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The Oklahoma City Bombing: 4 Unanswered Questions
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Last month I profiled David Aaronovitch's book, Voodoo Histories, that discussed the impact of conspiracy theories on society. April being the anniversary of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, I was researching documentaries about the event when I came across this example of what Aaronovitch discusses in his book. To see the impact of this type of innuendo, look no further than some of the comments that follow the video.
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The following are excerpts from my blog
Canton on Emergency Management. Please visit my blog to see the rest of my articles.
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7 Questions to Ask When Selecting a Leadership Assessment
With the surplus of assessments available to help organizations develop leaders or for individuals to develop their personal leadership capacity, it is hard to know where to start.
Few assessments are specific to leadership development. Here are some questions to ask and reasons to choose a leadership assessment that gets results.
- Does it actually measure leadership? If you believe leadership is something you practice, is behavioral, and is a learned skill, then you are on the right track. Leadership is about the day-to-day interactions of leading others. It is not about "style," "strength," "intent," or even "management skills," but it is about the behaviors that get results.
- Is it research-based? There is a plethora of leadership theories and "guru-intuited" assessments on the market, but few that actually hold up to the scrutiny of the important research criteria of reliability and validity. A valid and reliable instrument will measure what it says it measures: effective leadership, and will produce the same results if taken again.
- Is it real? Drawing boxes around someone, assigning letters, or finding their quadrants can give some very real insights as to a leader's view of self and interactions with others. These tools can augment leadership development, but they are not a measure of leadership capability.
- Is it actionable? Does it give real feedback or concrete steps that a leader can take, or does it overwhelm with abstractions? A good leadership assessment not only measures leadership behaviors but offers a plan or next steps toward further development.
- Is it easy? This might seem reductive, but leaders need information in a form and language they can understand and communicate readily to others. It is also important that assessments not be cumbersome or take too much time for the leader or those giving feedback. Key "easy-indicators" to look for are: does it provide a common leadership language that is easy to communicate and for raters to understand when providing feedback? Will the feedback process require a considerable outlay of time?
- Is it cost effective or provide relative value to cost? To measure the true cost or value of an assessment, consider how it will be used. After taking the assessment, will the leader create a leadership development plan? Receive coaching? Engage in a follow-on program? Have a peer group to engage with? Will they check in with their raters and engage in dialogue about improving and practicing as a leader? - and don't forget the turnaround time to take the assessment (see "easy" above.)
- Is it customizable? Many organizations already have competencies in place that they use as leading indicators of whether an employee is "high-potential," "promotable," or meeting performance standards - but don't mistake these with a measurement of leadership development. Look for an assessment that has customizable narrative or essay questions that you can use to ask constituents about the true behavior of a leader, and areas for improvement.
Once you have begun to look at your next leadership development assessment selection with the above questions in mind, you will be well on your way to selecting an assessment that actually measures leadership capacity and that gives actionable steps to developing leaders.
Lauren Parkhill
Sonoma Leadership Systems
Reprinted with permission
To find out more about the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership, consider taking The Leadership Challenge. Just click on the icon below for more information:
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The Leadership Challenge: How to Make Extraordinary Things Happen in Organizations
by James M. Kouzes & Barry Posner
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Free Resource Guide for Solo Consultants
For solo consultants, true wealth is discretionary time. Don't waste yours on simple tasks that can be handled by technology. This free resource guide reveals the four essential online tools I use to manage my solo consulting practice and save hours of valuable time. And the best part is - they're free!
 Interested in exploring the world of consulting? My new membership site might be just the resource you need to get started. You'll have access to blogs designed to answer very specific questions, a resource library of templates and articles, the opportunity to network with peers, and discounts on coaching and training programs. Download the free guide or click on the logo above to go straight to the site.
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Welcome to the April issue of Emergency Management Solutions.
What is it about April? As I was researching disasters that occurred in the month of April I was surprised at how many there were. For me as a San Franciscan, the most obvious is always the 1906 earthquake and fires that we still commemorate each April 18. But consider some the others: the attacks on Columbine and Virginia Tech, the Deepwater Horizon spill, the Oklahoma City and Boston Marathon bombings, the Chernobyl meltdown - the list seems endless. And that's not even considering historical events like the Lincoln assassination or the Ludlow Massacre. A strange month indeed!
All the more reason for us to keep focused on what we do. With the elections this year, we're going to see some major shifts in policy over the next few years. Let's hope they don't trigger another round of frenzied plan revisions. Don't let arbitrary requirements distract you from more important work.
Regards,
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Just in Time Training
Tips for orienting EOC Newcomers
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Botterell's Third Law of Emergency Management states, "No matter who you train, someone else will show up." This is almost always the case in the activation of your emergency operations center. Odds are the first one through the door will be the person who was too busy attend training or missed the exercise or just got tapped for the job.
Our normal practice is to toss them a three-inch-thick binder containing the emergency plan or a "welcome packet" containing a bewildering array of information. I hate to burst your bubble but there are only two chances of that person looking over that material: slim and none. Fortunately, there are better ways to provide the information a first time EOC user needs.
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If you are having trouble viewing my featured article, try clicking on the link at the top of the page. You can always find my articles in the white paper section of my blog site, Canton on Emergency Management.
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Higher Education
From time to time I receive a request from a colleague to recommend a higher education program in emergency management. I'm always a bit reluctant to do so because I don't actually work in academia and tend to be biased towards those programs where I have a personal relationship with the instructors. Here's the advice I usually offer.
My first question is always, "Why do you want this degree?" I'm a big believer in higher education but this is an individual choice. If your goal is to increase your marketability, that's a good thing. If you want to increase your knowledge, there are other options that you can consider. Earning a degree as a working professional is a lot of work - be sure of your motivation.
Secondly, do you want an online program or an on campus program? Both have advantages and disadvantages. There are also programs that combine on-campus sessions supplemented by online course work. Deciding which is best for your particular circumstances can help narrow the choices.
A good place to start looking for a program is the College List on the FEMA Higher Education Program website. This list breaks down programs by level and provides fact sheets on each program. There's also an Emergency Management Higher Education Community Facebook page where you can find people willing to answer your questions.
Professional Development Opportunities
Emmitsburg, MD
June 6-9, 2016
The symposium provides an environment to network with other academics, gain exposure to successful programs and research, learn about new resources and approaches, and hear from practitioners and policy makers.
Broomfield, Colorado
July 10-13, 2016
The Annual Natural Hazards Research and Applications Workshop is designed to bring researchers and practitioners from many disciplines together for face-to-face discussions on how society deals with hazards and disasters.
Savannah, GA
October 14-19, 2016
The IAEM Annual Conference provides a forum to discuss current trends and topics, share information about the latest tools and technology in emergency management and homeland security, and advance the work of IAEM.
Auburn, AL
Earn the Emergency Management certificate by completing a minimum of five (5) courses. Individuals enrolled in the Emergency Management Certificate program must complete all four specified core courses as well as one elective. Courses may be taken individually and independently from the Emergency Management Certificate.
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We've all been there. The phone rings and there's a colleague or friend asking you to take on some task. You really don't want to but you feel obligated. So you say, "Yes." Or maybe it's an opportunity that sounds like fun, so you say,"Yes" without considering the ramifications.
The single most important thing we possess is discretionary time. We get 24 hours a day and it's up to decide how to use them. A lot of that time is taken up with work or familial duties and with the basics of life: eating and sleeping. But the rest! Ah, the rest is precious and we need to spend it wisely. That means prioritizing what we do with it. That means sometimes just saying, "No."
I'm not suggesting we be jerks about it. I devote a considerable amount of time to my hobby because it gives me pleasure and considerable intangible rewards. I also "waste" a lot of time on video games for the same reason. But I try to prioritize how much time I spend doing these things.
It's not just about you. I had a friend commit to giving a lecture on a very specific topic to one of my social groups, even though she was in the midst of a major project. The result is that she canceled out three months running, causing our program manager to scramble for a replacement speaker. Just saying, "no" would have made everyone's life easier.
Don't be afraid to prioritize your time and to say, "No" when you're asked to do something. Discretionary time is yours and it's precious.
The exception, of course, is if I call you...
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This Gulf of Fire: The Destruction of Lisbon, or Apocalypse in the Age of Science and Reason
by Mark Molesky
The Lisbon earthquake of 1755 has been called the first truly modern disaster. Struck first by a series of massive earthquakes, Lisbon endured three huge tsunamis and a firestorm that burned for over five days.
This latest book on the catastrophe provides the context in which it occurred and draws heavily on primary sources to trace the impact on the people, government and economy of Portugal. Molesky also chronicles the international relief effort, much of which was turned down by the Portuguese government for political reasons and the overall impact of the event on world trade. He also devotes a chapter to the impact of the event on intellectual thought in Europe.
Molesky's focus on context makes the book a welcome addition o the literature on the disaster and contains a wealth of detail. However, this broad focus means that response, recovery and reconstruction do not receive as much attention as in previous books, most notably Nicholas Shrady's The Last Day. It is also clear that Molesky is not a fan of the Marquis of Pombal, frequently referring to him as a dictator with only his own interests at heart, while minimizing Pombal's many achievements.
Despite these shortcomings, the book reads well and contains a lot of new material. Definitely worth reading if you have an interest in the Lisbon catastrophe.
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Interested in more books on emergency management and related topics?
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Emergency Management: Concepts and Strategies for Effective Programs
by Lucien G. Canton
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Need a speaker for your next conference? I offer keynotes, seminars and workshops.
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Three Reasons Why I'm the Right Speaker for Your Conference
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Speaking Engagements
It's the end of the world! What do we do now? (keynote)
Powering Up Your Program: Basic concepts for success (Breakout)
Pequot Lakes, MN
September 18 - 21, 2017
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