wildland firefighter

firefighter

engineer

shift leader

director

Wildfire Defense Systems

The company is currently facing significant challenges due to the lack of established policies and procedures, resulting in a directionless environment. This absence of a clear framework has led to inconsistency within the management team, further exacerbated by evident prejudice. Such issues are detrimental to the organizational structure, creating an unstable work environment and affecting overall productivity and employee morale.

Without well-defined policies and procedures, employees lack guidance on how to perform their duties effectively, leading to confusion and inefficiency. The absence of a unified direction from management means that there is no cohesive strategy guiding the company's actions and decisions, which can result in missed opportunities and a failure to address key operational issues.

The inconsistency observed in the management team undermines authority and can lead to conflicts and a lack of respect among employees. Prejudice within the management exacerbates these problems, fostering an unhealthy workplace culture that can alienate and demoralize staff, leading to high turnover rates and difficulty in attracting and retaining talent.

To address these challenges, the company urgently needs to develop and implement comprehensive policies and procedures, establish clear goals and directions, and ensure that management practices are fair, consistent, and free from bias. This will create a more structured, efficient, and inclusive workplace, ultimately contributing to the company's success and sustainability.

Don't think you're going to get a bunch of high speed cool guy tasks working for this company. Most of your time will be spent in dedicated service which is nice except for getting up early to hear asenine demands from corporate office workers. The climate when dealing with anyone higher than task force leader is as if you were working for apple or google. The job itself is rewarding, lucrative, and gratifying but if you run afoul of the suits you will find yourself out of a job. I used to work for them on a contract basis and they just stopped calling my crew as if we'd never been with them despite working 2 entire seasons with no structures lost, spent hundreds of hours in LA traffic and sweating my a s s off driving through death valley on route to a fire in Breckenridge in an old a s s standard transmission type 3 F550 with no air conditioning, not to mention the fact that my engine boss was the one who got one of their most reliable and long standing associate firefighting and fuel mitigation companies on board. the explanation that I got was that they wanted a more clear cut corporate atmosphere instead of employing contractors. Now you have to sign on with them as if you're joining the military and agree to work solely for them and be at their beck and call regardless of whether your company secures a better contract. You're gonna be working 3 weeks on 1 week off, deal with asenine corporate directives, and get paid like garbage despite working on behalf of some of the most profitable insurance companies the world has ever seen.

After working here for nearly a year, I have been impressed with the compensation, benefits, culture, and mentorship offered here. Never in my 15-year career have I enjoyed my working environment as I have here at WDS; I am quite often excited to go to work. I have worked for extremely large government and not for profit organizations in the past and have usually felt that company politics (who you know, who does/does not like you, personal background) were far more important than hard work and outcomes; this made it difficult to advance my career. At WDS I have been publicly recognized for my contributions, and my ideas for the company have been taken seriously (and often implemented). 
I have found an exceptional opportunity for individuals to advance here, no matter where they start. WDS is growing quickly, and there is constant opportunity for lateral movement into different areas of the company, and upward progression within departments.
This company is in the business of saving people’s homes and the employees here reflect this honorable service. It can be hard work and not everyone agrees with final decisions that must be made (happens in every company), however, no one can argue the results from this companies’ leadership. I consider my co-workers true friends and mentors that I can count on them both at work and at home, and they have established a healthy culture that I am excited to be a part of.  


This company is riddled  with poor communication and toxic “yes men” management. It feels like the owner has filled the executive team with enablers rather than allies and critical thinkers - so large decisions appear to be made frequently and on a whim without much consideration for either long/short term ramifications. A majority of my time spent at this company was adjusting projects to fit whatever new decision instead of furthering the project itself - only for the changes to be necessitated again the following month/quarter.

How the company presents itself also feels very “staged” / problematic / verging on fraudulent at times. Turnover is incredibly frequent and widespread, leading to a culture where lots of management has “failed up”, giving the sense that they were promoted to their role due to everyone else leaving. 

I will say one of the only benefits seems to be the pay. Unless you are working in the tech department, positions seem to pay above market average. And I largely believe this is due to the high turnover rate- this is an easier solution to get people to stay rather than adjusting the company culture. If you need a job, this company isn’t bad to do 1-2 years until you find something else. Otherwise would strongly recommend looking elsewhere.

I thought it would be a great job with good pay and a flexible work environment. It might have been except for management. 

Their style is abrupt, and completely lacking in people skills. Jobs changing rapidly, conflicting orders on a daily basis, I could rarely finish a task before the task changed to something else. Very whimsical way to run a company. 

Mid management and above don't get along and everyone tries to get the bosses' attention. A high degree of gossip, backbiting, and personal conflicts. You can't run a company in a small town like that and keep good people happy. There is zero "cultural identity"  except who can climb the ladder the fastest. 

Most folks are just happy to leave each day. It's sad, because it could be so much different with some fixed rules, a good HR department and management style changes.

The last thing I will say is that this company seemed to have started with good, solid, well credentialed firefighters. They are no longer with the company. It's filled with wannabe 'fire guys' in-house and the only knowledgeable fire people are in the engines in the field, mostly seasonal contractors. Their jobs have degraded to filing reports and taking pictures to prove their worth. Before this company becomes a joke as a firefighting company , they better change some basics.

Show up if you want or don’t. I learned not to trust what anyone in upper management says.  I learned not to trust anyone. Management is micromanaged by a few. There is also a union that is run by 15 members that won’t listen to members they don’t like what they complain about.  They hire people with no fire experience that don’t want the fire experience that are allowed to collect paycheck but not contribute any work. Navigating through the liars and backstabbing to keep your job. Meeting the good people in the company and different folks around the country. Traveling and seeing the all the homeless people make you appreciate having a job. Pray they don’t break in and steal anything. The owners have no idea that managers have destroyed their credibility with field employees that helped build the company. They have all quit because of the biased union. 

This place promises the sky as the limit and then cuts your feet off at the knees. They constantly ask how they can do better, but then immediately ignore and disregard any feedback. There is a mental list of benefits (fringe or direct) that everyone keeps in their head that helps justify working fir this place. On a pretty routine basis they decide to take away some of those. This year was the final straw when they "standardized" their holiday bonus. Without telling any of the staff, either seasonal or full time, everyone got roughly 10% of their expected bonuses. The seasonal employees especially come to rely on this bonus to incentivize them to return next year because we know that the company is looking out for us. Not anymore. Any ambition for employee loyalty are squashed every time you get your hopes up. Then they have the balls to ask for input on why employee retention is so low.

I did not have a good experience working at Wildfire Defense Systems. While my immediate co workers were supportive and helpful, executive management at this company constantly puts road blocks in front of you. I watched countless ideas and proposals that would help expand the scope and profitability of WDS get shut down immediately by the CEO. It is a very toxic work environment, and I left work feeling deflated almost daily. There are a lot of promises made to you regarding your growth at the company, but executives drag their feet on getting approvals and often these promises are left untouched. This company and the work they do has so much potential, but it really falls short with management. I would recommend looking elsewhere for employment. I also recommend reading all of these reviews, it is obvious which ones were prompted by the HR staff to boost the overall rating. 

Every company has pros and cons. The pros far outweigh the cons at WDS. 

Being the only company to do what we do on the scale we do it, there is no script. WDS has grown exponentially and with that come growing pains. The executive team at WDS has embraced the challenges and has found footing in great leaders where they are needed. The culture of teamwork while utilizing individual skills and talents has made tremendous impacts over the last couple years and with the leadership team moving forward to improve and define the roles of their team, I believe WDS will soon become a premiere employer in the Gallatin Valley. 

They encourage growth of their employees and support internal promotions. I’ve been welcomed since I joined the team and look forward to the future with WDS.

They will lure you in with some of the highest paying Wildland Fire Positions, which you will (NOT) be fighting fire, but it's not worth your sanity. 

Imaging working for individuals from the Office who do not listen to the Ex-Chiefs about what is needed and rather do what they want based on their personal preference.

If you're looking to get your foot in the door for your base fire certs do it. If you're looking to "Fight" fire, this may not be the gig. If you're looking to retire and don't mind being pushed/pulled and constant change, this may be for you. 

Burning Bridges, just might be. Constant stress and no work/life balance, perhaps. If you enjoy fighting fire, helping others and benefiting your community, this may or may not be for you. If you like taking credit for other successes and saves this may be for you. Ask about the retention rates, that'll tell you what you need to know. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Wildland firefighter 1 salary reported	$30.50 per hour
Firefighter 52 salaries reported	$34.17 per hour
Engineer 53 salaries reported	$41.63 per hour
Shift leader 15 salaries reported	$43.87 per hour
Director 1 salary reported	$125,000 per year

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