Assessment Center Prep

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B Y A N T H O N Y ( A N D O N I ) K A S T R O S

MORE AND MORE FIRE DEPARTMENTS ARE USINGassessment centers or promotion. Candidates or lieutenant, captain, battalion chie , and higher

ranks are likely to ace this type o test. Some f re departmentsare using a modif ed assessment center or entry-level test-ing. Some agencies even use assessment centers or f re mar-shal and f re chie promotional processes. Why? Candidatescannot hide def ciencies in assessment centers as they can ininterviews. It is easy to say you have people skills and canper orm under pressure. Assessment centers make you proveit. You must actually showcase your skills and preparation (or lack thereo ).

Fire departments are also acing many new challenges

today, necessitating a more in-depth process or supervisors.Although no testing process or a job as complex as a f reo f cer is per ect, assessment centers o er a much greater opportunity to see the candidate in simulated day in the li escenarios.

Many actors continue to place pressure on the modern f reservice o f cer, including expanded diversity o mission andwork orce and an increase in litigation, to name a ew.

Recognizing these actors, the Los Angeles City (CA) FireDepartment conducted its f rst assessment center promo-tional process or Captain I in 2007. Until then, the processwas limited to a written test and a civil service interview. City management realized that the new personnel challenges alonewarranted a more modern and thorough process to protectthe citys liability interests. Enter the assessment center. Now,candidates could be placed in role plays and simulations,mimicking the issues that modern LA City captains ace.

Many articles have been written about assessment centers.All have something to o er; read every one you can f nd. Thisarticle ocuses on the frst two steps in preparing or a suc

ration and planning. I you do not address these two criticalcomponents up ront, you may not reach your potential andmay be setting yoursel up or disappointment even be oreyou ever crack a book or practice a simulation.

MENTAL PREPARATIONMental preparation involves eliminating baggage and be-

coming position- ocused. You must f rst eliminate any mentalbaggage and then establish the mindset o the position or which you are aspiring.

Mental Baggage: Some ManifestationsMany f ref ghters would make good o f cers, but they get

too nervous at test time. Their nerves prevent them rom beingthemselves and rom conf dently approaching the assessment

center exercises as they would on the job. These f ref ghterscan conf dently lead troops into battle on the f reground, butthey old when acing an assessment panel during a simula-tion.

Baggage the combination o ailures, negative experiences,doubts, insecurities, nerves, and other issues o li e that weighus down and hinder our per ormance holds them back. I you do not acknowledge and deal with this baggage, it willcome back and inter ere with your per ormance again andagain.

Baggage can come rom countless sources: ailing past as-sessment centers and earing a repeat o that per ormance;anger at the department over contract negotiations, leadership(or lack thereo ), or avoritism; antagonism toward the f rechie over a personal issue; and personal issues. All o thesethings can create a host o emotions rom ear to anger todoubt to f nally giving up. You must acknowledge this bag-gage and check it at the door be ore stepping into the assess-ment center.

Following are some examples o how unchecked baggage

Fire ServiceAssessment Centers:

Beyond the Books

The only true failure is in not showing up.

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A captain candidate who had issues with the f re chie told the assessment panel during his test that the f re chie was a liar. He dropped his baggage on the table or the asses-sors to see. Needless to say, he ailed the process.

An experienced and respected engineer re used to takethe upcoming captain test because he had ailed the previousone. He told me, Im not taking the test because I like beingan engineer. I have a lot o seniority, and I like my crew. I Iget promoted, who knows where they will put me?

I asked him one question: Are you telling me that i they said they messed up the scores on the last test and they had acaptains badge or you right now you wouldnt take it?

He replied, OK, Ill take the test. I simply called him on hisbaggage. He made up excuses to hide the ear o repeating theexperience o his previous ailure. He scored number two outo 90 candidates on the next test and has been a captain or three months now. He is doing a great job.

A highly respected truck f ref ghter recently turned downan opportunity or assignment to our Command TrainingCenter station. He would have access to all types o state-o -the-art training, good mentors, and a crew that would supporthis e orts. I asked him why he didnt bid the station. He said,A ter ailing numerous times, how would it look i I ailedagain a ter working there? He had already made up his mindthat he wouldnt even try. Un ortunately, that is the only true

ailure ailing to try

drill instructor in the f re academy. Some 15 years later, I wasnow a captain and ound mysel working with him as the f re-f ghter on our engine. I was thrilled to be with this old crusty critter again. He had taught me so much over the years.

During our f rst cup o co ee together at the station, I toldhim that he should have been a captain 15 years ago, and Iwanted to help him promote, to get through the test. I didnteven get my thoughts out when a tear silently ell rom hiseye. He just needed someone to believe in him again. He hadbeen through several divorces over the course o his career.His baggage was rom his personal li e. Needless to say, thethought o an assessment center and potential ailure was notappealing to him. A ter some discussion, he got up the nerveto saddle the horse and took all 10 o the required classes toquali y or the test, ormed a study group, sat in the hot seat,studied everishly, and didnt make the list.

He was devastated. The big payo didnt happen. His worstears came true. The personal struggles he aced now crept

into his pro essional f re li e a sacred place o re uge. It tooka real team e ort rom the engine and truck crews and theother department members who believed in him to talk himback onto the horse. I the f rst attempt was tough, the secondseemed impossible. A ter a ew months o coping with the testresults, he decided to give it another try. He told me, I willmake you proud this time. I told him that he made me proudlast time just or showing up

ASSESSMENT CENTERS

The Leadership TriangleAnother key actor in your promotional planning is the leader-

ship triangle. You must know your triangle o leadership. Insidethe triangle lies the answer to many questions you may be asked

about yoursel , your philosophies, the job, your department, andthe uture.The three sides are you, the job, and your department. You must

do copious homework on all three i you want to be prepared orthe job and the test. Think o the triangle as a scope through whichyou f nd the right answer. Because you comprise one side, thetriangle and right answer are di erent or everyone.

Example: You and your buddy are testing or captain with thesame f re department. Obviously, you share two sides o thetriangle the job o captain and the department. The key here isin that third side: you. Only you can articulate your philosophy,leadership style, brand o logic, and the way you would handle agiven situation. This is how we get more than one right answerto a question. The variable is the person answering the question.

The job o f re o f cer is not an exact science; its an art. Twogood o f cers will most likely approach a given situation in di erentways. Although they may have the same departmental SOPs andjob description, their respective personalities and knowledge,skills, and abilities (KSAs) will always actor into the equation.

This is good news! Again, rather than pressuring yoursel to f ndwhat they are looking or, you are ree to speak rom your heartand simply state what you would do (which is what theyre looking

or). The assessors want to see a conf dent and creative leader,not a second-guessing test taker who hopes he comes up with theright answer.

The assessment center is more subjective than it is objective.The key is having the KSAs to stand behind your answer.

How do you do homework on these three areas? Lets look atthe you segment. First, get out a legal pad o paper and ask

yoursel questions about yoursel , including the ollowing: Whats my leadership style? How would I explain it? What does

it look like?

What would be my goals and objectives the f rst day, month,and year? What are my priorities? What are my strengths? How did I get them? How will I use

them in the uture as an o f cer? What are my weaknesses, and how can I improve them? How will I build a team?

Questions about the job component would include the ollowing: What does our department need rom the rank to which I am

aspiring? What do the troops need rom me as a lieutenant, captain,

battalion chie , and so on? What challenges ace the position, and how will I overcome

them? What does an outstanding o f cer in this rank look like?

Questions about the department segment would include theollowing:

What are the department culture and core values? What are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats

(SWOT) o the department? What are the top three critical needs o the department, and

how can I help ulf ll those needs with my team?

Other components o your plan should be time-specif c objec-tives (get better at oral communications, or example) and acooling-o period to let your brain rest. Rest is just as important aspreparation.

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ASSESSMENT CENTERS

was quickly promoted and is now theexcellent captain we all knew he wouldbe. He identif ed his baggage, dealt withit, and re used to give up. Fortunately,most f ref ghters are pretty stubborn, sothat comes in handy sometimes. Dontgive up, and remember: The only true

ailure is in not showing up.What baggage do you carry? Is it

perhaps ear o looking oolish, tarnish-ing your reputation as a good f ref ghter,doing worse than someone younger or someone older, repeating a bad experi-ence, seeing a particular assessor, or notwanting to jump in because it has been10 years since you took a class? The key is to f nd the root issue and clean it up.Check your bags at the door be ore youenter the assessment center.

Pillow TossingA derivative o baggage is pillow toss-

ing. You may f nd yoursel saying, Imjust taking it to see whats on the test. Ilike being an engineer. Ive got a lot o seniority in this position. Im not really going to study that hard. I already havea great job.

Making comments like these set youup or ailure. Its much easier to ail i you have preloaded all the excuses. Liketossing pillows on the ground, it so tensthe all. I you tell everyone (includingyoursel ) that you dont really want thejob anyway, then not making the list isno big deal because, hey, you didnt re-ally want it. Have the guts to climb theladder without the pillows and walk thetightrope without a net. Its okay not tomake the list. Sometimes, that yields thebest li e lessons. You can learn humility,earn respect, and develop the kind o character that comes only a ter disap-pointment.

DEVELOP A

JOB-ORIENTED MINDSET

A ter you get rid o the baggage, getready or the job. Think as i you were inthe position to which you are aspiring.So many candidates obsess about thetest, never realizing the signif cance o the job they desire.

As an o f cer, you will make li e-and-death decisions daily. You willbe responsible or your crews train

not enough. That only gets you in thedoor. Being a good o f cer is a li elongendeavor.

Once an aspiring o f cer asked, Whatare the ewest classes I can take to getpromoted as soon as possible? This in-dividual cared about the promotion andhimsel , not the job and his crew.

Unlike when you became a f ref ghter,you will not have a 12- to 16-week acad-emy to become an o f cer. Un ortunately,most f re departments are extremely

def cient in succession planning, o f cer academies, and leadership development.Most likely, you will have to learn onthe job and make a lot o mistakes. Justmake sure they are not li e-and-deathmistakes.

Focusing on the test will also makeyou more nervous, insecure, and com-petitive. All o these traits will detract

rom your becoming a sa e, e ectiveo f cer. Instead, ocus on building your knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs).

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ASSESSMENT CENTERS

Think o KSAs as your o f cer muscles. You must build themto be a strong o f cer. You cannot control what will be on thetest, but you can control your KSAs.

Your KSAs involve oral and written communications, tacticalknowledge, people skills, command presence, knowledge o

standard operating procedures and policy, leadership skills,and so on. You have control over these KSAs through training.What you dont know on the test or on the job is how thoseKSAs will be used. The scenario could be a car, a house, or ahigh-rise f re; an intoxicated crew member; an irate citizen; or a teaching demonstration. Focus on the KSAs because they arethe only things you can control.

I you are going or battalion chie , start talking to battalionchie s you respect. Ride along and learn the job. Find out thedaily routine, challenges, responsibilities, and tempo. Just read-ing the job description isnt enough. Ask what current issues are

acing the department and how the battalion chie s are a ected.More importantly, ask yoursel , What am I going to do to im-prove the situation and the department as a battalion chie ?

Find a good mentor. Some characteristics o a good mentor include having integrity, being respected in the department,staying calm under pressure, being an experienced tactician,possessing the ability to get along with people, and beingwilling to spend time with you. Good mentors will let you sitin the hot seat. I your department allows, you may be able torun calls, answer the phone, mitigate routine tasks, and even

run the shi t or part o the day. Be aggressive about gettingreal-world experience.

In addition, get eedback rom your mentor and those aroundyou on what you can do to improve your mindset. Do you needto be more assertive, get more experience, learn more about

tactics, or practice arrival reports? Todays f re service promo-tion assessment centers are not a big scary secret. I you haveprepared or the job, you will do well on the test. But, thatssomehow a unky concept or thousands o f ref ghters eachyear. Just like becoming a parent, no amount o training or running a f reground simulation will quite be like running thereal thing. However, training or the real thing is the only way to prepare.

What Are They Looking For?O ten, aspiring o f cers acing an assessment center will ask,

What are they looking or? The problem with that questionis that candidates o ten eel that the assessment center processand assessors are looking or something or someone di er-ent than what constitutes a good o f cer. Somehow, many can-didates think they can f gure out the test exercises ahead o time and ake it during the assessment center. Nothing couldbe arther rom the truth.

There are no shortcuts to assessment center preparation,just as there are no shor tcuts to becoming a good o f cer.Success in both takes time, commitment, training, and a

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ASSESSMENT CENTERS

detailed plan.Scenario 1. We were dispatched to a

house f re at 2 p.m. on a July a ternoon.The ambient temperature was 106F.The f rst-in company o f cer reported,Battalion 9, Engine 53 arrived. We havethree houses involved with a grass f respreading rom them. Engine 53 willbe f re attack. We have a water supply.Next-in, take the next house.

The troops did a bang-up job. Thef rst-in captains act ions were pivotal.At no time was he thinking, I hopethis sounds right, I hope I am doing itright, I hope I am doing what they arelooking or. He simply relied on hisyears o training and cumulative ex-perience. He was job ocused, not test

ocused. He had honed his cra t, and itpaid o that hot summer day in Sacra-mento. Although we were dispatchedto a s ingle-house f re, the f rst-arrivingcaptain ound that three homes andvegetation were burning. He didnt letthis throw him.

Its the same way in the assessmentcenter. You cant possibly know exactly what the problem or challenges will be.You just have to be ready or anything.Remember, you cannot control the test,but you can control your level o prepa-ration.At the moment o truth in a testor on the f reground, you will not rise tothe level o expectation; you will all tothe level o your training.

Scenario 2. Our department haslaunched a Command Training Center (CTC), modeled a ter that o the Phoenix(AZ) Fire Department. We use f regroundsimulations extensively. In the short year the CTC has been in operation, we haveseen an improvement in f reground com-munications, tactics, and sa ety.

We recently ran a f re at 6 a.m. It wasthe one you prepare or and read aboutbut are never quite ready or: Engine105, 106, 110; Truck 106; Rescue 20;Medic 110; Battalion 7. Apartment f re,possible victims trapped, multiple calls.

The alarm assignment leaped outo bed rom their respective stations,mounted their rigs, and proceeded tothe scene. They had no time to wonder how things looked or about what they were looking or. I was glad we didnttake the least number o classes to get

relied solely on our training and experi-ence, which had been plenti ul. It wastime to respond.

Suddenly, the mobile data terminal(MDT) beeped with an update: Twochildren trapped.

Then dispatch chimed in: Battalion 7,f re dispatch, we now have a report o athird person. An adult male is attemptingto rescue the children.

I relayed this to the responding

companies. Chances were that each o those responding company o f cers hadenough on his plate: maps, hydrants,preplans, tactical channels, crew issues,travel routes, SCBA, and so on. Many o them didnt see the MDT messagebecause o the above, but they heard my update.

Then, the f rst engine arrived: Bat-talion 7, Engine 105 arrived. Two-story apartment complex; smoke visible rom

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ASSESSMENT CENTERS

the inside o the complex. E 105 will be re attack. Second in,give us a water supply and assist with rescue.

The rst-arriving company o cer (who, by the way, was anacting captain getting ready or the test with his real captainsitting behind him mentoring) gave an update: Battalion 7,

E 105 is switching to rescue mode; we have three personstrapped. We will need assistance with re attack.

I arrived and assumed command, set up the commandpost, and began assigning subsequent companies. E 105encountered heavy re rom the ront door and windows o the involved apartment. The entire ront amily room egresswas well involved. The victims were behind the labyrinth o

re. To attack the re rom this angle would mean certaindeath the victims would be cooked by the ensuing steam,

re, and gases injected into whatever habitable space may beremotely inside.

Ventilation began immediately; additional hoselines workedin concert with the rescue, and a medical group was set upwith three ambulances one or each o the victims. E 105began a vent-enter-search (VES) operation to the second-story apartment bedroom window. As soon as crews broke out thewindow, f ames erupted out o the opening. The two babieswere inside. Dad went in to get them, and all three perished.

The a ter-incident report showed that all three had perishedprior to our timely response. Many o us questioned all thetactics that night. Was there something we could have done

di erently? The response was lightning ast, the ventilation wasquick and accurate, the hoselines were placed properly, and theVES tactic was swi t and appropriate, given the situation.

What helped us all walk away with some semblance o peace was the simple decision made by an aspiring o cer.

Through his training, he decided to make the educated deci-sion to per orm VES rather than randomly put hoselines intoservice and surely ruin any chance o victim survival. Wecannot always control the conditions, but we can control our response to them, through training. Our troops did outstand-ing work that horrible morning, but the outcome was already set prior to our call. We all slept a little easier that week (notthat night) knowing that we truly did everything we could.

Its just not good enough to try and nd out what they are looking or when preparing or promotion. Seize every opportunity to train, learn, ail, learn, and train some more. Itis better to make mistakes on a simulator than during the realthing.

Think As If You Already Have Been PromotedThe next part o having a job-oriented mindset is thinking

as i you already have been promoted. Many olks acing anassessment center want to know what to say, do, and think sothe assessors will give them points and they will get promoted.The problem is that they are so test- ocused. Being test- o-cused heightens nerves, creates anxiety, and makes it hard to

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ASSESSMENT CENTERS

stay calm. These are not good KSAs.I you prepare through diligent plan-

ning, training, attending workshops,reading books, asking questions, sittingin the ront right seat, getting a mentor,

critiquing f res, and running simulatorsat the f re house, you will do well in thejob and on the test. Just be an o f cer!

As you develop your KSAs or the job,start making the mental paradigm shi t

rom candidate to o f cer. Assessors arelooking or o f cers, not candidates or test takers. You must enter the processas though you are already a lieutenant, acaptain, or a battalion chie . This placesyou in the proper mindset.

You can accomplish this by enteringthe assessment center as i you werewalking into your f re house and look-ing at the assessors as members o your crew or o f cers rom another depart-ment who came to see how your depart-ment does business.

Remember, all o the scenarios, simu-lations, and exercises you conduct in anassessment center assume that you havebeen promoted. The sooner you makethat mental transition, pre erably be oregame day, the better.

Common exercises start out, You arethe captain o Engine 3. Today is March7, and its your f rst day with your new crew .... Another example is, You arethe lieutenant o Engine 10; you willrespond to a structure f re.

The goal o an assessment center is toevaluate your KSAs or the job o f re o -f cer; the only way to do that success ul-ly is to place you in the position o f reo f cer. A good rule o thumb is to go inas the position you want to be when youcome out. I you go into the assessmentcenter as a captain, you will leave as acaptain. I you go in as a f ref ghter, youwill leave as a f ref ghter. This also holdstrue or incumbent o f cers who want topromote to chie ranks.

Some Pitfalls

A common struggle or captains test-ing or battalion chie is to treat the sce-narios as a captain. Its o ten the subtleactions and comments that separate thebattalion chie s rom the captains. Com-ments such as They will have to solvethis and The department will need to

or leadership. The o f cer, especially achie o f cer, needs to realize that he isthey and that he is the department tothe troops and the public. Dont pass thebuck.

Another common pit all or the aspir-ing chie o f cer is ailure to take actionand create solutions, showing vision,creativity, and initiative. O f cers take thelead, and chie o f cers must drive theorganization, not wait to get a map. The

need or permission or ailure to clearly state what role you will play in solvingthe problem o ten results in another tripto the assessment center.

Plan your solutions ahead o time.

Spend a lot o time thinking o the cur-rent problems and potential solutionsin your organization and how you willimplement them. I you wait until youare in an assessment center, with theclock ticking, to come up with a good

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labor/management relationship-building plan, you are too late.As you make the mental paradigm shi t to o cer, you shouldbe thinking about these things. Your plans must go beyondthe generic improve communications comment. You musthave done serious research in all areas a ecting the rank you

desire. Roll up your sleeves; get dirty with preparation. Whenit comes to labor/management, or example, be prepared toillustrate systems such as Relationship by Objectives (Googleit), especially how you not they would implement it.

Be Yourself

Be yoursel . So, how do you be yoursel in the testing arena?Simply get good at the job be ore the test to the point that youbelieve in yoursel . Check your baggage, plan, train, and makethe mental paradigm shi t.

Also, remember that you have nothing to lose. You mustadopt an attitude that says, Even i I dont make the list thistime, I will gain knowledge, skills, and abilities. I will be abetter o cer, and I still have the greatest job in the world.This is di erent rom pillow tossing because you did this atthe end o the preparation period and still gave it all you have.You simply take an account o your blessings: amily, riends,health, and being a re ghter. Its very liberating to remember that they arent testing you so you can keep your job.

Some o my greatest blessings were disappointments whenthey rst happened. I have had to wait or promotions, have

been unable to get into the colleges I wanted, and have hadmany personal challenges. All o these events became blessingsbecause they built character and integrity and allowed me to beempathetic to the next person in line who will go through thesame thing. Empathy just happens to be a good o cer trait, too.

PLANNING

Many candidates ail the process be ore they even startbecause they ail to plan. They start too late and try to read abook or take a class a month be ore the test. It takes years o dedication to develop the KSAs needed to be a good o cer and to per orm well in an assessment center.

Books and classes on promotion can be excellent tools.They can help you develop a plan, identi y weaknesses, apply improvement strategies, and give you a host o other bene ts.In addition, these tools can help you understand the processand any potential roadblocks. However, books and classes areonly part o the overall myriad o components that make up adetailed plan.

Fire ghters o ten ail to plan the promotional process.Most candidates buy the books needed, study, and may takea class or two. So much more is needed or the assessmentcenter (and the job).

Conduct a SWOT analysis: strengths, weaknesses, oppor-tunities, and threats. Strengths are those things within our sphere o inf uence over which we have control (that knowl-

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edge, skill, or ability that is within your skin) or example,good writing skills or the ability to communicate orally.Weaknesses, although within your sphere o inf uence, arenegatives. Perhaps you eel uncom ortable speaking in ronto people, or you need to shore up your reground tactical

knowledge. Identi y these strengths and weaknesses so youcan make a plan that suits your needs.

Threats and opportunities are outside your sphere o inf uence.Opportunities represent such things as taking a class, consulting amentor, participating in a workshop, teaching a drill, becoming apart-time instructor, and working on special projects.

Threats (sometimes called challenges) are those thingsoutside o your skin that compete with your accomplishing thegoal. Although the word threat has a negative connotation,threats can o ten be good things; they just compete with your ability to achieve the goal o promotion. Examples includespouse, kids, house projects, and vacations.

The key is to identi y these items early and actor them intoyour plan. As an example, you per orm a SWOT analysis and

nd that you are good at writing and re tactics (strengths);you need to improve your communication skills, especially in

ront o groups (weakness); your captain wants to help youand will let you sit in the seat (opportunities); and you have atwo-week vacation planned or the next month (threat).

With all o this in mind, you ask the captain i you can ridein the seat during the day and start teaching drills on topicsthat you know to improve your weakness. At home, you sitdown with your wi e and kids to discuss the vacation. Youagree that you will be totally ocused on amily during thetwo-week vacation, not thinking about the job at all. Your

amily agrees to give you plenty o room a ter vacation toocus on the job and test, even taking care o extra house du-

ties to help out. In addition, they will listen to you give somepresentations on department hot topics to help your issuewith public speaking. Many candidates will not plan to thisextent, but it urthers your advantage.

Todays aspiring re o cers are likely to ace an assessmentcenter. All, i promoted, will ace the job some day. The testand job are more closely linked than you realize.

By eliminating barriers and baggage, you will eliminatehidden land mines. You will then be able to set up a plan thatprepares you to make the paradigm shi t rom candidate too cer. By entering the process as an o cer, you will be in theproper mentality to approach anything that comes your way.

Do your homework! Assessors are looking or o cers. Study yoursel , the department, and the position. Only then can youtruly be the o cer you want to be and show your knowledge,skills, and abilities.

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ASSESSMENT CENTERS

ANTHONY KASTROS is a 22-year veteran o the f re

service and the author o Mastering the Fire Service As- sessment Center (Fire Engineering, 2006). He is a battalionchie with the Sacramento (CA) Metro Fire District and the

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