Effect of the Modernisation of the Fire and Rescue Service - Research Paper Example

What affect has the modernisation of the Fire and Rescue Service had on it’s culture? Table of Contents 1. Background 3 2. Literature Review 4 2.1. Change in organizations – theories and implications 4 2.2. Change and organizational culture – impact of leadership 6 3. Change in the Fire and Rescue Service – effects on the organizational culture 8 3.1. Change in the Fire and Rescue Service – Overview 9 3.2. Change Process – description and analysis 10 3.3. How changes in the specific organization affected the organizational culture? 13 3.4. Recommendations on available choices for implementing changes in the Fire and Rescue Service 16 4. Conclusion 17 References 1. Background The increase of international business activities has led organizations worldwide to develop strategic policies that could offer them a competitive advantage towards their rivals; in most cases, these policies are based on the firm’s culture and objectives; however, the organizational environment is also likely to affect the methods used for the development of various business plans. Periodically, organizational strategies need to be reviewed and updated – in order to keep their effectiveness; in the context of this effort, changes are likely to be introduced in organizations operating in all industrial sectors; in most cases, these changes are not welcomed by employees; instead, a strong resistance is likely to be developed in the workplace – this resistance indicates the level at which employees in a specific organization are not satisfied; other issues, like the inability of the leader to persuade employees on the necessity of specific organizational practices can be also revealed through the failure of plans of change within a specific organization. Current paper focuses on the examination of the various aspects of modernization in the Fire and Rescue Service; emphasis is given on the effects of the suggested changes on the firm’s culture. The literature published on the specific field has been studied and is critically analyzed by referring to the process of change in the particular organization. It is concluded that changes in the firm’s culture have been inevitable – taking into consideration the public needs and the organization’s internal and external environment. The level at which these changes had a positive influence on the organization’s performance has been analytically examined; it is concluded that the introduction of changes in modern organizations cannot be always considered as a benefit for employees; rather, it could be regarded as a tool for supporting organizational performance. 2. Literature Review One of the most important issues in regard to the introduction of change in organizational environment has been the expected response of employees to the relevant initiatives. Change could lead to important differentiations in existing business plans and operations; for this reason, the identification of the effects of change on organizational culture is related with the examination of all this project’s aspects and phases – referring to the initial phase of the change process, the planning of the project, up to the last phase of this process, the reactions of employees towards a plan of change introduced in a specific organization. The examination of the literature published on the specific field is necessary; at the next level, the description of the phases of the particular project – plan of change in the Fire and Rescue Service – is necessary in order to identify and evaluate the effects of change on the culture of the above organization. 2.1. Change in organizations – theories and implications The development of changes in organizational policies and activities is related with specific criteria; in accordance with Kotter (1996, p.4) the most common failure of strategic managers that need to introduce a plan of change in their organization is their inability to persuade the employees at the lower level of the organizational hierarchy on the necessity of the attempted changes; from a similar point of view, Storey (2004) noted that ‘individually oriented strategies of change, such as training, are not effective in bringing about organizational change’ (Storey, 2004, p.298); in other words, plans of change need to be based on integrated framework of action in accordance with the organizational structure and aims but also on the resources available for the completion of the relevant project. In accordance with Daft (2007, p.424) ‘change is frequently disruptive and uncomfortable for managers as well as employees’; this means that the managers that need to design the phase of implementation of a particular plan of change are likely to face difficulties in completing the above task – especially if taking into consideration the fact that the participation of employees in plans of change is often hostile. Under these terms, the ability of a leader to respond successfully to a particular plan of change is quite important in order to evaluate a leader’s ability to control a specific organization. The interaction between change and leadership can have two different directions; based on the first direction we could note that the effectiveness of change plans indicate the ability of leaders to react under pressure; using the different direction, change can affect the power of a leader – if inappropriate plans of change are developed by a specific leader, then his power to have a decisive role on critical organizational issues may be doubted. Change is an important part of organizational strategies; in fact, plans of change should be available by the leaders of the firms that operate in extreme competitive sectors; therefore, the lack of plans of change in a firm’s strategic framework would be a reason for the restructuring of the firm’s existing strategic policies. 2.2. Change and organizational culture – impact of leadership Change can severely affect organizational culture; by introducing practices that replace existing organizational practices, a plan of change may lead to strong resistance in the workplace – especially if the relevant plans are not precisely explained to the employees; in order to understand the interaction between the plans of change and the organizational culture it would be necessary to refer to the concept of culture as one of the key characteristics of modern organizations. In accordance with Cameron et al. (2005) culture is ‘primarily set by the organization’s founder or it can be developed through the years under the influence of internal and external organizational environment’ (Cameron et al., 2005, p.5); the above view leads to the assumption that organizational culture cannot be changed – at least not easily; in this context, how the organizational culture could be affected by change? As noted above, the internal and external organizational environment are likely to affect culture; in this way, by altering the conditions or practices in the organizational environment the culture of the organization can be affected – this affection will be stronger in accordance with the changes introduced in the organizational environment. The level at which change impacts the organizational culture is depended on the changes included in the relevant plan but also on the conditions of the internal and external organizational environment. Commonly, the ability of a firm to easily adopt changes is considered as an important characteristic of the specific firm – indicating its prospect to survive under difficult market conditions. On the other hand, because in many cases – like in the one under examination – the plan of change cannot be avoided it is necessary that the planners and the developers of the relevant plans develop appropriate policies. It is at this point where the interaction between leadership and change can be identified; it is commonly accepted that leadership style indicates the chances for successful implementation of changes in a particular organization. The level at which leadership can impact change and organizational culture can be understood by referring to the study of Zaccaro et al. (2001, p.7); in accordance with the above study, leadership in modern organizations can have many different forms: the functional form of leadership is highlighted – this leadership style focuses on the development of the firm’s aims and objectives; the role of leadership in modern organizations it is emphasized in the work of Zaccaro et al. (2001); in the specific study leadership is considered to be ‘the influential increment over and above mechanical compliance with the routine directives of the organization’ (Zaccaro et al., 2001, p.10); another role of organizational leadership is ‘to manage social and cognitive phenomena’ (Zaccaro et al., 2001, p.10); towards the same direction, Carter et al. (2005, p.122) notes that diagnosis of leadership problems needs to be developed at an early stage of an attempted introduction of change plans; in this way, it is made sure that all relevant problems are resolved on time – so that the implementation of any plan of change to be successfully completed. It is made clear from the above that one of the key characteristics of a successful leader is his ability to respond to the organization’s environment; moreover, his ability to communicate with employees in all organizational sectors is quite important – the importance of a leader’s communication skills can be clearly identified in cases of firms that face severe turbulences; in that case, the intervention of the leader could lead even to the termination of the conflicts. Of course, it is necessary that the relevant resources are available for the development of the leader’s plans of change. 3. Change in the Fire and Rescue Service – effects on the organizational culture Usually, the development of organizational plans is based on the identification of relevant organizational needs; however, there are also cases that organizational policies are developed under the pressure of external environment – like in the case under examination. The introduction of change in modern organizations has been found to be related with a series of effects – as indicatively mentioned above; the effects of change on the organizational culture can be significant but no standardized; the nature and the extension of these effects have been proved to be related with the following factors: a) the type of organizational activities – industrial sector in which an organization operates, b) the level of the support of the state in the completion of the relevant project, c) the resources available for the development of the specific plan and d) the response of the organization’s internal and external environment – of particular importance is the response of employees to the suggested changes as this response is closely related with the expected success of the particular plan either in the short or the long term. 3.1. Change in the Fire and Rescue Service – Overview The introduction of change in the Fire and Rescue Service has been unavoidable, in terms of the conditions under which this change was enhanced; as noted in the case study, the operational style of the specific organization has remained the same for quite a long; however, under the influence of a relevant governmental initiative, the introduction of changes in the Fire and Rescue Service has been decided by the organization’s leader in order for specific target to be achieved: the alignment of the organizational activities with the terms of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004. The introduction of change in the above organization affected the organizational culture; the level of this influence can be understood by referring primarily to the phases of the relevant process; the effects of the attempted change on the culture of the specific organization can be then identified and critically analyzed using also the literature presented in the previous section. In any case, it would be necessary that the following issues are addressed: a) the role of the organizational environment in the successful introduction and development of changes in the particular organization, b) the role of the organization’s leader in the successful completion of the relevant process, c) the role of employees in the specific project – referring mainly to the resistance appeared in the workplace as a result of the attempted change and d) the conditions under which the specific plan of change would be fully met its requirements and targets. One of the key characteristics of the change plan initiated in the specific organization is its dependency on a state decision – the law introduced in regard to the specific activities. This means that the change could not be avoided but it should be appropriately prepared and monitored. 3.2. Change Process – description and analysis The development of changes in the Fire and Rescue Service has been gradual; the relevant plan can be characterized as rather expected – taking into consideration the legislative text, the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 – promoted by the government in regard to the specific sector. The phases of the change plan introduced in the specific organization could be described as follows: a) at the first level, the elements of the plan of change have been identified; preventive policies should be developed by the Fire and Rescue Service – in the past, the organization focused ‘in dealing with fire related incidents and other emergencies’ (case study); the working practices – including the hiring procedure and the working time – but also the culture of the organization had been aligned in order to meet the above targets; because of the change in the organizational priorities, the above parts of the operational activity (work-related issues and culture) had to be alternated aiming to serve the organization’s needs, b) the second phase of the change process includes the development (design) of the plan of change; the specific plan had to be based on the following criteria: b1) the role of the organization had to be changed; preventive actions should be included in the organization’s daily operations – as opposed to the actions towards the effective handling of emergent incidents, b2) the role of employees in the organization would have to be changed; up to then, the organization’s employees had to deal with emergent incidents; under the suggested plan of change, new – additional – duties are delegated to the employees, for example the responsibility for participating in specific educational schemes, b3) the terms of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 need to be used as the basis for the particular plan of change, b4) the response of the employees to the attempted change should be estimated in advance – as possible; measures should be included in the plan of change in regard to the limitation of resistance in the workplace otherwise the chances for the success of the relevant plan are reduced; c) the next phase, the third phase, involves in the introduction of the plan of change; at this point, a severe failure of communication between the employees and the employer is identified; the plan of change is not explained to the employees; the latter respond negatively to the prospect of the firm’s culture and operational style to be changed; the lack of appropriate leadership skills have been found to be the main reason for the resistance in the workplace in regard to the specific plan. As it is noted in the workplace, the attempted change can be characterized as unavoidable – because of the introduction of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004; however, the fact that the context of the change – its reasons and its framework – was not adequately explained to the employees led to the development of strong organizational resistance – a fact that can lead to severe organizational turbulences – taking into consideration the fact that the introduction of the plan of change is not optional since the change is necessary in order for the organizational activities and culture to meet the requirements set by the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004; d) the introduction of the plan of change has been related with a series of alterations in the firm’s existing policies; an indicative example is ‘removal of the rank based system’ (case study); because of the introduction of the above change, turbulences can be developed across the organization in cases that the allocation of responsibility in regard to a particular emergent incident or an important organizational decision needs to be allocated. It is clear from the above that the main issue in regard to the introduction of the plan of change in the Fire and Rescue Service has been the lack of effective communication between employees and managers at various levels of organizational hierarchy; the strategic managers did not appropriately inform the middle managers in regard to the attempted change; the above fact had the following consequence: the middle managers ‘began to lack motivation and felt powerless’ (case study); without having the support of the middle managers, the strategic managers had just a few chances to complete the relevant project successfully; at the level of strategic managers, also, a problem of communication was identified; strategic managers were not able to communicate effectively with the middle managers and the employees; the examination of the conditions under which the change was attempted in the specific organization can lead to the assumption that neither employees at low levels of the organizational hierarchy nor the middle managers were offered an analytical explanation on the attempted change; the communication policies of the specific organization should be reviewed and updated in order to respond to the demands of the specific plan of change. 3.3. How changes in the specific organization affected the organizational culture? In accordance with the issues discussed above, the effects of the attempted changes on the organizational culture can be characterized as limited; more specifically, the firm’s operational practices in regard to its daily activities had not been significantly changed; rather, the organization’s aims and objectives had to be differentiated – preventive policies should be included in the organization’s existing strategies. However, the following facts are expected to influence the organizational culture: a) the differentiation of the role of employees – for instance, the need for offering educational support to specific teams of the population is a new activity for the firm’s employees, b) the increase of the importance of the representation of various geographical locations in the workplace, c) the hiring of females in the specific sector is expected to lead to the differentiation of the organization’s daily operational activities – a ‘change the alpha male culture that had previously existed’ (case study) is expected to be developed. At the next level, the introduction of the specific plan of change has been related with a series of benefits – not only in regard to the particular organization but also in regard to the public’s interests; these benefits need to be presented and discussed as they are related – directly or indirectly – with the organizational culture. In this context, the attempted change can be related with the following benefits: a) increase of the level of safety offered to the public; this increase is explained because of the introduction of preventive measures and the relevant limitation of risk, b) the use of the organization’s existing resources has become more effective; resources are allocated and are appropriately deployed in the development of the organizational activities; in the past, the firm focused on handling emergent incidents; the time spent on the planning of organizational activities was limited; moreover, the time spent on the evaluation of the organization’s activities has been quite limited; the decrease of the involvement of the organization in emergent incidents has resulted to the increase of time available for planning/monitoring/developing the organizational activities; therefore, the changes introduced in the specific organization have led to the improvement of the balance between resources and benefits and the increase of the organizational effectiveness, c) through the elimination of the rank based structure an important change introduced in the organization: tasks are no more allocated in accordance only to the position of employees in the organizational hierarchy; rather the skills/ abilities of employees are used as criteria for the allocation to them of specific responsibilities; moreover, the removal of the rank based structure can be considered as a removal of the militaristic culture in the particular organization; d) the plan of change involves in a series of differentiations of the organization’s existing policies; the hiring process used in the specific organization is an indicative example of such type; as noted above, under the influence of the relevant legislation, the organization has promoted diversity in the workplace; organizational culture has been therefore affected at the level that the organization had to change its existing strategies in regard to the hiring process; the promotion of diversity in the workplace is expected to lead to the increase of flexibility of working requirements – among other potential effects, either in the short or the long term; at this point, it should be noted that the increase of diversity in the workplace does not mean – if used as an exclusive criterion – that the culture of a particular organization has been changed – it can be a temporary measure serving specific needs; however, the development of specific HR practices that ensure the radical transformation of the organization’s workforce – can lead to the assumption that the actual change of the firm’s HR policies has taken place - like in the case under examination, referring to the hiring of women, a practice that was avoided in the past. In accordance with the literature developed above, the plans of change need to be developed in the context of the whole organization; moreover, it has been proved that the leadership style affects the performance of business policies; in addition, organizational culture has been proved to be a key element of modern organizations; therefore the following path of dependency seems to exist between the organizational change and leadership: a) the leader evaluates the organizational practices and decides on the required changes, b) the plan of change is prepared taking into consideration the organizational culture and c) the plan of change is implemented under the monitoring of the leader – who in this way it is proved to have a crucial role in the success of all a change plan’s processes. 3.4. Recommendations on available choices for implementing changes in the Fire and Rescue Service As indicated through the discussion developed above, the development of the plan of change in the specific organization could be differentiated; this differentiation would be based on the following issues/ facts: a) the organization’s existing resources should be better used – referring mainly to the employees; as highlighted in the case study, the main reason for the development of obstacles when attempting to implement change in the particular organization has been the lack of effective communication/ cooperation in the workplace; managers at the high level of the organizational hierarchy fail to communicate effectively with managers at lower levels and the employees; the above failure can be explained by referring either to the lack of understanding of the firm’s resources or the lack of understanding of the organizational culture and aims, b) the removal of the rank based structure should be followed by specific measures in regard to the allocation of tasks/ responsibilities across the organization; the tasks delegated to each employee/ department would be made clear to the employees and the public; in this way, the performance of employees to the relevant activity is improved; also, the trust of the public to the organization’s services is increased, c) increase of the training provided to employees at all levels of the organizational hierarchy; the lack of effective communication across the organization is set as one of the most important reasons for the delays in the organizational performance; despite the fact that the organization has been involved only in emergent incidents, the problematic communication in the workplace has caused severe delays in the organizational performance; employees need to understand how to behave in the organization in regard to their traditional role but also in regard to the tasks and the responsibilities that have been allocated to them in the context of the plan of change. The organizational structure and operational style have been aligned with the sector’s previous conditions – referring to the terms for offering Fire and Rescue Services in the period prior to the introduction of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 but also in the period that followed the introduction of the above legislative text. The leadership style has been also proved as related with the delays in organizational performance (Hopper et al., 1997, p.24). Under the influence of the attempted change, the firm’s autocratic leadership style would be changed to a more appropriate leadership style – maybe the transactional leadership style discussed in the literature review section. 4. Conclusion The introduction of changes in modern organizations is often proved to be a challenging task; the resistance developed in the workplace – in regard to the attempted changes – can be strong; this resistance is stronger when the attempting changes are considered to negatively affect existing rights of employees. In case that the change is unavoidable – like in the organization under examination – specific measures need to be taken in order to ensure the limitation of resistance in regard to the changes attempted; because in the above case there is no option of canceling the plans for change, the failure of the managers to effective handle the problem can lead to severe organizational turbulences. One of the key criterion for the effective implementation of changes in the organizational environment is the ability of the leader to persuade employees on the necessity of the suggested changes; in this way, it is expected that resistance towards the specific plan of change will be decreased; if the leader will not achieve the above target, alternative plans of action can be in place – for instance the provision for outsourcing of specific organizational tasks would be included in a firm’s strategic framework; in the above context, leadership is considered to be closely related with change as part of the organizational activity. The introduction of changes in the Fire and Rescue Service – in the context described above – has been opposed by the employees; the latter were not given adequate and clear explanations on the necessity of the attempted changes; therefore, the impression that these changes are based on the view of the leader has been developed; the examination of the phases of the change process has led to the assumption that the organization’s leader did not have many options available; in fact, the leader could not state his opposition to the law; this opposition – even if it would be developed – should be in the context described by the law and not in the context of a managerial plan of action. However, the approach used by the firm’s leader in order to introduce the changes in the organization can be characterized as quite ineffective; appropriate meetings between the strategic managers, the middle managers and the employees should have been developed prior to the introduction of change in the workplace (Hopper et al, 2001, p.15); the provision of necessary information and the explanation of the situation to the employees would have resulted to the limitation – even the elimination – of resistance in the workplace. The transformation of the organization’s culture – as a result of the changes introduced – would be regarded as unavoidable aiming to support the alignment of the business culture with the market’s culture. In any case, the culture of the Fire and Rescue Service has been affected by the modernization developed in the specific organization; however, the relevant initiative was necessary – under the existing law; however, any change caused to the organization’s culture because of the organization’s modernization should be made clear to the organization’s employees – the existence of uncertainties in regard to the reasons of the attempted change could cause severe turbulences within the organization; the firm’s leader has a decisive role in the limitation of these turbulences and the successful completion of the relevant project. References Cameron, K., Quinn, R., 2005. Diagnosing and changing organizational culture: based on the competing values framework. John Wiley and Sons Carter, L. Ulrich, D., 2005. Best practices in leadership development and organization change: how the best companies ensure meaningful change and sustainable leadership. John Wiley and Sons Daft, R., 2007. 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