(A) The Fire Chief or Chief of Training shall announce the start of a promotional process through an official notice. The date of that notice is the “notice date” for the rank of Lieutenant, Captain, and/or Battalion Chief in the Operations Division as needed. This notice shall include instructions regarding submissions of applications.
(B) A panel of subject matter experts (the “SME”), comprised of three members (the “SME”), one selected by the Union and two selected by the Fire Administration, each of whom has held at least the rank which is the subject of promotion or is a current Assistant Chief or higher rank and has been certified as a Qualified Captain, as defined in Department policy, will:
(1) Recommend selection of testing materials subject to approval by the Commission. A representative of the Union may observe the SME’s process of selecting the testing materials;
(2) Serve as observers during each part of the process; and
(3) Review all appeals regarding the tests and provide a recommendation to the Commission for the Commission’s review and determination.
(C) Any member who has successfully completed a promotion process has met all of the prerequisites to participate in future promotional processes for that rank.
(D) Prerequisites. Promotions to a merit rank must be from the next lower rank.
(1) Lieutenant candidates must have completed seven years of service as a member with a minimum of five years in the Operations Division. A full seven years of service must be completed by the application date.
(2) Captain candidates must have served a minimum of two years at the rank of Lieutenant in the Operations Division of the Department. A full two years of service must be completed by the application date.
(3) Battalion Chief candidates must have served a minimum of one year at the rank of Captain and a combined total of seven years as a Lieutenant and Captain in the Operations Division of the Department by the time of the application date.
(4) To be eligible for promotion, a member must have achieved an overall rating of “satisfactory” or “competent” on each of their last five evaluations.
(5) The member must meet the following minimum training requirements prior to application date:
(a) Lieutenant. The member must have successfully completed the following courses certified by the State of Indiana:
1. Instructor I.
2. Fire Officer Strategy and Tactics.
3. Fire Officer I.
4. Incident Safety Officer (any member who holds a safety officer certification meets the requirements for the Incident Safety Officer).
5. Technical Rescue Awareness.
(b) Captain. The member must currently hold the merited rank of Lieutenant and have successfully completed the State of Indiana Fire Officer II and one of the following four classes certified by the State of Indiana:
1. Hazardous Materials (operations or technician level).
2. Vehicle/Machinery Rescuer (operations or technician level).
3. Rope Rescuer (operations or technician level).
4. Swift Water Rescue (operations or technician level).
(c) Battalion Chief. The member must currently hold the merit rank of Captain and have the following certifications:
1. ICS-300 FEMA certification.
2. ICS-400 FEMA certification.
(d) The Fire Administration will make reasonable efforts to provide prerequisite courses.
(6) In order to be eligible for the Assessment Center, a member may request and receive a variance from the Commission by establishing that the member has experience equivalent to the certification otherwise required. This is applicable only to the Indiana state certifications described herein.
(E) Skills testing. Once a member has been confirmed to meet the minimum eligibility requirements, the Chief of Training will schedule the candidates for the hands-on skills assessment.
(1) Each member must complete the same six hands-on skills from the Department’s Joint Apprenticeship Training Program (“JATP”) testing standard.
(2) There will be three mandatory skills selected by the Chief of Training from among the approved testing materials. Members will be informed of mandatory skills at the time of the drawing.
(3) The three random skills will be drawn by the members from the first testing group. The drawing will be supervised by the Chief of Training or their designee.
(4) The Chief of Training shall appoint at least two skill evaluators for the hands-on skills assessment. The same two evaluators shall be used for each testing group. The skill evaluators must be certified journeyman members. A JOURNEYMAN MEMBER is a member who has successfully completed all three years of the JATP.
(5) This will be a pass/fail test based on the following conditions:
(a) Members will be given 15 minutes to review the journeyman skill sheets prior to testing.
(b) If a member fails a skill, they will be told they failed and they will proceed to the next station. The member may only receive one failure for the entire skills testing. If the member fails a second skill, they are eliminated from the promotional process.
(F) The remaining components of the promotional process shall have the following percentage weights:
Written test - 25% |
Assessment Center - 49% |
Oral interview - 6% |
Past performance - 16% |
Length of service - 4% |
(1) Written test. The written test will count 25% of the competitive exam.
(a) The written test for each rank of officer will be created, validated and administered by a professional testing agency hired by the Department.
(b) A representative from a professional testing agency will monitor the test.
(c) Members must attain a minimum score of 70% to pass. Members will proceed with the process pending the results of the written test.
(d) The identity of a member taking the written examination shall be withheld from the person or persons grading the examination and all written examinations are confidential. Members are entitled to examine these files upon request at any time.
(e) The member shall have four hours to review the questions scored as incorrect and challenge the answer considered correct by the examiner. A member who is aggrieved with the score received on the written examination may appeal to the Commission for review of the score. The appeal must be filed within ten days after notice of the score. The examination papers shall be retained in a manner consistent with Indiana law.
(f) A member can only appeal an answer scored as incorrect. The Commission’s review is limited to a determination of whether another of the answers to the specific question could be considered correct. A successful appeal benefits all members who took that written test. If, after the Commission’s determination, the member’s score is below the required passing score, the member shall be eliminated from the process. The written test is the only component of the promotional process that may be appealed by a member.
(2) Assessment Center. The Assessment Center will count as 49% of the promotional process. All interaction between the Assessment Board and each member during the Assessment Center will be video and audio recorded.
(a) Eligible members appear before an Assessment Center Board. This Board will include a minimum of two assessors per exercise, including the structured-panel interview, with a minimum of six assessors total selected by the testing company. Assessors selected must be at least one merit rank, or equivalent, above the assessing rank and employed by a full-time professional fire department with a staffing level of equal or greater size to that of the City of Fort Wayne. For the Battalion Chief Assessment, the persons on the Assessment Center Board shall have held the merit rank of Battalion Chief, or equivalent, or above. A professional testing company will serve as the facilitator for the Assessment Center process.
(b) Assessment Center - for all merited ranks. The process for all merited ranks will consist of two oral tactical exercises and any two of the following:
1. Presentation;
2. Management exercise;
3. Problem analysis;
4. Simulated situation.
(3) The scores for the two oral tactical exercises shall be averaged, and the average must be at least 70% to be a passing score.
(a) Descriptions of Assessment Center exercises.
1. Oral tactical exercise. This exercise assesses a member’s ability to apply their knowledge of firefighting techniques and tactics to a simulated emergency situation. In general, the member will be given visual and descriptive information regarding an emergency situation. The member must demonstrate how they would behave in this situation if they were in charge.
2. Presenta tion. In this exercise, a member is given a topic relevant to a firefighter’s work. The member must prepare and deliver a short presentation on the assigned topic. These presentations are delivered to the Assessment Center Board. This exercise is meant to simulate job tasks which require that an officer teach, instruct or lecture subordinates or make presentations to citizen groups, department committees, and other audiences.
3. Management exercise. In this exercise, a member is given a series of memos and/or letters. Each memo or letter contains an example of a common situation that is typically faced by individual officers. The member must discuss their response to each memo or letter. The member may also be required to write their response in the form of a memo, letter, or report. The member’s responses are scored by the Assessment Center Board as to how well the member is able to identify and respond to critical issues. The score shall be based in part on grammar and organization.
4. Problem analysis. In this exercise, the member is given a problem to evaluate, either in written format or presented as a video scenario. The member will be required to identify and discuss the issues that the problem raises. This discussion will be presented orally or in writing to the Assessment Center Board.
5. Simulated situation. In this exercise, members are asked to role play their response to a situation involving interpersonal challenges. For instance, the member might be asked to meet someone who is role-playing a subordinate in trouble. The member must demonstrate how they would behave in this situation if they were a supervisor.
(b) The SME will be available and may be present during the Assessment Center exercises and the structured panel interviews (see below). If any of the SME, either on their own or in response to a concern raised by a member, believe there is an issue during the testing or the structured panel interview, the matter will be discussed with the testing company to try to resolve it. After the final score has been published, if an SME has an issue with the final score, the SME may present the issue to the Commission for resolution by the Commission in its discretion.
(4) Oral competitive interviews.
(a) The Fire Chief shall interview each eligible applicant but no points will be attributed to the Fire Chief's interviews.
(b) A structured panel interview may result in an award of a maximum of 6% of the promotional process.
(c) For the Battalion Chief Assessment, the persons on the Assessment Center Board shall have held the merit rank of Battalion Chief or above.
(5) Past performance. Past performance will count as 16% of the promotional process. The past performance score sheet will be based on the following for the 24 months prior to the notice date.
(a) Days late: 6%.
Days Late | Points Awarded |
0 | 6 |
1 | 4 |
2 | 2 |
3 | 0 |
4 or more | -4 |
(b) Disciplinary actions - 10% of the promotional process.
1. Vehicle accidents that are determined to be “not at fault” are excluded.
2. Three points deducted for every suspension in accordance with FWFD disciplinary scale for five years prior to the notice date.
3. Based on the member performance for five years prior to the notice date.
(6) Length of service. The member's length of service will be given a weight factor of 4% according to the following table:
Years of Service | Points Awarded |
Years of Service | Points Awarded |
23+ | 4 |
22 | 3.75 |
21 | 3.5 |
20 | 3.25 |
19 | 3 |
18 | 2.75 |
17 | 2.5 |
16 | 2.25 |
15 | 2 |
14 | 1.75 |
13 | 1.5 |
12 | 1.25 |
11 | 1 |
10 | 0.75 |
9 | 0.50 |
8 | 0.25 |
(G) The Commission shall certify that the eligibility list was created in accordance with this chapter. The eligibility list for a position consists of members who have been placed on the list in order of their cumulative score on all rating factors. The eligibility list shall be maintained for two years from the date of certification, after which time the list shall be retired and a new list established. The retired list shall be kept for five years and then destroyed in a manner consistent with state law.
(H) Ancillary positions. Ancillary positions are not merited positions and are not subject to the promotional process except as described in this division. Ancillary positions are subject to the probationary and disciplinary procedures and disciplinary procedures described in this chapter unless otherwise stated.
(1) Ancillary positions - District Chief.
(a) District Chief - Special Operations.
(b) District Chief - Health and Safety.
(c) District Chief - System Administrator.
(d) District Chief - Internal Affairs.
(e) District Chief - Investigation.
(f) District Chief - Training.
(g) District Chief - Logistics.
(h) District Chief - EMS.
(2) Ancillary positions - Captain.
(a) Captain - Investigator.
(b) Captain - Inspector.
(c) Captain - Public Education.
(d) Captain - Instructor.
(e) Captain - Quartermaster.
(f) Captain - EMS Coordinator.
(3) Selection process for ancillary positions.
(a) Vacancies are determined by the Fire Chief.
(b) Job descriptions are reviewed by the Commission and submitted to City Human Resources for accuracy.
(c) Notice of any opening and procedures for selection will be posted to the field. The date of posting is the notice date and will include:
1. Deadline for submission;
2. Command staff acting as point of contact;
3. Items to submit (resume, goal statements, certificates, and the like); and
4. Components of process and scale.
(d) All submissions are gathered and confirmed via email to the member.
(e) Once posting closes, a past performance score sheet will be completed based on the following factors. Scores relative to days late are based on candidate performance for 24 months prior to the notice date. Scores relative to disciplinary actions are based on candidate performance for five years prior to the notice date:
1. Days late; and
2. Discipline.
(f) Interviews are arranged individually with members with whom the position will collaborate or to whom the position will report. All interviews shall be audio and video recorded.
1. All candidate submissions (resume, goal statements, and the like) along with a past performance sheet are distributed to each interviewer.
2. Each interviewer will provide a separate score sheet.
(g) All interviewers meet to discuss individual results of the interview and make recommendations to the Fire Chief for a final decision by the Fire Chief.
(h) The member chosen is contacted and offered the position. If accepted, arrangements are made for promotion with the City Clerk and notification is made to the Commission.
(i) A member is probationary in that rank for a period of up to one year. The Fire Chief will make a recommendation during that period to the Commission as to whether the promotion shall stand or be revoked by the Commission. If the member’s promotion is revoked by the Commission, the member shall return to their last merited rank.
(4) If it is necessary to eliminate an ancillary position or positions for reasons as determined by the Fire Chief, members holding those positions will be removed in order of reverse seniority. If an ancillary position is restored within 24 months from the date of elimination, members who held those positions shall be restored in order of seniority, provided the member still qualifies for the position or becomes qualified within a reasonable period of time.
(5) If the Fire Chief deems it necessary to reassign a member from their ancillary position temporarily, they will continue to receive pay at the ancillary position pay rate. The member will return to the ancillary position on completion of the temporary assignment, provided they remain qualified for the position or become qualified within a reasonable period of time.
(6) At any Class or offense count in the disciplinary process, the Fire Chief may petition the Commission for demotion of a member holding an ancillary position for violations of rules, regulations, policies, or procedures.
(Ord. G-22-22, passed 12-13-22)