Capt. Jared Vermeulen talks with Peter Matthews about his book, “The Modern Fire Officer,” and his approach to being a fire service leadership in current times. The book was born from Vermeulen’s experiences as an officer and from the promotional process, leading him to share practical, modern leadership skills for fire service leaders.  

Vermeulen’s goal is to build strong companies by focusing on the members, from their health and wellness to understanding their strengths and weaknesses as a foundation. They talk about the steps to build a strong unit, how to help others through challenging times and why the mindset of customer service is important throughout the chain of command because a firefighter is the officer’s customer, like the citizen is the firefighter’s customer.  

They discuss the role of informal leaders, developing and maintaining positive attitudes, helping each other grow and focusing on an overall healthy, positive attitude in the firehouse.  

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