ABOUT US
Produced through a collaboration of Academy Award nominated filmmakers D.A. Pennebaker, Chris Hegedus and Jojo Pennebaker, along with the Dean of Instruction of the FDNY and a top management writer and university professor, "Putting Out Fires: Management Lessons From America's Bravest" identifies the basic principles that enable teams of firefighters to effectively manage risk and deal with the unexpected; principles that exist at the very core of a fire department.
Edward G. Rogoff is a Professor in the Department of Management of the Zicklin School of Business at Baruch College, The City University of New York. He has taught the full spectrum of entrepreneurship courses at the graduate and undergraduate level and been awarded for excellence in teaching. Dr. Rogoff serves as the Academic Director of the Lawrence N. Field Center for Entrepreneurship at Baruch College. His responsibilities have included helping hundreds of entrepreneurs develop their business plans, training business counselors, and organizing conferences.
Dr. Rogoff also conducts research in entrepreneurship, particularly relative to education, ethnicity, economic impacts, and regulation. His book Bankable Business Plans was published in 2003 to which Jeff Bezos, the Founder and CEO of Amazon.com wrote the foreword. Dr. Rogoff was a Guest Co-Editor of the Journal of Business Venturing. He has written articles for the New York Times, Forbes, and Newsday, as well as a being a frequent guest on CNN and CNNfn.
Dr. Rogoff also founded and was CEO of two media companies that owned 23 radio stations throughout the United States. He received a B.A., M.B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. from Columbia University.
John A. Jonas is a Battalion Chief in the New York City Fire Department at Manhattan’s Battalion 2 and is an extraordinary example of the very best of what firefighters represent.
Since joining the department in 1979, the Chief has immersed himself in the science and art of firefighting, continuously studying for promotions, certificates and degrees. Jay Jonas was promoted to Lieutenant only seven years after joining the department, to Captain just six years later, and finally to Battalion Chief in 2001. He received his Bachelor’s of Science in Fire Administration in 1997 from SUNY Empire State College and has taken numerous additional courses in fire science, fire administration and counter terrorism.
At the time of the World Trade Center attacks in September 2001, Jay Jonas was the Captain of Ladder Co. 6 and was one of the first responding units to the site. Jonas and his unit were rescuing a woman from the north tower when it collapsed. They survived the collapse and their entrapment. Because of his exemplary acts of bravery and leadership in the face of crisis, Chief Jonas was chosen to represent the New York City Fire Department at the President of the United States’ address to Congress on September 18th, 2001 as well as to accept the “Men of the Year Award” presented by Mikhail Gorbachev and Paul McCartney, also in 2001.
His schooling and experience have led to a number of awards and professional accomplishments including “Firefighter of the Year” award from the NYC Rotary Club, the “Bravest Award” from Firefighters Quarterly Magazine and the first “New York Post Liberty Award for Leadership”, of which the Chief is most proud because he was nominated by his direct peers and subordinates.
Chief Jonas has been published several times in professional publications, and was the author of procedures for the New York City Fire Department to rescue trapped firefighters. Jonas has appeared in numerous documentaries and movies and on news programs, including NBC’s Dateline, as an expert on leadership, terrorist activities and firefighter tactics.
When he is not Putting Out Fires, Chief Jonas enjoys his time with his wife and three children and is a dedicated baseball coach for his son’s little league team.