In July 1994, the South Canyon Fire in Colorado became a fatal reminder of how quickly decisions under pressure can shape outcomes. Fourteen firefighters died. A later study examined consequential decisions made during the incident and identified factors including acute stress, underpreparation, and ambiguous authority. The lesson for a new officer isn’t that every decision can be made perfectly. It’s that the conditions you create, and the information you invite, matter.
As a new Fire Captain or Battalion Chief, you may have authority over a crew, a shift, or an incident. But a decision rarely stops with the person who makes it. A schedule change can affect childcare, morale, and staffing reliability. A public correction can change whether someone speaks up next time. A directive passed along without context can become a rumor, or a source of mistrust.
The higher you climb, the farther your decisions can travel. Before you act, take a moment to trace the likely ripple.
Use the R.I.P.P.L.E. check before you commit
This short framework is not a reason to hesitate when immediate action is needed. On the fireground, your training, command structure, and current conditions guide the response. R.I.P.P.L.E. is a practical check for decisions where there’s time to consider who will be affected, what you know, and what happens next.
R, Result: What outcome are you trying to create?
A station reassignment may be intended to improve coverage or balance experience. A performance conversation may be meant to correct unsafe conduct. A staffing change may protect minimum coverage.
Name the intended result before choosing the action. If the goal is unclear, your crew may fill in the blanks, and often the story they create is less reassuring than the truth.
Ask yourself: What must improve, and how will I know if it did?
I, Information: What do you know, and what might you be missing?
A schedule looks efficient on paper, but have you checked its effect on training, overtime, family obligations, and shift swaps? A member’s attitude may seem disrespectful, but have you asked what happened before deciding what it means?
Research on emergency decision-making emphasizes the value of testing the objective, expected outcome, and risk of a decision, not just moving quickly from first impression to action. The Decision Control Process handbook offers a useful reminder: ask why you’re taking a course of action, what you expect to happen, and whether the benefit is worth the risk.
Try this question: What fact, if it changed, would change my decision?
P, People: Who will feel the impact?
A decision can be operationally sound and still land hard. Consider who will carry the workload, who may lose an opportunity, and whose voice has not been heard.
If you need to address a crew member’s performance or attitude, correcting them in front of the crew may get immediate compliance, but what does it teach everyone watching? A private conversation usually protects dignity while still holding the standard.
You might say: “I want to talk about what happened during the handoff. The standard is clear, and I also want to understand what got in the way. Let’s work through both.”
That is not a promise to excuse poor performance. It’s a way to gather information and correct the issue without turning accountability into a public spectacle.
P, Pathways: What could happen next?
Think past the first reaction. If you change station assignments, what happens to continuity, mentoring, and specialized experience? If apparatus or staffing is moved, does another unit lose needed capacity? If you pass over a candidate for promotion, do they know what qualifications or development would strengthen their next application?
A useful leadership question is: If this decision works exactly as intended, what new problem could it create?
You don’t need to predict every consequence. You do need to spot foreseeable ones and decide how you’ll monitor them.
L, Language: How will you explain the decision?
When a chief’s directive reaches your crew, you may not have chosen the policy. You are still responsible for how you communicate it. Passing along a message with no context can make it sound arbitrary; adding your personal frustration can undermine confidence in the department.
Be clear about what’s decided, what’s still open to input, and where questions belong.
For example: “The schedule change is approved and takes effect on this date. I’ll explain the coverage reasons we’ve been given, and I want to hear concerns about how the transition affects the crew. I can’t promise we’ll reverse it, but I can make sure the practical impacts are understood.”
If the decision is yours, explain your reasoning in plain language. Don’t promise that everyone will agree. Aim to make sure people understand the standard and the process.
E, Evaluate: What will tell you to adjust?
A decision isn’t finished when you announce it. Set a point to check whether it’s working. For a schedule or assignment change, you might review staffing gaps, overtime, training access, and crew feedback after a defined period. For an operational decision, follow incident command procedures and reassess as conditions and information change.
At an incident command post, that might mean inviting a challenge from someone with relevant information: “What are we not seeing? What conditions would make us change this plan?”
Research on psychological safety and management teams finds an association between a climate where people can raise concerns and better information-sharing and team integration. That matters because a decision can only improve when relevant information can reach the people responsible for it. See the study on psychological safety and management team effectiveness.
When the ripple reaches beyond one shift
Some decisions carry consequences long after the immediate conversation. Passing someone over for promotion can affect motivation and retention. Discipline that appears inconsistent can weaken trust in the standard. A chief’s retirement can leave a leadership gap if succession planning starts too late.
You can’t remove every disappointment or prevent every staffing challenge. You can reduce avoidable confusion and unfairness by being consistent, documenting the rationale when appropriate, and telling people what happens next.
If a member isn’t selected, consider saying: “You weren’t chosen for this role. I can’t change that outcome, but I can explain the criteria and talk with you about the experience that would strengthen your next opportunity.”
For succession, don’t wait until a retirement announcement to ask who can carry critical knowledge forward. Give emerging leaders opportunities to practice, learn, and receive feedback before a vacancy forces the issue.
Your next three action steps
You don’t need a complicated matrix for every choice. Start with these:
Choose one pending decision. Run it through R.I.P.P.L.E.: Result, Information, People, Pathways, Language, Evaluate.
Invite one informed perspective. Ask a crew member or peer, “What impact might I be missing?”
Set a review point. Decide what you’ll check, when you’ll check it, and what would prompt an adjustment.
Then reflect: Which of your recent decisions created effects you didn’t expect? Did your crew have a safe way to tell you? What would you explain differently next time?
Leadership is not about having a crystal ball. It’s about recognizing that your decisions travel, and taking responsibility for the wake they leave behind. Keep your standards clear, your ears open, and your course correctable.
Build your decision-making skills
If you’re a new Fire Captain ready to strengthen your leadership skills, explore Level Up Leadership Training, a 12-session program designed for new Fire Captains. For personalized support with a current leadership challenge, learn about 1:1 coaching at Marian Coaching.
