From Pushback to Buy-In: How Fire Service Leadership Can Navigate Change
You’ve just gathered your crew in the day room. The mood is tense. Word has spread that the department is moving away from the traditional 24-hour shifts to a new schedule designed to improve coverage and response times. For years, firefighters have built their lives — families, second jobs, sleep cycles — around the old routine.
As you begin explaining the change, arms fold. Some look frustrated. Others avoid eye contact. A few speak up right away: “This is going to wreck my family life.” “We weren’t even asked about this.”
You can feel it in the room — resistance, doubt, even a sense of betrayal. And now, as a leader, it’s on you to guide them through.
Why Change Feels So Hard
Change in the fire service isn’t just about policies or procedures. It’s personal. Firefighters thrive on routine, tradition, and trust. A new schedule, a station merger, a reporting system, or even a new tool layout can feel like an attack on stability.
The Kubler-Ross Change Curve — originally designed to describe the stages of grief — offers insight into why change feels so disruptive. Leaders often see these same phases play out when changes hit a firehouse:
Shock/Denial: “This won’t really happen.”
Anger/Frustration: “This isn’t fair.”
Bargaining/Resistance: “Can we at least keep part of the old schedule?”
Depression/Low Morale: “Why even bother?”
Acceptance/Commitment: “This is the new normal — let’s make it work.”
Not everyone moves through these stages at the same pace. Some accept change quickly. Others may sit in frustration or low morale for weeks or months. As a leader, your job isn’t to push people through faster — it’s to walk with them, providing clarity, empathy, and steady guidance.
Practical Tips for Navigating Change
1. Always Start with the “Why”
Before you announce or explain any change, take five minutes to prepare your “Why.”
Why is this change happening?
How does it connect to our mission, safety, or efficiency?
What’s the benefit for the crew, the department, or the community?
Then communicate it clearly and simply: “We’re shifting schedules because it allows us to cover peak demand more effectively and reduces burnout. That means faster response times for our citizens and safer workloads for you.”
People may still disagree, but when you provide a clear “why,” you shift the conversation from reaction to understanding.
2. Answer These Three Questions
No matter how good a proposed change will be for the Department, each individual wants to know how the change will impact them. In addition to articulating the rationale (the “why”) behind the change, according to research, here are the three questions your staff needs you to answer:
How will this change impact me?
What’s the vision? How will things look once this change is enacted?
How will I be supported through this change?
Answer these questions early and often!
3. Listen Before You Fix
Firefighters need to be heard. Too often, leaders jump to defending a decision rather than letting people process. Instead, try Listen & Observe Walk-Arounds.
A few times each week, walk through the station without an agenda. Listen for comments, frustrations, or even silence. Notice non-verbal cues — crossed arms, fatigue, jokes that mask real concerns.
Don’t argue. Don’t explain. Just gather data. Later, reflect: “I heard concerns about childcare with the new schedule,” or “I noticed frustration about trading shifts.”
When people feel heard, resistance begins to soften.
4. Acknowledge the Struggle
One of the simplest but most powerful things a leader can say is: “I know this is hard.”
Acknowledging difficulty doesn’t weaken your authority. It strengthens trust. When firefighters feel their leaders understand the impact of change on their personal and professional lives, they’re more likely to lean in — even if they don’t like the change.
5. Create Feedback Loops
Change doesn’t stop once the new policy is announced. Build in mechanisms for ongoing feedback:
Quick check-ins at shift change.
Anonymous surveys after 30 or 60 days.
Inviting informal conversations in the bay or kitchen.
You may not be able to change the change, but you can adapt how it’s implemented. Small adjustments — like tweaking swap procedures or clarifying policies — can make a big difference in morale.
6. Lead with Consistency
Nothing undermines change more than inconsistent leadership. If the department sets a new schedule, but leaders ignore it, bend it, or complain about it themselves, trust evaporates.
Model the attitude you want to see. Even if you personally preferred the old way, show your crew what it looks like to adapt with professionalism and resilience.
The Human Side of Change
Change isn’t just logistical — it’s deeply human. A firefighter with young kids will experience a new schedule differently than a single firefighter who values extra overtime opportunities. The same change lands differently depending on personal context.
That’s why leaders must balance the head and the heart:
Head: Clear explanations, data, efficiency, operational benefits.
Heart: Listening, empathy, patience, acknowledgment of sacrifice.
When you address both, you create the conditions for eventual buy-in.
What Success Looks Like
Imagine 90 days after the schedule change. Your crew has adjusted. The initial anger has quieted. New routines are forming. Response times have improved, and firefighters are learning to manage the new rhythm.
It didn’t happen because people suddenly loved the change. It happened because leaders stayed steady — explaining the “why,” listening to concerns, and keeping morale in sight while never losing focus on the mission.
Final Word for Leaders
In the fire service, change is inevitable — new schedules, station mergers, equipment upgrades, reporting systems, even cultural shifts. What sets successful leaders apart isn’t avoiding resistance but navigating it with clarity, empathy, and consistency.
Your crew doesn’t expect you to have all the answers. They expect you to care enough to explain the “why,” listen to their concerns, and walk with them through the discomfort.
If you can do that, you’ll not only survive change — you’ll build stronger trust, stronger crews, and stronger departments on the other side.
Need more help? Coaching can help. Schedule a free Discovery Session with me to learn more: www.mariancoaching.com
Questions for Reflection
When I’ve experienced change in my department, what stage of the Change Curve did I spend the most time in — and how did it affect my leadership?
How clear am I, right now, in communicating the “why” behind the changes I lead? What could I do to make my explanations simpler and more compelling?
When my crew resists change, do I tend to defend and explain, or do I listen and observe first? How might shifting that balance build more trust?
What feedback loops do I currently use to gauge how my crew is adjusting to change? What new methods could I add?
How well do I balance the “head” (data, efficiency, benefits) and the “heart” (empathy, acknowledgment, trust) when leading through change? Where do I need to grow?
