On Monday, April 20, 2020, at FDIC International 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana, from 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m., Dr. Candice McDonald will teach students and officers alike how best to plan their recruitment and retention strategies for their volunteer fire department in “Busting Through Recruitment and Retention Challenges: Developing Your Game Plan.”
The volunteer fire service is experiencing its biggest challenge to date with volunteer firefighter recruitment and retention. With today’s era of competing demands for the volunteer/potential volunteer firefighter, the question becomes, how can departments cost effectively and successfully recruit and retain volunteer firefighters?
This workshop is based on a three-year doctoral study on firefighter retention and offers participants research-based/proven strategies to reduce turnover and increase recruitment among all generations of volunteers. These strategies are not based on costly recruitment campaigns and incentives; they offer practical professional applications that are easy to implement. You will learn strategies to help overcome the biggest barriers to retention and recruitment. Through discussion and hands-on activities, you will leave with the skills to draft a personalized plan to increase and maintain members. You will receive a planning document for creating your own plan and will leave with strategies designed to fit your department’s needs.
McDonald has served her community as an EMS officer, firefighter EMT, and public information officer. She works full-time for NASA in the Office of Protective Services as a physical security specialist/federal special agent. She is a member of the FDIC International educational advisory board, 2nd vice president of the Cumberland Valley Volunteer Firemen’s Association, and a Women in Fire trustee. She has a doctor of business administration degree with a specialty in homeland security, a master’s degree in organizational leadership, a bachelor’s degree in business administration, and an associate degree in health and human services.
