Latest / B Shifter / Year in Review & Looking Ahead to 2024

Transcript

Year in Review & Looking Ahead to 2024 · B Shifter

• 1:01
  Speaker 1: Welcome to the B-Shifter podcast John Vance, josh Bloom.
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: This is our New Year's Eve edition.
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: We wanted to get with everybody and talk about 2023 and, more importantly, what's ahead for 2024.
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: So thanks for being here today.
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: If you're joining us, live happy New Year.
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: If you're on shift, have a safe shift and if you're lucky enough to have the time off, enjoy some time with your family and friends as you bring in 2024.
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: And, of course, if you're listening to this at any other time, happy New Year too.
• 1:34
  Speaker 2: How are you doing, josh?
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: I'm good.
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: Happy New Year to you.
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: It's crazy.
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: This year went by that fast.
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: I look back and it's like man.
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: We didn't do that this year.
• 1:42
  Speaker 2: That was in 2022.
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: That wasn't whatever.
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: And it's like man.
• 1:45
  Speaker 2: We did a lot this year, but it went by pretty fast.
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: So I don't know if it's because of like COVID, but like the pandemic and the lockdown and everything seems so long ago to me and it just seems like it seems like a whole other lifetime ago, but then it seems like things have just been going so fast since then.
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: I mean, it's just it's been unbelievably fast.
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: So, yeah, it's a.
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: It's a crazy world in which we live.
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: Hey, I just want to ask everyone who's watching this.
• 2:15
  Speaker 1: If you haven't done so already, please like and subscribe.
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: That really helps us out a lot because it lets us know that you're there and it supports our podcast.
• 2:24
  Speaker 1: The other thing it does, too, is it makes sure that you get every new episode.
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: So, especially like on YouTube, you hit the notification, you'll get notified every time there's a new one out.
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: We're trying to encourage everyone to do that and you know, one of the funny things about our organization is we are all firefighters.
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: First we came from a fire background and then we're doing this to let everybody know what we're doing and communicate with everybody.
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: So we don't have a professional marketing department or anything like that.
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: It's us doing this and it's one of those things I always forget to do.
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: It's like wow, you know, we had 21,000 people watch this, but why do we have 500 subscribers?
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: Well, it's because I don't ask people to subscribe, and that's what you're supposed to do.
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: So, anyway, just just trying to bring a little professionalism to this, Josh, I think would help out.
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: So please like and subscribe.
• 3:19
  Speaker 1: It helps you and it helps us.
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: The other thing I want to say, too, is we've added Instagram, too, on our live.
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: So anytime that we have a new podcast out, it's going to be broadcast live on YouTube, twitter or X, whatever we're calling that out Facebook and then also now Instagram.
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: So welcome to our new Instagram viewers.
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: If you're, if you're watching us on Instagram.
• 3:41
  Speaker 1: So just more ways that we're getting the word out and sharing information from Blue Card and B shifter with you.
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: Looking back at 2023, josh, what kind of activity did we have?
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: I mean specifically like, how many classes did we do?
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: How many new instructors came on board?
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: It, just like you said, it went so fast, so much went on, but every single week we were doing something.
• 4:04
  Speaker 1: So just it's nuts how much activity we had.
• 4:09
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean we had a lot of stuff going on like two weeks ago.
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: You know, we had the Fairfield trainer going three weeks ago, whatever it was.
• 4:16
  Speaker 2: However long ago, that was in December and I totally forgot that we actually had three things going that week.
• 4:25
  Speaker 2: So it was like, oh yeah, we have people in three separate places.
• 4:29
  Speaker 2: So, yeah, I mean it was busy.
• 4:31
  Speaker 2: So we in 23, we ended up putting on 7500 plus new, new students.
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: So, whether they were, you know, doing the, doing the full online or dispatchers, we trained over 500 instructors in 48 different trainer trainer classes.
• 4:55
  Speaker 2: So you figure that out right 48 trainer trainers.
• 4:58
  Speaker 2: Then you take out some of the holiday weeks and all of that.
• 5:01
  Speaker 2: So there was a lot of weeks in 2023 that we had, you know, two or three classes going.
• 5:08
  Speaker 2: We ended up delivering 19 two day workshops of some sort and we had about 900 students that we touched with those.
• 5:19
  Speaker 2: So the workshops of the Mayday Workshop, the vision ops, the critical thinking class, which we got that coming up in March and I think there might now I don't think there is any seats left.
• 5:30
  Speaker 2: I'm pretty sure it is full.
• 5:31
  Speaker 2: There maybe was one or two, but I'm pretty sure that's full.
• 5:34
  Speaker 2: So that class very popular and then the big box class that we do with, you know, the National Fire Sprinkler Association.
• 5:40
  Speaker 2: So we delivered five of those in 23 and coming up this next year tomorrow, right In 2024, we're going to do five and three of the five are already full.
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: So if you're looking at a workshop or you're looking for a class, just reach out to us.
• 6:00
  Speaker 2: And then we delivered seven of the size of fire extinguishment tactics train the trainer classes, the two day classes with the fire prop, and you know we go through a bit of fire dynamics and you get, you keep the prop and you we give, we give you included in that package a curriculum piece that's probably about 16 hours of classroom material that you can break down and do in probably like two hour sessions, and then a big deal.
• 6:27
  Speaker 2: Right, we brought the conference back.
• 6:29
  Speaker 2: So it's like, man, that was a that kind of got on top.
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: I was, for you even knew it.
• 6:34
  Speaker 2: You know we had planned it out.
• 6:35
  Speaker 2: And then there we were in October at the conference and that was fantastic 500 people for the first year and had 20 different classes that we offered.
• 6:44
  Speaker 2: And you know, with that said, I'll just say it here, we'll talk about it again.
• 6:48
  Speaker 2: But we're bringing the heads of the conference back in 2024, september 30th through October 4th, so it'll be five days.
• 6:56
  Speaker 2: We can talk about that a little bit more.
• 6:57
  Speaker 2: But you can go to the registration there, hazardsonbccom, and you can see what classes we're offering there and what that looks like.
• 7:06
  Speaker 2: We don't have all the instructors posted yet, but, yeah, the conference this year went very well and I mean we weren't surprised because we've been getting for the last several years a lot of when you bring in the conference back, when you bring in the conference back.
• 7:21
  Speaker 2: So you know that was really good.
• 7:23
  Speaker 2: The networking, picking up from people like you know what are their needs, what do they expect, what else can we, you know, do for them.
• 7:29
  Speaker 2: And then we were, we were at FDIC for just about the whole week.
• 7:34
  Speaker 2: We were at the I Chiefs conference.
• 7:36
  Speaker 2: You know, connected with, hooked up with a lot of people there, a lot of networking, got to record a few podcasts with some of the folks there of like what's going on and what's the state of the fire service, where they work.
• 7:48
  Speaker 2: And then we did a few state conferences.
• 7:51
  Speaker 2: So with that, you know, the state conferences, if you got something going on in your state or your region that Just reach out to us and if we can fit it in, we we're gonna do some state conferences.
• 8:03
  Speaker 2: Obviously we're not gonna do 50, but we'll.
• 8:06
  Speaker 2: We'll see what we can fit into our schedule to make to make that work.
• 8:11
  Speaker 2: And then Some of the updated curriculum.
• 8:14
  Speaker 2: So a new we did release another new day, one PowerPoint just updated and refined that.
• 8:19
  Speaker 2: Right, we try to Stay in command function seven and fixing stuff.
• 8:24
  Speaker 2: Everybody knows that.
• 8:27
  Speaker 2: You know the, the whole website update.
• 8:31
  Speaker 2: So you know, here we are two and a half months past when we when we shut down the old one and started the new one and Based off of what, what we wanted to do and what we wanted it to look like and where we were headed.
• 8:46
  Speaker 2: We're really on track for what we wanted to do there.
• 8:49
  Speaker 2: Your priority was the learning management system and the records management system and, you know, making sure that the students could actually do education, because that's what we do, we, we, we educate and support, train firefighters, officers, and you know command and decision-making, so that was a huge priority for us.
• 9:09
  Speaker 2: And making sure the instructors had, you know, the tools and the ability to finish what they needed to do with certification and CE at their own organization.
• 9:17
  Speaker 2: So yeah, there was we, there was a lot going on and in 2023 and 2024 is lining up Really to be busier than we were this year.
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: What are some of the things coming up in 2024 class wise that Either we might be adding or we'll see some changes with.
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: So the ARF module.
• 9:42
  Speaker 2: That will be coming out in 2024 that are Our SME group is in like the final revision of that and then that'll be getting pushed out and launched in 2024 for for response to aircraft incidents and that that program.
• 9:59
  Speaker 2: You know it's not just for airports, really it lines up and I think it's good for anybody who's in a you know, especially if you're in, like a direct flight path or you could be responding to the airport if you're not on the airport, like a Good basis of what, what goes on.
• 10:13
  Speaker 2: What does that really look like?
• 10:14
  Speaker 2: How do you set it up?
• 10:15
  Speaker 2: How do you apply the, the standard blue card system and the and the strategic decision-making model to an aircraft incident?
• 10:21
  Speaker 2: So we're looking forward to that coming out, that I think that'll be.
• 10:26
  Speaker 2: That's gonna be really good.
• 10:30
  Speaker 2: Chris Stewart and Eric Phillips with their critical thinking and decision-making class you know we we launched that Phoenix class for March and it really filled up in no time.
• 10:40
  Speaker 2: It just proves that firefighters they want to know, right, we want to know, we don't want to be, we don't want to not know.
• 10:50
  Speaker 2: So you know that class and the discussion on how do I really make decisions and how do we think under stress and how can we help each other to make better decisions.
• 11:03
  Speaker 2: So that class obviously the Phoenix ones filled up.
• 11:06
  Speaker 2: We're doing one actually here, kind of a kind of an overview Of the of that program here and Cincinnati, coming up here in just a few weeks in January, and Then it that class is available, like all of our workshops, to bring to your organization.
• 11:25
  Speaker 2: So if you're interested in that, you could either fill out the form on the website or you can reach out to me anytime.
• 11:30
  Speaker 2: Josh at B shifter comm, we're gonna continue to deliver the Mayday workshops, the division boss workshop, the big box workshops.
• 11:37
  Speaker 2: We have.
• 11:38
  Speaker 2: We're gonna do five of them.
• 11:40
  Speaker 2: Three of them are posted in the full and so we're gonna be offering two other ones.
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: We just we're gonna have to line up with Shane's schedule, obviously very busy all over the country if you follow NFSA.
• 11:51
  Speaker 2: He's in Maine today, in California tomorrow and and Florida the next day.
• 11:56
  Speaker 2: So we schedule those around.
• 11:58
  Speaker 2: You know his availability and what that looks like and we're super happy to be partnering with the NFSA on on the big box workshop and then also some of the other I Don't want to say research burns, but some of the other trainings that they've done with with their sprinkler folks to show what the sprinkler system does, but how we can participate in that, to show people what really happens when the sprinkler system goes off and what it looks like inside.
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: And we're gonna continue with that and that relationship, that to do Exercises like that, to continue to help the fire service and roll things out, maybe that that aren't out there right now so that we can have bet, have the tools to do a better job and to really think through and make good decisions.
• 12:45
  Speaker 2: So, with that said, we're working on the one or two, probably two CE modules with NFSA, on, you know, sprinkler systems and sprinkler control, on how do they really work and risers and dry risers and fire pumps, and With that really aligns the whole pre-plan piece.
• 13:04
  Speaker 2: So we're kind of like lining that up.
• 13:05
  Speaker 2: What does that really look like for for an organization going to this big box building we talk about in the big box class, that it's so critical that you have really good pre-plans on these buildings of what are all those auxiliary systems, where are they located and maybe some information on you know how they work, how do we control them, what kind of what kind of picker systems and all that are inside the building.
• 13:27
  Speaker 2: So that's just another piece that we're working on.
• 13:30
  Speaker 2: That's a it's gonna be a CE module class.
• 13:32
  Speaker 2: For the last year we've been working on the TRT.
• 13:36
  Speaker 2: It really lines up with like technical rescue awareness, but it's the it's, it's that mobile first-do I see decision-making and strategic I see decision-making for these technical rescue events.
• 13:50
  Speaker 2: So we're gonna end up having about 36 separate modules.
• 13:56
  Speaker 2: At some point in 2024 we're gonna release the first five CE modules for TRT events and it's gonna be the ones that one we probably all respond to and a couple that Are the highest risk, maybe lowest frequency, and every time we launch one of those CEs we're gonna have an SOG to go along with it.
• 14:17
  Speaker 2: So that kind of brings me to the SOG.
• 14:20
  Speaker 2: So we released all those SOG's earlier, earlier this year, on the structural firefighting piece, you know, command and accountability and air management and division ops and so on.
• 14:34
  Speaker 2: And we've had for the last five or six years, you know, some SOG's that align with natural gas, best practice response, carbon monoxide response to compressed gas emergencies.
• 14:45
  Speaker 2: So we're gonna also be pushing those SOG's out.
• 14:50
  Speaker 2: And when we do that, really just a refresher reminder that hey, don't forget that the hazmat modules do exist, especially the natural gas one.
• 15:00
  Speaker 2: We keep on seeing a lot of events with with natural gas and there's so many of them that were successful so often.
• 15:07
  Speaker 2: But you, we're getting caught a lot also responding to an explosion or responding and we pull up and it explodes while we're there and you know there's some things that we can do to keep us, you know, out of that situation and some best practice thing.
• 15:24
  Speaker 2: So that's a bit of that lineup.
• 15:26
  Speaker 2: We're gonna be back at FDIC this year, we're gonna be doing the iCHE's or our conferences, like I said, right around the corner, really in October or September 30th is not that far away.
• 15:36
  Speaker 2: So that's kind of a piece of what we have, you know, lined up for 2024, in addition to all the, all the classes, that classes and workshops and everything else we got scheduled already.
• 15:51
  Speaker 1: Well, one of the things that you brought up is the SOG's.
• 15:53
  Speaker 1: In the way that we've been distributing that and we're gonna add some Distribution channels.
• 15:58
  Speaker 1: As the year goes on you're gonna see some more upgrades to our website, which we're excited about, so you'll be able to get our stuff more ways.
• 16:07
  Speaker 1: But right now the guarantee way to get our stuff is by going to the buck slip and in the show notes you can subscribe to the buck slip.
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: That's how we distributed those SOG's and I think we over 2200 downloads of the eight SOG's that we put out leading up to the conference and the other thing about the buck slip here Let me see I've got my notes over 48,000 unique downloads on the buck slip.
• 16:37
  Speaker 1: So every week we put out at least one article and then we have all the blue card and B shifter news on there and over 48,000 people accessed or, you know, had unique clicks on there to get our stuff.
• 16:49
  Speaker 1: It's absolutely free, we don't charge you.
• 16:52
  Speaker 1: You don't have to be a blue card user in order to get on there.
• 16:55
  Speaker 1: It just kind of gives you a glimpse of what it's like and some of our customer support, but also the information that used to be in the B shifter quarterly is now in the B shifter buck slip every single week and we that comes out every Tuesday morning.
• 17:09
  Speaker 1: We have not missed a week yet.
• 17:11
  Speaker 1: We're gonna we're gonna continue to do that into the next year.
• 17:15
  Speaker 1: The other thing that we've done is we launched YouTube.
• 17:18
  Speaker 1: Like I said, over 20,000 views on YouTube.
• 17:21
  Speaker 1: And then the I don't know if you had this the webinars.
• 17:24
  Speaker 1: So we put out free webinars.
• 17:26
  Speaker 1: This year We've had over 1300 people look at those webinars.
• 17:30
  Speaker 1: So we offer it live so you can interact with us and the other Instructors or whoever's.
• 17:36
  Speaker 1: On the webinar.
• 17:37
  Speaker 1: People make comments to each other.
• 17:39
  Speaker 1: It's a good environment.
• 17:40
  Speaker 1: You know it's not unusual now that we have a couple hundred people on those.
• 17:44
  Speaker 1: But then we also offer it on demand after the fact, so you can either sign up and get it or we put it on YouTube and with that we've had over 1300 people attend our webinars so far.
• 17:56
  Speaker 1: And again, it's absolutely free.
• 17:57
  Speaker 1: You don't have to be a blue card user subscriber in order to look at all that.
• 18:03
  Speaker 1: Just something else that we do for free To offer that up.
• 18:08
  Speaker 1: And then there's the podcast that three and a half years ago Just about we started the B shifter podcast.
• 18:14
  Speaker 1: We had like a little mobile studio again.
• 18:17
  Speaker 1: We were just kind of learning as we went there.
• 18:19
  Speaker 1: There's been over 75 of those put out and this year alone almost 60,000 people have downloaded that podcast, 60,000 unique downloads, so 59,779 over a hundred and ten thousand since it was launched, and just a couple of other like interesting facts here.
• 18:41
  Speaker 1: It's listened to, of course, in the US, canada, australia, norway, germany, the UK, netherlands, ireland, dominican Republic and Austria.
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: This year we did have listeners in the Ukraine that quit reporting, but every, every time, you know, we have like two bump up from the Ukraine, which was wild to me and then our top cities.
• 19:03
  Speaker 1: So this is where more people listen to the, the B shifter podcast.
• 19:07
  Speaker 1: So if we are going to go on tour, josh, these are the cities we should hit.
• 19:11
  Speaker 1: Well, phoenix, number one, and we're there all the time anyway then Denver, portland, tucson, cincinnati, chicago, minneapolis, seattle, calgary and Toronto.
• 19:22
  Speaker 1: So those are our top download cities for the B shifter podcast and we sincerely appreciate everyone who listens and they're along for the ride and the interaction that we get with people and it's a community or a family or like a firehouse, because you know we we bust ease up each other's chops now and then and have some fun, but it's also a lot of good information and it's a way for us to share with you, just like this right now, what is going on with blue card, what is going on with B shifter and a lot of great topics.
• 19:52
  Speaker 1: So even more great topics coming up for the next year, especially with, like the silverback leadership stuff that Continues to roll out.
• 19:59
  Speaker 1: Nick Brunassini and Terry Garrison are finishing that material.
• 20:04
  Speaker 1: We're gonna have the new edition of fire command coming out that backs up everything on the blue card Program.
• 20:12
  Speaker 1: So it's the reference for that.
• 20:14
  Speaker 1: So you're gonna continue to see more and more stuff there, almost weekly podcast.
• 20:18
  Speaker 1: So now we put them out every Sunday, just about.
• 20:21
  Speaker 1: So we're not gonna see every single Sunday, because once we say we're doing something, we want to make sure we're doing it, but just about every Sunday you're gonna get a podcast and then more, more videos and more free webinars.
• 20:32
  Speaker 1: We're gonna we're gonna try to offer a free webinar Almost monthly too.
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: So you know, just stay tuned for those.
• 20:38
  Speaker 1: Pass them on to people in your organization.
• 20:41
  Speaker 1: The word of mouth really helps and Help spread the word, and you know what.
• 20:47
  Speaker 1: You and I were having a conversation yesterday, josh and and we're talking about the fire service and Our younger firefighters, the up-and-coming officers that we have in our organization, and they're hungry, they want to learn, they want to know more about their job and why they're doing it, and I think there's a lot of pessimism right now out in society because of social media and a lot of other Factors out there, but I really think 2024 is a great time to be in the fire service.
• 21:19
  Speaker 1: We're getting smarter and we're adding people.
• 21:23
  Speaker 1: For the most part now I know there's a lot of places that struggle and there's a lot of people that are not staffed Appropriately and they're not getting the resources they need.
• 21:31
  Speaker 1: But as I travel around and I see what's going on and I see the vacancies there are, I was just told by a major Metropolitan fire department in my area they're going to be hiring in groups of almost 100 for the next couple of years and they said we're and they're going 250 or 300 people deep on their list by the time they're actually hiring.
• 21:54
  Speaker 1: So if you want to be a full-time firefighter, now is the time to get into the business.
• 22:00
  Speaker 1: You and I have been through it in years where it's like you were lucky to see one or two openings and it was thousands of people trying to get those jobs.
• 22:08
  Speaker 1: When I started, when I was 18, 19 years old, trying to get in the fire service full time in Southern California, I would stand in line with a thousand people just to get an application.
• 22:19
  Speaker 1: They would only release so many applications.
• 22:22
  Speaker 1: That's not the world we're in right now.
• 22:24
  Speaker 1: I mean right now it's a few hundred maybe that apply or less.
• 22:28
  Speaker 1: I know there have been career jobs that pay very well in my Metro and I'm talking like $80,000 a year to start, in a state that protects workers and has great labor laws and it's union friendly and they're getting 60 or 50 people applying for those jobs.
• 22:47
  Speaker 1: So it's a great time to be a firefighter and I think, along with that, it's incumbent on us, as fire service leaders and their officers, to continue to educate them and give them the tools that they need to succeed safely in their jobs and, more importantly, connecting them to that.
• 23:03
  Speaker 1: Why?
• 23:04
  Speaker 1: Why are they doing the things that they're doing?
• 23:06
  Speaker 1: So I'm very optimistic about 2024.
• 23:09
  Speaker 1: I think there's a lot of great things going on for us in the American fire service as well, for us in Blue Card and B-Shifter.
• 23:16
  Speaker 1: It's a great time to be a firefighter, so let's celebrate that a little bit.
• 23:22
  Speaker 2: We can all do a better job, I think, working towards being positive for the good, for what we're really here for.
• 23:32
  Speaker 2: Anyway, right, let's not be mad about hiring some kid who's got questions.
• 23:36
  Speaker 2: Let's be happy about it and let's train them to do their job so that we can all work together to provide the service that we really have sworn to really provide, which is about Mrs Smith, right?
• 23:48
  Speaker 2: Yeah, get over yourself.
• 23:50
  Speaker 2: I'm sorry you can't sit around and do whatever you're gonna do or you're bothered by it, but we need to continue to train, educate and develop thinking firefighters.
• 24:01
  Speaker 2: We owe it to the profession and we owe it to the public, right?
• 24:04
  Speaker 2: I mean, that's what that whole thing really comes down to is we're all here, it's a job, right, it's not just a paycheck, it's a profession and we owe it to the public.
• 24:13
  Speaker 2: So, you know, with that said, I'm with you.
• 24:15
  Speaker 2: Like a whole lot of these young folks that are coming through the door, we can develop them to be what we want them to be, and it just takes some time.
• 24:25
  Speaker 2: And, yeah, they ask some questions and you know that old mindset adage of just do what I told you to do, don't ask why, and it's like, well, really, we want them to ask why?
• 24:35
  Speaker 2: Because we want to educate them, right, we want to have thinking educated again, professionals, not just robots, right?
• 24:43
  Speaker 2: Because at some point they're gonna be the one making the decision, and then they don't even know why.
• 24:46
  Speaker 2: I mean, we've lived through that for a hundred years.
• 24:49
  Speaker 2: Why do you do that?
• 24:51
  Speaker 2: I don't know.
• 24:51
  Speaker 2: That's what the guy before me told me.
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: Well, we're not there, right?
• 24:54
  Speaker 2: I mean, we need to use all of our tools available.
• 24:59
  Speaker 2: Let them use all the tools available.
• 25:01
  Speaker 2: And part of that is like is there a better way to do this?
• 25:04
  Speaker 2: Is there a safer way to do this?
• 25:06
  Speaker 2: Is there a more efficient way to do this?
• 25:09
  Speaker 2: That's our mission.
• 25:11
  Speaker 2: You know, at Blue Card, our part of our mission is obviously to train, educate, develop thinking.
• 25:20
  Speaker 2: Firefighters, company officers, chiefs you know from the newest, all the way to the fire chief.
• 25:28
  Speaker 2: And then you know the dispatch program same thing.
• 25:30
  Speaker 2: And you know, since we're talking about that and it just dispatchers I've heard from so many dispatch organizations now, man, that dispatch module is really good and really what happened in the past with a whole lot of fire departments in a dispatch center was I don't like them because they don't do what we want them to do, and we've really not spent much time or effort trying to educate or train them or tell them why.
• 25:53
  Speaker 2: I mean, here in Hamilton County, one dispatch center shared police and fire.
• 25:57
  Speaker 2: They dispatched 36 agencies, plus I'm not sure how many police agencies, and every dispatcher that's come through the program said wow, you guys are actually telling us what you want us to do Before.
• 26:10
  Speaker 2: We just had to figure it out on our own, which is why we didn't do much for you, because we didn't even know.
• 26:14
  Speaker 2: We had a book.
• 26:15
  Speaker 2: You handed us a book that was SOPs, but you gave us no training.
• 26:19
  Speaker 2: And I mean, we deal with that with fire departments too, though, right, I'm just gonna hijack these SOPs and this is what we do.
• 26:25
  Speaker 2: Well, you're not that fire department, so you need to figure out how it applies to you.
• 26:30
  Speaker 1: So I was talking to a dispatcher that went through the program that we have.
• 26:34
  Speaker 1: They brought something up.
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: They said the reason that they are better dispatchers on the fire channel or on the police channel rather than the fire channel is because for every 50,000 police calls they put out, they put out 5,000 fire calls.
• 26:48
  Speaker 1: So just sets and reps in their daily touches when they're on that police channel they're doing way more than they would on the fire channel.
• 26:55
  Speaker 1: We just simply don't have the same activity level.
• 26:58
  Speaker 1: So when we can, through sets and reps offline, get them used to what we're doing and they're oriented to, when we say we're pulling an inch and three quarter line, what is that?
• 27:09
  Speaker 1: What are you guys doing?
• 27:10
  Speaker 1: When we say give me your water, what is that?
• 27:12
  Speaker 1: Why are we doing?
• 27:13
  Speaker 1: I think there's some orientation in that dispatcher program that helps them understand.
• 27:18
  Speaker 1: It's a very basic level firefighting but it lets them know why water's important, what an aerial ladder is, what a tanker or a tender is, so they can go onto that fire channel and know exactly when they are repeating the size up back.
• 27:33
  Speaker 1: They can envision in their mind what is actually happening on the scene.
• 27:38
  Speaker 1: The other thing I wanted to hit too, as you were talking is if you're not doing succession planning right now in your department, with all these retirements and all the hiring because I'm seeing so many people get caught like we just don't have the officers ready now is the time to get your officers ready.
• 27:55
  Speaker 1: Now is the time to start to mentor and train that driver who's gonna start moving up to the right front seat, or the guy in the back seat that's gonna move up to the driver, or the officer that's riding the right front seat to be the chief, because it's all moving up and it's all happening so fast and it continues to catch organizations by surprise.
• 28:15
  Speaker 1: Allow us to be here to help you do that mentoring, especially when it comes to the strategy and the tactics and the decision making that these people are going to be able to do on the scene.
• 28:26
  Speaker 1: We wanna prepare them for that.
• 28:28
  Speaker 1: So think about that mentoring within your organization and how you're doing succession planning, because that is one thing I'm seeing so many people get caught off guard with and it's because we're so busy with the day to day.
• 28:40
  Speaker 1: Right, I mean, we're, you know, but when I say things are gonna be good in 2024, well, yeah but there are still places struggling just to fill the overtime, just to get people in the seats.
• 28:52
  Speaker 1: So, as we move towards those solutions, let's prepare our people, I guess.
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: With that, let's talk about this conference here.
• 28:59
  Speaker 1: You hit on it earlier in 2024, we're back in Cincinnati and right now, if you register your basic and you need a blue card subscription, you're basically paying $30, right For the conference.
• 29:13
  Speaker 1: So let's talk about the conference and give people an update on what's going on with that.
• 29:18
  Speaker 2: If your organization is putting folks online in 2024, and you were gonna buy an online subscription if you wanted to send some people to the conference.
• 29:29
  Speaker 2: If you're gonna buy 10 subscriptions but you're gonna send three people to the conference, well, buy seven subscriptions and then by 10 copy or then by three conference passes, because when you buy the conference pass for 415, you get a free online.
• 29:43
  Speaker 2: That's three hundred eighty five dollars.
• 29:45
  Speaker 2: So, like John said, it's thirty dollars and you get an online account and the the conference.
• 29:50
  Speaker 2: So that's, that's the two-day conference.
• 29:53
  Speaker 2: So we talked about a little bit September 30th through October 4th.
• 29:57
  Speaker 2: It's back in Cincinnati.
• 29:58
  Speaker 2: The 30th, the 1st and the 2nd.
• 30:02
  Speaker 2: We're gonna offer a three-day cert lab for an organizations that you know.
• 30:05
  Speaker 2: If you were looking to get certified or you know you're just stand alone, you're doing something by yourself, whatever.
• 30:10
  Speaker 2: So you can register for that at the haze zone, bc comm.
• 30:15
  Speaker 2: On the Tuesday and Wednesday before the conference, we're doing pre-conference workshop.
• 30:22
  Speaker 2: There's only 40 seats available and we're doing the two-day Mayday Management workshop and and that's a deep that's.
• 30:28
  Speaker 2: That's another one of those package.
• 30:30
  Speaker 2: You know deal pieces.
• 30:31
  Speaker 2: So if you do the cert lab in the conference or you do the Mayday workshop in the conference.
• 30:37
  Speaker 2: It's seven hundred dollars and you get an online account still.
• 30:40
  Speaker 2: So if somebody was looking to, if somebody was looking to get certified and you don't have an online account, you know you could pay.
• 30:47
  Speaker 2: You pay seven hundred dollars, you get an online account.
• 30:49
  Speaker 2: You come to the Conference for five days you get certified and two days of the conference on the back or two days of conference on the back end Of your certification.
• 30:58
  Speaker 2: We're really looking forward to it.
• 31:00
  Speaker 2: We got a lot of great presenters this.
• 31:03
  Speaker 2: Last year we had 20 different classes.
• 31:05
  Speaker 2: This year it looks like we're gonna have about 30 different classes.
• 31:08
  Speaker 2: We got some really good Keynote and Large session presenters gonna be there Again.
• 31:18
  Speaker 2: The National Fire sprinkler Association is gonna be there with their valve trailer and by then the command component I think of how do you really line all of this up so you know, connecting the pump operator to the task level workers to the division boss, to the strategic IC, and how does that communications really go?
• 31:35
  Speaker 2: And then you like kind of seeing what it looks like when they're operating the actual, you know trailer that's got the risers and sprinklers and we're live pumping the system and actually pushing, you know A thousand fifteen hundred gallons a minute through through a system, and then how do we really control that?
• 31:51
  Speaker 2: So along with that, we'll have our the regional UIC team will be there, you know, flying their drones.
• 31:58
  Speaker 2: That was really good this year, all their different drones and picking up packages and moving things and showing monitoring, and they were flying a tethered drone of just like one you'd put on your vehicle.
• 32:09
  Speaker 2: We'll have the safety prop outside demonstration and then this year we're gonna expand a bit more on Vendors and other other demonstrations.
• 32:24
  Speaker 2: That'll happen during the conference and then on the Thursday night we do the the meet and greet at the brewery across the street.
• 32:33
  Speaker 2: That went over really well a lot of networking, a lot of talking back and forth.
• 32:36
  Speaker 2: I've gotten Numerous emails and phone calls.
• 32:39
  Speaker 2: Hey, I talked to this guy at this fire department and he said that you would send him this.
• 32:43
  Speaker 2: I see worksheet, we know where's that thing at and can I get it, and I heard there's a video series that goes along with it and so, so, so that's all good, right, connecting with other like-minded people who are using the system.
• 32:55
  Speaker 2: So we're really looking forward to the conference.
• 32:57
  Speaker 2: It's gonna grow, obviously, you know, this year, for a lot of folks have already Signed up and if you go to that, the registration page, we do have room blocks at the Hyatt, which is the preferred hotel, and then the Marriott across the street.
• 33:12
  Speaker 2: So those are the two preferred hotels.
• 33:16
  Speaker 2: So if you're gonna, if you're gonna register, make sure you get your rooms reserved at those two hotels there, both.
• 33:24
  Speaker 2: Well, one of them is right on site at the conference center, the other one's just right across the street.
• 33:28
  Speaker 1: There's not a better value.
• 33:30
  Speaker 1: I mean, my department was able to send seven people For what we would have sent one person to another conference.
• 33:37
  Speaker 1: So Because the hotels aren't $500 a night and it's not $3,500 a person, when you know, when you start budgeting it out, so it's.
• 33:47
  Speaker 1: And then we were able to use those subscriptions for other new people coming on to the blue card system.
• 33:52
  Speaker 1: So it's, it's, you know, for the training that you get, there is not a better deal right now in the fire service.
• 33:58
  Speaker 1: I don't think I mean it is really good and you know the, the, but it's third eye brewing across the street.
• 34:05
  Speaker 1: What a great time that was, just because it's it's the brother and sisterhood that we have and we love networking as firefighters.
• 34:13
  Speaker 1: And when I walked in, I thought we just had a portion of the restaurant.
• 34:18
  Speaker 1: We had the whole thing and it was packed and people were hanging out having burgers, drinking beer.
• 34:23
  Speaker 1: I mean it was a really nice time.
• 34:25
  Speaker 1: So I'm looking forward to to what's gonna happen there in 2024.
• 34:30
  Speaker 1: That's great Well.
• 34:32
  Speaker 2: I'll look around.
• 34:32
  Speaker 2: Oh, go ahead.
• 34:33
  Speaker 2: I'm looking forward to 2024 and we're kicking it off.
• 34:36
  Speaker 2: John, I just just caught my eye.
• 34:40
  Speaker 2: We're kicking it off in three days the third.
• 34:42
  Speaker 2: We're back on the road on the third and we're on the road from that point.
• 34:47
  Speaker 2: 17 weeks in a row, scheduled, booked from the January 3rd.
• 34:52
  Speaker 2: 17 weeks in a row right now.
• 34:56
  Speaker 2: So If you're looking to do something in 20, 24 a workshop, host a train-to-trainer class or go to a class, get registered seat seat seats are filling up.
• 35:08
  Speaker 2: We're just, we're just telling you for you, because I mean, we know they're, they're all gonna fill and they're filling, they're filling pretty fast.
• 35:17
  Speaker 1: So, yes, I know, the train the trainer that I'm doing next week in Phoenix.
• 35:22
  Speaker 1: You know, the other day had like six seats and I think it's full.
• 35:27
  Speaker 1: Now it is for yeah, yeah.
• 35:28
  Speaker 1: So it's yeah, things go fast.
• 35:30
  Speaker 1: All right, any final thoughts?
• 35:34
  Speaker 2: No, I'm good again.
• 35:35
  Speaker 2: Happy New Year to everybody.
• 35:36
  Speaker 2: Hopefully everybody's good.
• 35:37
  Speaker 2: We're looking forward to catching up with you, seeing you out there.
• 35:40
  Speaker 2: If you ever need anything, our contacts always in the show notes.
• 35:44
  Speaker 2: You can email or call anytime and if, if I'm not standing in front of somebody, you're on the phone, I will answer or get right back to you.
• 35:51
  Speaker 1: Well, happy New Year, happy and healthy 20, 24 and we'll see you all later, very soon.
• 35:57
  Speaker 1: Thanks for listening and being with us on the B shifter podcast.
• 36:01
  Speaker 1: You, you.