Leaders Own It

When I arrived on scene there was blood on the floor, walls and ceiling, a victim bleeding out, kids screaming and crying, and a suspect on the loose. By the time I left, the suspect was in handcuffs, the victim was in the ambulance, people were securing the crime scene, and command staff were present. I thought everything had been handled. I had done what I was supposed to and was on to the next thing.

I was caught off guard later when I was asked, “Who did you leave in charge down there, Doug?”  “You. You were there. Who did you leave in charge?”

I didn’t think my answer was too well received.

My suspicious was confirmed at a training the next week when ICS came up and someone from the command staff said, “Just because a person with a higher rank shows up doesn’t mean they are in charge.” Everyone in the room knew the reference. They also knew the rest of the shit show and who had really caused it. And yet here again, in front of all of us was another dodge of accountability.

Now, at face value, that statement is correct. In the Incident Command System (ICS) the person that takes incident command holds onto that responsibility until they are properly relieved. Another person of higher rank arriving on scene does not automatically mean command is given to them. There are very good reasons for this. Situational awareness, knowledge of what is and isn’t being, or has or hasn’t been done, communications and many other factors come into play when considering who is the incident commander (IC) and just because someone else has rank does not mean they are better suited for that incident.

However, that doesn’t absolve the person of rank of their responsibility of being a leader.

Lots of people showed up on that scene. That tends to happen with big cases. It’s a good thing. Command matters. Coordination matters. And so does getting individual tasks done and done right. Sometimes that means people will have to move in and out of roles on scene and in the incident command structure. When a leader, which presumably includes people of higher rank, arrive on scene they don’t automatically get to be in charge, but they still a leader. They can lead by following, “What do you need me to do?” They can lead by supporting, “What resources can I get for you?” They can lead by asking, “How can I be helpful?”

That last question, one of my favorites, is important here. When a person of rank shows up on scene and sees that the IC is moving in an out of the command role, for example, they can evaluate what the scene or the person most needs and take ownership. When a job needs to get done, they can do it. When there is a gap, they fill it.  That’s what leaders do.

On this scene we got to the point where I had to leave. In reality, I had handed off command to another person. I told him the needs, he had a plan and the authority. This was the actual answer to the question, “who did you leave in charge?” But by the time I was asked this question back at the station I already knew what else had gone wrong and why. Instead of inserting a space between stimulus and response (another favorite topic) I gave the answer I did. “You. Who did you leave in charge?”

That comment would have gone away if it hadn’t been for the follow up at the training the next week. By then it was clear that the command staff were trying to distance themselves from parts of the incident. It was time for shit to roll downhill. But by doing that, those same leaders undermined the faith the rank and file had in them. It was clear that they were avoiding accountability and shifting blame to protect themselves. They let everyone know where their priorities lay.  It wasn’t with the people on the front line. It was with covering their own butts.

ICS, like most other structures and procedures, are guides for our operations that cover 90-95% of situations. Leaders know when we are operating in that 5-10% of situations that is not covered, and how to step in. Leaders know how to take accountability for their failures and not let shift the blame downhill. Leaders, regardless of rank, know ownership.