Goals and Objectives

Goal 1:

Establish USFA as the leader of the nation’s fire and EMS.

Raise the profile and overall relevance of the USFA in the eyes of the nation’s fire and EMS agencies and providers. Leverage the USFA strong leader reputation and position to draw the whole fire service together to work and speak with 1 voice on issues of importance.

1. Enhance USFA’s external communication through strategic communications and stakeholder engagement.
2. Engage national fire and allied organization leaders regularly, identifying new strategic partners and maintaining existing partnerships.
3. Lead the whole of the fire service with “One Voice” by branding this initiative with a whole-of-community approach.
4. Educate congressional leaders and the whole of government on the USFA and the American fire service’s challenges, needs and accomplishments, with regular congressional listening sessions and briefings.

#FireServiceOneVoice

Goal 2:

Prepare the nation’s fire and EMS services to prevent, prepare for, respond to and mitigate all hazards.

Leverage all components of the USFA to enable first responders and their agencies to prevent, prepare for, respond to and mitigate all-hazards day-to-day emergencies and large-scale disasters through data, research, education, training and communications.

1. Ensure responder education and training is available to assess community risks and address the variety of all-hazards incidents in the nation.
2. Engage with federal partners and external stakeholders to perpetuate climate change-driven responder education and training.
3. Provide continual professional development of fire and EMS personnel.
4. Promote diversity, equity and inclusion in fire and EMS.
5. Collaborate with federal partners and external stakeholders to promote emergency responder safety, health and wellness.
6. Engage national leaders to discuss new and emerging threats.

Goal 3:

Inspire fire service and EMS research and technology innovation.

Leverage relationships with FEMA/Assistance to Firefighters Grants research grantees, DHS Science and Technology Directorate and other federal agency partners, relevant national organizations, research labs, and SLTT stakeholders. Lead or collaborate on research and technology innovation relevant to the fire and EMS services that can go from theory to practice in the field.

1. Establish internal research expertise by recruiting and retaining the best and brightest in the state of science.
2. Collaborate with DHS Science and Technology, national laboratories, and other partners in the public and private arenas to prioritize first responder research initiatives.
3. Engage with national and global fire and EMS organization partners and researchers.
4. Modernize the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) data system for enhanced data fusion and analytics.
5. Prepare the NFDRC to engage in geospatial and cloud-based environments.

Goal 4:

Establish a prepared, resilient and engaged USFA workforce.

Sustain the organization by hiring and developing highly skilled diverse employees committed to quality service. Promote a high-performance culture, maintain a safe and positive work environment, and achieve organizational and individual excellence. Encourage and empower active employee participation which is essential to the successful pursuit of our described vision and mission.

1. Establish an employee-centric culture.
2. Promote and sustain a knowledgeable and responsive USFA workforce.
3. Improve USFA internal communication.
4. Simplify and streamline current administrative processes and procedures.
5. Empower USFA workforce to engage collaboratively.
6. Foster a climate of innovative thinking.

With an “Employee First” principle, we will establish a prepared, resilient and engaged USFA!