B Shifter
Fire command and leadership conversations for B Shifters and beyond (all shifts welcome)!
Episodes
We talk through mid-year Blue Card updates, why command training is worth paying for, and how regional leaders keep a shared system alive even when departments change chiefs. We also dig into big box fire realities and then break down working-fire radio audio that shows what clear size-up, assignments, and command transfer sound like.
• Blue Card as a decision-making and incident organization system rather than a...
The Silverbacks are back, talking about performance management as an essential tool for fire service leaders.
This episode features Nick Brunacini, Terry Garrison, and John Vance.
We lay out a practical performance improvement model that keeps looping through SOPs, training, field application, monitoring, and revision so the work gets better every time. We also get blunt about what breaks the system: outdated policies...
We talk with UL FSRI’s Dr. Dan Madrzykowski about how fire dynamics drives outcomes at outside fires, vehicle fires, and “container” incidents just as much as it does in homes. This episode connects real case studies to practical command decisions so crews stop feeding the fire with ventilation and start controlling conditions with effective water application and better size-up.
In this episode:
...
This episode features Josh Blum, Chris Stewart and John Vance
We argue that firefighter safety on the fireground works best as a built-in system, not a lone safety officer trying to play catch-up outside the hazard zone. We connect real injury and fatality patterns to supervision, accountability, communications, and command decisions that match conditions in both residential and commercial buildings.
In this epi...
This episode features Fire Chief (Ret.) Thomas Lakamp, Assistant Chief Scott Williams, Blue Card Program Director Josh Blum, and John Vance.
Thomas Lakamp, Fire Chief (Ret.), Fairfield (Ohio) Fire Department
Chief Thomas Lakamp is the fire chief for the City of Fairfield, Ohio. He retired from the Cincinnati Fire Department as an assistant fire chief after almost 35 years of service. Tom holds an associate degre...
Our guest this week is Battalion Chief Ryan Eldridge, Blue Card Lead Instructor
Ryan Eldridge is a dedicated fire service professional with a career spanning over three decades. He began his journey in 1995 when he joined the Las Vegas Fire and Rescue Explorer Program. Directly out of high school, he worked for the Las Vegas Bureau of Land Management office as a wildland firefighter on a hand crew. From 1997 to 2002,...
This episode features Nick Brunacini and is hosted by John Vance.
We trace the origin of the Fire Command textbook from Alan Brunacini and why standardizing incident command changes everything from water-on-the-fire decisions to firefighter safety. We walk through what’s new in Fire Command 3 and how Blue Card training turns hard lessons into a repeatable system that works under pressure:
• why freelancing and a...
Commercial fires will expose weak decision-making—fast.
In this episode, we break down why commercial fire operations demand a completely different mindset than house fires—and how the Blue Card strategic decision-making model keeps us out of trouble.
We focus on size-up, realistic life safety expectations and the command choices that keep us from doing the wrong thing harder.
In this episode:
• Size, he...
We share the April 2026 Blue Card rundown, from FDIC plans to major updates in training, online content, and continuing education. We dig into what’s changing in Fire Command, why objective after action reviews matter, and how we keep the whole response system stronger from dispatch to the fireground.
• FDIC plans in the Hoosier corridor and who you can meet at the booth
• Third edition Fire Comman...
We sit down with Worcester Fire Chief Martin Dyer to talk about what real officer accountability looks like and why the front seat cannot be a part-time leadership role. We break down how a disciplined incident command system, integrated training, and sustained culture change make firegrounds safer and service delivery sharper.
• Worcester’s history and how tragedy drives learning
• Department profile, s...
This episode, Josh Blum, Chris Stewart and John Vance connect recruit training to stronger incident command by showing how day-one decision making, radio discipline, and functional evolutions create safer firegrounds. Along the way we share first-arriver expectations, Mayday triggers, air management, and the myth of “just do work.”
• day-one radio use and communication norms
• building decision...
Josh Blum, Chris Stewart and John Vance look at how disciplined size-up and tight language reveal true critical factors and shape an incident action plan that works. We share tools for integrating risk management into strategy, avoiding busy work, and matching tactics to real resources.
• why critical factors drive the incident action plan
• three core size‑up questions that focus decisions
• standard t...
This episode features Chris Stewart, Steve Lester and John Vance
We unpack how clear size-ups, shared language, and realistic tactics turn a scene into a coordinated fireground. Standard conditions guide standard actions, which create standard outcomes—and the trust to avoid freelancing and prevent avoidable failures.
• defining standard conditions for typical occupancies in your district
• using prec...
This episode features Nick Brunacini, Terry Garrison and John Vance
We dig into why reactions make or break leadership, how to de-escalate without dodging accountability, and why the best chiefs manage problems early and at the lowest level. Stories from the fireground and the station show how kindness, clarity, and standards live together.
• Owning attitude and response under stress
• Differentiating train...
Sign up for the Blue Card Instructor's Webinar here: https://streamyard.com/watch/fYtKhpy8ugz6
The episode feature Josh Blum and John Vance
We share what’s new and what’s next for Blue Card in 2026, from revamped instructor training and standards alignment to expanding after-action reviews and regional grant models. The focus stays on competence, clean communication, and decisions that match deployment and...
This episode features Josh Blum, Chris Stewart, and John Vance.
We break down two fireground audios from Springdale, OH and Cobb County, GA where command changes strategy before the buildings force the issue. Clear size-ups, clean handoffs, and disciplined use of divisions and on-deck show how standardized command-and-dispatch integration protects crews and closes incidents faster.
• Springdale strip mal...
This episode features NFPA 1700 Committee Members George Healy, Murrey Loflin, Dan Madrzykowski, and Chris Stewart.
Episode hosted and produced by John Vance
We dive into the 2026 update of NFPA 1700 with a focus on search, lithium-ion hazards, and a cleaner common language for strategy and size-up. Research meets field experience to sharpen decisions, reduce confusion, and turn evidence into safer, faster operations....
This week on the B Shifter Podcast, Josh Blum and Johsn Vance are joined by Steven S. Sarver, Assistant Chief of Operations with the Monroe Fire Department (OH). Chief Sarver breaks down his department’s response to three separate incidents at a 1.3-million-square-foot distribution center, sharing hard-earned command lessons from complex, high-risk events. He explains how Blue Card principles—especially ...
This episode features Nick Brunacini, Terry Garrison, and John Vance.
We push past acronyms and politics to center customer service as the fire service’s true north, linking training, staffing, and culture to outcomes for Mrs. Smith. We call out FINO departments, hazing, weak command presence, and political gamesmanship that erode trust and increase risk.
• customer service as the organizing principle fo...
This episode features Josh Blum, Scott Williams and John Vance.
Sample Roadway incident SOG: https://bshifter.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Sample-Roadway-Incident-SOG-December-2025.pdf
Traffic Incident Management Training Here
For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts: https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/
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