it is more likely that your thoughts and ideas will come across clearly if you take the time to organize your thoughts in your mind or on paper. When you generate an outline, we suggest you begin by setting down the broadest categories to be discussed and then create increasingly more specific sets of categories. Once created, you can use your outline to generate your response to an item on the Written In-Basket exercise. More specifically, since you can respond using bulleted format on the Written In-Basket exercise, the broad outline that you created can be an excellent starting point if you choose to make your Written In-Basket exercise responses using a bulleted format.

B. Information Analysis

1. Definition: The Information Analysis ability dimension includes understanding information that is being conveyed, as well as identifying issues and possible conflicts and evaluating their relevance and importance. The Information Analysis ability dimension can be broken down into two basic components:


Ability to understand, interpret, relate and compare information from various sources.

Ability to identify issues and evaluate their relevance and importance, as well as to seek or recognize the need to seek out additional information.

This ability area initially comes into play when you are reviewing written documents such as the materials in the Written In-Basket background information packet. You will need to identify the important or problematic information provided in the information packet. Once identified, you should be sure to address the important or problematic information when you prepare your written response.

2. Strategy: To practice and assess your ability to process and understand written

information, you could take a newspaper article, editorial or a book chapter/section; outline the information presented; and identify what you perceive to be the central points. While it is difficult to check your perceptions of a newspaper article, the summary at the end of a book chapter can be used to check on your understanding of the material within the chapter. One component of this ability area (i.e., understanding and evaluating information) comes into play when you review the background information packet. For example, certain details provided in the exercise materials may be more important than others. As a result it is not necessary to memorize every detail in the background information packet. Less relevant information can be looked up in the information packet if needed. Another component of this ability dimension (i.e., seeking out needed information) requires you to ask questions in your own mind. It requires you to avoid taking information at face value and to thoroughly review available information to determine what details are missing or still needed. While reviewing the background information packet you should identify those pieces of information not yet available that are needed to accomplish tasks and resolve problems. If additional information is needed, you could describe the actions that you would take in your written response to obtain more information.

C. Judgment and Decision Making:

1. Definition: The Judgment and Decision Making ability dimension can be broken down into two basic components:

Ability to generate alternative approaches to situations.

Ability to consider their implications and make appropriate and timely decisions based upon a critical analysis of available information.

In other words, Judgment and Decision Making involves considering alternative ways to resolve a problem or issue and deciding on the best solution.

2. Strategy: One way that you can prepare for this ability dimension is to consider,

discuss and resolve an issue of current concern. When doing so, you should:


a. Generate and consider alternative courses of action or solutions to a problem or issue. When evaluating potential solutions to problems, you should consider the impact of each solution on all individuals who could be affected by the solution. This would include those individuals who decide on the solution, as well as those individuals who must implement, abide by and enforce the solution.

b. Consider the short and long-range implications of decisions that are made since some solutions may be beneficial on only a short or long-term basis.

c. Take steps to minimize any potentially troublesome "side-effects" of the chosen solution.

Two examples of topics that can be used in preparing for this ability area are presented below. Once considered and resolved, determine whether you have identified the key components of each issue as well as the positive and negative consequences associated with potential recommendations. Please note that the topics below are just ideas for practice topics and do not reflect decisions that will need to be made or issues that will need to be addressed on the Written In-Basket exercise.

a. Evaluate the desirability of using job rotation and cross training as a means of

enhancing individual potential and organizational efficiency.

b. Evaluate the current off-duty work policy for the department and make some recommendations for the future.

It is not necessary that you use a job-related issue to practice this area, particularly since you may be relying on family and friends for assistance. In such instances, other types of issues such as political and social issues may be more appropriate.

The next three ability dimensions, Interpersonal Relations, Planning and Organizing and Resource Management rely primarily on your ability to handle tasks and people. You can prepare for these three ability dimensions in the context of the practice exercises that already have been suggested for the first three areas. In sum, you could most likely prepare for all exercises and ability dimensions by engaging in the following practice exercises:

1) Outline, prepare and give a presentation to one or more observers. Have the observers report on the organization/key points of the presentation.

2) Review a written document such as a chapter or section of a book, develop an outline

which summarizes the key points and issues within the chapter and compare this summary with the summary generated by the author.

3) Outline or extract the key points that another individual attempts to convey in writing.

4) Discuss a complex issue/problem with one or more individuals and develop some

recommendations for resolving this issue/problem. Evaluate your recommendations when the discussion is over.

Keep these practice exercises in mind as you review the last three ability dimensions.


Interpersonal Relations:

1. Definition: This ability dimension can be broken down into two basic components:

Ability to work with other individuals in a cooperative and constructive manner.

Ability to demonstrate consideration and respect for the feelings, needs and viewpoints of others.

2. Examples: Listed below are some examples of effective interpersonal behaviors that may

be displayed during the Written In-Basket exercise:

a. Requesting the input of others. b. Complimenting or giving credit to others for good ideas or performance. c. Disagreeing with others in a non-threatening manner. d. Offering support and assistance to individuals experiencing problems. e. Focusing on ineffective behavior when discussing performance problems rather than

making it personal. E. Planning and Organizing:

1. Definition: Planning and Organizing is related to Judgment and Decision Making in that it represents the step that would most likely be taken after determining how a problem or issue is to be addressed and resolved. It involves developing a framework or strategy for accomplishing any task or objective. This framework can include any or all of the components listed below:

Making sure you understand the task or objective to be accomplished.

Identifying the steps that should be taken to accomplish a task or objective. Some steps or actions will be more efficient than others ─ allowing you to achieve your goals more quickly, easily and cost-effectively than other possible courses of action.

Identifying the time and resources (personnel, equipment, supplies and information) required for each step identified.

Anticipating any obstacles that might be encountered and developing contingency plans to overcome anticipated obstacles.

Establishing a timeline to identify the timeframe and sequence for completing steps.

Establishing mechanisms to monitor and evaluate the plan to ensure that it is implemented in a timely and appropriate manner and moves you toward your designated objectives.

2. Strategy: During the Written In-Basket exercise a key to success will be to prioritize the

underlying issues and develop a plan that provides sufficient time to address all pertinent issues and allows greater emphasis on responses involving higher priority issues.


3. Examples: Some examples of how you may display Planning and Organizing in the Written In-Basket exercise include such behaviors as:

a. Introducing the topic of a memo and outlining the points to be addressed. b. Determining the order or priority in which issues should be addressed. c. Keeping track of time to ensure that all relevant issues are addressed in the amount

of time available. F. Resource Management:

1. Definition: Resource Management is related to Planning and Organizing in that it represents the efficient use of resources to accomplish any task or objective. However, to determine whether or not resources are being used efficiently one must:

Allocate resources based on priorities and personnel capabilities.

Allocate authority and responsibility as warranted.

Clearly explain assigned tasks, objectives and performance expectations.

Minimize duplication of effort.

Monitor the progress and quality of work.

2. Strategy: During the Written In-Basket exercise, you may be coordinating the activities of internal personnel at various levels, as well as civilians and members of other agencies. You can enhance your performance by attending to the requirements listed above for utilizing resources efficiently.


V. SPECIFIC TEST-TAKING SUGGESTIONS

The purpose of the exam is to evaluate ability dimensions required for completing work-related tasks. Because we want to evaluate these dimensions as directly as possible, without having other factors such as "test wiseness" get in the way, we are offering the following suggestions.

A. Written In-Basket Exercise

Skim through all exercise materials at least once before starting to prepare your responses. Although reading all instructions and materials before preparing a response is important for the Oral Board exercises, it is critical for the Written In-Basket. During the Written In-Basket, you will be presented with a variety of materials designed to simulate important tasks that you may have to perform as a CFO. These materials may relate to each other or they may not. For example, one memo might modify an earlier memo on the same subject. Information received through a phone message may affect staffing assignments. For this reason, it is extremely important that you skim through everything before responding to any item or question. If you do not do so, you may respond to an item or question based on incomplete or partial information, and this could cost you points. Underline or make notes about the materials that you receive. As part of the Written In-Basket response booklet, you will receive a list of the items contained within the Background Information packet. As you skim through the items, you should make an index by jotting down on the list some notes concerning the information contained in each item. This will enable you to more easily see and locate the material which pertains to a particular item. The index will show you, at a glance, which of your items most likely relates to another item. It will also remind you that more than one piece of information may pertain. Allocate your time wisely. Although you should skim through the Written In-Basket exercise materials at least once before responding to any questions, be careful to avoid getting bogged down in comprehending details which later turn out to be irrelevant. For this reason, you should not try to understand every single detail on your first pass through the item. If the details of the items turn out to be relevant to a certain issue, you may then want to spend time on the details. However, you should establish priorities about how you spend your time. Obviously, if you spend all of your time on reading the items and making an index, you will not have any time left over to respond to the questions about the items. Keep calm if you do not know how to approach situation or question. Because of the novel nature of some of the exercise situations, you may not have a good idea of how to approach a situation or question, at least at first. If this happens during the Written In-Basket exercise, just skip the item and come back to it later. It is quite possible that as you work through the exercise, you may have a sudden insight as to what is being sought on an earlier item.


Use extra time wisely. If you finish the Written In-Basket exercise before time is called, go back and review your responses. Make any changes that are necessary.

B. Oral Board Exercises

Skim through all exercise materials at least once before starting to prepare your responses.

You should read through the instructions and other material before starting to prepare your responses. Underline or make notes about the materials that you receive. For the Oral Board exercises (i.e., Incident Command, Group Meeting Role-Play, and Subordinate Conference Role-Play), you will receive information concerning a certain scenario or problem. You should underline the issues that you think are important so that you can address them during the exercises. You will only be permitted to take your notes to the Oral Board exercise itself. Allocate your time wisely. You will need to plan out how much time you want to spend on each area of the exercise, or on the issues that you want to discuss and resolve. For example, on one exercise, you might decide to spend some time asking role-player(s) questions about certain issues, some time discussing the issues or explaining and some time summing up. On all exercises, you should keep track of the time so that you can cover all of the areas you intended to cover. You should wear a watch to keep track of your time. The assessors will only tell you when to start and stop; they will not tell you how much time you have left. Keep calm if you do not know how to approach situation or question. For the Oral Board exercises, address those aspects of the situation or question with which you feel comfortable first, and then ease into the other areas. It may be that you will think of questions to ask or comments to make as the exercise progresses. Use extra time wisely. For the Oral Board exercises, you may want to use the extra time to go back and clarify any responses that you think may not have been clearly stated, or to summarize the key points of the interaction.


VI. SAMPLE EXERCISES

Below are samples of a Written In-Basket exercise item and of the Oral Board exercises. Actual exercise content may emphasize different types of documents and involve more detail and complexity and will be based on City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue procedures and principles as represented within the documents on the published reading list. These samples are merely illustrative of the kinds of exercises with which you might be faced during the exam.

A. Sample Exercises

Sample Item from Written In-Basket Exercise

The following is an example of the types of items that can be included in the Written In-Basket Background Information Packet. This is only one example of a variety of documents that can be included.

Inter-Office Memorandum

Date: April 25, 2014, 1625 hours To: Chief Fire Officer Howitt From: Chief Subject: Sick Leave In reviewing the sick leave statistics for your district for the last two months, I realized that the number of days taken off for sick leave has increased by 29% over the previous two months. I realize that three firefighters were injured in the Superior Store fire last month, but that does not explain the large increase in the amount of sick days taken by your personnel. I believe that some of your firefighters may be taking sick days in order to have longer vacations. I want this stopped immediately. I will not tolerate abuse of sick leave.

The following is an example of the types of questions that may be included in the Written In-Basket Response Booklet. This is only one example of a variety of questions that may be included:

What actions would you take with regard to the memorandum in your in-basket? Describe the actions as fully as possible.

Sample Incident Command Exercise

You are a newly promoted Chief Fire Officer/District Chief with the City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue, assigned to District 2 for the past two months. It is 1555 hours and the outside temperature is 68 degrees Fahrenheit. There has been a wind out of the south, all day, gusting to 35 mph. You, along with Engines 5, 6, 9, Rescue 6, Squad 9, and


Aerials 5 and 9 have been dispatched to an old, one story, film restoration warehouse building. Engine 6 is the first to arrive on the scene and reports light reddish brown smoke toward the rear at the north side of the building. Hysterical employees are exiting the building, yelling that an explosion has occurred and that the fire is in an area used for storage. The building’s dimensions are 200 feet wide and 250 feet deep with a peaked roof. On the west side of the building there is an 8 lane expressway and on the east side there is an employee parking lot which is 50% filled with cars. At the rear of the building there is a loading dock and also a yard where semi-trailers are parked. Engine 6 advises that they are stretching a line to the rear of the building. You hear over the radio that Aerial 9 has just arrived and is positioning its aerial ladder at the front of the building and other arriving companies are beginning an aggressive search and interior attack. The officer of Aerial 5 reports that fire is showing from a portion of the roof at the north side of the building and also advises the companies on the scene that initial reports indicate that propane tanks may have caused the reported explosion. Just as you arrive at the scene and assume command, a second explosion occurs causing a partial collapse at the north side of the building. Fire is now showing at the front of the building with zero visibility outside due to heavy columns of smoke. You advise the alarm office of the second explosion, collapse and potential injuries to civilians and firefighters, and request a second alarm. Due to heavy radio traffic, you are unsure but think you may have heard calls for help from one or more companies that may be trapped as a result of the collapse.

At this point, the second alarm companies are on their way to the scene. The Assistant Fire Chief has not yet arrived and you are told that it will be at least 30 minutes before you are relieved from command. Your task is to describe to the board how you would respond to this incident. In describing your response, address the following issues: 1. SIZE-UP: What would your size-up consist of while en route to and upon arrival at the

scene?

2. TACTICS AND STRATEGIES: What steps would you take to mitigate this incident?

3. RESOURCE ALLOCATION: How would you assign resources to achieve your tactical objectives?

4. SAFETY: What concerns might you have relative to the safety of your personnel and the general public?

5. CONCLUSION: Once the fire is under control, what steps would you take prior to leaving the scene?

When preparing your response, assume that the fire department depicted in this scenario is structured and staffed like the City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue. Fictitious district, company and equipment numbers have been used.


Sample Group Meeting Role-Play Exercise Within the past two months, you have been summoned to the scenes of two incidents at local businesses. In one case, three people suffered second degree burns because the smoke alarms did not detect the fire in the basement and in the other case six people experienced carbon monoxide poisoning because the carbon monoxide detectors did not provide any warning. You also found out that both businesses were inspected within the past year and had passed safety inspections conducted by personnel at fire stations you supervise. You decided to call for a meeting with the station captains involved to discuss your concerns. During the meeting you should present your agenda, goals, and any other information of which you think the group should be aware. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the incidents and ensure that these types of inspections are conducted correctly in the future.

The members of the oral board will assume the roles of the individuals with whom you are meeting. They will introduce themselves to you. You should be prepared to answer their questions, evaluate their suggestions, discuss the actions that will be taken to address their concerns, and respond to any objections. You will have 10 minutes to complete the exercise. It is your responsibility to keep track of time.

Sample Subordinate Conference Role-Play Exercise

You are a recently promoted Chief Fire Officer assigned to District A for the past two months. During this time you have gained a good understanding of your job and responsibilities, as well as the basic capabilities of the firefighters under your supervision. You feel that most of your subordinates are hardworking, and overall you are pleased with the way things are going. However, some district members who have worked with one particular firefighter, Captain Smith, have come to you suggesting that Smith is “just not Captain material.” Captain Smith has been a member of the Station for 9 months. Other firefighters have complained about a number of problems including: Failure to enforce the rules evenly, slow deployment at serious fires, and inadequate knowledge of policies and procedures (especially those dealing with search and rescue). The firefighters claim that they have put up with this behavior for the past 9 months and are tired of it. They also report that they made complaints to the previous Chief Fire Officer, but no action was taken. You feel that this situation must be brought under control before it becomes any worse. This morning one of your firefighters came to you again and said that Smith lacks procedural knowledge and is jeopardizing the safety of firefighters and civilians. Specifically, even in life threatening situations, Smith sometimes stands around and waits for others to take the leadership role. It was also reported to you that in the past month Smith has been late to the truck two times because he was not ready when the truck was ready to leave the house. Finally, an incident occurred two days ago, where Smith was responsible for coordinating the search in a burning apartment building. After the search was complete, a child was discovered in a part of the building that had not been searched.


B. Suggested Approaches to Oral Board Exercises

The suggested approaches provided are intended to enhance your understanding of the evaluation procedures used for the Oral Board component of the exam. It is important to emphasize that the suggested approaches presented here are not the only possible approaches, nor are they necessarily the best approaches. There are alternative ways to accomplish the same end in most interpersonal interactions, such as those depicted in the Oral Board component of this exam. Again, you have your knowledge and familiarity with rules, regulations and procedures to rely on in determining the actual content of your response. The first step could be to identify the relevant issues/problems presented in the written description of the problem. Since all the facts may not be evident, it may be necessary for you to seek additional information from other sources, if appropriate. Once all the issues are successfully identified, you may establish priorities among these issues. By establishing priorities, you may realize which issues are critical to address and which issues may be insignificant and could be overlooked. Once you identify those issues that need to be addressed, alternative solutions could then be developed for the problems identified. Since all proposed solutions may not be applicable, it may be necessary to consider the implications of each of these solutions before deciding on a course of action to take. When considering implications of a solution, a candidate should be able to make a strong case for implementing a particular solution. If you are unable to make a strong case for the solution you select, you may want to rethink the proposed solution. When a solution has been selected, you may then need to decide on a plan of action to carry out this solution. This plan of action could include such things as the steps necessary to implement the solution. However, in addition to deciding what steps to take, you could also try to anticipate obstacles or hurdles that might be encountered while implementing a plan of action; furthermore, you could also take the time to prepare a contingency plan in case an unexpected hurdle or obstacle arises while implementing a plan of action. You should realize that throughout this process human resources are available to you to solve the problem. You could rely on using human resources when you are seeking additional information and or implementing a plan of action. For example, you may be faced with a problem subordinate as outlined in the subordinate conference role-play sample exercise. Some examples of human resources available to you in this case may be other departments (i.e., training classes) or fire-rescue personnel or citizens who the subordinate may have come into contact with. Although other human resources are available, you should avoid turning over the problem to someone else entirely. For instance, if you decide to use department resources like a training course as a plan of action for a problem subordinate, you could monitor the progress of the subordinate during this training. After deciding on a plan of action and how that plan will be carried out, you will then be expected to communicate this plan of action during the Oral Board exercises. As previously mentioned, the use of an outline may be beneficial such that it may help you to organize your response. A clear organized response could include things like: identifying yourself, a description of the key issues which need to be addressed, and a description of the plan of action to address these issues. Effective communication during the Oral Board exercises


could be characterized by: speaking clearly and at a good pace, enunciating words, speaking at a volume that is easy to hear, and using concise and appropriate words, phrases and sentences. It is also important for you to remember that you will be interacting with the role-player(s) who will be role-playing during two of the Oral Board exercises. Effective interaction could be characterized by a candidate who: portrays a genuine concern for the issue at hand, avoids the tendency to interrupt the role-player while he or she is speaking, provides his or her full attention to the role-player while he or she is speaking, compliments or gives credit to others for good ideas or performance, offers support and assistance to individuals experiencing problems and focuses on ineffective behavior when discussing performance problems rather than focusing on individual personality characteristics. It is important to remember that the suggestions outlined above are not comprehensive. We encourage you to utilize any other strategies that you feel may enhance your performance on the exam.


VII. CONCLUSION

This preparation guide represents an attempt to familiarize candidates with all aspects of the exam components described here, including the items and exercises, logistics and evaluation approach; as well as to provide some suggestions for preparation. The suggestions provided here are not exhaustive — we encourage candidates to engage in whatever additional preparation strategies they believe will enhance their chances of performing effectively on the exam and on the job.

Documents

Candidate Preparation Guide for the City of Miami ...€¦ · Candidate Preparation Guide for the 2014 City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue Chief Fire Officer Exam ... a response