Fire & Rescue Leadership - Dissertation Example

The Fire and Rescue Service in any nation confronts change based on the needs of an age that demands clear leadership from within its ranks (Communities and Local Government, United Kingdom, 2005, Pp. 1 – 5). As an example, the threat of terrorism has now placed new demands on fire service leaders who must now find new and innovative ways to meet new challenges and community expectations, while remaining committed to ensuring maximum safety for the Fire and Rescue Services employees (Weeks, 2005, Pp.)

Terrorist attacks in Bali, Madrid, London, Mumbai, Sharm al-sheik, Amman, Algiers, and elsewhere amply demonstrate the need for a new strategy that will challenge Fire and Rescue leadership. In addition, tall structures in regions where they previously were a novelty, such as the Burj Khalifa building in Dubai, will present new challenges for the Fire and Rescue Services in these regions because they must now be prepared to fight fires in structures that are far taller than any other around them.

Thus, leadership in the Fire and Rescue Services has become a major issue because it is important to train tomorrow’s leaders to ensure progression. Researchers suggest that leadership is the prime catalyst that promotes change to ensure the continued success of an organization or the individual (Maloney, 2001, Pp. 4 – 5). Without leadership, organizations become complacent and this inhibits an ability to fulfill their intended mission to meet public expectations. Leadership motivates the regular members of an organization and without leadership, maintaining professional standards will be impossible (Drozd, 2006, Pp.)

Tactics, technology, scope, and public expectations evolve to present new requirements for training, staffing, technology selection, and customer service that are fulfilled best by anticipating them early and implementing plans for meeting new challenges (Windisch, 2007, Pp. v – vi). In addition to ensuring the success of an organization, leaders deliver respect, trust, open communications, productivity, forward-thinking, a capacity for transformation, and a desire to follow the leader (Buchanan, 2007, Pp. 105 – 106) and (Gerling, 2009, Pp. 50 – 51).