Battalion Chief (Ret.)
Franklin (TN) Fire Department
Frankin, TN
Joseph R. Polenzani began his fire service career 33 years ago as a volunteer with the Ashland City (TN) Fire Department. In 1998, he became a career firefighter with the Franklin (TN) Fire Department, where he retired as a Battalion Chief in December 2025. He has also served as a volunteer firefighter/engineer with the Williamson County (TN) Rescue Squad.
Chief Polenzani holds a master’s degree in Public Safety Leadership and Administration from Arizona State University and is a certified Fire Officer IV, Fire Instructor II, and Advanced EMT. He is a graduate of the Public Safety Leadership Development Program at the University of Denver Daniels College of Business, co-founder of Franklin’s Company Officer Academy, and has been designated as a Chief Fire Officer (CFO) by the Center for Professional Safety Excellence (CPSE).
Chief Polenzani has presented at numerous conferences, including FDIC International, the Southeastern Association of Fire Chiefs Conference, the Alaska Fire Conference, the Ohio Fire & Rescue Officer Development Conference, the South Atlantic Fire Rescue Expo, the Virginia Fire Rescue Conference, the Incident Management Teams Association Symposium, and the Connecticut State Fire Academy. He has authored articles for Fire Engineering magazine and FireEngineering.com, serves as an instructor for FireEngineeringTraining.com, and is Treasurer of the Middle Tennessee F.O.O.L.S., a nonprofit organization providing free or low-cost training to firefighters throughout the state.
This inspiring class presents a unique look at the principles of fire service leadership through the experiences of the 101st Airborne Division’s Easy Company during World War II. Using Easy Company commander Major Richard Winters’ 10 Principles of Leadership, the class discusses a multi-faceted approach to leadership based on character and leading by example. History shows that leadership is not determined by rank, but by attitude and action.
Following the success of Stephen Ambrose’s book Band of Brothers and the HBO mini-series of the same name, Easy Company’s former commanding officer, Major Richard Winters, co-authored a follow-up book entitled Beyond Band of Brothers: The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters. In this book, Winters expanded on his wartime experiences and detailed his philosophy of small- and large-unit leadership. Winters summarized his leadership lessons into 10 Principles of Leadership, which serve as the framework for this class.
The class begins with an overview of the D-Day invasion and the role of the 101st Airborne Division in the European Campaign. This orientation and the narrative of the class are enhanced by the instructor’s first-hand experiences in Normandy and Belgium as part of a fire service pipes and drums band that participated in ceremonies surrounding the 75th and 80th Anniversaries of the D-Day invasion in 2019 and 2024. Throughout the presentation, video clips and historical photos are used to illustrate situations where Major Winters and the men of Easy Company faced leadership challenges and examine how they succeeded or failed.
The values that guided these decisions are then applied to the fire service using real-world examples of volunteer and career fire officer behavior. Each of Major Winters’ ten principles is explored, and students are provided with strategies for applying these lessons within their own careers. This class is appropriate for both current and aspiring fire officers.
