The Dangers of Smokejumping

Many times in my career I’ve been called in to put out fires. Sometimes the fire was small, other times it was threatening to consume an entire division. As a young executive I thought putting out the fire was all that mattered—move fast, make decisions, stop the damage. What I didn’t realize was that the way you fight the fire matters as much as putting it out.

One of the biggest lessons came when my CEO asked me to take over the company’s highest-revenue division. On paper it was thriving, but in reality it was in crisis. Customers were threatening to leave, engineering was in disarray, and the executives running the group had already been shown the door. It was an inferno.

I moved fast and threw myself into it. Within weeks we had stabilized engineering. Within months, the business was resuscitated. Revenue, profits, and margins all hit record levels. Customers noticed. Other executives were calling my CEO to compliment him on the turnaround. I was proud of what we had accomplished.

That’s why a “quick catch-up” with my CEO caught me off guard. I walked into the meeting relaxed, confident things were going well. Instead, I found myself on the receiving end of tough feedback. My CEO told me that some of the engineers thought I was too dictatorial, that I didn’t listen, and I didn’t take feedback well.

I was stunned. Insulted, even. After all, hadn’t I saved the division? Wasn’t customer satisfaction at a high. Weren’t we delivering record revenue and profits? None of it seemed to matter in that moment.

It took me time to cool down and really hear what he was saying. Looking back, I realized he’d given me a gift. Yes, my approach had put out the fire. But my style had also created new sparks: dissent, frustration, and the sense that voices weren’t being heard. I had been focused on outcomes and overlooked the impact of how I got there.

That’s the danger of smokejumping. In a crisis, you don’t always have time for debate. You act. But when you act before consensus, you create dissent. When you reverse other people’s decisions, you create dissent. And when you make personnel changes, you risk unsettling the entire team.

In engineering especially, there are often multiple ways to solve a problem. Cutting off debate may get you to a solution faster, but people who feel ignored carry that with them. Breaking old decision patterns is necessary in a crisis, but it comes at a cost.

I learned that as a leader, you have to take the time to acknowledge the human side. Pull people aside. Let them know you heard their reasoning, that you respect their perspective, even if you had to make a different call. Recognize the good ideas, especially in the middle of a fire. And when the team comes up with a different solution that achieves the same outcome, let it stand. None of this is possible if you bring your ego into the room.

Sometimes, a team member simply is no longer a fit. That’s the hardest call, but avoiding it helps no one. When you do make a change, be honest with yourself, be respectful with the individual, and reassure the rest of the team that they are valued and essential.

In my case, the story had a happy ending. The team went on to be very successful. Success built trust and even some of my harshest critics became strong supporters once they saw that life on the team was better—no more constant late nights, no endless firefighting, just steady execution. It turns out everyone likes winning!

Tips and Techniques

• Leaders can create dissent by:

  • Making decisions for the team before consensus is reached

  • Reversing decisions previously made by the team

  • Making personnel changes

• Make time to speak with team members who disagree with decisions that are made without consensus and make sure they feel heard.

• When overriding decisions, ensure your choice is based on a genuine belief in a better outcome, not an unintentional bias. 

• Personnel changes are sometimes required to address the needs of the team; leaders need to reassure the rest of the team that they are valued and essential.