The human resource in any fire department is the most valuable asset it has. Fire department battalion chiefs are key personnel with significant responsibility for the support, development and training of personnel under their command. In addition, the battalion chiefs provide a key link between the line personnel and fire administration. The Bellevue Fire Department has experienced tremendous growth in on-duty resources and staffing under one 24 hour Operations Battalion Chief, which has become problematic. It is the author's belief that due to the excessive span of control, fire department Battalion Chiefs are unable to adequately assist employees to realize their full potential, which impacts daily operations and the employees they supervise. The author attempts to lay a foundation that examines the benefits for increasing the department's daily battalion chief staffing.The problem was that the Bellevue Fire Department continues to have nine fire stations, three emergency medical services (EMS) stations, creating a very broad span-of-control for a single battalion chief; the department needs to be reorganized from one to two battalions. The purpose of this applied research project was to demonstrate the need, and develop a plan, to reorganize the Bellevue Fire Department into two battalions. The research questions were: 1. What assigned activities/responsibilities for Battalion Chiefs are considered critical but inadequately addressed due to limitations on the battalion chiefs time? 2. How will reorganization into two battalions address the limitations of the battalion chiefs time? 3.How are other fire departments in the immediate area and of similar size organized? This research paper employed action research to identify issues precluding frequent contact, training and personnel development due to the time constraints caused by an excessive span-of-control. The literature review provided a compilation of information that outlined the significant responsibilities and issues to be considered when determining the level of battalion chief staffing. The author researched the battalion chief to station ratio of other fire departments of like size and found that as organizations increase in size, the number of stations battalion chiefs are responsible to oversee decreases. Based on the research, it is recommended that the Bellevue Fire Department with nine fire stations and three EMS stations, be organized from one to two battalions.Doing so will reduce an otherwise excessive span of control, yielding the benefits of improved firefighter safety, improved training opportunities, and enhanced employee development.