Home / About / Sections / Company Officers / About COS

About COS

IAFC's Company Officers Section

Mission

To provide information, education, services and representation to company officers to enhance their professionalism and service to community.

History

2010 November	IAFC President Jack Parow established the Company Officer Task force consisting of Mike Jaffa,Chair; Craig Aman, Joseph Bradley, Brian Collins, Randall Hanifen, Jo-Ann Lorber, James Paul, Alan Rufer, and Donald Willbanks, who held their kick-off meeting on December 2, 2010.
2011 August	Task Force Chair Jaffa and Randall Hanifen presented a briefing to the IFAC Board of Directors, making 5 recommendations to enhance professional development of Company Officers and promote their involvement as members of the IAFC.
2012 January	Then IAFC President Al Gillespie established the Company Officer Leadership Committee, with a mission to, “Integrate and grow Company Officer engagement within the work of the IAFC and to help Company Officers develop the leadership skills to meet today’s challenges and to prepare them for promotion to Chief Officer in the future.” The Company Officer Leadership Committee was made up of 12 members with an additional 4 adjunct members. Over the course of the next 3 years the Committee became active on several other committees and built relationships with other Sections and Divisions of the IAFC. Producing several webinars and being consistent contributors to the IAFCs On Scene newsletter, the committee began its quest to form the Company Officers Section.
2015 February	Chair Jaffa and Vice Chair Hanifen presented a draft of the proposed Company Officers Section by-laws, budget, and a list of more than 150 IAFC regular members who had committed to support the formation of the Section to the IAFC Board of Directors. At that IAFC Board meeting, under the leadership of then IAFC President Keith Bryant, approval was given to form the section.
2015 August	At FRI 2015, in Atlanta, Georgia, the Company Officers Section became the 10th section of the IAFC. The original members of the Company Officer Section Board of Directors were, Mike Jaffa – chair, Randall Hanifen – vice chair, Rob Frampton – treasurer, Brian Morrison – secretary, members at-large, Craig Aman, Joseph Bradley, Christopher Divver, Mary Emge, Jon Messick, Brieanne Nix, Alan Rufer, and Demond Simmons.
2017	In 2017 we lost two of our friends, mentors, brothers, and fellow board members to cancer; Captain Craig Aman of the Seattle, Washington FD and an original member of the Company Officer Task Force, and Battalion Chief Jon Messick of the Southern Platte Fire Protection District, Missouri. GONE TOO SOON! RIP BROTHERS!
2023 August	The Company Officer Section officially released its first publication: “IAFC - Succession Management for the Fire-Rescue Service Second Edition"
2024 May	We have had new board members elected and/or appointed to fill the board seats of other members who have left the board for a variety of reasons. Our current board is made up of the following members: Randy Hanifen – Chair, Brian Morrison – Vice-Chair, Joe Bynum – Secretary, Rob Frampton – Treasurer, and Demond Simmons, Sean Cummings, Mark Duerr, John Russ. Matthew Caward, Stephen Ludwig, and Laron Ward serving as at-large members of the board.
2025	This year the section celebrated its 10th anniversary. The board undertook numerous projects. The first ever Company Officer of the Year Award was presented during FRI 2025 and FailFest was put on by the board. During FRI 2025 Lt. John Russ (vice chair) was reelected and sworn in alongside new board members Capt. Ashley Engler, Lt. Ryan Meigel, and BC Jesse Schilling.

The section has since become the fastest growing section in the IAFC and is working hard to promote the development and professional growth of company officers.

Governance

The COS board includes four executive officers (section chair, vice chair, secretary, treasurer) who serve two-year terms, plus eight at-large directors who serve three-year terms. The executive officers are elected by the current COS board. The at-large directors are elected by section members.

Section bylaws Strategic Plan

Meet the COS Board

Brian Morrison

Brian Morrison
Chair
West Barnstable Fire Department (MA)(bio)

John Russ

John Russ
Vice-Chair
Brentwood Fire & Rescue Department (TN)
(bio)

portraitTemplate_160x160

Ashley Engler
Secretary
Lincoln Fire Rescue (NE)

Rob Frampton

Rob Frampton
Treasurer
Salisbury Fire Department (MD)
(bio)

Randall Hanifen

Randall Hanifen Ph.D.
Immediate Past Chair
West Chester Fire Department (OH)
(bio)

portraitTemplate_160x160

Joseph Bynum
Eastern Division
Brookhaven Fire Company (PA)

portraitTemplate_160x160

Stephen Ludwig
Great Lakes Division
Middletown Division of Fire (OH)

portraitTemplate_160x160

Ryan Meigel
Missouri Valley Division
Westminster Fire Department (CO)

portraitTemplate_160x160

Joshua Merriam
New England Division
Hanover Fire Department (NH)

portraitTemplate_160x160

Jesse Schilling
Southeastern Division
Sarasota County Fire Department (FL)

Sean Cummings

Sean Cummings
Southwestern Division
Austin Fire Department (TX)
(bio)

portraitTemplate_160x160

LaRon Ward
Southwestern Division
Austin Fire Department (TX)

portraitTemplate_160x160

Danny Gray
IAFC Staff Liaison

About the COS Board

Sean Cummings

Captain Sean Cummings of the Austin Fire Department is a strategic fire service leader with nearly two decades of experience in Operations, Special Operations, Communications, and Community Relations. A member of the IAFC Company Officers Section Board of Directors and the IAFC Technology Council, he specializes in integrating technology, safety, and innovation into the fire service. Sean’s expertise extends to complex emergency management as a former Hazmat Manager for Texas A&M Task Force 1, as well as a fire department representative in the Austin/Travis County Emergency Operations Center. He is a frequent national speaker on leadership, artificial intelligence, and decision-making. Sean holds a Bachelor of Applied Arts and Science from Texas A&M University-San Antonio and a Master of Public Administration from Sam Houston State University.

Rob Frampton

Rob Frampton is the Fire Chief for the Salisbury (MD) Fire Department. He has been with the department since 1999 and rose through the ranks to become Chief in 2023. Rob has served the IAFC and the Company Officers Section since the Task Force was established. Rob serves on several Boards and Committees at both the local and State levels. Rob possesses a Master's Degree in Emergency Health Services, is a graduate of the Executive Fire Officer (EFO) Program, is a credentialed Chief Fire Officer (CFO), is a graduate of Leadership Maryland, and is a published author. Rob is passionate about personnel health, safety, and well-being, relationship building, and expanding technology within the fire service.

Randall Hanifen Ph.D.

Dr. Randall W. Hanifen is an Assistant Chief of Operations for West Chester (OH) Fire, an Associate Professor at the American Public University’s Emergency Management Program, an Adjunct Professor for CSU’s Fire Science Program, and CEO of a national fire service consulting company. Randall serves as the Executive Director of a regional special operations team, a former Taskforce Leader for FEMA’s Ohio Task Force 1 US&R team, International Representative of the Institution of Fire Engineers-USA Branch, and is the Past Chair of IAFC Company Officers Section. He serves on the NFPA 1020 Fire Officer Professional Qualifications and NFPA 1026 Incident Management committees. He serves on the Legislative Committee of the Ohio Fire Chiefs Association. Randall is credentialed as a Chief Fire Officer by the Center for Public Safety Excellence and is a Fellow grade member with the Institution of Fire Engineers. He is the associate author of the textbook Disaster Planning and Control (2009). Randall has provided presentations and training for the Ohio Fire Chiefs’ Association, Fire Rescue International, Emergency Management Institute, IFE Caribbean and South America Branch, Firehouse Expo, and is a contract instructor for the NFA, teaching courses in the Executive and Managing Fire Officer Programs. He has a B.S. in Fire Administration, an M.S. in Fire Service Executive Leadership, and a Ph.D. in Executive Management of Homeland Security.

Brian Morrison

Brian Morrison began his fire service career in 1994 as a high school intern with his father’s fire department, laying the foundation for a lifelong commitment to the profession. He later moved to Maine, where he lived at a fire station in Gorham while attending Southern Maine Technical College.

Brian was subsequently hired by a career fire department on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, where he served faithfully for over 25 years. Over the course of his career, he spent nine years as a Captain and Shift Commander, gaining extensive experience in operational leadership and personnel management, including commanding numerous high-hazard incidents, including structure fires. In April 2025, he had the opportunity to advance into executive leadership as the Deputy Fire Chief of a neighboring combination fire department, where he currently serves.

Brian holds a master’s degree in Executive Fire Service Leadership and is a certified Chief Fire Officer (CFO). He has been an active member of the International Association of Fire Chiefs since 2012, beginning his involvement with the Company Officer Leadership Committee. He is currently a member of the IAFC Company Officer Section and serves as its Chair, where he continues to advocate for leadership development and professional growth within the fire service.

John Russ

John Russ has over 20 years of fire service experience working for the Brentwood (TN) Fire & Rescue Department as a Lieutenant/Paramedic. He currently serves as Vice Chair of the International Association of Fire Chiefs’ (IAFC) Company Officer Section. As Vice-Chair, he assists with multiple facets of the section, including FireRescue International (FRI) Programming with the IAFC’s Training and Education Development Committee. John is working on several programs to improve engagement with the Section, including the FRI Fail Fest, Company Officer Leaderships Symposium (COLS) Recognition Programming, and the CFSI Advocacy Network. John was the program manager for the IAFC’s Firefighter Near Miss Reporting System and is a Level 1 Peer Assessor with the CPSE. He is a student in the National Fire Academy's Executive Officer Program, scheduled to graduate in May 2026. John has worked with the HERO Registry Ancillary Committee to review research proposals for COVID-19 studies and conducted curriculum reviews for the National Fire Academy’s Safety Program and Managing Officer Program. He has worked for numerous career and volunteer fire and emergency service providers, including prehospital emergency medical service providers, specialized technical rescue organizations, and risk management and prevention entities. He has a Master’s Degree in Professional Studies from Middle Tennessee State University and two Bachelor’s Degrees from Eastern Kentucky University, one in Fire and Safety Administration and one in Prehospital Emergency Care. John is also a veteran of the United States Marine Corps.

You are not logged in.