Work within the fire service involves frequent encounters with occupational hazards. Many fire departments try to minimize accidents and injuries through after action reviews (AARs). A recent study1 explored what makes for a good or bad after action review, what makes a review satisfying to attendees, and its impact on group safety norms. The study also looked at the effects of good attendee behavior on desirable outcomes for AARs in high-reliability organizations (HROs). Researchers suggested that good AARs help individuals clarify their role within the group and express the group’s safety norms. They give active and willing participants a venue to build a common picture of what happened and why. Wide participation in conversations and decisionmaking in meetings of this type can improve performance. Read about research takeaways.