General Administrative Guideline

Subject: After Action Reviews Effective Date: 7/1/2021 GAG: 5-2

Applies to: All Fire Department Personnel Supersedes: 1/1/2008 Page 1 of 5

Responsible Committee: Professional Development Next Review Date: 7/1/2024

PURPOSE:

An After Action Review (AAR) is an assessment conducted after a significant incident or major activity that enables
the department to discover (learn) what happened and why. It should be thought of as a professional discussion of an
event that facilitates the understanding of why things happened during the progression of the incident and to learn from
that experience.

The purpose of this GAG is to outline the AAR process, to provide guidelines for the IC to determine the level of
review and complexity of the final report and to detail to whom and where that report shall be disseminated. Through
the professional and candid discussion of the event, fire fighters, middle and senior officers can compare their
performance against the industry and department standards and identify specific ways to improve proficiency. (moved
from bottom of page 3)

SCOPE:

If appropriate indicators are present, AARs should be conducted for training exercises as well as actual incidents.
Company officers, battalion chiefs and deputy chiefs are responsible for evaluating and assessing activities. After
Action Reviews can be reasonably requested by anyone in the organization, they can be informal or formal and should
be conducted at the level that is appropriate for the complexity of the training exercise or incident.

GUIDELINES:

❖​ TRAINING EXERCISE AFTER-ACTION REVIEW

For training exercises that will be reviewed, trainers should outline an AAR plan as part of the exercise documentation.
The plan should identify exercise-critical aspects, evolutions, locations and events that must be observed to provide
valid evaluation of separate parts of the exercise. For example, high rise training evolutions could include observations
such as high rise equipment deployment inside stairwells, upper staging setup/use and command post operations.

Depending on the complexity of the training, the AAR plan should designate who will observe and control particular
aspects of the exercise. The trainers themselves should:

▪​ Be knowledgeable on the overall training objectives.

▪​ Be knowledgeable on the duties they are to observe.

▪​ Be able to perform the task to KCFD standards.

Training evolutions afford the opportunity to schedule stopping points throughout the evolution for mini AARs and
should be conducted to compliment the overall AAR.

❖​ FIELD INCIDENT AFTER-ACTION REVIEW

Formal AARs that are conducted for an actual incident are the responsibility of the IC. When a formal AAR is
appropriate, the IC should plan, prepare and in most cases, conduct the review. They may request, through their

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supervisor, a trained facilitator(s) to help plan, resource and facilitate the review. Informal AARs may be conducted at
any level.

General Administrative Guideline

Applies to: All Fire Department Personnel Supersedes: 1/1/2008 Page 2 of 5

Responsible Committee: Professional Development Next Review Date: 7/1/2024

When an AAR is appropriate, all participants should assist in the process by providing information, observations, and
insight.

❖​ FORMAL AAR INDICATORS/GUIDANCE

The following guiding indicators may be used to determine the appropriate level of AAR that should be conducted for
a training evolution and/or an actual incident:

These indicators may signal that a formal review is appropriate:

▪​ An incident or training evolution that involves multiple companies in overlapping battalions, or agencys.

▪​ A formal AAR is requested by the Incident Commander, or their supervisor.

▪​ A multiple company or multiple battalion operation where a low frequency/high risk event or situation
occurred. And where an formal review could help to clarify a positive or negative learning opportunity.
▪​ An incident that creates media attention.

▪​ An incident or accident that creates a large dollar loss.

▪​ A incident that resulted in a near miss, serious injury, or death to Fire Department or civilian personnel.

▪​ A complex multiple alarm event or training exercise.

Formal reviews are the responsibility of the IC and are to be scheduled as soon as possible after the incident. They:

▪​ May be requested by anyone who was at the incident or a supervisor.

▪​ May be facilitated by a person or persons who is so trained but may not have been directly involved in the
incident. The responsible IC, through their supervisor, may request facilitation assistance.
▪​ Focus on intended objectives.

▪​ Focus on operational and company performance.

▪​ Encourage participation from all participants in the discussion, and encourage and open and candid
conversation about the incident.
▪​ Use open-ended questions.

▪​ Should relate to specific standards. (Example; Did the IC “function as Command”?)

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 ▪​ Require an appropriate report that includes a brief description of the incident, lessons learned and
recommendations so that the review can be linked to subsequent training.
▪​ Final report should be submitted to the direct supervisor and it will be placed in the AAR folder on the KCFD
info desktop folder.

Planning is a key element in the AAR process. The plan should be planned and resourced with equipment and
information necessary to enhance the learning process.

▪​ Who will conduct the AAR

▪​ What should be evaluated

▪​ Who should attend: Consider Safety and Operations Committee Chairs and a Business Agent, Fleet and
Communications personnel when appropriate. Anyone who can add value to the discussion.
▪​ Will the AAR be facilitated using a labor and management team.

▪​ When and where the AAR will occur

▪​ What equipment and information is necessary to aid in the process:Dispatch tapes, photos and video, maps and
diagrams of the scene etc…

General Administrative Guideline

Applies to: All Fire Department Personnel Supersedes: 1/1/2008 Page 3 of 5

Responsible Committee: Professional Development Next Review Date: 7/1/2024

▪​ Who will be the writer of the report

▪​ Have a designated person to record and take notes of the meeting

Key Points for Conducting a formal AAR (See KCFD AAR Manual for additional detail)

▪​ Introduction and state ground rules. Review the objectives of the AAR session and the intended use of the
subsequent report.

o​ If there is any question that the AAR could become controversial, prior to the AAR, the objectives
should be outlined using a labor and management format. Usually, by the Health/Wellness/Safety
Committee co-chairs.

▪​ Present known factual information from the incident that will enhance the AAR process.

▪​ Review the IC’s incident objectives (What was suppose to happen?)

▪​ Key participants should summarize their role/function/action at the incident or training exercise.

▪​ Summarize event (what happened)

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 ▪​ Discussion of key issues (why it happened and how to improve)

▪​ Discussion of optional issues

▪​ Closing comments (Summary)

▪​ Again make sure to take good notes of the information presented and discussed

❖​ INFORMAL AAR INDICATORS/GUIDANCE

While any occurrence could provide basis for an AAR, these indicators may guide in determining the appropriate level
of AAR:

▪​ A training evolution or incident that involves a single company or single battalion.

▪​ An informal AAR is requested by anyone involved in the training or incident, or their supervisor.

▪​ A multiple company or multiple battalion operation where no uncommon episode occurred, but where a
informal review could help to clarify a positive or negative learning opportunity.

Informal AARs:Also known as Hot Wash

▪​ Are generally conducted by supervisors or their appointee in the chain of command.

▪​ Are prompt, consistent and an ongoing part of KCFD operations.

▪​ May result in a report to include a brief description of the incident and lessons learned.

▪​ If a report is generated the report should be submitted to the direct supervisor and it will be placed in the AAR
folder on the KCFD info desktop folder.

❖​ FOLLOW UP REPORT

The real benefits of AARs come from taking the experiences of the incident, and the lessons learned that were
identified in the review and applying them to future training so that they can be incorporated in to operations.
After-action reviews are the dynamic link between task performance and execution to a standard.

General Administrative Guideline

Applies to: All Fire Department Personnel Supersedes: 1/1/2008 Page 4 of 5

Responsible Committee: Professional Development Next Review Date: 7/1/2024

The Fire Department will benefit from standardized written reports so the that learning does not end with personnel
who were at the scene. The report should include the following components:

▪​ Title (Incident Name/Address) and Date

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▪​ Introduction
o​ Short paragraph or sentence outlining general information
▪​ Time, Weather, special circumstances, major occurrence, when the AAR was conducted and who
was present.
o​ Response details
o​ Timeline of events
o​ Incident description (building construction, roadway conditions etc…)
▪​ Information from the AAR

▪​ Discussion/Literature Review (Include references if any)

▪​ Lessons learned/Recommendations

Final AAR reports should be submitted to the direct supervisor and it will be placed in the AAR folder on the KCFD
info desktop folder.

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