Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service: Management and Leadership - Case Study Example

Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service: Management and leadership report BY YOU YOUR SCHOOL HERE HERE Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service IntroductionThis informal report describes the activities within Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service, a large organisation with multiple divisions and leadership responsibilities. Like any other business, this organisation has a well-developed human resources team, committees and champions of specific initiatives related to the community as part of corporate social responsibility fulfilment, a dedicated information technology department, and the function of basic management duties including planning, implementation and control. It is a public sector organisation providing community excellence and diversity programmes along with the routine protection of citizens caught in fire and rescue scenarios. This requires internal competencies ranging from establishing a visionary culture built on trust and effective procurement and distribution of resources as a functional business structure. Research did not identify the volume of employees at Derbyshire Fire & Rescue, however the development of a training and programme development organisation makes it comparable to a small- to medium-sized organisation, requiring the same level of management and leadership presence in a business industry fitting this profile. 2. The organisational context The PESTLE framework identifies the macroeconomic factors that impact internal business decision-making. It uses environmental scanning to identify the political, economic, social, technological, legal and eco-environmental issues that affect strategy development based on the level of the external forces’ influence on the business. An environmental scan for Derbyshire Fire & Rescue might include assessing the level of regulatory influence over employee behaviours in their role in fire prevention and then looking at organisational structure to identify need for support by restructuring or assigning a champion. If such political influence is high, it requires adjusting management strategy to compensate or ensure compliance. If an environmental scan revealed a rapidly-changing growth in environmental activism in the community, the organisation can redesign human resources function to include environmentalism training to enhance community perceptions of corporate social responsibility. There is considerable influence of political forces in this type of organisation, dealing with cooperative strategies with regulatory bodies, the legal representation of private citizens and cooperative partners, and in terms of complying with governmental oversight in areas of fire and rescue protocols. Politics can also be experienced at the internal level related to how management considers its presence within the organisation and the level of compliance necessary to be blended with more transformational leadership practice to ensure a chain of command designed to be responsive to authority. Especially in a fire and rescue context, political authority is required to make sure employees are adaptable and able to function in a hierarchical situation with multiple levels of authority governing it. 3. Analysis of individual and team roles In this environment, there are accountability methods in place to ensure individual job performance as well as project team development to fit changing needs demanded internally and from external forces. 3.1 Individuals within organisations The role of individuals versus teams varies depending on the specific objective that requires fulfilment. The firefighter role involves having the competencies to work with diverse community, political and business representatives. There are systems setup within this hierarchy to ensure that non-tangible job competencies include respect for diversity (cambsfire.gov.uk, 2007). Depending on the division, individual job roles include procurement to identify needs related to service contracts or the useful life of various assets (derbyshire-fire-service.co.uk, 2003). They include governance principles to work with schools or various community groups. Individual competencies, in relevant roles, pertains to human resources activities such as improving retention, alignment of information technologies to better fit organisational profile, and providing training programmes relevant to community ambitions or internal objectives fulfilment. Learning Learning is usually measured and controlled by human resources, as this division is responsible for the procurement of training materials and the effective distribution of these materials for different programme development. Offers the organisation, “We are aware of the need to review our existing methods and means of data management and our use of available new technology” (derbyshire-fire-service.co.uk, 2008). These analyses provide support tools for learning and can be controlled through ongoing audit of information technology architecture and support capacity. Learning can be controlled through the development of different behavioural policies that govern principles, with clear outcomes or consequences for non-compliance, to personal ethics and integrity or promoting fairness and respect, all of which are identified by the organisation as being vital part of learning initiatives (derbyshire-fire-service.co.uk., 2008). Behaviourist perspective on learning identifies different key roles that will be predictors of how a person will behave. In opposite accord, cognitive theory reflects an individual’s capacity to learn at the bio-chemical level or in terms of individual information processing. In this organisation, assessment of individual competencies are identified for the introduction of new training programmes at the HR level. Behavioural learnings deal with motivations and then attempting to create a strategy for improving contribution by adjusting environment or any other factor that leads to changes in employee or managerial behaviour. In this environment, punishment works as a method of management controls through policy formation or by reinforcing consequences for non-compliance to specific, management-designed processes or procedures. A structure as well-developed as with Derbyshire Fire & Rescue has a system of controls that consider distributive justice, perceived as the fairness of outputs versus rewards or punishment. This is part of behaviourist theory or that of a transactional leader that provides what employees need, from a resource view, so long as performance mandates that behaviour under contingent reward practices (Judge & Piccolo, 2004; den Hartog, House, Hanges & Ruiz-Quinanilla, 1999). Even though the leadership model is more transformational, individual rewards are handled under transactional methodology. Behaviours can be changed by adjusting environment, by promoting better models for stress management, setting a vision and gaining unity through management support, or providing fair outcomes in proportion to individual work outputs. Personality Personality is important due to the ongoing work with community citizens and other political agencies to support professionalism and cooperation. It deals with having management charisma under transformational leadership theory and then using actual actions linked with ethical policy to inspire others to model these same behaviours. Personality is an intangible trait, however, with no concise measurement tools in a dynamic environment where instant response can complicate organisational relationships. Communication There is a clear system of communications at Derbyshire Fire & Rescue, evident in the production of an annual report, ongoing mention of different HR initiatives, and the presence of support information technology. Barriers to effective communication include concepts of power distance between management and employees at the cultural level or failing to adopt the vision of unity in diversity through behavioural actions that go against public policy. Communication is effective in a structured organisation to ensure proper flow of information from one division to another for excellence in support management and delivery. In this public sector, “Being able to communicate effectively to schools, community groups, voluntary organisations and others is important” (fireservice.co.uk, 2009, p.1). Barriers in this respect can include lack of knowledge of these key public sector segments or using language not commonly understood by non-affiliate groups. Perception Perception, especially related to distributive justice, is a factor for ensuring compliance to management-induced policies and regulations. It is the driving force behind how employees see the organisation, their role within it, and their ability to express their own individual talents as contributors to the organisation. This deals with understanding the internal dynamics of thought, through various research tools, and then applying them in a way that is rational and equal to output contribution. Motivation Motivating workers is related to behaviourist theories and is the foundation of getting employees to be inspired by a vision and find value in the job roles. Under Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, it is necessary to first establish an environment that provides basic needs, such as access to adequate sanitation facilities equal to employee volume. Followed next are basic needs for security, followed by belonging (something evident at Derbyshire Fire & Rescue), and then the development of individual self-esteem needs. These are tiered needs that require fulfilment before ongoing personal development can evolve and strengthen competencies. Individual learning takes place through programme initiatives, especially surrounding diversity to improve organisational culture. 3.2 Teams within organisations Group formation Team function is crucial in a fire and rescue environment when dealing with basic job responsibilities at the firefighter status level. Groups form as a product of job interactions and social interactions in the external environment and internally. Formal groups are those that have structured outcomes, combining resources and talents to meet specific objectives. Informal groups in this organisation are those social alliances that form as a product of interaction in the routine job environment, such as firefighters discussing a particular job call during periodic break activities. This very environment is group-oriented in order to fulfil fire and rescue responsibilities. 4. How roles are defined The organisational structure is functional and centralized, with decision-making made at the top levels and then distributed downward. This is necessary in a fire and rescue organisation where compliance is necessary on a whim based on unique external and internal events. There is evidence of transactional and transformational leadership ongoing at Derbyshire Fire & Rescue, with transformational efforts including setting a vision and applying this vision to each job role. Structure starts with the chief executive, governing the deputy chief, who in turn governs divisional support management (derbyshire-fire-service.co.uk, 2007, p.6). In this case strategy affects structure based on the level of executive talent needed to coordinate with government or regulatory entities or the need for ongoing support services. Roles are defined by external and internal factors that are adaptable under transformational redesign efforts. 5. Organisation processes & development Organisations develop as a product of their interactions with the external environment and through changes that occur as a result of employee needs. Cultures are formed through these interactions that set the norm of behaviour within the organisation related to many different concepts and initiatives. Culture is represented by the majority belief and perceptions about ethics, values orientation, goal achievement, or perceptions of the role of the organisation in community matters. Change at an organisation like Derbyshire Fire & Rescue is constant with new compliances and regulations being introduced into the organisational mix that need addressing. Change here involves assigning project champions in a variety of different campaigns to ensure group adherence. 6. Organisation management Leadership Leadership styles have been identified, however leadership is outside of traditional management involving planning and controls. It is about setting a visionary plan of action and then using personality, resources, feedback mechanisms, development and coaching to ensure compliance. There is evidence of a leadership model that supersedes the management theoretical models with discussion of diversity, improving internal culture, and the development of committees to oversee these initiatives. Conflict and politics in decision-making Conflict occurs from two or more individuals and is a part of any organisational environment. No evidence of effective controls for conflict could be identified at Derbyshire Fire & Rescue as these are internal situations that arise during everyday working activities. They are handled by management and senior executive-level staff using appropriate political authority, policy, or active counselling with human resources to strengthen relationships. Negotiation is involved at the internal level in a transformational structure. This conflict structure is evident by different stress management activities being undertaken by other organisations in this public sector (Dahlan, Malek & Flin, 2010; Paton, 2009), showing that this organisation has systems in place to identify individual needs. Avoidance of conflict is regulated by removing barriers to effective job role function or the environment that changes behaviours to make it resistant to change or unable to cope with change or employee surroundings. 7. Conclusion Derbyshire Fire & Rescue has all of the systems in place to identify it comparatively with a small- to mid-sized business, having all of the necessary control and planning systems in place, along with HR function, to bring the organisation value. Value is promoted through behaviourist theories, the use of the transformational model, and community relationship development to satisfy corporate social responsibility. It is an adaptable culture with a structure that is functional, yet flexible to ensure compliance and quality social relationships. 8. References Cambsfire.gov.uk. 2007, Cambridgeshire First & Rescue Service. http://www.derbyshire-fire-service.co.uk/about.ihtml?catid=949 (April 6, 2010). Den Hartog, D., House, R., Hanges, P. & Ruiz-Quintanilla, S. 1999, Culture specific and cross-culturally generalizable implicit leadership theories: Are attributes of charismatic/transformational leadership universally endorsed?, Leadership Quarterly, 10(2), pp.219-256. Dahlan, A., Malek, K. & Flin, R. 2010, Stress and psychological well-being in the UK and Malaysian fire fighters, Cross Cultural Management, Patrington. 17(1), p.50. Derbyshire-fire-service.co.uk. 2003, Procurement and our suppliers, Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Services. http://www.derbyshire-fire-service.co.uk/pdf/The_People_Strategy_Web_version.pdf (accessed April 5, 2010). Judge, T. & Piccolo, R. 2004, Transformational and transactional leadership: A meta-analytic test of their relative validity, Journal of Applied Psychology, 89(5), pp.755-768. Paton, N. 2009, Burning ambition, Occupational Health, 61(8), pp.14-17. Smith, P. & Tregunna, B. 2008, Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service, Annual Report 2008. http://www.derbyshire-fire-service.co.uk/pdf/annualreport07-08SFS.pdf (accessed April 5, 2010). Tregunna, B. & Garrard, R. 2008, Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service. The People Strategy – Adding value to the organisation 2008-2011. http://www.derbyshire-fire-service.co.uk/pdf/The_People_Strategy_Web_version.pdf (accessed April 5, 2010). Read More