PolicyBUILDERS Blog
Should Fire Departments Use Templates to Build Their Policy Manuals? The Pros and Cons.
In today's fast-paced public safety environment, most fire departments recognize the importance of maintaining a clear, current, and comprehensive policy manual. But when it comes time to build or update that manual, one question comes up again and again: Should we...
Developing Preplanning Standard Operating Procedures
Standard Operating Procedures: A Foundation for Fire Department Readiness There are many terms used to describe the operational frameworks of fire departments: Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), Standard Operating Guidelines (SOGs), Standard Operating Outlines...
Flexible Manuals, Lasting Vision
Every fire department faces change—new leadership, emerging risks, evolving community expectations. But one thing must remain constant: the department’s ability to operate with clarity, consistency, and accountability. That’s where flexible policy manuals come in. The...
10 Reasons Fire Fighters Avoid Reading Policies
Ensuring that firefighters actively engage with and understand their department’s policy manual is no easy task. Despite the effort that goes into crafting clear and thorough policies, getting your team to actually read them—let alone follow them consistently—can feel...
Your Roadmap to Better SOPs (Part 4). From SOPs to Full Crew Guides: Turning Procedures into Culture
Introduction While SOPs are powerful on their own, their full potential is realized when woven into a complete crew or unit operations guide. A well-crafted guide integrates expectations, procedures, and culture into one cohesive document. What Is an Operations Guide?...
Your Roadmap to Better SOPs (Part 3). Building SOPs from the Ground Up: A Step-by-Step Guide for Fire Service Leaders
Introduction Creating Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) isn't about filling a document with rules. It's about equipping your team with the guidance they need to operate consistently, safely, and professionally. Whether you're drafting a single SOP or a...
Your Roadmap to Better SOPs (Part 2). SOPs vs. SOGs: Why the Language Matters Less Than the Implementation
Introduction Fire departments often debate whether to use the term "Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)" or "Standard Operating Guidelines (SOGs)." While the conversation is valid, the truth is: what you call them matters far less than how you use them. The...
Your Roadmap to Better SOPs. Part 1, SOPs that Lead: How Standard Operating Procedures Define Your Leadership Style
Your Roadmap to Better SOPs, a 4 Part Series. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) do more than organize tasks--they define how leadership, culture, and performance come together on the fireground and in the station. This four-part blog series explores the real role...
How can Fire Chiefs encourage staff to engage with the department’s policy manual?
Policy manuals--whether in the form of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) or Standard Operating Guidelines (SOGs)--are more than just documentation. They serve as the backbone of a fire department's operations, offering guidance, promoting consistency, ensuring...
What Makes a Fire Chief’s Policy Manual Essential?
We understand how important it is for Fire Chiefs to keep policy manuals current and complete. Having solid SOPs and SOGs in place is essential--but the real challenge is making sure every firefighter has access to them, when it truly matters. Complete and updated...
The ultimate utility player: a utility player is one who can play several positions competently. That’s our John. Throw a ball in the air and John will catch it and do so with aplomb. John works many business projects for us from marketing research, data base development to building elaborate data dashboards for dozens of fire departments.
When Judy takes charge of a project, it is evident from the outset that her expertise, coupled with her experience, will transform your manual. She’ll streamline the process to produce a completed, published document. Judy seamlessly moves from Zoom meeting to Zoom meeting each and every day, keeping track of each department’s progress, addressing questions, offering guidance, reviewing tasks and providing Chiefs with encouragement. Department manuals that have been years in the making are, for the first time, truly coming together.
Heather Vaughn has worked in an administrative, project management and customer service capacity for most of her career. Prior to joining StationSmarts, she worked with the Concord and Carlisle Fire Departments, where she gained a first-hand understanding of the fire service’s information management needs. Programming is in her DNA, so she was already thinking about ways to make the records management systems at her departments more streamlined when she was introduced to StationSmarts. She immediately understood the impact it would have on managing fire department operations.
Greg Pica created StationSmarts from the ground up to meet the specific information management needs of the fire industry. In his role as Product Developer, Greg enlists the latest database technologies and hardware expertise along with targeted feedback from fire industry professionals to continually enhance StationSmarts’ all-in-one records management system. Customer feedback is critical to this process. Greg believes ongoing relationships with fire chiefs are what fuel the functionality of the software. His goal is to provide fire personnel with access to mobile tools that can be used anywhere and anytime, back at the fire station or at a live event.
Dave Rocco isn’t surprised to hear StationSmarts customers say, “This is the exact program I have been looking for!” Before their product launched, he and business partner, Greg Pica worked closely with a small group of Massachusetts fire chiefs, collecting their wishlist for an effective, easy-to-access records management system. Today, the StationSmarts team continues to consult with fire personnel to perfect the design and functionality of the software. Dave plays a critical role in that effort, establishing strong relationships with area departments and meeting in person with chiefs and staff members to demonstrate StationSmarts, train new users and answer questions.