Transformational Leadership and Organizational Communication Culture Theories for Jeddah Flood Disaster - Case Study Example

Running head: Jeddah Flood analysis Name: University: Course: Tutor: Date of Submission: Introduction The supposed Jeddah Disaster which occurred on November 25th, 2009 left the city of Jeddah a commercial gate to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in a bad shape. The heavy rain which lasted for a period of six continuous hours lead to the deaths of more than one hundred and twenty one people, houses were badly damaged, electricity connections badly affected as well as other monetary loss. This was attributed highly by bad leadership and mismanagement as key causes for the flood. Thesis Statement: This paper attempts to analyze Jeddah Flood disaster, its causes and solutions to the problem using two theories; Transformational leadership theory and Organizational Communication culture theory. Brief account of the issue Disasters as well as tragedies whether in really sense caused by man-made or natural events today is part of human civilization. The damaging effects associated with these events tend to be more in developing countries such as Saudi Arabia this is due to bad leadership as well as mismanagement (Burns, 1978). The systems so put in place are not fully monitored and practiced which has created a situation where most of the crises in such developing nations tend to be poorly managed compared to the developed nations. It is therefore important that good leadership be put in place to manage disasters and potential risks through proactive systems and procedures in a timely manner (Burns, 1978). Today we live in a society where problems are felt among people but not effectively recognized, reported, analyzed as well as resolved. Most of leaders today tend to boost only about their own achievements rather than their own individual failures. Discussing and analyzing failures through good leadership structures as well as structured processes serves as a guide to future decisions. When a disaster occurs as well as other tragic events such as the Jeddah incident it is always important that the most fundamental cause be identified and eliminated immediately to avoid their recurrence. Problem identification is usually perceived as part of problem solving process hence it requires that good transformational leadership skills be implemented in relation to various techniques. Logical systematic and structured approaches are perceived to be effective leadership strategies which can be implemented to correct mistakes as well as avoid any failure recurrences (Burns, 1978). Root cause analysis is one of the methods which can be implemented to correct and address any human errors. This kind of system is not meant to blame leaders for the bad leadership and poor management rather it is meant to analyze failures, implement a desired outcome and eliminate a problem. Various people view the problem with their own perceptions which is usually far from the actual truth and ground realities. When the Jeddah incident happened many people perceived it as being caused by heavy rain, poor drainage system, flash-flood and corruption in various departments as well as ineffective response by civil authorities (Burns, 1978). As away of solving a problem it is always necessary that a problem be defined which is normally done by collecting initial problem information and putting in place a solution but also setting up monitoring as well as tracking mechanism that ensures the implemented recommendations are enforced and implemented. Theory explanation (a) Transformational theory of leadership is of the view that effective leadership is based on the four I’s thus idealized, influence, intellectual stimulation, individual consideration, and inspirational motivation. When a leader views that certain elements of his or her leadership is not working then it is worthwhile to develop outcomes measurement framework that reviews the tenets of transformational leadership and incorporates them (Bass, 1985). According to the studies done by Atwater and Bass they argues that transformational leadership goes beyond the traditional transactional leadership style which primarily emphasizes exchange among leaders and followers. Transformational leadership can be distinguished from the transactional leadership which in normally circumstances based on rewards for positive performance in return for an individual meeting specific established condition. Transformational leadership therefore goes beyond the mere idea that workers are motivated by rewards and punishments since it considers other motivators for effective performance (Bass & Avolio,1994). Influence is seen as a charismatic behavior of a leader as well as the ability to generate enthusiasm by drawing people together around a particular vision through self confidence and emotional appeal. A leader should portray idealized influence through being a role model as well as acting in a manner that his followers can copy and imitate such as taking responsibility for given actions, being passionate about organizational goals, and personally getting involved in community safety activities ((Bass & Avolio,1994). On other hand a leader can demonstrate intellectual stimulation by creating innovative problem solving solutions to problems at hand within the team members. This requires that a leader treats all the team members with respect and concern which is a key concept for this leadership style. Team leaders should regularly talk to the members about their goals, create new opportunities which match individual’s goals as well as monitor their progress. A leader should implement inspirational motivation which is meant to motivate all the team members in working towards action by building confidence levels as well as generating beliefs in them. Transformational leadership principles are compatible with the social work principles since it empowers individual participatory as well as it promotes input in decision making process, duty delegation and responsibility(Bass & Avolio,1994). Theory explanation (b) Organizational communication culture theory discuses the main idea of learning organization as well as the transformative nature of leaders. Culture therefore provides a certain lens through which team members can interpret, interact and make some sense of reality from it (Geertz, 2009). Communication culture theory therefore is important since it explains the patterns as well as behaviors that characterize individuals and groups. Organizational culture tends to provide certain meanings for routine organizational events. In such cases there are five basic tenets comprises of ; systems thinking, personal mastery, identifying and assessing mental models, building a shared vision and team learning (Griffin, 2010). It is therefore important that leaders share their own ideas with employees as well as develop plans for adaptable change. Social work is about putting in place adaptable thinking systems in which each and every individual is interested in. Individual characteristics can be connected to organizational communication culture through building a shared vision (Geertz, 2009). Theory application to the field or problem Leadership is described as a process through which a person influences others to accomplish a particular objective or a common goal. In normally circumstances leaders use their own mind to solve problems instead of applying the leadership theories. Problems usually reoccur if the events are not investigated properly. The main reason is the mere fact that most of the leaders try to fix the problems without analyzing the root cause of the problems (Geertz, 2009). When an incident occurs leaders always jump to conclusions hence often the problem is underestimated. As far as the Jeddah flood is concerned many root causes were associated bad leadership and mismanagement. There are various causes which led to the Jeddah flood. First and foremost Jeddah a city on the west coast of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been over the years constantly affected by climate due its geographical location with very high temperatures and humidity during the summer and lower in winter. Though, this was the case the negligence of the leaders lead to the flood since they did not put in place systems that could prevent the flood (Naill & Ayman, 2010). Secondly, the ministry of transport carried out investigation regarding failures and shortcomings which emerged from the contractors during the flood disaster, the ministry never took any steps to correct the situation rather the ministry insisted on its limitation in implementing the provisions disaster management plan that would address potential risks in the future such as floods, landslides and earthquakes (Naill & Ayman, 2010). Rising ground water as a result of sewage leakage and storm-water irrigation was also another factor associated with the flood. Most of the rainfall in Jeddah is normally accompanied by thunder storms and these rains occur during winter, spring and autumn and they are usually caused by passage of depressions air from west to east. This situation is devastating since the rain usually accompanied by severe heat and winds yet no solid infrastructure was implemented to control the situation as well as to contain the ever increasing population. According to investigations done by Consulting engineer Nizar Abdullah it was evident that failure to maintain the flood plain as well as drainage channels which were established primarily to protect the city of Jeddah was the main reason behind the flood (Naill & Ayman, 2010). Moreover, there was no drainage system in place to allow establishment of a residential district which could direct flood water to the channel established in the North as well as protect dangers of flooding for the city of Jeddah. Disabled storm water drainage projects and sewage due to poor construction systems as well as lack of disaster warning devices both fixed systems as well as mobile ones in the meteorological services which could be used to deliver messages to mobile customers was also major cause for the flood. The emergency management of Jeddah has not in anywhere implemented a emergency body to take over the task of assessing the needs of the city of Jeddah when it comes to dealing with future disasters(Naill & Ayman,2010) .Due to lack of modern technology to detect the missing bodies, lack of cranes and some other important necessities that were supposed to be used during this crises as well as delay in declaring the recovery stage by the Civil Defense the search for missing bodies in Jeddah city took longer time than expected leading to more death and destruction . Good leadership to combat negligence behavior as well as deal with natural disasters among the official as well as key decision makers is important in solving the problem. Application of both transformational and organizational culture theory is important in solving the problem (West & Turner, 2000). Transformational theory emphasizes on leaders who take responsibility in certain events while communication culture insists on putting in place adaptable thinking systems that can correct the situation at hand. As away of solving this problem transformational leadership insists on implementing leadership and public policies which will enhance preparedness as well as increased response abilities to deal with natural and manmade disasters(West & Turner, 2000). The flood proved that failure to take big precautions as well as particular preparations for natural disasters which is a very big mistake for leaders as well as government agencies. Transformational leadership theory suggests that leaders should always bear the responsibility for implementing as well as organizing rescue operations, evacuation and providing necessary assistance in the event of a disaster .This is very much important in solving the Jeddah disaster problem (West & Turner, 2000). Moreover, proper actions and policies should be implemented which limit as well as reduce the risks of natural and man-made disasters. The government should identify risks and develop programs which are ready for rescue if the event takes place. As far as Jeddah Disaster is concerned despite the governmental prior knowledge on the dangers of floods it did not implement any measures to control the situation (Naill & Ayman, 2010). The recent disaster of Jeddah has called for urgent mechanisms for reporting natural hazards and taking appropriate decisions, actions as well as precautions when it comes to dealing with disaster strikes. There is need to establish effective mechanisms that will fight corruption as well as address the abuse of power. The city is located on the coast hence with increasing population there is need for land reclamation areas from the east which today forms two thirds of the current city. Jeddah flood disasters proved that it was necessary to implement early warning systems which are linked to various departments within the city such as the traffic department, Civil Defense, the National Guard, the Jeddah Municipal council among others. Implementing such systems could warn affected communities as well as surrounding institutions on impending disasters. Large losses were as result of corruption hence need to establish effective mechanisms which can fight corruption as well as address the whole issue of power abuse which was the cause of disabled storm water drainage and sewage projects (Naill & Ayman,2010). Putting in place national anti-corruption institutions will not in any manner interfere with any governmental ministries as well as non-governmental organizations. In addition these institutions should be financially and administratively dependent to actively monitor the projects budget of these institutions and government ministries. Policies should be implemented which prevent property construction in valleys. Activating the maintenance equipment role as well as use of environmental protection laws in periods of excess rainfall .It is important that the Association of Meteorology and Environmental Protection should implements new laws and approaches which can notify and warn communities on floods before any disaster can strike. Important to develop awareness programs which can prevent dangers of rain and floods as well as preparing hydrological studies which can address the tendencies surface when creating new roads as well as maintaining old ones (Naill & Ayman,2010). Conclusions Despite the mere fact that the task is huge as well as challenging, transformational leadership from the teams’ chairman and Prince Khaled Al-Faisal should be implemented. The investigation committee under its leadership should come up effective measures that meet the Kingdom expectations. The Jeddah tragedy actually is an event which offers an opportunity to unmask hidden causes as well as implement measures which eliminates them to make cities safe and protected. Reviewing all the regulations and plans related to natural as well as man-made disasters management in the Kingdom References Bass, B. M. (1985). Leadership and performance beyond expectations. New York: The Free Press. Bass, B. M., & Avolio, B. J. (1994). Improving organizational effectiveness through Transformational leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Burns, J.M. (1978). Leadership. N.Y: Harper and Raw Naill, M., M & Ayman S., F (2010). Changing Public Policy Due to Saudi City of Jeddah Flood Disaster .Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Science Publications Geertz, C. (2009). The interpretation of cultures.  New York:  Basic Books. Griffin, E. (2010). A first look at communication theory (4th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill. 248-58. West, R., & Turner, L. H. (2000). 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