In the past, rising through the ranks was dependent on keeping your nose clean, networking, being "in the know" and having a bit of luck now and then.
I was usually lucky but since I was a very negative dispatcher during a phase of my career, it cost me 3 turn downs to moving up the ladder.
I believe that the process is still a bit flawed in many places to become graduated into the ranks of upper management. I want to help with the process. If you could put more checkmarks in the plus column, why wouldn't you?
There are very few leadership books that specifically pertain to leadership in public safety (and specifically emergency communications). I'm about to change all of that. I want succession plans to be as commonplace as cto programs; and I want a leadership training manual much like that of the entry level training manuals. Bosses and good leaders are not "picked" from some contest; they should be groomed, educated, and prepared to Lead!
The leaders in public safety communications must know how and where to tap their resources in order to lead the way into the future. I believe it's going to take all of us to build a better dispatcher.
Kelly R. Rasmussen