An Exit Interview With Pete Gaynor, FEMA Administrator

This written interview was done before Pete Gaynor became the acting Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary in the waning days of the Trump administration. 

 

IAEM Disaster Zone Column January 2021 

An Exit Interview with Pete Gaynor, FEMA Administrator

Peter Gaynor was officially confirmed by the U.S. Senate to be the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator on January 14, 2020. Previous to that he had been serving as FEMA’s Deputy Administrator. Prior to coming to FEMA he was an emergency manager at the local and state levels in the State of Rhode Island. Pete agreed to answer questions I posed to him about emergency management in general, FEMA and what he learned during his tenure as both the Deputy Administrator and then Administrator. He departed his position on January 20, 2021.

 

1. What did you learn about the profession of emergency management during your tenure as FEMA Administrator—that you didn’t know before? I always understood that emergency management can be simple on one-hand and extremely complex on the other.  As you move higher in the emergency management hierarchy, from the local, to state and ultimately the federal level the more complex the world becomes. I learned we (FEMA) need to be less complex, plain talking and outcome oriented. I learned that FEMA has the greatest mission in federal government and the 20,000 dedicated employees are solely key to achieving that mission.  Finally, I learned, especially this past year of 2020, that FEMA is capable of achieving any task assigned by the President.

 

2. What would you like people to know about the organization and functioning of FEMA that you think is not common knowledge within the profession? FEMA has an extremely diverse mission set, to include, but not limited to:

• Operating the largest flood insurance company in the world issuing billions of dollars of claims each year.
• Responsible for the Continuity of Government, not only for FEMA, but for the entire Executive Branch.
• Conducting multiple (600+) ongoing disaster recoveries dating as far back as the year 2000. It is important to note, that we (FEMA) support the states and localities in their recoveries as disaster response is locally executed, state managed and federally supported.
• Responsible for research, development and operation of the Nations alert and warning systems such as IPAWS, NAWAS and FNARS.
• Operating the Nation’s only federal certifying arson course and burn facility in Emmitsburg, MD and the only non-DoD facility called COBRATF— the Chemical, Ordnance, Biological, and Radiological Training Facility in Anniston, AL.
• Operating the Ready Campaign: https://www.ready.gov/, which has disaster and emergency preparedness information in 12 languages. FEMA has disaster assistance available in as many as 27 languages.
• A large personnel footprint. There are ten FEMA Regions and our footprint spans as far west as Guam and as far east as USVI. Our workforce lives in all 56 states and territories.
• Leading the U.S. Government interagency support to the civil emergency planning efforts at NATO.
• Managing international offers of assistance from other countries following a Stafford declaration through the International Assistance System.

 

3. The coronavirus pandemic has been traumatic to say the least. What did you learn about the logistics of a pandemic? One of FEMA’s true strengths is logistics and our ability to solicit, procure, store and ultimately move critical disaster supplies into the hands of disaster survivors.  However, our response to COVID-19 was a much different kind of challenge.  COVID-19 has been a global crisis with most countries competing for the exact same medical supplies.   Every government across our Nation, has been competing for the same resources, such as PPE.  To complicate matters further, most PPE is produced in Asia, where the virus significantly slowed manufacturing and where US law and authorities only matter so much.

During natural disasters, FEMA typically manages abundant resources for disasters that are limited in geographic scope and impact.  In responding to COVID-19, FEMA has had a much different and difficult task of managing the lack of critical medical supplies and equipment. Rather than managing resources, we are managing shortages.

We have learned that we must better invest in core capabilities like Supply Chain Integrity and Security and Logistic. Supply Chain Management now has an all new meaning and importance.

Additionally, the emergency management profession and other public safety organizations must determine in detail the “public safety” industrial supply chain and the impacts it will have on operations if interrupted.  This understanding must be comparable to how the Department of Defense manages the defense industrial base, to include procurement, acquisition, long-term contracting, asset visibility, material distribution, and tracking of emerging threats that proactively supports supply chain assurance.

4. FEMA stepped in to help the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) at the beginning of the pandemic. What recommendations do you have for emergency managers at the state and local levels as to how to support their public health agencies in their own jurisdictions? First, I want to thank every emergency manager across the country for rising above and beyond to this historic and unprecedented challenge of responding to COVID-19.  Second, be wary of short-term memory.  We have plenty of lessons-learned in our unified response to COVID-19.  From telework to the importance of warehousing PPE, we all tend to move on to the next challenge or priority.  Take the time now to conduct an After-Action Report, formal or informal, and commit to make changes that improve overall performance.  Not just performance of your emergency management program, but the performance of your response system in the jurisdiction you serve.

 

5. You were a Marine Officer in the military and have led people for many years. What new things did you learn about leadership from being the FEMA Administrator? Good leadership works in the Marine Corps and in FEMA; there is no difference, it’s how you apply it.  There were times this past year where my “delivery” of instructions (orders) needed to be direct, clear and non-negotiable.  During other times, when we had more time and information, the “delivery” was more of a collaborative nature.  No matter the delivery style, no matter the moment, it’s important to always thank individuals and/or teams for the hard work they do, whether that is in person, via email or a hand-written note.  That simple act can carry you far.  Finally, people need to see you in the fight.  They need to feel the presence of their leaders when it matters the most.  When the task seemed impossible and the outcome uncertain, the confidence and enthusiasm you display in the moment can win the day.  If there is one thing I learned in this job, especially this past year, is that you must be bold, and outcome focused.

 

6. What is a final message that you might have for emergency managers at every level of government about the future of the profession as you see it?

First, keep the fight up against COIVD-19, we are not at the finish line just yet.  We must do all in our power to continue with the mitigation measures until the pandemic is declared over.  We must convince all Americans to get the vaccine when available. To quote Winston Churchill, we “must carry on the struggle,” we must sprint through the finish line.  Second, the future of emergency management is bright.  Embrace the lessons-learned from this past year, make your program as bulletproof as possible, widen your net, factor in equity issues, get multiple, diverse partners involved in the emergency management mission and focus on the outcomes you will be asked to achieve.  The paradigm of emergency managers just managing natural disasters is over.  Like FEMA, you will be asked to manage and lead your jurisdictions hardest problems – get your program ready for that day, the clock is ticking.  Lastly, I would like to once again thank emergency managers across the country for their support and hard work.

 

7. What advice do you have for the next FEMA Administrator who will fill your shoes in the new incoming administration? This is a big job.  Bigger than you probably appreciate as you look at FEMA from the outside in.  It’s a complex machine that needs constant care and feeding.  FEMA is not about programs, it’s about the people at FEMA that day-in, day-out make the “magic happen” and deliver on its mission of helping people, before, during and after disasters.  Presence is your  For the “big” disasters (and smaller ones when you can) get on the scene as soon as possible.  It means a great deal to local/state elected leaders that you are in their community getting a first-hand look and speeding disaster resources into the hands of disaster survivors.

 

8. What are your immediate plans upon giving up leadership of FEMA? I’m not exactly sure just yet.  I want to stay connected to the emergency management community and advance initiatives that will help people before, during, and after disasters.  Things like investment in pre-disaster mitigation, resiliency, individual preparedness, understanding risk and creating national narratives about strengthening emergency management through better policy and legislation.  Finally, as the FEMA Administrator, it has been an honor of a lifetime to work alongside the dedicated men and women of FEMA.

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by Eric E. Holdeman, Senior Fellow, Emergency Management Magazine. He blogs at www.disaster-zone.com and his podcast is at Disaster Zone