Charles Perry

Date of Award

Fall 10-9-2003

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Public Administration (MPA)

Comments

Like other public service organizations, some fire departments thrive while many others merely survive. The command and control of emergency response requires an autocratic leadership style, but many non-emergency aspects of fire department organizational development suffer when leaders disregard the needs of employees. Most leadership researchers recognize the importance of balancing the procedural needs of the organization with the needs of the people who do the work, but because of the bureaucratic nature of the fire service, chief officers tend to focus on establishing structural controls to manage their organizations. As a result, many fire departments fail to thrive as organizations. Leadership is an elusive concept that is difficult to define, but the literature identifies many indicators of thriving organizations as well as indicators of successful leadership behavior. Indicators of organizational thrivability include open communication, a supportive work environment, organizational learning, cooperation and teamwork that focuses on excellence, innovation, trust and its antecedents, affective organizational commitment, and a consensus of organizational goals among subcultures. Indicators of successful leadership behavior include functioning as a positive change agent, sharing organizational vision, having behavioral integrity, seeking alternative opinions, demonstrating genuine concern for employees, and focusing on employee development and maturation. Personnel from six municipal fire departments were surveyed for the presence of these indicators, and their responses were analyzed. Response analysis indicated a very strong, positive relationship between indicators of successful leadership and indicators of organizational thrivability.

Download
Files over 3MB may be slow to open. For best results, right-click and select "save as..."

Share

COinS