Patterns of Aggressive Behavior in Experimentally Created Social Climates - Research Paper Example

MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP 29TH May, 2008 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Executive Summary…………………………………………………………3.0 2. Introduction…………………………………………………………………3.0 3. Analysis Of Management Role And Responsibility…………………….....3.0 3.1 Classical Management Theory……………………………………..3.0 3.2 Movement Of Classical Management To Human Relation………..4.0 3.3 Human Relation Approach…………………………………………4.0 3.4 System Approach…………………………………………………...4.0 3.5 Contingency Approach Management………………………………4.0 4. Communication………………………………………………………….....5.0 4.1 Managers Roles And Responsibilities …………………..…………5.0 5. Team Building……………………………………………………………...5.0 5.1 Mc Gregor Theory Of Motivation………………………………….5.0 6. Lead Staff…………………………………………………………………..6.0 6.1 Delegation Responsibilities To Staff…………………………….....6.0 7. Assessment of Leadership Theories and Leadership Style in Practice and Comparison with Other Emergency Services………………………………6.0 7.1 Leadership Styles…………………………………………………….7.0 7.2 Leadership Styles In Fire Practices…………………………………..7.0 8. Historical Background Of The Organization- Buckingham Fire And Rescue Service………………………………………………………………………8.0 9. Comparison Of Fire Services Among Countries……………………….….9.0 10. Conclusion……………………………………………………..………….10.0 11. Bibliography…………………………………………………….……….. 11.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report deals with the Buckingham Fire and Rescue service, 2008 organization that plays a vital role in the fire services rendered in U.K. It also deals with the influences which affect the internal environment of the organization such as the role of manager in heading the organization towards accomplishment of its goals and objectives. The incorporation of different leadership styles in the working of the firm. The success of the firm is also linked with the national and international changes which have constantly been adopted in the working environment of the firm. INTRODUCTION Buckingham Fire and rescue service, 2008 deals with fighting fires of the current times, especially combating the chemical spills, road accidents, releasing trapped animals and confronting the changing environmental and political threats of terrorism, transport accidents, and fatal natural disasters. The success of any organization deals with the challenging role played by the managers in implementing the vision and the philosophy of the firm in practical terms as in the case of Buckingham fire services. A generalization of such roles would help us to judge the parameters of success. ANALYSIS OF MANAGEMENT ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES The Classical Management theory is one which focuses on the role of the management to allocate and organizes work in accordance with the skills and knowledge of the employees. It created a link between the systematic approach and the production level, however human needs and requirements and condition of work was not given due consideration. The inflexibility and rigidness of the classical theory gave birth to the more supple and effective human relation theory. The human relation approach is just adversative to the theory of classical management. The classical approach related to the significance of the rationality of the structure of work, the hierarchy whereas the human approach emphasized more on individual emotional and social needs incorporating the principles of decentralization where an individual gets enough independence and is made a part of the decision making process of the firm. Globalization, diversification, technological advancements, share of power were the major reasons to move from classical to human approach along with the motive of encouragement of self motivated employees who are imparted appropriate challenging and complex job for their satisfaction and performance enhancement. Human approach (Human/Labor Relation, modified on 30th May, 2008) is one who views organization as a supportive and collaborative enterprise where employee is considered to be the most precious asset and boosting of his morale the cause of high productivity of the firm. The utmost goal of this theory is to develop a skilled and competent employee rather than focusing on the qualifications and authoritarian control. For this a ‘System Approach’ (Schoonover, 2004) to leadership could be applied which caters to the situational demand of the leaders to support the changing internal environmental situations among the four different dimensions of the whole organization, operation, group and individual to define the focus , allocating the resources , guiding others to follow a uniform set of practices and motivating others towards excellence. Contingency approach is one such process to apply the functions of management, planning, organizing, controlling and directing etc as per the situation of circumstances as an when they occur, a dynamic and flexible approach towards organization and people has to be applied because of the unpredictability and complexity of the internal contingencies (INFORMANIA, 2007). Here, leadership and organizational styles waiver with the internal and external limitations of the organization. COMMUNICATION Manager’s role and responsibilities Communication (university of Wolverhampton, viewed on 30th May, 2008) is the most important phenomenon in an organization where the transfer of ideas, emotions, and information is carried on between people. It’s a two way process between the sender and the receiver(. A manager has to very warily carry on the process of communication, in order to make the others understand the need and purpose unambiguously. A manager as a good communicator is required to be an intermediary between the top management and the subordinates, work as a counselor to remove all the emotional barriers for an enhanced performance. The manager is expected to apply the best mix of power and authority with proper time management. He is a source of influence for others, hence needs to maintain equilibrium between managing and leading affairs. Team building is required by the manager in order to construct a well knit, strongly bonded group of people to perform meticulously clarifying the goal and identifying the negative factors hindering the unison and team spirit. Douglas McGregor established the theory X and theory Y, (viewed on 30th May, 2008), probing the behavioral pattern of employees at work. Acc. To him theory X supported the fact that human beings dislike work and avoid it where they can. Because of they sloppy attitude, a stringent and tough management policies are implied with proper control and stipulated directions. However theory Y supports the active seeking responsibility and self directed attitude of the workforce. A participative approach to problem solving increases the commitment and allegiance among the employees. LEAD STAFF Delegation of staff duties and responsibilities A manager is expected to delegate responsibilities and lead his staff proficiently as it helps in saving time, succession planning, avoiding frustrations and discontent among employees. A simple SMARTER rule of delegation- i.e. tasks to be Specific, Measurable, Agreed, Realistic, Time bound, Ethical, Recorded, facilitates the manager in his leadership skills for the group and the individuals. However the extent of freedom and liberty given to staff is an important parameter to judge the growth and development of the organization. ASSESSMENT OF LEADERSHIP THEORIES AND LEADERSHIP STYLE IN PRACTICE AND COMPARISON WITH OTHER EMERGENCY SERVICES Leadership is the process of providing clear directions, effective implementation of plans and constant motivation of employees. Leadership is all about influencing and guiding employees to accomplish the goals and aspirations of the organization. Depending upon the extent of management control and autonomy of employee’s different leadership styles have to be incorporated and encompassed in the structure of the firm. LEADERSHIP STYLES Different styles of leadership include autocratic, participative, delegative, free-reign styles (Lewin, Liippit, & White, 1939) Democratic style: of leadership involves other employees apart from the leader himself in contributing in the decision making process thereby instigating a sense of belongingness among the staff thereby increasing their satisfaction and motivational level. However, instant decisions making at the time of critical situation makes this style unsuitable and incongruous. Autocratic: or authoritarian style of leadership grants the sole managerial right to the leader for stringent control and supervision of the employees, however people who prefer autonomy, and creativity in work generally resent such bossy style of leadership. Laissez-faire style believes in no or negligible supervision or control among employees because they are self motivated and highly experienced. This kind of leadership style also reveals the character of a leader who shows weak administrative, lack of control and in competencies to meet the targets and deadlines. LEADERSHIP STYLES IN FIRE PRACTICES Organizations, who are the emergency service providers, have to imbibe all the different styles of leadership as per the situation and circumstances faced. An employee who is fresh and inexperienced is better handled through an autocratic style because he needs constant guidance and supervision and being raw he is still incompetent to take major decisions. A little knowledgeable and experienced staff is better put in a democratic style because of his ability to pour in ideas, suggestions and expertise and people who have mastered the field are taken as an asset and guide to others more apt for a laissez-faire style. The kind of style fluctuates depending on the time availability, information dissemination, stress levels, kind of task performed law and established procedures. Here the leader works as a situation leader to control the environment. A leader is supposed to tackle the situation by constantly contributing the factors of motivation, team building and communication. Motivation which inspires compels and instigates a person to excel. It is the driving force to achieve the desired results. Team building which is a construction of a group of people who are wholly responsible for the accomplishment of goals and communication which is the imparting of accurate information or data at the time when it is most needed. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF BUCKUNGHAM FIRE AND RESCUE SERVICES The Buck’s Fire deals with the firefighting services especially in the area of road accidents, animal rescue and combating with the natural disasters. It has a staff of 650 people located in 21 fixed and remote locations. As per the data, Bucks fire has catered to almost 6, 00, 00 calls for rescue and more than 400 calls in a week. The organization has the capacity to deploy almost 550 firefighters and 42 vehicles to handle the emergency situations. The success of the organization can also be accredited due to the implementation of the Change Management theory which a systematic approach to change individuals and organization on the whole from the past state to the desired state of change (Change Management, Wikipedia, 2008). Change management is a process to mark a shift in the attitude, behavior of the people and the organization. Buck’s Fire should absorb the change management and add in the ADKAR model propounded by Prosci that is Awareness of change, Desire to be the part of the changing process, Knowledge changing techniques and methods ,Ability to implement changes, Reinforcement to prolong changes. COMPARISON OF FIRE SERVICES AMONG COUNTRIES The U.K fire services works under special legislative and administrative supervision. Their has been a rapid change in the fire services in the new millennium due to threat of terrorism, increasing natural catastrophe, the disaster management theory has to be applied. National fire serves strategies in civil defense The ministry of defense has its own organization to combat fire which was originally known as ‘Defense Fire services’ in U.K. The DFRS is the chief local authority FRS in the UK. As per the protocol the RAF Fire Service is responsible to take care of the airfields with in skills in placating aircraft arms and armaments. The civilian Defense Fire Service covers the national sites. The Royal Navy and British Army have their own specific equipments and services in their respective operational areas. Royal Marines facilities are serviced by the Royal Navy (Fire service in the United Kingdom, Wikipedia) INTERNATIONAL FIRE SERVICES IN THE WORLD Different countries have different norms for dealing the fire rescue operations in their own unique way. For instance, in Germany the fires service is denoted by ‘Feuerwehr’. The German communities are required to operate the ‘Emergency Medical Services’ in proportion to the inhabitants of the particular city. Most of the Germany’s fire fighters are Voluntary fire brigades with less exposure to professional training as in the case of US and UK where training is incorporated as an essential component of the fire fighting process. With the progression of the 21st century maximum changes in the operational procedures, legislation, techniques, strategies have been assimilated by the UK fire departments in comparison to the US, German and Canadian fire rescue services.UK and US governments clearly reflect in their policies a need for modernization and improved safety measures for a better service provision to the community. CONCLUSION In the end it can be concluded that in the success of the organization the managers have a crucial task to lead the organization on the pinnacle of success. It is the responsibility of the manager to create an environment which is beneficial for the growth and expansion of the organization and the individuals as well. He inculcates the team spirit and a healthy environment for innovation. The styles of leadership which can be portrayed by the leader vary in accordance with the situation and need. Such styles will reveal the leader’s versatility and dynamic nature to adapt to the changing environment. Management is the act to apply the functions of planning, organizing, directing etc in order to achieve the pre-defined standards and practices and implementation and development of policies and strategies. In regards to the fire and rescue service company’s a change management theory in order is indispensable to muddle through the dynamic changes of the internal and external environment. BIBLIOGRAPHY ACCEL team, Human Relation Contributors, Douglas Mc Gregor, Theory X and Theory Y, viewed on 30th May, 2008, http://www.accel-team.com/human_relations/hrels_03_mcgregor.html Buckingham Fire and Rescue Services, Reduced operational costs and improved connectivity through Fire Pass, viewed on 30th May,2008 http://www.hytec.co.uk/customers_case_bucksfire.html Change management, 2008, from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, modified on 29th May, 2008, viewed on 30th May, 2008, Wikimedia Foundation, Inc, US, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Change_management_(people) INFORMANIA, Mar 20, 2007, Contingency Approach to Management, viewed on 30th May, 2008, http://www.bizcovering.com/Business-and-Society/Contingency-Approach-to-Management.27102 Fire service in the United Kingdom, from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, modified on 21st May, 2008, viewed on 30th May, 2008, Wikimedia Foundation, Inc, US, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_service_in_the_United_Kingdom#Defence_Fire_and_Rescue_Service Human/Labor Relations.ppt, modified on 30Th May, 2008, flightline.highline.edu/jward/BUS160-Human%20Relations/PPTwk1.160.f04.ppt http://flightline.highline.edu/jward/BUS160-Human%20Relations/259,3,Why have the approaches to Human Relations been changing? Lewin, K., Liippit, R., & White, R. (1939). Patterns of aggressive behavior in experimentally created social climates. Journal of Social Psychology, 271-301 Schoonover.C.S, June 2004, Behaviour Matters, A system approach to Leadership, viewed on 30th May, 2008 http://www.schoonover.com/pdf/A_Systems_Approach_to_Leadership.doc What is communication? University of Wolverhampton, viewed on 30th May, 2008, http://www.wlv.ac.uk/Default.aspx?page=14439 Read More