The research problem was that the Johnson City Fire Department (JCFD) did not consistently and systematically conduct reviews and analysis of operational actions which was attributed to the lack of having an established policy. The research purpose was to create a mechanism that would provide a detailed and logical guideline for performing after action reviews (AAR).Action research was used to answer the following research questions: (a) what techniques exist for effectively conducting AAR's? (b) What are the challenges associated with the process of conducting AAR's? (c) What mechanisms do nationally accredited fire service organizations utilize to review and analyze operational actions? (d) What are the key principles and characteristics associated with effective AAR's? and (e) What outcomes can be expected by the JCFD from conducting consistent and systematic AAR's? The research was carried out through interviews with key representatives of outside agencies who were knowledgeable about techniques employed to evaluate their own organizations' operational actions, the investigation of mechanisms and guidelines used by nationally accredited fire service organizations, and an examination of literature related to after action reviews.The results showed the importance of, and the need for, establishing a guideline for determining which AAR technique is appropriate for the incident, having a structured and objective review process, allowing for open and candid discussion, obtaining relevant data, documenting the results, communicating and disseminating lessons learned and pertinent information to all personnel as key principles and characteristics of an effective AAR process. Recommendations were made to develop a JCFD training program paralleling the standardized components of the SOG, create an electronic means of communicating the AAR report to all personnel, and developing a post assessment instrument to measure the effectiveness of the AAR process.