Rising from Ground Zero

“Rising from Ground Zero: 9⁄11 and the FDNY’s Path through Crisis to Transformation belongs on every leader’s bookshelf. It presents FDNY responder, on the ground, personal stories of 9⁄11 and what followed. Moving and inspiring, it is a story of crisis, endurance, and healing. It is also a story of transformation, of how to transform even the most elite of organizations. Any leader navigating stormy seas or facing the daunting task of organizational renewal should read Rising from Ground Zero - carefully.”

–Admiral James Stavridis, 16th Supreme Allied Commander of NATO and author of 2084: A Novel of Future War

“A powerful and fully immersive narrative, Rising From Ground Zero chronicles the most tragic event in the storied history of the FDNY. Through a gripping reconstruction of that fateful day - and the critical decisions that followed - the book offers a rare window into leadership under extreme pressure. Drawing on firsthand accounts and rigorous analysis, the authors illuminate the sacrifice, bravery, and resilience of one of the world’s premier first responder organizations. Both a tribute and a study in crisis management, Rising From Ground Zero is essential reading for leaders and aspiring professionals across public safety, government, the military, and beyond.”

–John Sudnik, FDNY Chief of Department (2018-2021)

“Rising from Ground Zero preserves what must never be lost: the lived truth of those who answered the call on September 11 and in the long decades since then. Some books inform. Rising from Ground Zero transforms. The unvarnished words of the 9⁄11 FDNY responders show us what leadership looks like when the ground itself gives way. This book is honest, humane, and quietly devastating. Read it slowly. Listen to the people’s voices, their pain, their grief, their strength and their hope. If you lead anyone - a team, a company, a family - open this book, let these firefighters speak, and take to heart what only they can teach us.”

–Annie Mckee, bestselling author and leadership expert; co-author of Primal Leadership

“A deeply human account of 9⁄11 and its aftermath, told by those who lived it. Rising from Ground Zero is as much about leadership, trust, and resilience as it is about tragedy - and offers enduring lessons for anyone leading through crisis.”

–Laura Kavanagh, 34th FDNY Commissioner (Ret.), Distinguished Visiting Urbanist, New York University

“Rising from Ground Zero is a masterful account of the response of New York firefighters to the calamitous events of 9⁄11 and the later rebuilding of their decimated ranks. Drawing on depth interviews with those who rushed to the World Trade Center on that fateful day, Greg Shea, Paul Brown, André Kotzé, and Lauren Starkey provide a graphic and compelling account of the firefighters’ ‘lived experience’ and the enduring lessons for crisis leadership at its best.”

–Michael Useem, Professor of Management Emeritus, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and author of The Leadership Moment

Gregory P. Shea, PhD, is Senior Fellow at the Wharton Center for Leadership and Change Management, Senior Fellow at Penn Implementation Science Center (PISCE), and adjunct Senior Fellow of the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Paul Brown is a retired New York City Fire Captain and educator. A third-generation firefighter, Paul spent over thirty years as a first responder. While a member of the FDNY Incident Management Team, he deployed numerous times to natural disasters and wildfires throughout the nation. He speaks regularly on managing crises, high stakes decision making and organizational change.

André Kotzé is the founder of AirtimeBA and Principal Consultant at Teamworks Training and Development. A veteran with 30 years of field experience, including 15 years in mountain rescue and refugee camps, he developed AirtimeBA to categorize human interaction through “behavioral telemetry.” Beyond his role as researcher and writer for this study, André converts observable behaviors into measurable frameworks that make professional conversations meaningfully better.

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